Artillery Officer Candidate School - PDF Free Download (2023)

1 Artillery Officer Candidate School Fort Sill History Field Artillery Branch Air Defense Artillery Branch Artillery OCS Hall of Fame

2 Contents The Alumni Chapter Officer Candidate School History Leadership: General George C. Marshall - July 1941 Artillery OCS at Fort Sill LTG Carl H. Jark School Commandants Graduates by Year Artillery OCS Hall of Fame Artillery OCS Hall of Heroes Distinguished Graduates OCS Today at Fort Benning FA and ADA BOLC-B at Fort Sill The Roots of Field Artillery and Air Defense Artillery (Coast Artillery - Seacoast Artillery - Antiaircraft Artillery) History of Fort Sill Fort Sill National Historic Landmark and Museum US Army Air Defense Museum US Army Artillery Museum Field Artillery School History Air Defense Artillery School Air Defense Artillery History Oozlefinch Soldier Saint Barbara Fiddler s Green Revised 7/1/17

3 Artillery Officer Candidate School Alumni Chapter, Incorporated We are a 501c3 non-profit organization incorporated in 2002.The Artillery OCS Alumni Chapter is the largest and most active Chapter of the US Field Artillery Association. Recognized as the Over All Best Chapter in the U.S. Field Artillery Association s Chapters of Excellence Program for 2014 and a Chapter of Excellence for The Artillery OCS Alumni Chapter is organized and dedicated to: Preserving and maintaining the history of the Fort Sill Artillery Officer Candidate School and the historical records and memorabilia of the Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame. Promoting interest and pride in the history of the OCS program. Planning, directing and coordinating educational programs for the general public. Promoting interest and pride in the general public regarding the development of officers through OCS and the contributions of those officers to our Nation. Preserving and maintaining the last remaining World War II- era wooden barracks at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Chapter operations are carried out exclusively by volunteers. There is no paid staff. The Alumni Chapter leases building 3025 (Durham Hall) from the US Army. It is the only WWII era wooden barracks remaining at Fort Sill. Building 3025 the home of the Fort Sill Artillery Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame was named Durham Hall on 20 May 1999 in memory of 2LT Harold B. Pinky Durham, Jr., OCS Class 1-67, a Vietnam Medal of Honor recipient (posthumous). The area occupied by the Officer Candidate School was named Robinson Barracks on 15 April 1953 in memory of 1LT James E. Robinson, OCS Class a World War II Medal of Honor recipient (posthumous). A four day reunion of graduates is held each year at Fort Sill. The 34th annual reunion is planned for late April or early May 2018 in Lawton/Fort Sill. 1/78 FA is the host unit for the annual reunion activities and works in conjunction with the Alumni Chapter on a year around basis to plan and coordinate the event.

4 Current Officers of the Chapter: LTC Michael T. Anders, President Mr. William Ford, Vice-President Mr. Randy Dunham, Secretary Mr. Mike Dooley (Deputy to the Brigade Commander 428 FA Bde), Treasurer BG (Ret) Billy Cooper, Director COL (Ret) Harvey Glowaski, Director COL (Ret) Wayne Hunt, Director LTC (Ret) David Kendall, Director Mr. Rich Cobin, Director Chapter Phone: Website: Facebook: Mailing Address: Artillery OCS Alumni Chapter Inc. PO Box Fort Sill, OK

5 The U. S. Army Officer Corps and the Roots of the Army Officer Candidate School The modern U.S. Army has its roots in the Continental Army, which was formed on 14 June 1775, to fight the American Revolutionary War ( ), before the United States was established as a country. After the Revolutionary War, the Congress of the Confederation created the United States Army on 3 June 1784, to replace the disbanded Continental Army. The United States Army considers itself descended from the Continental Army, and dates its inception from the origin of that armed force in From 1775 to 1815 the United States was continuously involved in military conflicts with American Indians and various European countries. The United States was forced to rely on militia and volunteers, with no federal standards of training and competence. Officers below the rank of colonel were appointed by the states. It was believed from the beginning that members of the officer corps must come from society, not a segment of it. Officers must be available and able to train and lead citizen soldiers in time of war and must not use their monopoly of knowledge to their own means. The new country needed a school which would teach the mathematical and physical sciences and their applications to military problems, as well as to the problems of agriculture, industry and the means of internal communications. The result would be a national military academy. The United States Military Academy (USMA) was established at West Point in 1802 The Continental Army first occupied West Point, New York, on 27 January 1778, and it is the oldest continuously-operating Army post in the United States. Cadets had been trained at West Point since 1794 and the USMA was established there by an act of Congress on 16 March The college from which ROTC originated is Norwich University, founded in 1819 as the American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy. The university was founded by former West Point instructor, Captain Alden Partridge, who promoted the idea of a "citizen soldier"- a man trained to act in a military capacity when his nation required, but capable of fulfilling standard civilian functions in peacetime. This idea eventually led to the formation of Reservist and National Guard units with regimented training in place of local militia forces. The Reserve Officers Training Corp (ROTC) was eventually established in 1916 The concept of ROTC in the United States began with the Morrill Act of 1862 which established the land-grant colleges. Part of the federal government's requirement for these schools was that they include military tactics as part of their curriculum, forming what became known as ROTC. 1

6 Officer Training Before and During World War I ( ) Military Training Camps for college students during formed a connecting link between the antiquated system of military training at land grant colleges and the new Citizen s Military Training Camps (CMTC) and Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) program established by the National Defense Act of World War I delayed implementation of the CMTC program until 1921 and ROTC was only able to commission 133 officers by Plattsburgh Camps ( ) were part of a volunteer pre-enlistment training program organized by private citizens before the U.S. entry into World War I. The camps were set up and funded by the Preparedness Movement, a group of influential pro-allied Americans. They recognized that the standing U.S. Army was far too small to affect the war and would have to expand immensely if the U.S. went to war. The Preparedness Movement established the camps to train additional potential Army officers during the summers of 1915 and The largest and best-known camp was near Plattsburgh, New York. The participants were required to pay their own expenses. They ultimately provided the cadre of a wartime officer corps. Graduates of the camps gave the spark for the formation of the Military Training Camps Association (MTCA), with the core of its membership principally alumni of the Plattsburg training. MTCA turned the Plattsburg training camps planned for the summer of 1917 into what would be called Officer s Training Schools (OTS). Officer Training Schools (OTS) - ( ) Sixteen Officer Training Schools (OTS) were opened on 15 May and closed on 15 August A second series of camps opened on 27 August and ended on 17 November A third series of camps opened on 5 January 1918 and ended on 19 April The fourth series opened on 18 May 1918, most of them in Army and National Guard Division camps. Most of those candidates were absorbed into the newly created Central Officer Training Schools (COTS), while the rest completed their training and were commissioned overseas. Other small camps were established Puerto Rico, the Philippines, Hawaii and Panama. Officer Training Camps for African Americans: Provisional Officer Training Camp (OTC) and the Medical Officers Training Camp (MOTC) Colored - ( ) Almost 1,400 volunteers arrived a Fort Des Moines, Iowa to be trained at the Army s first training camps for African American officers. Two groups trained there. The first trained line officers. It was called the 17th Provisional Officer Training Camp (OTC) and ran from 18 June to 18 October The candidates included 1000 college graduates and 250 NCO s from the 9th and 10th Cavalry (Buffalo Soldiers) and the 24th and 25th Infantry. The course graduated 639 Captains and Lieutenants. The second was called the Medical Officers Training Camp (MOTC) - Colored and trained medical and dental officers, most of whom were physicians and dentists who had left their practices to join the war effort. 104 Medical Officers and 12 dental officers qualified and graduated from the MOTC. 2

7 Central Officer Training Schools (COTS) - (1918) Eight Central Officer Training Schools (COTS) were established - five for Infantry, one for Machine Gunners, one for Field Artillery and one for Cavalry. Major General William J. Snow was harshly critical of the shortcomings of earlier versions of the officer training camps. He was named Chief of the Field Artillery in February 1918 and recommended the establishment of a Field Artillery Central Officer Training School at Camp Zachary Taylor, Kentucky. He helped make it one of the best. Drills began at the Field Artillery Central Officer Training School (COTS) at Camp Zachary Taylor on 24 June 1918 and by 20 November it was the largest school of any kind in the world, with 14,469 candidates. On 11 November 1918, the Secretary of War directed that no more candidates be admitted to any of the COTS. The candidates in attendance at the time had the option of taking an immediate discharge or finishing the course. 80,416 line officers were commissioned during and shortly after World War I. They constituted more than 60% of the total officer strength in the combat arms. Infantry: 48,968 Field Artillery: 20,291 Quartermaster Corps: 3,067 Coast Artillery; 2,063 Cavalry: 2,032 Engineer Corps: 1,966 Signal Corps: 1,262 Ordnance Corps: 767 After the war, the U.S. Army shrank from its wartime high of almost 2.5 million men to about 140,000 while its officer strength declined from 130,000 to 12,000. Citizens' Military Training Camps (CMTC) - ( ) CMTC were military training programs of the United States, held annually each summer during the years 1921 to 1940, the CMTC camps differed from National Guard and Reserves training in that the program allowed male citizens to obtain basic military training without an obligation to call-up for active duty. The CMTC were authorized by the National Defense Act of 1916 and were a continuation of the Plattsburg camps of The CMTC camps were formalized under the Military Training Camps Association (MTCA) CMTC camps were a month in length and held at about 50 Army posts nationally. At their peak in 1928 and 1929, about 40,000 men received training, but the camps were a disappointment at their multiplicity of stated goals, but particularly in the commissioning of Reserve officers. The program established that participants could receive a reserve commission as a second lieutenant by completing four successive summer courses (titled Basic, White, Red, and Blue), but only 5,000 commissions were awarded over the 20-year history of the CMTC. It is estimated that 400,000 men had at least one summer of training. 3

8 The Formation of OCS: The Military Training Camps Association (MTCA) proposed and helped secure passage of the first peacetime draft in September The Selective Service and Training Act of 16 September 1940 required all men to register for one year of service by 16 October Within one year the Army grew from 265,000 to 1,400,00. The MTCA wanted to use the same process to obtain additional officers as it had done during They wanted to establish a large program of Plattsburgh type camps. Secretary of War Henry Stimson and Assistant Secretary of War agreed. MTCA felt that three months would be ample to turn the best brains in the country into second lieutenants, that an adequate officers school could be set up within ten days and five or six qualified persons could handle the instruction very effectively. The Army and Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall disagreed. The MTCA believed that the best brains would be lost to the Army if men had to enlist before taking officer training and then serve on active duty for a year or more. The Army believed the draft would bring in more than enough best brains. The initial OCS plan had been submitted to the Chief of the Infantry in June In June 1940, the War Department directed the Infantry Board to revise the plan. General Marshall knew that if the draft was renewed in the fall of 1941 there would be serious morale problems. He believed that war with Japan was inevitable and that additional junior officers would be required. Securing them from the ranks would improve morale. He was determined to condition junior officers physically and psychologically by service on the enlisted level. He was determined to create a competitive and democratic system for the procurement of officers. The initial planning for OCS in late 1940 was vigorously promoted by General Marshall. General Marshall promoted Colonel Omar Bradley to Brigadier General in February 1941, appointed him Commandant of the Infantry School and instructed him to get the OCS plan going. On March 6, 1941 Bradley forwarded his recommendations to the War department. The recommendations were approved on March 25, 1941 and OCS was established. Infantry OCS at Fort Benning opened on 1 July Class #1 started with 204 candidates and graduated 171 on 27 September The attrition rate was 16%. Field Artillery OCS at Fort Sill opened on 10 July Class #1 started with 126 candidates and graduated 79 on 1 October The attrition rate was 37%. When Class graduated on 18 February 1943, the Field Artillery Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill had commissioned 13,690 second lieutenants, since opening on 1 October That number surpassed the total commissioned from the United States Military Academy at West Point since it had opened in 1802 (191 years). The Course at Fort Sill was 12 weeks long until 2 July 1943, when it was expanded to 17 weeks. During the period the 12-week course at Fort Sill commissioned 22,338 officers and the 17-week course commissioned 3,722. The program at Fort Sill peaked in late 1942, with 12 classes of 550 in session. Most of the candidates were housed in 1,138 six-man hutments. The course capacity was authorized at 6,600. 4

