Camp Butner

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Camp Butner was a United States Army installation in Butner, North Carolina during World War II. It was named after Army general and North Carolina native Henry W. Butner. Part of it was used as a POW camp for German prisoners of war in the United States and this site eventually became the Federal Correctional Complex, Butner. The camp site was chosen in the late summer of 1941 to have a major training area, built with construction starting in January 1942. In just 6 short months, over 1,700 buildings were constructed. There were enough beds in the enlisted barracks alone to accommodate over 35,000 soldiers.

Several major US Army divisions used the camp as a staging area during the war, to assemble and organize prior to being deployed to both the European and Pacific theaters. Divisions like the 35th Infantry Division, 78th Infantry Division, and 89th Infantry Division came to Camp Butner prior to heading to Europe.

After the war, the camp was used as a major facility for the demobilization and inactivation of Army units returning from combat. Among the units inactivated at the camp were the 3d Infantry Regiment^[1] and the 4th Infantry Division.

The Camp was also the location of the Battalion Surgeon's Assistant school and had a convalescent hospital for wounded troops that operated much like Walter Reed does today.