The Desert Training Center/California-Arizona Maneuver California-Arizona Maneuver Area, Area, 1942–1944, Volume 1: Historical and Archaeological Contexts for the California Desert
Creators: name: Bischoff, Matt
Publisher: name: SRI Press
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Yuma
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subject: Searchlight
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/62048/searchlight
subject: Indio
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/10449/indio
subject: Needles
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/36641/needles
subject: Colorado River
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/3526/colorado-river
subject: Gila River
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/3958/gila-river
subject: Mojave Desert
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/54298/mojave-desert
subject: Blythe
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/10123/blythe
subject: California (State / Territory)
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/1484/california-state-territory
subject: Arizona (State / Territory)
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/geographic-keyword/79515/arizona-state-territory
subject: World War II
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/temporal-keyword/3992/world-war-ii
subject: World War II
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/culture-keyword/1535/world-war-ii
subject: Historic
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/culture-keyword/25/historic
subject: Euroamerican
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/culture-keyword/28/euroamerican
subject: Camp Coxcomb
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89148/camp-coxcomb
subject: Camp Clipper
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89147/camp-clipper
subject: Camp Essex
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89150/camp-essex
subject: Camp Desert Center
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89149/camp-desert-center
subject: Camp Ibis
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89152/camp-ibis
subject: Camp Granite
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89151/camp-granite
subject: Camp Needles
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89154/camp-needles
subject: Camp Iron Mountain
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89153/camp-iron-mountain
subject: Camp Rice
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89156/camp-rice
subject: Camp Pilot Knob
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89155/camp-pilot-knob
subject: Shaver’s Summit Airport
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89158/shavers-summit-airport
subject: Camp Young
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89157/camp-young
subject: Essex Airfield
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89160/essex-airfield
subject: Desert Center Army Airfield
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89159/desert-center-army-airfield
subject: Rice Army Airfield
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89162/rice-army-airfield
subject: Needles Airport
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89161/needles-airport
subject: Thermal Army Airfield
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-name/89163/thermal-army-airfield
subject: Campsites
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/912/campsites
subject: Military Structure
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/322/military-structure
subject: Non-Domestic Structures
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/309/non-domestic-structures
subject: Bivouacs
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/2405/bivouacs
subject: Maneuver Areas
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/2407/maneuver-areas
subject: Domestic Structure or Architectural Complex
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/251/domestic-structure-or-architectural-complex
subject: Settlements
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/site-type/252/settlements
subject: Historic structures
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/material-type/2229/historic-structures
subject: Building Materials
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/material-type/8/building-materials
subject: Rock Alignments
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/material-type/2136/rock-alignments
subject: Metal
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/material-type/11/metal
subject: Historic Background Research
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/investigation-type/18/historic-background-research
subject: Consultation
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/investigation-type/4/consultation
subject: Heritage Management
valueUri: https://core.tdar.org/browse/investigation-type/24/heritage-management

description: With the German Afrika Korps driving across the North African desert with impunity in 1941 and 1942, the U.S. Army realized that it might be called upon to assist its British ally in the fight against the Germans and Italians. Egypt, along with the strategic Suez Canal and the Middle East in general, was in danger of being lost to the Axis powers. It became imperative that the Axis be expelled from North Africa. The U.S. Army, however, had never fought a large-scale war in a desert environment. As a result, the Army Ground Forces designated more than 18,000 square miles of the Arizona and California desert as an armored training facility. Maj. Gen. George S. Patton, Jr., was placed in charge of establishing this facility and served as its first commanding officer. The facility would thereafter reflect his tough image and relentless training doctrines. The facility was called the Desert Training Center (DTC), and its mission was to harden and prepare troops for the rigors of desert warfare in the forthcoming invasion of North Africa. Operating from 1942 to 1944, the DTC expanded far beyond this original scope and in 1943 became known as the California-Arizona Maneuver Area (C-AMA). The Desert Training Center/California-Arizona Maneuver Area, 1942–1944: Historical and Archaeological Contexts provides an in-depth look at the history of this massive military training ground. The facility was truly massive in scale. Numerous divisional camps—measuring three miles long by one mile wide and housing more than 15,000 men each—were established throughout the desert. In addition, the facility contained airfields, supply depots, railroad siding, hospitals, ranges, and maneuver areas. Because of its hasty construction, short duration, and the army's desire to train men under spartan conditions, the DTC/C-AMA contained few permanent structures and was quite ephemeral compared with other military bases. Nevertheless, countless reminders of this massive training facility exist throughout the California desert today. Maneuver areas, where entire divisions practiced, attacking and defending huge land areas, can be seen. Small camps, where individual units were stationed, are marked with rock-lined walkways, and unit symbols are spelled out in rocks of different colors. Tank tracks can also be detected in a variety of locations. This report provides descriptions of the remaining property types· associated with the DTC/C-AMA and commentary on the significance of these resources. Included are details on the administrative history of the facility, the daily lives of the men stationed there, and the weapons, vehicles, and equipment used. Illustrated with historic as well as modern photographs, maps, and drawings, this report helps the reader gain an intimate sense of what took place in this portion of the Mojave Desert more than half a century ago. Volume 1 of 2