9 Officers Commissioned by the Infantry and Artillery OCS programs during the WWII era: Infantry OCS 61,202 Field Artillery OCS 26,606 AAA OCS 25,109 Seacoast Artillery OCS 1,964 Field Artillery OCS at Fort Sill closed on 12 December Artillery OCS at Fort Sill reopened on 21 February The course was lengthened to 23 weeks and the candidates were housed in wooden barracks with the Headquarters in Building 3025.The last class graduated on 7 July It was not until 1992 (19 years after the last OCS class graduated from Fort Sill) that the number of graduates from West Point surpassed the totals from the OCS program at Fort Sill. Officers commissioned at Fort Sill OCS and the USMA during the Vietnam build-up: Year Artillery OCS USMA , , , , , ,

10 Officer Candidate School Historic Overview 10 OCS programs were activated in 1941 Infantry Signal Armor Field Artillery Coastal Artillery Quartermaster Medical Engineer Cavalry Ordnance The programs commissioned 280,000 officers by the end of WW II Largest programs: Infantry 61,202 graduates Field Artillery 25,143 graduates During December 1942 OCS commissioned more officers than had graduated from the United States Military Academy the previous 140 years. Total Army Strength: ,268,000 Late ,899, ,000 OCS was reduced to one program at Fort Riley by December 1946 Seven OCS programs were activated during the Korean War: Infantry, Field Artillery, Signal, Engineer, Ordnance, Anti-Aircraft Artillery (at Fort Bliss) and Fort Riley (for all other branches) By 1954 two OCS programs remained: Infantry and Field Artillery Seven OCS programs operated during the Vietnam War: Infantry Field Artillery Signal Engineer Armor (also commissioned Ordnance, Quartermaster and Transportation) Ordnance and Transportation OCS were activated in 1966 Only Infantry, Field Artillery and Engineer OCS remained after 1967 (Field Artillery OCS also commissioned Air Defense Artillery and Signal after June 1968) Field Artillery OCS closed in July 1973 after commissioning more than second lieutenants. Fort Benning became the Branch Immaterial OCS in April 1973

11 "Leadership" Address of General George C. Marshall, Chief Of Staff To The First Officer Candidates Schools July 1941 You are about to assume the most important duty that our officers are called upon to perform-the direct command of combat units of American soldiers. To succeed requires two fundamental qualifications- -thorough professional knowledge and a capacity for leadership. The schools have done all that can be done in the limited time available to equip you professionally, and your technique of weapons and tactics should rapidly improve with further study and actual practice. However, they cannot provide you with qualities of leadership-that courage and evident high purpose which command the respect and loyalty of American soldiers. You were selected as officer candidates because you gave evidence of possessing these qualifications. Whether or not you develop into truly capable leaders depends almost entirely upon you personally. Your school work has been under ideal conditions from an instructional standpoint; but when you join your organizations, you will find many difficulties and deficiencies complicating your task. There will be shortages in equipment, for example. These are being made good as rapidly as possible, but so long as they exist they are a challenge to your ingenuity and not an invitation to fall back on an overdose of close order drill and the other necessary but stultifying minutia which so irked the army of 1917 that we still suffer from the repercussions. Warfare today is a thing of swift movement;-of rapid concentrations. It requires the building up of enormous fire power against successive objectives with breathtaking speed. It is not a game for the unimaginative plodder. Modern battles are fought by platoon leaders. The carefully prepared plans of higher commanders can do no more than project you to the line of departure at the proper time and place, in proper formation, and start you off in the right direction. Thereafter the responsibility for results is almost entirely yours. If you know your business of weapons and tactics, if you have insured the complete confidence and loyalty of your men, things will go well on that section of the front. There is a gulf between the drill ground or cantonment type of leadership and that necessary for the successful command of men when it may involve the question of sacrificing one's life. Our army differs from all other armies. The very characteristic which make our men potentially the best soldiers in the world can be in some respects a possible source of weakness. Racially we are not, a homogeneous people, like the British for example, who can glorify a defeat by their stubborn tenacity and clogged discipline. We have no common racial group and we have deliberately cultivated individual interest and

12 independence of thought and action. Our men are intelligent and resourceful to an unusual degree. These characteristics, these qualities may be, in effect, explosive or positively destructive in a military organization, especially under adverse conditions, unless the leadership is wise and determined, and units the leader commands the complete respect of his men. Never for an instant can you divest yourselves of the fact that you are officers. On the athletic field, at the club, in civilian clothes, or even at home on leave, the fact that you are a commissioned officer in the army imposes a constant obligation to higher standards than might ordinarily seem normal or necessary for your personal guidance. A small dereliction becomes conspicuous, at times notorious, purely by reason of the fact that the individual concerned is a commissioned officer. But the evil result goes much further than a mere matter of unfortunate publicity. When you are commanding, leading men under conditions where physical exhaustion and privations must be ignored; where the lives of men may he sacrificed, then, the efficiency of your leadership will depend only to a minor degree on your tactical or technical ability. It will primarily be determined by your character, your reputation, not so much for courage, which will he accepted as a matter of course, but by the previous reputation you have established for fairness, for that high minded patriotic purpose, that quality of unswerving determination to carry through any military task assigned you. The feeling which the men must hold for you is not to be compared to the popularity of a football coach or a leader of civic activities. Professional competence is essential to leadership and your knowledge of arms, equipment, and tactics operations must be clearly superior to that possessed by your subordinates; at the same time, you must command their respect above and beyond those qualities. It is difficult to make a clear picture of the obligations and requirements for an officer. Conduction of campaigns and the demands of the battle field are seldom appreciated except by veterans of such experience. The necessity for discipline is never fully comprehended by the soldier until he has undergone the order of battle, and even then he lacks a basis of comparison, the contrast between the action of a disciplined regiment and the failure and probable disintegration of one which lacks that intangible quality. The quality of officers is tested to the limit during the long and trying periods of waiting, of marching here and there without evident purpose and during those weeks or months of service under conditions of extreme discomfort or of possible privations or isolation. The true leader surmounts all of these difficulties, maintaining the discipline of his unit and further developing its training. Where there is a deficiency of such leadership, serious results invariably follow, and too often the circumstances are directed to the conditions under which the unit labored

13 rather than towards the individual who failed in his duty because he was found wanting in inherent ability to accept his responsibilities. Remember that we are a people prone to be critical of everything except that for which we are personally responsible. Remember also that to a soldier a certain amount of grouching appears to be necessary. However, there is a vast difference between these usually amusing reactions and the destructive and disloyal criticism of the undisciplined soldier. Mental alertness, initiative and vision are qualities which you must cultivate. Passive inactivity because you have not been given specific instruction to do this or to do that is a serious deficiency. Always encourage initiative on the part of your men, but initiative must of course, be accomplished by intelligence. Much of what I have said has been by way of repetition of one thought which I wish you gentlemen to carry with you to your new duties. You will be responsible for a unit in the Army of the United States in this great emergency. Its quality, its discipline, its training will depend upon your leadership. Whatever deficiencies there are must be charged to your failure or incapacity. Remember that: The truly great leader overcomes all difficulties, and campaigns and battles are nothing but a long series of difficulties to be overcome. The lack of equipment, the lack of food, the lack of this or that are only excuses; the real leader displays his quality in his triumphs over adversity, however great it may be. Good luck to you. We expect great things of you. Your class is the first of which I believe will be the finest group of troop leaders in the world.

14 History of Fort Sill Artillery OCS: The Army s officer candidate schools were inaugurated under the authority of a War Department directive dated 26 April The Field Artillery OCS was established at Fort Sill with the first class of 126 candidates starting 10 July That same year, a second class of 126 reported on 19 August. The 13-week course was for warrant officers and enlisted men who had served at least six months on the date of enrollment in the course. The course covered gunnery, communications, tactics and other subjects. In mid- 1943, it was expanded to 17 weeks to include more instruction on tactics, Army administration, military law, mess management and general military subjects. General R.N. Danford, World War II Chief of Field Artillery, and Brigadier General George R. Allin, Commandant of the Field Artillery School, set early procedures and standards for their OCS candidates. They directed the candidates be worked as hard as possible to weed out those who could not take the pressure. As originally organized in June 1941, a Commandant of Candidates headed OCS with a staff of three. The first Commandant was Captain Carl H. Jark, who retired as a Lieutenant General. By November 1942, the staff had expanded to 66 officers and the course capacity was 6,600 candidates: 12 classes of 550 candidates each. The candidates were organized by classes, four to a battalion. Each class was broken into sections of approximately 30 candidates. With the fall of the Japanese Empire and the cessation of hostilities in August 1945, the need for Field Artillery officers became less critical. On 12 December 1946, the Field Artillery OCS was closed. By this date, 26,209 second lieutenants had graduated and were commissioned from the program. The outbreak of hostilities in Korea demanded an immediate response, so Artillery OCS was reactivated on 21 February The first class since 1946 reported to attend the new 23 week course at Fort Sill. Fifty-seven candidates started with the class and 28 were commissioned. In 1954, several National Guard classes were established for a rigorous 11-week course. Then in June 1957, Army Reserve classes began a similar program. Due to the conflict in Southeast Asia, the enrollment rapidly increased and by 1967 the Officer Candidate Brigade had six battalions with 42 batteries. The FY 1967 expansion program was highlighted by the construction of 13 new barracks and administrative facilities to support a programmed input of up to 9600 candidates. In February 1967, a general order re-designated the tactical organization of the Officer Candidate School as the Officer Candidate Brigade, and the title of "Commandant" was changed to "Commanding Officer." For the next few years, the Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill consolidated its program to parallel the decreasing need for lieutenants. On 7 July 1973, after the American withdrawal from Vietnam, the Field Artillery OCS officially closed with the graduation of class 4-73, a graduating class of only 26. More than 48,500 Second Lieutenants were commissioned from 1941 to The Jark The term Jark, was coined by the OCS Cadre to describe a fast paced disciplinary tour from Robinson Barracks to the top of Medicine Bluff 4 (MB4) and back at port arms, a physically onerous task. The Jarks were held every Saturday and Sunday afternoon for those candidates who had accumulated an excessive number of demerits or other violations. The Jark was named in honor of the school s first commandant. The step was 42 inches and the pace was 120 steps per minute. The prescribed uniform varied throughout the school s history, but in most cases it was the fatigue uniform, baseball cap, pistol belt with full canteen, poncho with first-aid kit, combat boots and rifle. Total distance was 4.2 miles.

