Camp Iron Mountain (limited edition Fine Art print)
See the Traces Of One Million page for more details about the picture location and historical context.
Desert Training Center
This camp was one of thirteen divisional tent camps that existed in the Mojave Desert of Southern California and Western Arizona between 1942 and 1944 to train and prepare troops for desert warfare in the North Africa desert. In its final stage the entire training zone was approximately 350 miles wide and 250 miles long.
Historic Activity
This site was established for training efforts in an area with a desert terrain and environment. In January 1942, the success of the German Army in North Africa led the U.S. War Department to focus U.S. Army training efforts in areas with a desert terrain and environment. On 5 February 1942, the Chief of Staff, General Headquarters, approved of a Desert Training Center and designated General George S. Patton as the Center's Commanding General. The total maneuver area encompassed 12 million acres, making it the largest training area in the U.S. Close to one million troops trained in this area between 1942 and 1944.