Wartime Fresno / Hammer Field, The Fairgrounds
Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 1:26 pm
During WWII, Fresno's downtown streets swarmed with servicemen, mostly soldiers. There were three U.S Army bases in Fresno. Camp Pinedale, a sprawling Signal Corps base, bordered Herndon Ave. Hammer Field to the east was an Advanced Army Air Corps base. At the beginning of the war temporary barracks were built to house Japanese on their way to internment camps. Later these barracks were used to house soldiers at a camp we simply called The Fairgrounds.
From 1943 through 1945, I was a U.S.O. hostess, as were many of Fresno's young women at that time. Two or three times a week, special buses would take us to any one of the three bases. The men far outnumbered us, so every girl was popular. I did a lot of jitterbugging and, as I recall, never sat down. No alcohol allowed. We drank a lot of cokes. Drugs were unheard of.
On a personal note, one night my girlfriend and I, both 16, took a bus downtown to see a movie at the Warner Brothers theater. Afterwards, we had a choice of taking either the Wishon Bus or the Camp Pinedale bus home. Guess which one we chose. The bus was packed with soldiers, and I ended up sitting on a young staff sergeant's lap.That's how I met my first husband!
From 1943 through 1945, I was a U.S.O. hostess, as were many of Fresno's young women at that time. Two or three times a week, special buses would take us to any one of the three bases. The men far outnumbered us, so every girl was popular. I did a lot of jitterbugging and, as I recall, never sat down. No alcohol allowed. We drank a lot of cokes. Drugs were unheard of.
On a personal note, one night my girlfriend and I, both 16, took a bus downtown to see a movie at the Warner Brothers theater. Afterwards, we had a choice of taking either the Wishon Bus or the Camp Pinedale bus home. Guess which one we chose. The bus was packed with soldiers, and I ended up sitting on a young staff sergeant's lap.That's how I met my first husband!