15 Fort Sill Artillery OCS and Robinson Barracks The Robinson Barracks area along Jones Road near I-See-O Hall housed the Fort Sill Artillery Officer Candidate School. In 1953, the area was named Robinson Barracks in honor of 1LT James E. Robinson Jr., who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in WW II. From 1941 until 1973 the school provided the Army a flow of more than 48,500 second lieutenants for World War II, Korea and Vietnam. During its peak in 1968, the OCS area covered approximately four square blocks and consisted of some 74 structures. Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame - Durham Hall This institution gave us many distinguished leaders in its 32 year history. In November 1967, Colonel Marlin W. Camp, Commander of the Officer Candidate Brigade, directed Colonel Henry A. Grace, the Deputy Commanding Officer, to form a committee of officers to consider creating a Hall of Fame. As a result the US Army Artillery and Missile Center at Fort Sill established the Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame by General Order 115 on 29 June 1968, to honor the significant contributions of these graduates to the Army and the nation. The Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame is located in Durham Hall, Building 3025, on the corner of Austin and Jones Roads. The building was named Durham Hall in 1999 in honor of 2LT Harold Bascom Pinky Durham, Jr., who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War. Building 3025 originally served as an administration and reception building during the World War II expansion and was the OCS Brigade Headquarters from 1952 until Every year, OCS graduates are inducted into the Hall of Fame during the Artillery Officer Candidate School Alumni reunion at Fort Sill. OCS graduates are inducted into the Hall of Fame based on having been awarded the Medal of Honor or Distinguished Service Cross, having attained the rank of Colonel (0-6), appointment or election to an office of prominence in national or state government, or for outstanding service to the nation, community or profession. As of June 30, 2017, there are 1,092 members of the Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame. Two have been awarded the Medal of Honor. 84 have been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. 927 have attained the rank of Colonel (0-6) or Captain (0-6) for Navy/Coast Guard. 81 have been inducted for appointment or election to an Office of Prominence in National or State government or for Outstanding Service to the Nation, Community or Profession. 1,315 Graduates of the Artillery Officer Candidate School gave their lives in service to the Nation during World War II, Korea and Vietnam 932 died during World War II 69 died during the Korean War 314 died during the Vietnam War

16 OCS HUTMENT AREA 1942 LOOKING NORTHEAST FROM RINGGOLD AND CURRIE ROAD ARTILLERY BOWL AND CHAPEL ARE LOCATED IN THE UPPER LEFT CORNER

17 OCS AREA DURING THE 1967 EXPANSION LOOKING TO THE SOUTHWEST DURHAM HALL (BUILDING 3025) IS LOCATED IN THE LOWER RIGHT HAND CORNER

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19 Lieutenant General Carl H. Jark LTG Jark is an important figure in the history of Fort Sill, the Field Artillery School and the Field Artillery Officer Candidate School (FAOCS) that was established at Fort Sill in LTG (then CPT) Jark was the first Commandant of the Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill and served in that position until July After fighting in World War II, he returned to Fort Sill as a Colonel and served as the Executive Officer of the Field Artillery School. He was born on June 13, 1905 in Leigh, Nebraska and graduated from Beatrice High School in Standing at 6 5, LTG Jark was a tremendous athlete and acquired the nickname Tiny which stayed with him for the rest of his life. While a cadet at West Point, Jark participated in the 1929 Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa and broke a (then) world record by throwing a discus 158 feet and 3 inches. He graduated from West Point on 13 June From September 1929 to January 1930, General Jark attended primary flying school. He was then assigned to the 18th Field Artillery at Fort Sill, Oklahoma and entered the Field Artillery School in September He completed the battery officer's course in June 1933, and was appointed assistant property officer for the Oklahoma Civilian Conservation Corps District. He reentered the Field Artillery School In September 1933, and completed the advanced motors course in June General Jark's next assignment was with the 13th Field Artillery at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. In September 1936 he joined the 17th Field Artillery at Fort Bragg, N.C., and in May 1939 became an instructor at the Field Artillery School.

20 In June 1941, CPT Jark was dispatched from the Department of Motors, Field Artillery School by the commandant of the Field Artillery School, BG George R. Allin, given a staff of instructors and assigned an area in the nearby National Guard Cantonment. CPT Jark was in command of the school, its organization, discipline and academic instruction. As originally planned in 1941, the OCS organizational scheme called for a commandant of candidates, an executive officer, an adjutant, and a supply officer. Each class was commanded by a class tactical officer with one assistant class tactical officer per hundred students. CPT Jark's FAOCS headquarters was in Building 2600 (then known as CC 1). The first OCS class was billeted in pyramidal tents (w/ wooden supporting frames on concrete slabs) just east across the street (Currie Road).Their tents paralleled Currie from Ringgold to Miner Road. The next several classes extended the tented battery areas eastward. For a while as each class graduated, an incoming class took its place. This was the original home of OCS and before it closed 12 December 1946, it had expanded into some 1500 hutments in this Concurrent Camp area. The original Classes started with 126 candidates. By the time Jark left, classes of 550 were starting each week and the staff had expanded to strength of 66 officers and an authorized course capacity of 6600 candidates, 12 classes of 550 candidates each. During his long and distinguished career he commanded the 1 st Cavalry Division Artillery in Japan, 2 nd Armored Division Artillery in German. He was Commanding General of the 7th Infantry Division in Korea and the Commanding General of the Fourth U.S. Army from January 1962 until his retirement on July 31, LTG Jark returned to Fort Sill several times during the 1960's and 1970's and visited the Officer Candidate School each time. He served as the Graduation Speaker for Class 4-73, the last class to graduate on July 6, During his address to the last graduating class he offered these words of advice to the newly commissioned second lieutenants: "Those of you who will soar with eagles in the morning should not hoot with owls at night" General Jark s decorations include the Army Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, Army Commendation Medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters and the French Croix de Guerre with Palm. He passed away 22 March 1984 at the age of 78.

21 Fort Sill Officer Candidate School Commandants CPT Carl H. Jark July 1941 July 1942 MAJ Cragie Krayenbuhl August 1942 June 1943 COL John H. Turner July 1943 April 1944 COL Hugh P. Adams May 1944 February 1945 COL Benjamin B. Lattimore March 1945 December 1945 COL John A. MacFarland January 1946 December 1946 COL Franklin G. Smith January 1951 July 1952 COL J. R. Burrill July 1952 May 1953 COL H. E. Liebe May 1953 July 1954 COL William A. Enemark July 1954 August 1956 COL Charles A. Symroski August 1956 September 1957 COL W. J. Gallagher September 1957 June 1958 LTC W. H. Crosson, Jr. June 1958 May 1959 COL B. B. Kercheval May 1959 June 1960 LTC C. K. Charbonneau June 1960 June 1961 COL C. A. Christin, Jr. June 1961 March 1963 LTC A. A. Terris April 1963 August 1963 COL Floyd D. Gattis August 1963 August 1965 COL Charles E Howard August 1965 February 1967 Fort Sill Officer Candidate Brigade Commanders COL Charles E Howard February 1967 May 1967 COL Marlin W. Camp May 1967 July 1968 COL Thomas E. Watson, Jr. July 1968 May 1970 COL Bernard B. Quedens May 1970 August 1970 COL Belvin S. Freeman August 1970 September 1970 COL William J. LeClair September 1970 July 1971 COL Charles H. Bell July 1971 January 1973 LTC B. L. Barge January 1973 July 1973

22 Fort Sill Artillery OCS Graduates by Year Year US Army National US Army Total OCS Guard Reserve Graduates ,973 10, ,094 12, ,785 1, ,953 1, , , , , , , , ,981 1, ,277 1, Totals 47, ,051 49,020

23 The Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame The Fort Sill Artillery Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame was established on 26 June 1968 by General Order Number 115, Headquarters, United States Army Artillery and Missile Center, Fort Sill, Oklahoma. During the 32-year history of the Artillery OCS at Fort Sill, more than 48,500 second lieutenants were commissioned. The Fort Sill Artillery Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame honors the heroism and exceptional achievement of its graduates and recognizes the outstanding contributions of these officers to their country and the Artillery branches. During its history, the Artillery Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill produced a remarkable number of battlefield heroes. Two of these men warrant special mention: First Lieutenant James E. Robinson, Jr., a 1943 graduate was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor during World War II, for his actions in an attack near Untergresheim, Germany, in The area occupied by the Officer Candidate School was named "Robinson Barracks" in his honor on 15 April Second Lieutenant Harold B. Pinky Durham, Jr., a 1967 graduate, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving as a forward observer during the Battle of Ong Thanh, Vietnam in Building number 3025, housing the Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame was named "Durham Hall in his honor on 20 May World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War claimed the lives of 1,315 graduates of the school. The Distinguished Service Cross was awarded to 84 graduates (31 posthumous) for extraordinary heroism during those three conflicts. Brigadier General (Retired) Roscoe Cartwright, the first Black Artilleryman to achieve general officer rank, a 1942 graduate, H. Malcolm Baldrige, former Secretary of Commerce, a 1944 graduate and Martin R. Hoffman, former Secretary of the Army, a 1955 graduate, are among the prominent artillerymen inducted into the Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame has inducted five graduates who achieved the rank of Four-Star General: Jack N. Merritt, former United States Military Representative to the NATO Military Committee, a 1953 graduate; John M. Shalikashvili, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a 1959 graduate; Tommy R. Franks, former Commander in Chief, United States Central Command, a 1967 graduate; Kevin P. Byrnes, former TRADOC Commander, a 1969 graduate; and Bryan D. Brown, former Commander, United States Special Operations Command, a 1970 graduate. The Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame is located in Building 3025, on the corner of Austin and Jones Roads. The structure was built in 1942 as a temporary barracks during the World War II mobilization construction. It was later used as an administration and reception building and then served as the OCS Brigade Headquarters from 1952 until As of June 30, 2017, there are 1,092 members of the Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame Two have been awarded the Medal of Honor 84 have been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross 927 have attained the rank of Colonel (0-6) or Captain (O-6) for Navy/Coast Guard 81 have been appointed or elected to an Office of Prominence in the National or State government or rendered Outstanding Service to their Nation, Community or Profession

24 Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame Graduates of the Artillery Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill are proud of their heritage and fraternal spirit that exalts among Artillerymen around the world. The Artillery Officer Candidate School Hall of Fame was established on 29 June 1968 to honor the heroism and exceptional achievement of its graduates and recognizes the outstanding contributions of these officers to their country and the Artillery. Individuals commissioned from any of the following programs are eligible for induction into the Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame: 1. The Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. 2. The Antiaircraft Artillery Officer Candidate School, Camp Davis, North Carolina ( ). The individual must have been commissioned Coast Artillery Corps and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. 3. The Seacoast Artillery Officer Candidate School, Fort Monroe, Virginia ( ). The individual must have been commissioned Coast Artillery and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. 4. The Army Officer Candidate School (AOCS) at Fort Benning, Georgia ( ). The individual must have been commissioned in an Artillery branch, completed an Artillery branch officer basic course and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. 5. The Ground General School Army Officer Candidate (AOC) Course, Fort Riley, Kansas ( ). The individual must have been commissioned in an Artillery branch, completed an Artillery branch officer basic course, and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. 6. The Antiaircraft Artillery Officer Candidate School, Fort Bliss, Texas ( ). The individual must have been commissioned in an Artillery branch, and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. 7. The Officer Candidate School, Fort Benning, Georgia ( present). The individual must have been commissioned in an Artillery branch, completed an Artillery branch officer basic course, and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. 8. Graduates of other officer candidate schools may also be considered. The individual must have been commissioned in an Artillery branch, completed an Artillery branch officer basic course (or other Artillery branch qualification training) and served in an Artillery assignment after graduation. The graduate must meet one of these requirements for consideration: 1. Is the recipient of the Medal of Honor or the Distinguished Service Cross. 2. Attained the rank of Colonel (0-6) or Captain (0-6) for Navy/Coast Guard, while serving on active duty or with a Reserve Component of the Armed Forces. 3. Has been appointed or elected to an office of prominence in the National or State government. 4. Has rendered outstanding service to his nation, community or profession.

