The Texas World War II Home Front

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Texas World War II Home Front in Johnson County. Now, when a war comes calling, it doesn't just reach across the ocean; it reaches right down into the courthouse, the farmhouse, the front yard, and the family savings account. And Johnson County, Texas, found that out firsthand.

World War II brought something to the Texas home front that money couldn't buy on its own: a shared sense of patriotism and purpose. Civilians found new work or expanded work in petroleum, lumber, bomber manufacturing, farming. The economy was moving.

But here's the twist that nobody quite anticipated: so many Texans left for the larger cities chasing those war industry jobs, and so many others went off and joined the military, that the smaller communities were left hollowed out. An extreme labor shortage, the marker calls it, and that's no exaggeration. Across the state, groups worked to solve that problem.

Johnson County worked it out in June of 1944. And the solution they landed on was something. Camp Cleburne.

A camp for German Prisoners of War, established right here in Johnson County. Now, to get it done, the First State Bank of Rio Vista guaranteed the funds to the United States government for the POW wages. A local bank, backing the deal that brought enemy prisoners to work Texas soil.

That's the kind of thing that sounds stranger than fiction until you realize just how desperate the need was. And it worked. By war's end, Camp Cleburne had provided agricultural labor to 120 Johnson County farms.

One hundred and twenty. And before you think that's some unusual arrangement, understand that Camp Cleburne was one of nearly 70 camps across the state of Texas; camps that together housed more than 50,000 prisoners of war. The scale of it is something else.

But let's back up a little, before the camp, before the labor shortage, back to when the shooting hadn't quite started yet and American soldiers were still training on American soil. National Guard units were drilling across Texas, getting ready for what everyone quietly understood was coming. One of those units was Battery B, 132nd Field Artillery, 36th Infantry Division.

They trained right here in Johnson County. Then February of 1942 arrived, and the 36th Infantry Division mobilized for overseas deployment. When that unit rolled through Cleburne, rolled right through town, hundreds of Johnson County residents turned out to cheer them on.

Hundreds. Standing there on the streets, watching their neighbors and sons and brothers ship out. That's the kind of moment that doesn't leave a community quickly.

By 1945, nearly 1.2 million troops had trained at army posts, airfields, and naval bases across the state of Texas. The whole state had become, in some sense, a machine built for the purpose of war. Back home, the Johnson County Draft Board and the Rationing Board both operated out of the county courthouse.

And local residents (they didn't sit idle). They ran blackout and air raid drills. They flew with the Civil Air Patrol.

They planted victory gardens, organized scrap drives, volunteered at USOs, and worked war bond drives. Shortages, inconveniences, sacrifices; they endured them, because that's what the moment required. Texans responded in great numbers, the marker says, serving both overseas and stateside.

And when it was all over, that military buildup (all those bases, all those jobs, all that movement of people) served as the catalyst toward the modernization and urbanization of Texas itself. A world war reached into Johnson County, and Johnson County reached right back.

What the marker says

World War II brought a shared sense of patriotism and purpose to the Texas home front as civilians benefited from new or expanded war industry jobs, such as petroleum, lumber, bomber manufacturing and farming. However, the large number of Texans seeking employment in larger cities or joining the military created an extreme labor shortage in many smaller communities. Across the state, groups worked to alleviate the labor crisis. Johnson County succeeded in June 1944 with the establishment of Camp Cleburne for German Prisoners of War (POWs) here, with the First State Bank of Rio Vista guarantying funds to the U.S. government for POW wages. By war’s end, Camp Cleburne––one of nearly 70 camps across the state housing more than 50,000 POWs––provided 120 Johnson County farms with necessary agricultural labor during the war. Prior to the war, National Guard units trained across Texas preparing for America’s eventual entry into the war. One such unit, Battery B., 132nd Field Artillery, 36th Infantry Division (I.D.) trained in Johnson County. In 1942, the 36th I.D. mobilized for overseas deployment and the patriotic Texas spirit shone brightly as the unit rolled through Cleburne in Feb. 1942 to the cheers of hundreds of Johnson County residents. By 1945, nearly 1.2 million troops trained at army posts, airfields and naval bases in Texas. Texans looked to volunteer civically while enduring shortages and inconveniences necessary to support the war effort. The Johnson County Draft Board and Rationing Board were housed in the county courthouse. In addition, local residents participated in civilian oriented programs, such as blackout and air raid drills, Civil Air Patrol, victory gardens, scrap drives, volunteering at USOs and working war bond drives. Texans responded in great numbers to their nation’s call and served both overseas and stateside in WWII. The resulting military buildup served as the catalyst toward the modernization and urbanization of Texas. Texas in World War II - 2010