~Stateside~
SSgt. William H. Dickson & the 45th Infantry Division
| Camp Barkeley, TX. | Ft. Devens, MA. | Pine Camp, N.Y. | Camp Pickett, VA. | HOME |
| Ft. Sill | - August 1940 to March 1941 |
| Camp Barkeley | - March 1941 to April 1942 |
| Ft. Devens | - April 1942 to November 1942 |
| Pine Camp | - November 1942 to January 1943 |
| Camp Pickett | - January 1943 to May 1943 |
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Camp Patrick Henry (staging area) |
- End of May 1943 to Early June 1943 |
| It took a little while for the 45th Division to make it overseas and get into the war once the United States became an active participant (December 7, 1941). Partly because the division had to be built back up to full strength from the loss of troops whose one year National Guard term came to an end in the Fall of 1941 and partly because the United States was woefully prepared for the war (in terms of troops, equipment, tanks, planes, etc.). Lots of training and maneuvers (like war games) occurred in various camps and forts across the United States from the Division's inception in 1940 to finally leaving for the War in 1943. At one point, there were rumors and an alert that part of the Division, the 180th, could be sent to North Africa in early 1943, but that did not come to fruition. Instead, the 45th Division would become part of the largest amphibious invasion of the war (up to that point) with the Allied assault on Sicily in July 1943. The 45th was loaded on transport ships on June 4, 1943 and finally sailed off to the European Theatre (to North Africa) on June 8, 1943. |
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