25 MEDAL OF HONOR James E. Robinson, Jr. Class Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Battery A, 861st Field Artillery Battalion, 63d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Untergriesheim, Germany, 6 April Entered service at: Waco, Tex. Birth: Toledo, Ohio. G.O. No.: 117, 11 December Citation: He was a field artillery forward observer attached to Company A, 253d Infantry, near Untergriesheim, Germany, on 6 April Eight hours of desperate fighting over open terrain swept by German machinegun, mortar, and small-arms fire had decimated Company A, robbing it of its commanding officer and most of its key enlisted personnel when 1st Lt. Robinson rallied the 23 remaining uninjured riflemen and a few walking wounded, and, while carrying his heavy radio for communication with American batteries, led them through intense fire in a charge against the objective. Ten German infantrymen in foxholes threatened to stop the assault, but the gallant leader killed them all at point-blank range with rifle and pistol fire and then pressed on with his men to sweep the area of all resistance. Soon afterward he was ordered to seize the defended town of Kressbach. He went to each of the 19 exhausted survivors with cheering words, instilling in them courage and fortitude, before leading the little band forward once more. In the advance he was seriously wounded in the throat by a shell fragment, but, despite great pain and loss of blood, he refused medical attention and continued the attack, directing supporting artillery fire even though he was mortally wounded. Only after the town had been taken and he could no longer speak did he leave the command he had inspired in victory and walk nearly 2 miles to an aid station where he died from his wound. By his intrepid leadership 1st Lt. Robinson was directly responsible for Company A's accomplishing its mission against tremendous odds.

26 MEDAL OF HONOR Harold Bascom Durham, Jr. Class 1-67 Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, U.S. Army, Battery C, 6th Battalion, 15th Artillery, 1st Infantry Division. Place and date: Republic of Vietnam, 17 October Entered service at: Atlanta, Ga. Born: 12 October 1942, Rocky Mount, N.C. Citation: 2d Lt. Durham, Artillery, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the cost of his life above and beyond the call of duty while assigned to Battery C. 2d Lt. Durham was serving as a forward observer with Company D, 2d Battalion, 28th Infantry during a battalion reconnaissance-in-force mission. At approximately 1015 hours contact was made with an enemy force concealed in wellcamouflaged positions and fortified bunkers. 2d Lt. Durham immediately moved into an exposed position to adjust the supporting artillery fire onto the insurgents. During a brief lull in the battle he administered emergency first aid to the wounded in spite of heavy enemy sniper fire directed toward him. Moments later, as enemy units assaulted friendly positions, he learned that Company A, bearing the brunt of the attack, had lost its forward observer. While he was moving to replace the wounded observer, the enemy detonated a Claymore mine, severely wounding him in the head and impairing his vision. In spite of the intense pain, he continued to direct the supporting artillery fire and to employ his individual weapon in support of the hard pressed infantrymen. As the enemy pressed their attack, 2d Lt. Durham called for supporting fire to be placed almost directly on his position. Twice the insurgents were driven back, leaving many dead and wounded behind. 2d Lt. Durham was then taken to a secondary defensive position. Even in his extremely weakened condition, he continued to call artillery fire onto the enemy. He refused to seek cover and instead positioned himself in a small clearing which offered a better vantage point from which to adjust the fire. Suddenly, he was severely wounded a second time by enemy machine gun fire. As he lay on the ground near death, he saw two Viet Cong approaching, shooting the defenseless wounded men. With his last effort, 2d Lt. Durham shouted a warning to a nearby soldier who immediately killed the insurgents. 2d Lt. Durham died moments later, still grasping the radio handset. 2d Lt. Durham's gallant actions in close combat with an enemy force are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army.

27 Artillery OCS Hall of Heroes MEDAL OF HONOR Robinson, Jr James E 1LT WWII KIA Durham, Jr Harold B 2LT 1-67 Vietnam KIA DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS Sherrick James N 1LT 7-42 WW II POW Knowlton Donald E 1LT 8-42 WW II Johnson Neil O CPT WW II POW Kilcollins Hilston T 1LT WW II Tiedemann John R 1LT WW II KIA Ferris Geoffrey C 2LT WW II KIA Preneta John J 1LT WW II Gould Edwin F 2LT WW II Felkins, Jr William C CPT WW II KIA Doughty Edward D 1LT WW II Lines Ted E 1LT WW II McKenna Vincent E 2LT WW II Horman Glen W 1LT WW II Llewellyn Stanley Dunlap 2LT WW II Mann Thomas J 1LT WW II Mushik Donald 1LT WW II Von Behren Charley H 1LT WW II KIA Berteu Thomas F 2LT WW II Bouchlas Michael S CPT WW II Lessman Gerhard 1LT WW II O'Brien Leo W 2LT WW II Reynolds Richard A 1LT WW II KIA Leahey Arthur L 1LT WW II Harris Elva CPT WW II Jackman Gordon W 1LT WW II KIA Kasper Carl J 2LT WW II POW Bedsole John W 1LT WW II Gowdy George H 1LT WW II Ligus, Jr Michael 2LT WW II KIA Kessler Albert L 1LT WW II Regan Dennis J 2LT WW II POW Sadaj Stanley 2LT WW II KIA Pollarine John J 2LT WW II KIA Rau Frederick 2LT WW II KIA Wogan Hilton H 2LT WW II Gehrke Roy E 2LT WW II KIA Odegard Henry O 1LT WW II Snyder John C 1LT WW II Combs Pat G 1LT WW II Fierman Robert L 1LT WW II Scanlon Jerome E 1LT WW II KIA Mills Donald C MAJ WW II Robinson George T 2LT WW II KIA Glover Hamilton F CPT WW II KIA

28 Artillery OCS Hall of Heroes DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS Burke Robert C 1LT WW II Clarkson David B 1LT WW II KIA Cobb, Jr Henry H 1LT WW II Chapin Neil M 2LT WW II Read William S 2LT WW II Wolf William J 1LT WW II KIA Maskell John W 1LT WW II Eller Cecil H 2LT WW II KIA Jamison Lee R 2LT WW II Markin William D 2LT WW II KIA Haywood Snowden 2LT WW II KIA Boyle Clair J 2LT WW II Moore Howard M CPT Korea Parris Harold G 1LT Korea KIA Terrell, Jr Ernest P 1LT Korea McDonald William E 1LT 8-52 Korea KIA Conner Eugene J MAJ Vietnam KIA Bell Lewis D MAJ Vietnam KIA Fraker William W CPT Vietnam Mayer Frank H 1LT 6-63 Vietnam Rubin Kenneth E CPT 6-63 Vietnam Breed Rolla M 1LT 7-63 Vietnam Piper John D 1LT 2-65 Vietnam Schlottman James C 1LT 8-65 Vietnam Bragg, Jr Fred G 1LT Vietnam KIA Wessel, Jr Leon M 1LT 9-66 Vietnam German Bromley H 1LT Vietnam KIA Koski Richard A 1LT Vietnam KIA Beach Martin H 1LT 6-67 Vietnam Carnes Edward L 1LT Vietnam Thurman Jerry W 1LT Vietnam Chatelain Ronald M CPT Vietnam Taylor James E 1LT 29A - 67 Vietnam KIA Faldermeyer Harold J CPT 30A - 67 Vietnam KIA Sanders, III Horace G CPT 34A - 67 Vietnam Tissler John G 1LT 42A - 67 Vietnam Steiner Mark S 2LT 1B - 68 Vietnam KIA D'Orlando Michael 1LT Vietnam Kelly, III George T 1LT Vietnam KIA Wright Robert C 2LT 9-69 Vietnam KIA 2 Medal of Honor Recipients 1- World War II Posthumous 1-Vietnam Posthumous 84 Distinguished Service Cross Recipients 56 - World War II (19 Posthumous) 4 - Korea (2 Posthumous) 24 - Vietnam (10 Posthumous) Current 12/9/2014

29 Some Distinguished Graduates of Artillery OCS at Fort Sill 1942 Major General (Retired) George W. Putnam, Jr., last Commander of the 1st Cavalry Division in Vietnam Major (Retired) Charles M. Brown, Jr, the Army s first Black Aviator Brigadier General (Retired) Roscoe C. Cartwright, first Black Field Artilleryman to achieve General Officer rank and the third Black General Officer in U.S. Army history (after Benjamin Davis and Benjamin Davis Jr) Lieutenant General James G. Kalergis, directed the 1973 reorganization of CONARC 1943 Robert M. Gardiner, former Chairman and CEO of the Dean Witter Financial Services Group 1st Lieutenant James E. Robinson, Jr, awarded the Medal of Honor in World War II H. Malcolm Baldrige, former Secretary of Commerce Dale E. Wolf, 70 th Governor of the State of Delaware Colonel William B. Nolde, the last American killed in Vietnam before the 1973 cease-fire General (Retired) Jack N. Merritt, former US representative on the NATO Military Committee Martin R. Hoffman, former Secretary of the Army General (Retired) John M. Shalikashvili, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Ambassador Charles Ray, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for POW/MIA Affairs 1966 Major General Kenneth W. Simpson, former Commanding General of the U. S. Army Recruiting Command George L. Skypeck, military-historical commemorative artist, author of the poem Soldier nd Lieutenant Harold Bascom Pinky Durham, awarded the Medal of Honor in the Vietnam War Hyrum W. Smith, Co-founder and Vice-Chairman of the Board of Franklin-Covey Lieutenant General Daniel J. Petrosky, Army Aviation Hall of Fame Inductee General (Retired) Tommy R. Franks, former Commander, United States Central Command Major General (Retired) Craig Bambrough - Former Deputy Commanding General US Army Reserve Command Robert G. Davis, former USAA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Major General (Retired) Josue Robles, former USAA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lieutenant General (Retired) Kevin P. Byrnes, former TRADOC Commander 1970 Lieutenant General (Retired) Steven W. Boutelle, former U.S. Army Chief Information Officer Major General (Retired) Alan D. Johnson, former Commanding General, Japan Major General (Retired) Leo J. Baxter, former Commanding General Fort Sill Major General (Retired) Toney Stricklin, former Commanding General Fort Sill General (Retired) Bryan D. Brown, former Commander United States Special Operations Command 1973 Ross W. Branstetter III, former General Counsel for the Missile Defense Agency

