Thursday, May 23, 2024

Squad Bay Barracks

 A buddy recently asked me if I had ever slept in a wooden, two-story barracks.


Yeah, I've slept in those.  For several years, with 40 of my closest friends.

I've slept in them at Riley, Knox, Polk, and Dix, that I can recall.  At Knox, as a company commander, I was personally signed for eight of those, with a supply room, a mess hall, a day room and an orderly room.  I had quite the little fiefdom.

Any of y'all ever sleep in these things?

18 comments:

juvat said...

Yep, Wendover Utah, for an Rapid Deployment Force Red Flag exercise in the mid-80's. The REDHORSE engineers had to do some basic renovation on them. Water, plumbing, electricity and making the chow hall functional. It was kinda fun, wouldn't want to do it for an extended period, but still fun.
Wendover was the base where the crews that dropped the big one on Japan trained and also might have been where the Doolittle crews trained I can't remember. Talk about out in the Boondocks.
juvat

Anonymous said...

yeah, FT. Polk in 75 and again at FT Campbell until they finished the "new barracks" for us.

Anonymous said...

Basic at Fort Lewis, Signal School at Fort Gordon.

michigan doug said...

1978 ft sill basic .13b

Anonymous said...

1969 Naval Station Norfolk, VA

Anonymous said...

Yep, Ft Lost in the woods. Those suckers had no insulation, the coal fired furnaces put just as much smoke in the barracks as up the chimneys, and the single pane windows would sound like baby rattles when the wind blew. Good times - not.

Anonymous said...

Lackland, Lowry, Wright Patterson, Riley, Knox, Campbell, Picket and Hood. Ed Jones

Anonymous said...

Ft Wood here, too. AIT in '76, 63B Mechanic. August and September. I Guess they were pretty hot, but then I never had air conditioning before then, so I was pretty well used to it anyway. For basic, we were in the brick barracks.

Jester said...

Ft Mccoy Wi still has them if I recall.

KurtP said...

Construction Battalion Center Gulfport, MS
When I went through A- school and overflow barracks in the battalion in the '80s.

Glypto Dropem said...

Sure did, spring & summer of 1981 at Fort Gordon. The last of the wooden WWII era barracks there called "Stick City". The others were newer 3 story air conditioned brick buildings known as "Brick City"

Those old barracks were in good working order and well maintained. Stifling hot at night with a fan at each end of the floor to move some air. But I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. My bunkmate was a guy named Ralph Breshears from Arkansas. He had the top bunk.

Anonymous said...

I’ve slept in them at Ft Lewis, Yakima Training Center and Fort Bragg.

BobF said...

Yep. Chanute AFB, IL. 1963

Gaffer said...

Lord yes. Back in the fifties before they even thought about building the "brick palaces". I don't miss them.

Anonymous said...

Yup. Basic at Fort Jackson, SC.

Unknown said...

Ft Ord CA 1958 - my induction anniversary was day before yesterday

Old NFO said...

NAS Glynco, NAS Memphis, 'upgraded' at NAS Moffett to a 1930s brick one!

Anonymous said...

Lackland 1983, Yup .hot,but well maintained.