Pepperrell AFB, St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada
Fort Pepperrell originally was the nucleus of the defense protecting the Northeast coast of the United States and Canada.
In the early 1940's, French Atlantic ports were controlled by the Germans and French African ports were cut off from Royal Navy warships. The French fleet was in danger of coming under enemy control. Great Britain was practically alone as the Allied line of defense since Italy was allied with Germany and had their fleet in the Mediterranean.
The British Government got leases of sites for the establishment of military bases for the Government of the United States in September 1940. This included facilities in Britain's Western possessions, Newfoundland and the South Atlantic territories.
Great Britain did not want to sell or cede the land. This resulted in the United States leasing sites for 99 years from them in 1941. These sites were leased for construction of air bases in Newfoundland, Bermuda, Bahamas, Jamaica, Antigua, St. Lucia, Trinidad and British Guinea.
In January of 1941, Headquarters Newfoundland Base Command (NBC)was activated aboard the U.S. Army transport, Edmund B. Alexander, the former German liner, Amerkia, which had been made into a floating barracks, and arrived off Cape Spear, Newfoundland January 25, 1941 with the first U.S. troops numbering about 1000 men made up of units of infantry, coast artillery, and anti-aircraft artillery.
The ship, Alexander, was kept out of the harbor until January 29 when it maneuvered through the narrows to St. John's, the largest ship to ever have docked there.
It was decided that the ship would be used as a barracks until housing had been built by the U.S. District Engineers who had already been at work before the Alexander's arrival. Their work began in October 1940 near Quidi Vidi Lake.
A tent camp known as Camp Alexander built on Carpasian Road was completed May 20, 1941 and this would serve as quarters for the troops until permanent quarters could be built.
War-time shortages prevented the Canadians from building permanent military bases at Botwood, Gander, Bell Island or St. John's and because of this Canadian military buildings were constructed quickly and cheaply using whatever material was readily available. U.S. construction was planned to last the duration of the 99 year lease.
Construction of the permanent base began in May 1941 and some of the
troops were able to move into permanent quarters late in the year. Roosevelt Avenue and Charter Avenue were constructed in the shape of a stylized cowboy hat which encompassed each barracks building.
The Newfoundland Base command was put in place at Fort Pepperrell in
1943, the year the base was completed and was under the U.S. command.
During the war years, all supplies shipped to other stations were processed
through Fort Pepperrell, St. John's harbor where supplies necessary to maintain
all Newfoundland stations were being unloaded was one of only two ice free
ports during the winter months.
When the war ended, there was some question of what should become of
the Newfoundland Base Command and Fort Pepperrell. It was eventually
decided that Newfoundland would provide local security for and maintain US
Army installations, facilitate operations of the Air Transport Command, and
maintain liaison with US Navy and allied nations and local commands.
In 1946, the Newfoundland, Greenland, Iceland, and Bermuda base commands
were reassigned to the Newfoundland Base Command headquartered at Fort
Pepperrell.
The command was charged with dispatching, servicing, supplying, and
maintaining all aircraft under operational control of the Atlantic Division
scheduled or routed through or within the command. It further had responsibility
for the operation and disciplinary control of such air units and crews while
within the command and to operate a Search and Rescue System.
In 1948, the NBC included Labrador, Greenland, and the Northwest
Territories. Ernest Harmon AFB at Stephenville was left under the control
of the Air Transport Command. NBC ceased to exist in 1950 when their bases
and facilities became part of the newly formed Northeast Air Command (NEAC)
and the fort became known as Pepperrell Air Force Base.
The value of the North Atlantic and Arctic regions as a defense against
potential invaders became widely recognized, but the Northeast Air Command
was short lived. It was abolished in 1957 and integrated into the Strategic
Air Command and Air Defense Command.
Within a couple of years after NEAC ceased to exist, Pepperrell Air
Force Base had been vacated by the Americans. The area soon became Pleasantville,
a suburb of St. John's where civilian housing was developed and where most
of the buildings built by the Americans to last 99 years came to be used by various and sundry Canadian and Newfoundland military functions.
In 2006, The Department of National Defence is considering building a new facility for Canadian Forces Station (CFS) St. Johns to replace the aging infrastructure in Pleasantville.
Ode to Newfoundland
Sir Cavendish Boyle
When Sunrays crown thy pine clad hills
When spreads thy cloak of shimm'ring white
When blinding storm gusts fret thy shore
As loved our fathers, so we love
Click here to see next page of air defenses and personnel in Canada.
Active
View Second Guestbook Archive (Dates 08/11/04 through 09/13/07)
View First Guestbook Archive (Dates through 06/12/04)
Part of a Web Site Constructed by
And Summer spreads her hand
When silvern voices tune thy rills
We love thee smiling land
We love thee, we love thee
We love thee, smiling land.
At Winter's stern command
Thro' shortened day and starlit night
We love thee, frozen land
We love thee, we love thee
We love thee, frozen land.
And wild waves lash thy strand
Thro' spindrift swirl and tempest roar
We love thee, wind-swept land
We love thee, we love thee
We love thee, wind-swept land.
Where once they stood we stand
Their prayer we raise to heav'n above
God guard thee, Newfoundland
God guard thee, God guard thee
God guard thee, Newfoundland.
Active
Albert J. Wheat
9529 Parker St.
Omaha, NE 68114