30 ARTILLERY OCS HALL OF FAME TIMELINE 1968 TO PRESENT 1968: The Fort Sill Artillery OCS Hall of Fame was established by GO #115, Headquarters, United States Army Artillery and Missile Center and Fort Sill, Fort Sill Oklahoma. The Hall of Fame was dedicated on 29 June The original location of the Hall of Fame was building 3031 (south of the OCS Brigade Headquarters which was located in Building 3025). 1969: The OCS Brigade Headquarters moved from building 3025 to building The Hall of Fame outgrew building 3031 and was moved to the downstairs floor of building : The Officer Candidate School at Fort Sill Closed on 7 July : The OCS Collection was transferred to the Museum System for storage and disposition. It was housed in Building B441 until The Museum Director offered a 10 square foot area for display in Snow Hall or McLain Hall. An Army Museum memo stated that Hall of Fames disrupt the continuity of a museums story line and exhibits. They never become integrated parts of the chronological or thematic setting that other exhibits embrace. Their presence becomes obtrusive and in spite of their best of intentions, they distract from a museum s a primary mission of supporting training and education. 1983: The Center of Military History determined that the Hall of Fame was not a museum function and should be transferred out of the museum prior to a certification inspection that took place in August. 1984: A request for Funds in the amount of $5, to upgrade the new OCS Hall of Fame (Building 3025) was submitted to the US Field Artillery Association on 17 April 1984, by then LTC Martin H. Beach. A request for Memorialization of Building 3025 to be named Durham Hall ( In honor of 2LT Harold Bascom Pinkie Durham Jr., who was posthumously, awarded the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War) was submitted on 23 April 1984 to the Commander United States Field Artillery Center and Fort Sill. The Hall of Fame moved to building 3025 and opened on 13 August US Army Field Artillery Training Center assumed the responsibility for the Hall of Fame. Property (furniture and equipment) and historical property was transferred to the USAFATC Commander as Custodian and the 6 th Training Battalion took on the responsibility to operate. 1985: The Hall of Fame was officially separated from the Army Museum System. 1986: A petition to form a chapter (To be called the Field Artillery Officer Candidate School Chapter, United States Field Artillery Association) was submitted on 14 August

31 ARTILLERY OCS HALL OF FAME TIMELINE 1968 TO PRESENT (Continued) 1989: A request was made to the US Field Artillery Association for a grant of $2, to provide materials (Plexiglas, wood trim, curtains, and mounting boards) to renovate the Hall of Fame. 1992: Building 3025 was renovated by the U.S. Army 1993: 1st Battalion, 78th Field Artillery assumed responsibility for the operation of Building : It was recommended that Building 3025 be closed and turned over to DPW for disposition/destruction ( as the building had no more historical significance than other World War II era buildings ) and that the displays be moved to Snow Hall and Gaffey Hall. The Field Artillery Association identified the Hall of Fame as a Special Project and made a commitment to support the operation. 1999: Building 3025 was memorialized as Durham Hall on 20 May From that day forward the FAOCS Alumni Chapter Inc. was tasked with administration, upkeep (repairs and maintenance), and insurance. The USFAA originally signed a 5-year lease with the Secretary of the Army for the building in July The FAOCS Alumni Chapter took over the lease several years ago and the current lease has been extended until : The Field Artillery OCS Alumni Chapter Incorporated was formed on 10 June : The Field Artillery OCS Alumni Chapter Incorporated was recognized by the IRS as a 501 (c) (3) tax exempt organization on 16 April

32 Soviets Say Course At Fort Sill Makes Beasts Of Young Officers A Soviet newspaper published an article on a special school at Fort Sill, describing it as a Camp of Murders. The article, which appeared in Trud, a publication of the All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions in Moscow says the class transforms young artillery officers into beasts cruel unfeeling animals. The training described in the article is thought to be the 5½-day escape and evasion phase of Sill s 23-week officer candidate school. The special training is aimed at showing officers the treatment they might expect as prisoners of war. The Trud article showed a soldier, suspended from a rope, dangled head down inside an empty barrel. It says, If the year 1943 were substituted for the year 1967 in the captions beneath the photograph, one might think that the picture was made by German SS troops in concentration camps. The article said the man was twisted around on the rope, knocking his head against the side of the barrel. The article said a gallows dominates the camp and future officers must dangle in the noose. It said, He will have a rattle in his throat and twitch. True, he won t be allowed to die. He is only permitted to look death in the face. Other alleged brutalities such a beatings are described in the article. Lt. Col. Richard G. Wheeler, Fort Sill information officer, said the officer candidates are exposed to a POW exercise that closely approximates treatment they might receive as prisoners of war in actual conflict. The young officer candidates are, he said, forced to crawl through mud, are taunted, interrogated and finally allowed to escape. There s no cruelty, he said. Wheeler said the training is designed to prepare the men to withstand possible indignities from enemy beasts.

33 CAMP OF MURDERERS - OCS FORT SILL, OKLAHOMA From the Russian Newspaper-TPYA If the year 1943 were substituted for the year 1967 in the captions beneath this photo, one might think that the picture was made by (German) SS Troops, in concentration camps. Here you see somebody's legs sticking out of an empty gasoline barrel. A rope stretches from the man's waist to the ceiling. They twist the man around on this rope. He knocks his head against the side of the barrel. Just where is all this taking place? It turns out that it's only a 1½ hr. ride from the American town of Oklahoma City. Here in the military camp they train American officers for the war in Viet Nam. After 6 months in this terrible camp, says the English magazine Weekend, they go overseas. The first thing the novice officer sees in the camp is, yes, a gallows. It dominates the camp and sets its tone. The future officer must dangle in the noose. He will have a rattle in his throat and a twitch. True, He won't be allowed to die. He is only permitted to look death in the face. Every trainee, for example, is ordered to hide in an underground shelter...and falls right into the hands of 'professional sadists', attacking their students from ambush and beating them unmercifully, the sadists teach them lessons you will never forget. The trainees are interrogated every day and their interrogation is never boring. Sometimes the trainees answer questions while suspended by their feet. They are also squeezed into medieval punishment stocks or are rolled over a barrel. As we see, they try to transform the American, who faces a trip to the jungle into a beast-into a cruel, unfeeling animal. And they do this while he is still on home soil, when he has scarcely been put into uniform. E. Cheporov August 1967

34 TIME Magazine: The Nation Friday, Sep. 01, 1967 Preparing for the Worst Feet tied and hands clutched painfully behind their backs, the U.S. Army officers snaked and wiggled on their stomachs over the dusty, rock-strewn ground. "This way, sickie, crawl to me!" cried one captor. "You're ugly, you know that, sickie? Crawl remember, we've got a lot worse waiting for you." The men were not Viet Cong captives but trainees in a gruelingly realistic prisoner-of-war course at Fort Sill, Okla. Roughest of its kind in the Army, the course is designed to toughen artillery-officer candidates for the kind of torture and humiliation under which many prisoners cracked in Korea. In the year since the course began, about 6,000 officers have completed it. Ready for the Worst. "Before Viet Nam," explained a training officer, "the artillery always had the infantry out in front. Now sometimes we have to do all our own patrolling and perimeter defenses. We want to be prepared for the worst." With as many as 200 American servicemen presently held by the Communists in Viet Nam though no Army Artillery Officers have as yet been captured by the enemy the instructors have devised a fiendishly ingenious array of tortures and tests to ensure that their men know what to expect. The course begins at dawn. After calisthenics and classroom work, the artillerymen are trucked out to the fort's forested hills, turned loose, and told to evade mock aggressor forces patrolling the 7½-sq,-mi. area. Of 133 artillerymen who took the course one day recently, fewer than 30 got away. The rest were marched, often barefoot, to a simulated P.O.W. compound. Under constant taunts from their captors, the Artillerymen were forced to crawl, wallow in mud, hang by their legs from a horizontal bar, sit for seemingly endless minutes with their legs wrapped painfully around a pole. The guards badgered them for information beyond the maximum name, rank and serial number sanctioned by the Geneva Treaty. A sympathetic "Red Cross" representative tried to wheedle additional intelligence out of them, but most immediately spotted him as a phony. "Kiss the Mud." When persuasion failed, pressure replaced it. "Get up, hit it, up, down, roll over, crawl in circles, up, down, faster, talk, talk, talk." The captives were lined up in front of a row of odoriferous barrels partly filled with slime and crawling with spiders. "Get in headfirst, you dumb sickies," they were told. "Kiss the mud. Now do push-ups." Thrust into a tiny, darkened hut, the captives found that a barrel placed in the middle of the floor had no bottom and led into a black hole. Climbing through, they descended into a sewer pipe barely wide enough for their shoulders. Slowly, the artillerymen clawed their way through the 75-ft. pipe to freedom. But their ordeal was not yet over. Though they had started the day at 5 am., they still had to run a mountainous ten-mile course, evading aggressors armed with blank bullets and dummy grenades. Most of them made it back to their mess hall just in time for the next day's class work.

35 The Activities of OCS Class On the Thursday of their week in the field, the Candidates, while moving from the East to West Range, were attacked and captured by the aggressors. After being captured, the Candidates were bound around the elbows and herded into a small group and told to sit. While the aggressors were giving their indoctrinations, the Candidates were busy untying each other. When the aggressors told the Candidates to get up and move into the trucks, to be transported to the POW compound, the Candidates rose and immediately dispersed in every direction. A few of the candidates were captured immediately, but it was a futile attempt on the part of the aggressors to capture all of them because they were outnumbered 8 to 1. It took approximately 9 hours to locate the remainder of the class and both ranges were closed for the entire day, which didn t tend to humor anyone, except perhaps the Candidates. During the next 9 hours after the great escape of the candidates: 2 candidates were found at Moway House trying to get to their final objective (Ketch Lake), 6 were captured by the Military Police who believed them to be escaped prisoners from the stockade, and one Candidate went to a Colonels house and explained the situation to his wife--she in turn gave him some coffee and soup and sent him on his way. Several were found in the PX, and the last candidate was found in the ATC area where he had gone, met a friend, ate in the mess hall, showered, and slept for about 3 hours.

