Fifteen separate main contract units were then authorized for the construction of the cantonment proper. Twenty-one other separate contracts and purchase orders were authorized for miscellaneous items of construction work and equipment incident to the completion of the main camp before, during and after the main contracts were awarded. 22 Feb 1942 . War Department announced the name of the new Durham area military reservation as Camp Butner in honor of MG Henry Wolfe Butner, a native of Surry County, NC who had died in 1937 following a distinguished military career. 28 Feb 1942 .
First contracts let on construction.
2 Mar 1942 . Service contract executed with Duke Power Company for the construction of a substation and to furnish electric power service. 6 Mar 1942 . At the height of the construction during the next several months as many as 15,000 men worked as laborers. The average pay ran form 35-90 cents per hour for labor.