Army Air Corps in the Mess Hall on Thanksgiving (ca. 1943)
Description:
This black and white photograph shows Army Air Corps Cadets in uniforms standing at attention surrounding the dining table in the mess hall at Springfield College as they wait to eat their food. The Thanksgiving (ca. 1943) dinner pictured on trays in front of the cadets included apples, turkey, and other various table contents. Soldiers appear to be lining the back of the wall. At the start of World War II, Springfield College served as training grounds for the Army Air Corps, which allotted the college $90,000 for upgrading facilities. In the spring of 1944, the training program was canceled; in order to conserve its assets for expanded postwar operations in the face of decreasing student enrollment, Springfield College negotiated a contract with the U.S. Navy to serve as a Naval Special Hospital. The Navy allotted $75,000 to bring the college up to the mark of a naval hospital, and the first contingent of one hundred and fifty patients arrived on September 22, 1944. It was estimated that five hundred patients could be served. Alumni Hall was used as the hospital, and the old dormitory (now called the Administration Building) became administrative offices and housing for nurses and WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service).
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