36 Final OCS Class Graduates A Chapter of Sill s History Closes The Lawton Constitution, Friday July 6, 1973 By Dave Brittain A Chapter of Fort Sill History closed today as the Officer Candidate School graduated its final class, officially inactivating the post s OCS program after a 32- year career. Twenty-six graduates received second lieutenant bars in the 9:30 a.m. ceremony at Snow Hall auditorium attended by some 350 persons from the Lawton-Fort Sill community. Special guest and speaker for the last graduation ceremony was Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Carl H. Jark, the first commandant of the Fort Sill Officer Candidate School. Gen. Jark served, as OCS commandant from July 10, 1941, when the program was activated at Fort Sill, until July, He was a captain at that time. "The Jark", a 4.2-mile mandatory jog for OCS students every Saturday morning, is named after the general. Gen. Jark told the graduates: "You are entering a different Army from the one I went into in 1930." He said, among other things, that today's soldiers are better educated and better paid. He also said the Army has undergone many changes' since he first entered, adding, however, that he did not believe that "change for the sake of change" was good and that in many cases he felt that "change is being overdone," Gen. Jark advised the new second lieutenants to "Be in the right place, at the right time," and said' that sometimes "Lady Luck" needs "a little nudge," He advised graduates to continue their formal education and to be "flexible, 'but not limp." The general cautioned the graduates against letting other activities interfere with their duties as Army officers. "Those of you who will soar with eagles in the morning should not hoot with owls at night," he advised. Also on hand for the ceremony were Maj. Gen. David E. Ott, Fort Sill commander; Brig. Gen. Robert J. Koch, assistant commandant of the Field Artillery School, who issued the oath of office; Lt. Col. Beverly Barge, officer candidate battalion commander, and other post and city dignitaries.

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38 Officer Candidate School - Fort Benning, Georgia Course overview (from OCS SOP, 14 Apr 14)Federal OCS is a 12 week leadership course, during which the cadre constantly develop and evaluate the performance and potential of the Candidates for commissioning as Second Lieutenants. OCS focuses this development and evaluation of each Candidate on the Leadership Dimensions outlined in Appendix A of the SOP. Program of Instruction (P01): The OCS P01 consists of three phases: Basic Phase, Intermediate Phase, and Senior Phase. Basic Phase. OCs are immersed into a 24/7 training environment with topics covering individual skills, doctrine, and theory sufficiently enabling OCs to study and learn their profession and the craft of officership. Candidates are shown the OCS standards by the cadre and then expected to meet them. As Candidates progress through the course, they are given increasing responsibility and work to integrate individual skills into collective tasks and missions. Intermediate Phase. The candidates will be in the field for the majority of this phase. Intermediate Phase encompasses Land Navigation and a Field Leadership Exercise. During recovery/refit operations, candidates may be afforded opportunities and privileges not available in the basic phase. Candidates are expected to set the example to the Basic Officer Candidates, and at this point be wholly involved in their transition from follower into leader. Senior Phase. In this phase, Candidates demonstrate leadership, professionalism, and officership in field, garrison and social environments. They receive advanced leadership studies and scenarios with an emphasis on officership and self-development. Candidates will participate in senior leader seminars and social events during this phase. The senior phase is the final refining of the Candidate done by the cadre to ultimately prepare the Candidate for the officer environment. Immersion Training Weeks 1-6 From the day a Candidate arrives until the completion of the basic phase, he/she will be immersed into a 24/7 training environment with topics covering individual skills, doctrine, and theory sufficiently enabling OCs to study and learn their profession and the craft of officership. During this time, all Basic Officer Candidates are restricted to the Battalion Footprint. Use of POVs is not authorized (with some exceptions for things such as religious services, student council leadership issues, and community service projects. Exceptions take OCS Commandant approval). Caffeine and snack machine privileges are not authorized. There will be training on the weekends, to include PT. All haircuts will take place at the Airborne Mini-Mall. Squads will march as a unit to the barber shop; they are not authorized to utilize any other portion of the Mini-Mall, and will immediately return to the Battalion area upon completion of haircuts. After successfully completing the Intermediate Officer Candidate inspection, OCs may transition into Intermediate Officer Phase. At this time the regulations regarding immersion training are modified.

39 OCS offers Candidates the following 16 Branch Options ONLY Aviation has special conditions that must be completed PRIOR to attending OCS AIR DEFENSE ARTILLERY OFFICER The role of an Air Defense Artillery Officer is to be a leader in operations specific to the Air Defense Artillery Branch and to be an expert in the tactics, techniques and procedures for the employment of air defense systems. ARMOR OFFICER Armor Officers are responsible for tank and cavalry/forward reconnaissance operations on the battlefield. The role of an Armor Officer is to be a leader in operations specific to the Armor Branch and to lead others in many areas of combat operations. AVIATION OFFICER An Officer within the Aviation Branch is first an expert aviator, but is also responsible for the coordination of Aviation operations from maintenance to control tower operations to tactical field missions. From providing quick-strike and long-range target engagement during combat operations to hauling troops and supplies, Army helicopter units play a critical role in getting the job done in many situations. ENGINEER OFFICER An Officer in the Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for providing support in a full spectrum of engineering duties. Engineer Officers help the Army and the Nation in building structures, developing civil works programs, working with natural resources as well as providing combat support on the battlefield. FIELD ARTILLERY OFFICER The Army's Field Artillery Branch is responsible for neutralizing or suppressing the enemy by cannon, rocket and missile fire and to help integrate all fire support assets into combined arms operations. The role of a Field Artillery Officer is to be a leader in operations specific to the Field Artillery Branch and to be an expert in the tactics, techniques and procedures for the employment of fire support systems. INFANTRY OFFICER An Infantry Officer is responsible for leading and controlling the Infantry and combined armed forces during land combat. They are also involved in coordinating employment of Infantry Soldiers at all levels of command, from platoon to battalion and higher, in U.S. and multinational operations. Officers are leaders, and being a leader in the Army requires certain qualities such as self-discipline, initiative, confidence and intelligence. 1

40 CHEMICAL OFFICER The Chemical Officer advises the commander on issues regarding nuclear, biological and radiological warfare, defense and homeland protection. Chemical Officers also employ Chemical units in combat support with chemical, smoke and flame weapons, technology and management. Officers are leaders, and being a leader in the Army requires certain qualities such as self-discipline, initiative, confidence and intelligence. MILITARY INTELLIGENCE OFFICER Military Intelligence (MI) Officers are always out front, providing essential intelligence and in many cases saving Soldiers who are fighting on the front lines. MI Officers assess risks associated with friendly and enemy courses of action and act to counter or neutralize identified intelligence threats. The MI Officer also uses intelligence systems and data to reduce uncertainty of enemy, terrain and weather conditions for a commander. MILITARY POLICE OFFICER Military Police Officers are utilized in direct combat and during peacetime to lead other Military Police Soldiers while they serve five main functions: 1) Maneuver and mobility support operations, 2) Area security operations, 3) Law and order operations, 4) Internment and resettlement operations, and 5) Police intelligence operations SIGNAL OFFICER A Signal Corps Officer must be an expert in planning, installing, integrating, operating and maintaining the Army's voice, data and information systems, services and resources. Signal Officers must be highly intelligent, forward-thinking and have a complete knowledge of communications and data management technologies. FINANCE OFFICER The Army's Finance Corps is responsible for sustaining operations through purchasing and acquiring supplies and services. Officers in the Finance Corps make sure commercial vendors are paid, contractual payments are met, balancing and projecting budgets, paying Soldiers for their service and other financial matters associated with keeping the Army running. MEDICAL SERVICE CORPS OFFICER Medical Service Corps Officers are essential in treating and helping the overall health of Soldiers and their families. They are also responsible for much of the medical research that takes place in the Army. From medical fields such as optometry and podiatry to laboratory sciences to behavioral sciences, the Army Medical Service Corps includes many areas of specialty. 2

41 ORDNANCE OFFICER Ordnance Officers are responsible for ensuring that weapons systems, vehicles, and equipment are ready and available - and in perfect working order - at all times. Thus, Ordnance Officers and the Soldiers they lead are a critical component in the Army's success. Ordnance Officers also oversee the developing, testing, fielding, handling, storage and disposal of munitions. PERSONNEL SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT OFFICER (Adjutant General) An Adjutant General Officer is responsible for helping Soldiers with the tasks that affect their overall welfare and well-being, while assisting commanders by keeping Soldiers combat-ready. In many cases, the duties of an Adjutant General Officer are very similar to the function of a high-level human resources executive in the civilian world. Officers are leaders, and being a leader in the Army requires certain qualities such as self-discipline, initiative, confidence and intelligence. QUARTERMASTER OFFICER Quartermaster Officers are responsible for making sure equipment, materials and systems are available and functioning for missions. More specifically, the Quartermaster Officer provides supply support for Soldiers and units in field services, aerial delivery and material and distribution management. Officers are leaders, and being a leader in the Army requires certain qualities such as self-discipline, initiative, confidence and intelligence. TRANSPORTATION OFFICER Transportation Officers are experts in the systems, vehicles and procedures in moving troops and supplies in the Army. Transportation Officers are responsible for commanding and controlling Transportation operations and combined armed forces during land combat. Officers are leaders, and being a leader in the Army requires certain qualities such as self-discipline, initiative, confidence and intelligence. 3

42 Basic Officer Leader Course Branch (BOLC-B) Field Artillery BOLC-B FA BOLC B is eighteen and a half weeks long. In general, each week is organized as follows: Week 1 In processing, Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT), Combatives Week 2 Convoy Operations, Land Navigation, Combatives Week 3 Basic Rifle Marksmanship (BRM) Range Week/Qualification Weeks 4-18 Field Artillery core competency training. Graduates of FA BOLC-B will have a strong warrior ethos, job proficiency and be mentally and physically prepared to fight and win our nation s wars. They will be competent confident field artillerymen who can advise the maneuver commander. Air Defense Artillery BOLC-B ADA BOLC-B is 18-weeks and 3-days in length with 697 Academic Hours. Not including Physical Readiness Training (PRT), there are 75 Administrative hours assigned to the course. Phase 1 (6 weeks and 3 days) is common core centric with modules focusing on Common Core Program Lessons, Leadership and Planning, and Common Warfighting Skills. Phase 2 (12 weeks) expands into additional Warfighting Skills and Air Defense Artillery (ADA) technical content grouped into Air and Missile Defense (AMD) Weapon Systems, SHORAD Platoon Leader, Patriot Platoon Leader, Patriot Tactical Control Officer (TCO), and AMD Operational Exercises. Graduates of ADA BOLC-B will be adaptive officers who are steeped in the profession of arms, technically and tactically competent, confident, and capable of making independent assessments in complex, foreign, and joint environments to accomplish any mission in Unified Land Operations (ULO) through mission focused leadership and critical thinking.

43 Roots of the Artillery Branches Artillery Corps Field Artillery Component 1901 Coast Artillery Component Field Artillery Branch 1907 Coast Artillery Branch 1950 Artillery Arm 1957 Artillery Branch Field Artillery Branch 1968 Air Defense Artillery Branch

44 OFFICER CANDIDATE SCHOOL PROGRAMS COMMISSIONING ARTILLERY OFFICERS PRESENT : Fort Sill - Field Artillery OCS : Camp Davis, NC - Anti-Aircraft Artillery OCS : Fort Monroe, VA - Seacoast Artillery OCS : Fort Benning - Army OCS and other branches : Fort Riley - Ground General School Army Officer Candidate (AOC) Course and other branches : Fort Bliss - Anti-Aircraft Artillery OCS Feb May 1955: Fort Sill - Artillery OCS May Jan 1957: Fort Sill - Artillery and Guided Missile OCS Jan July 1957: Fort Sill - US Army Artillery and Guided Missile OCS Jul Dec 1968: Fort Sill - US Army Artillery and Missile OCS : Fort Sill - Field Artillery OCS 1973-Present: Fort Benning OCS 14 other branches Since 1941, the OCS program has been able to transform and execute its mission to meet the needs of a fast paced and changing Army. The mission of OCS will always remain constant: train selected personnel in the fundamentals of leadership, basic military skills; instill professional ethics, evaluate leadership potential, and commission those who qualify as second lieutenants in all sixteen basic branches of the Army.

45 Artillery - Field Artillery - Coast Artillery - Antiaircraft Artillery Air Defense Artillery The present day Field Artillery and Air Defense Artillery Branches trace their roots back to the Revolutionary War. Regular Army artillery can trace its history back to the Revolutionary War. Known as the Artillery Corps, it was authorized in 1834 to display crossed cannons as its branch insignia. By 1898 there were seven regiments of artillery. Except in mission there was no distinction by designation between artillery which supported ground troops and that which defended America's ports and coastlines. On 13 February 1901 the Artillery Corps was split into two components, the Coast Artillery and the Field Artillery, in recognition of the divergence in the two missions. Fourteen separate batteries of Field Artillery and eighty-two companies of Coast Artillery were organized and activated. Field Artillery Component Coast Artillery Component Artillery Corps Artillery Corps On 25 January 1907 the Artillery Corps designation was dropped and Coast Artillery and the Field Artillery became separate branches of the U.S. Army. Field Artillery Branch Coast Artillery Branch By September 1939 the larger proportion of Coast Artillery available was antiaircraft in nature, and as the threat of enemy invasion faded, coast artillery personnel and assets were increasingly transformed into Antiaircraft Artillery units. By the end of the war the seacoast defense role and, consequently, Coast Artillery had practically disappeared, and Antiaircraft Artillery prevailed. The World War II mission of Antiaircraft Artillery was the air defense of field forces and ground installations against all forms of enemy air attack by day or night.

46 Fort Monroe was the home of the Coast Artillery Corps when World War II began. The Coast Artillery Board had existed since 1907 at Fort Monroe and was charged with review and development of harbor defense weapons, which included mine planters, underwater detection devices, submarine mines and mine-control devices, and, prior to March 1942, antiaircraft weapons. Antiaircraft artillery equipment was initially tested and developed at the Coast Artillery Board at Fort Monroe. On 9 March 1942, a separate Antiaircraft Artillery Board was established at Fort Monroe and moved to Camp Davis on 24 May Finally, on 28 August 1944, the board moved to Fort Bliss to join what became the center of army antiaircraft activities. When the rapid expansion of the Coast Artillery OCS program was ordered, it was obvious that the facilities at Fort Monroe would fall hopelessly short of meeting the needs and the entire program moved to the newly constructed Camp Davis, North Carolina in From spring of 1941 until the fall of 1944 Camp Davis was the focal point of AAA training and weapons and material development within the US Army. The Antiaircraft Artillery was under the umbrella of the Coast Artillery Corps when World War II began. In March 1942 the Antiaircraft Artillery formally separated from the Seacoast Artillery and the Antiaircraft Artillery (AAA) Command was established. Thereafter, all seacoast instruction was assigned to Fort Monroe and all antiaircraft artillery instruction was at Camp Davis. At that point in time, the Officer Candidate School at Camp Davis became part of the newly established Antiaircraft Artillery School and would be known as the AAA (Antiaircraft Artillery) OCS. AAA OCS - Camp Davis, North Carolina ( ) AAA OCS graduated a total of 25,191 (25,109 by some accounts) out of 33,195 candidates. There were 100 classes. The first AAA OCS class had started at Fort Monroe and finished up at Camp Davis. The next 99 classes were at Camp Davis. Class # 1 started on July 7, 1941 and graduated on October 3, Class #100 started on February 22, 1944 and graduated on June 15, The course was originally 12 weeks, was later lengthened to 13 weeks and was the first OCS in the Army to be extended to 17 weeks in March The candidates were trained specifically in Guns, Searchlights or Automatic weapons. AAA OCS graduated as many as 1,800 per month at its peak and by the spring of 1944 a huge surplus of AAA officers existed. The weekly graduation numbers dropped to between 30 and 40 and AAA officers voluntarily transferred to other branches. By March ,668 AAA officers had transferred to other branches.

47 SEACOAST ARTLLERY OCS - Fort Monroe, Virginia ( ) The Seacoast Artillery OCS had a brief trial run at Camp Davis due to the overtaxed facilities at Fort Monroe. That was scrapped when the Seacoast and Antiaircraft reorganization took place in 1942 and it was moved back to Fort Monroe. The Seacoast Artillery Department of the Officer Candidate School was then established at Fort Monroe and would be known as the Seacoast Artillery OCS. The Seacoast Artillery OCS at Fort Monroe commissioned 1,964 lieutenants in 31 classes. Class # 1 started on April 20, 1942 and Class #31 graduated on March 17, During World War II, Two Coast Artillery Officer Candidate Schools were established on foreign soil. The first was in England and the second was in Australia. Little information is available concerning the number of graduates from either of these schools. All graduates of the Seacoast Artillery OCS at Fort Monroe and the AAA OCS at Camp Davis were commissioned in the Coast Artillery Branch. Coast Artillery In October 1944 the AAA School moved to Fort Bliss, where the headquarters of the Antiaircraft school was already located. The Army Reorganization Act of 1950 consolidated the Coast Artillery and Field Artillery branches into the Artillery Arm with plain crossed cannons as the Arm's insignia. Artillery Arm

48 AAA OCS - Fort Bliss, Texas ( ) The Anti-Aircraft Artillery Officer Candidate School opened at Fort Bliss, Texas on October 14, 1951 as part of the Anti-Aircraft and Guided Missile Branch of the Artillery School. The first class of candidates graduated on May 2, There were a total of 14 classes to graduate. Before closing on July 17, 1953, the AAA Officers Candidate School program at Fort Bliss graduated approximately 1,175 candidates. Most Graduates were commissioned in the Artillery Arm. After the school closed the plans were to earmark 40% of all candidates entering Artillery OCS at Fort Sill for Anti-aircraft Artillery Assignments prior to beginning Artillery OCS. After graduation, they would be sent to Fort Bliss for an eight week course indoctrinating them into Anti-Aircraft techniques. As part of the 1957 reorganization, the Artillery Arm was re-designated as the Artillery Branch. The new branch insignia was crossed cannons surmounted with a missile. Artillery Branch By 1968 the Army recognized that with evolving technologies the divergence of missions was too great to maintain one branch and the Air Defense Artillery Branch was established. Once again the plain crossed cannons became the Field Artillery branch insignia while the crossed cannons with the surmounted missile was adopted as the branch insignia of the Air Defense Artillery. Field Artillery Branch Air Defense Artillery Branch 1968 to Present 1968 to Present

49 A HISTORY OF FORT SILL Fort Sill was officially established by General Philip H. Sheridan on January 8, 1869 in the Indian Territory or present day Oklahoma. Its purpose was to control the Comanche, Cheyenne, Kiowa and other tribes that had roamed the Southern Plains hunting buffalo or making frequent raids on settlements in Texas and Mexico in search of captives and horses. Some of the most famous military leaders and units in American history have served at Fort Sill over the decades. The first military occupation of the site was in 1834 when the 1st US Dragoons arrived to establish "Camp Comanche" and begin negotiations with the local tribes. Several individuals important in American history such as General Henry Leavenworth, Jefferson Davis, George Catlin, Nathan Boone were included in this expedition. In 1852, Captain Randolph Marcy arrived to explore the Red River and made the first recommendation that a permanent fort be established at this place. This was followed by a company of Chickasaw Indians scouting the Medicine Bluffs in 1858 under the command of Colonel Douglas Cooper. He also made a recommendation that a fort be established in this area. In late December 1868, General Phil Sheridan arrived with the 7th US Cavalry under Colonel George A. Custer; the 10th US Cavalry commanded by Colonel Benjamin Grierson; the 19th Kansas Volunteers and the 6th US Infantry. The new post was soon staked out according to Sheridan's plans and construction began on the permanent stone buildings in The fledgling post was soon named Fort Sill after General Joshua Sill who was killed during the Civil War in All four of the Black regiments that were later referred to as the "Buffalo Soldiers" (9th & 10th US Cavalry, 24th & 25th US Infantry) served at Fort Sill during the late 19th century. Colonel Ranald S. Mackenzie and the 4th Cavalry occupied the fort during the Red River War of With the final surrenders of the Plains tribes in 1875, the mission of the army shifted toward maintaining law and order in the Territory. The protection of Indian lands from the illegal Kansas and Texas "Intruders"; patrolling the Chisholm Trail in pursuit of rustlers, murders, whiskey peddlers; and generally maintaining the peace, became the priority of the day. In 1894 the Chiricahua Apache Prisoners of War came to Fort Sill from their prisons in Alabama and Florida. For the first time since their surrender in 1886 they were able to regain their respect and warrior status by enlisting in the all Indian unit, Troop L, 7th US Cavalry at Fort Sill. One of the more famous warriors of this group was Geronimo. Fort Sill was a pivotal installation during the Indian Wars of the late 19th century, yet it was almost abandoned around Faced with a changing mission from the Cavalry and Infantry to Artillery, Secretary of War William H. Taft visited Fort Sill in 1907 to determine the fate of the frontier army post. Even then, the history of the old fort was considered so significant that the future President decided to preserve it forever instead of rebuilding or tearing it down to render it more suitable for the new mission.

50 Thus, a "New Post" was constructed further west in to accommodate the Field Artillery. The last Cavalry unit departed in 1907 and in 1911, the new Field Artillery School of Fire Headquarters was established in the historic old teamster's quarters on the Quadrangle. In 1915 Fort Sill would come into the air age with the arrival of the 1st Aero Squadron, the first aviation unit in the American military. This unit trained at Fort Sill until receiving orders for Texas and the Mexican border. The move to Texas became the first squadron flight in aviation history. Fort Sill soon became the home of Army aviation and continued until 1954 when that mission shifted to Fort Rucker, Alabama. Since then, Fort Sill has continued to provide training for soldiers and testing of equipment to support the defense of our country. The success in meeting this mission throughout the 20th and into the 21st centuries is based largely upon the solid foundations laid over 140 years ago. THE FORT SILL NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK AND MUSEUM The mission of the Fort Sill National Historic Landmark and Museum is the collection and preservation of objects, the research and installation of quality exhibits and the presentation of interactive interpretation of the military, social, political, cultural and economic history of Fort Sill and its vicinity from the Dragoon Expedition in 1834 to Several Native American tribes are an integral part of the history of Fort Sill and will be considered irrespective of the chronology. The purpose of the Fort Sill National Historic Landmark and Museum shall be the education of Soldiers and Leaders and the edification of Military families and the general public." The US Army Field Artillery & Fort Sill Museum was established by direction of the Chief of Field Artillery on December 10, 1934 and formally opened in January The dual mission of preserving the history of both the Field Artillery and of Fort Sill was identified from the beginning. Captain Harry C. Larter, a Field Artilleryman, military artist, and historian was the first curator. Larter made use of an old artillery teaching collection of military items which had been brought together at Fort Sill in 1919 and stored in a warehouse for a number of years. Captain Wilbur S. Nye was given the task of compiling and writing the history of Fort Sill as a joint action. The old guardhouse was selected as the building to house this material for interpreting the history to the public and it served as the main museum building for many years. The acquisition of additional space was required to accommodate the museum's increase in visitors, exhibits and donations and on 4 October 1958, the Quartermaster Corral was added to the complex. Exhibits within this area included a replica Trader s Store, a Wichita grass house, and a Conestoga wagon. The Comanche County Historical Society also set up frontier displays in this facility until 1961 when they were relocated to Lawton and became the Museum of the Great Plains.

51 During the 1960s the Quartermaster Storehouse was opened featuring artillery exhibits from the Revolutionary War period to The adjacent Commissary Storehouse building exhibited the history of the US Artillery from 1900 through the Korean Conflict. In addition, the Cannon Walk was created as an outdoor display of U.S. and foreign artillery pieces. By the 1970s, the museum had grown to include several additional buildings such as the first headquarters for the School of Fire for Field Artillery. One of the two original Infantry Barracks was decorated as the Hall of Flags. The original Post Headquarters building, constructed in 1870, housed the museum collection offices and archival records during the 1970s. Finally, the first Post Chapel was assigned to the museum during this time to protect it from over development. Several additional facilities of the original historic post were added to the museum during the 1990s, including a second Infantry Barracks on the southwest corner of the Quadrangle; three cavalry barracks and associated outbuildings on the west side of the Quadrangle; and the only surviving balloon hangar on Fort Sill at the Henry Post Army Airfield. The museum continued to shift its vast holdings and functions to more appropriate facilities in order to continue meeting the required standards of the museum profession. It became evident that the historic buildings would not allow for displaying artillery as most of the artillery collection was either displayed outside or was in deep storage where the public could not see it. By 1998 a new initiative known as Project Millennium established new objectives for the museum and included the construction of a separate US Army Field Artillery Museum, which was completed in the spring of As the new Field Artillery Museum neared completion, plans were developed to separate the mission of the museum into two distinct missions (Field Artillery and Fort Sill). With this separation of museums, the staff of the Fort Sill National Historic Landmark and Museum were able to turn their attention back to the historic post area. Today, the Fort Sill National Historic Landmark and Museum occupies 38 buildings, with a total of 144,514 square feet of exhibit and storage space, a total collection of over 235,000 objects, and covering 142 acres in the Historic Landmark area. AIR DEFENSE ARTILLERY MUSEUM The Air Defense Artillery Museum's mission is to preserve the history and heritage of the U.S. Army and the Air Defense Artillery branch and its origins with the Coast Artillery Corps from 1907 to the present. The museum does this through research, interpretation and public display of historically significant artifacts and properties and maintains them as an accessible resource for the professional education of ADA branch students, Soldiers and Leaders, scholars and the general public. FIELD ARTILLERY MUSEUM The U.S. Army Artillery Museum tells the story of Artillery from 1775 to the present with over 70 guns and artillery pieces and numerous other artifacts from head gear and ammo to small arms and uniforms. The Museum was opened June 2, Previously, the Artillery Collection was part of the Fort Sill National Historic Landmark and Museum collection. Our collection includes a representation of uniforms from each era. We have added many new pieces and exhibits to pique the interest of any history or artillery buff.

52 Field Artillery School History At the turn of the last century, field artillery officers and soldiers rarely got to train (and never got to train in massing fires and other advanced skills). To remedy this trend, President Theodore Roosevelt sent Army Captain Dan T. Moore to observe training at European field artillery schools. Based on Moore's favorable report on the German Artillery School, the War Department decided to open a field artillery school. Moore was dispatched to Fort Sill, Oklahoma in 1910 to organize the School of Fire for Field Artillery that would train officers and noncommissioned officers. The school opened in September 1911 with Moore as commandant. Its mission was to provide theoretical and practical instruction on the latest weapons and fire direction procedures. The Mexican Revolution forced the school to close in the spring of 1916 as students were sent to guard the Mexican border. After the United States entered World War I, the school reopened in 1917 with Colonel William J. Snow as commandant. The Field Artillery School, as it was now known, added more courses. After the war, school commandants began a long-range program to improve field artillery mobility, gunnery and equipment. Budget cuts during the 1920s hampered their efforts, but innovative directors of the Gunnery Department, with support from school commandants, helped modernize the field artillery in the 1930s. Major Carlos Brewer, director of the Gunnery Department in the late 1920s and early 1930s, introduced new fire direction techniques so fire support would be more responsive. Major Orlando Ward, the next department director, developed the fire direction center to centralize command and control and to facilitate massing fire. Brewer, Ward, and Lieutenant Colonel H.L.C. Jones encouraged replacing horses with motor vehicles for moving field artillery guns. World War II To best use new long-range guns and better response times, the Field Artillery School championed the use of air observation to control artillery fires. The War Department approved organic field artillery air observation in The artillery air observers adjusted massed fire and performed liaison, reconnaissance, and other missions during the war. Cold War (and after) Following the war, the school adapted to the atomic age and the Cold War. The War Department consolidated all artillery training and developments under the U.S. Army Artillery Center at Fort Sill in At that time, the center included the Artillery School, the Antiaircraft and Guided Missile School at Fort Bliss, Texas, and the Coast Artillery School at Fort Scott, California. The air defense artillery became its own branch in 1968.

53 In 1953, school personnel fired the first nuclear-capable field artillery gun (the 280mm gun known as Atomic Annie) at Frenchman's Flat, Nevada. During the 1950s, school personnel also helped develop rocket and missile warfare (The U.S. arsenal included the Honest John rocket, Corporal missile and Redstone missile) that could carry a nuclear warhead. In 1963, the school tested aerial rocket artillery, which equipped helicopters with rockets. The school cooperated in the development of the Field Artillery Digital Automated Computer, commonly called FADAC, to compute fire direction data. Introduced in , FADAC made the field artillery a leader in computer developments for the Army. After the Vietnam War, the school participated in the introduction of the Multiple- Launch Rocket System the Army Tactical Missile System, the Paladin 155-mm self-propelled howitzer, and other field artillery systems. The field artillery's performance in military operations in Operation Desert Storm in and Iraq and Afghanistan from 2001 to today validated the school's modernization efforts. Field artillery Officers and Soldiers can do complicated logarithmic calculations to fire a mission in one moment or they can escort a supply convoy, secure prisoners, and patrol a village or any other mission the next. Over the years, the School of Fire for Field Artillery and its successors trained field artillery officers and soldiers in the latest field artillery tactics, techniques, and procedures and played a key role in developing new field artillery systems and equipment. In 2010 the U.S. Army Field Artillery School continued the tradition established by the School of Fire for Field Artillery. As part of the U.S. Army Fires Center of Excellence (FCoE), it trained the field artillery forces of the United States Army and United States Marine Corps, provided joint training, developed Field Artillery leaders, helped design and develop fire support tactics and doctrine, and supported unit training and readiness. Evolution of the School of Fire for Field Artillery Field Artillery School ( ) The Artillery School ( ) The Artillery and Guided Missile School ( ) U.S. Army Artillery and Guided Missile School (1957) U.S. Army Artillery and Missile School ( ) U.S. Army Field Artillery School (1969-present)

54 Captain Dan T. Moore First Commandant US Army Field Artillery School "Father" of the Field Artillery School, Captain Dan T. Moore was born in Alabama, February 9th, He entered the Army in 1899 as a second lieutenant of infantry, and served is the Spanish-American War as a second lieutenant of the Connecticut Infantry. In 1901 Captain Moore transferred to the Field Artillery, in which he acquired an excellent reputation. During the years 1900 to 1908, a group of United States Army field artillery officers recognized that several foreign countries were far in advance in artillery tactics and techniques. With this in mind the War Department decided to send an able and energetic officer abroad to study in foreign artillery schools, preparatory to his taking prominent part in the establishment of a school in this country. The officer selected for this important duty was Captain Dan T Moore, Sixth Field Artillery. He spent the year visiting the artillery schools in England, Holland, and Austria, and was a student at the German artillery school at Juterborg. In November 1910 Captain Moore was sent to Fort Sill by the War Department to make preliminary arrangements for the establishment of the School of Fire. Fort Sill was selected as the site of the school since the size (51,000 acres) and the varied terrain of the Fort Sill reservation offered admirable opportunity for training both firing and in tactical handling of Field Artillery. Captain Moore was personally responsible for drawing up regulations and laying out the training program of the school. General Order No 73 War Department, June directed the establishment at Fort Sill of "The School of Fire for Field Artillery." Another order dated July 19th designated Captain Moore as commandant of the School. Captain Moore personally trained the two instruction batteries selected from the Fifth Field Artillery. As a Field Artilleryman, Captain Moore was outstanding in his technical knowledge, progressive ideas, and driving energy in modernizing his arms. As a result of his work, the Field Artillery was up to date and ready for the First World War when it came. He was a former military aide to President Theodore Roosevelt as well as close adviser and friend. After World War I, Colonel Moore resigned. He held a commission of brigadier general in the Officers' Reserve Corps.

55 THE FIELD ARTILLERY SCHOOL CREST Cedat Fortuna Peritis Skill is Better Than Luck THE SHIELD IS RED FOR ARTILLERY; the field piece depicted, having been used in the 16th century, is the forerunner of the modern artillery. THE CREST IS THE ARM OF SAINT BARBARA, the patron saint of artillery, issuing from the upper portion of an embattled tower argent and holding flashes of lightning alluding to the pagan idea of Jove's ability to destroy with his bolts that which offended him. This distinctive insignia was approved on 29 March Its design reflects a sixyear struggle by our staff to have a symbol of our history, pride and training. 1924, 9 JULY: FAS requested authority from the Adjutant General to design a distinctive school insignia. 1924, 16 JULY: Above request refused by Chief of Field Artillery. 1924, 1 DECEMBER: the Adjutant General requested FAS to design a crest. 1925, 2 MARCH: FAS forwarded a suggested crest to the Adjutant General. 1925, 9 MARCH: Chief of Field Artillery recommended approval of suggested crest. 1925, 17 MARCH: Quartermaster Corps disapproved suggested design. 1925, 17 APRIL: FAS submitted a new design. 1926, 8 APRIL: Proposed crest approved by the Adjutant General. 1926, 27 APRIL: Commanding General of FAS requested approval for adoption and wear of this crest by personnel of FAS. 1926, 12 AUGUST: Request disapproved because "the School is not a color-bearing organization". 1930, 29 MARCH: Distinctive insignia for FAS approved by the Adjutant General.

56 The Air Defense Artillery School Mission Meet the needs of Army, Joint and Coalition Commanders. Lead an innovative and forwardthinking Fires Enterprise that: Provides the nation with the world s best trained, organized and equipped Soldiers and units led by adaptive and resilient leaders. Develop and deploy Field Artillery (FA) and Air Defense Artillery (ADA) capabilities required for full spectrum operations to support current operational needs. Develop and integrate capabilities for future force warfighting concepts. Through engagement, provide world class joint and coalition exportable training Vision The world s most versatile Fires Force, with agile and adaptive Soldiers and leaders; fielded with integrated and interoperable systems; capable of delivering accurate and responsive fires in any environment, from mud to space, at any time.