| The history of the base dates back to the Railroad Act of 1862, when President Lincoln and Congress set plans for the transcontinental railroad, including a military installation on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains in the Wyoming Territory, to protect Union Pacific workers from hostile Indians. On July 4, 1876, the railroad established its mountain region headquarters at Crow Creek Crossing, later known as Cheyenne. A few weeks later, the U.S. Cavalry moved from temporary head- quarters in Cheyenne to a point three miles west and established Fort D.A. Russell, named after a Civil War hero killed in action at Chantilly, Va. In 1927, the last cavalry units left, ending 60 years of cavalry history at Fort Russell. In 1930, President Hoover issued a proclamation changing the name to Francis E. Warren, Wyoming's territorial governor and first state governor. In 1949 the fort became Francis E. Warren Air Force Base. |
| The photographs on these pages are the courtesy of Rex Raymond. Rex is a retired fellow employee of the telephone company like me. Rex arrived at Installer Cableman School on his birthday, November 20, 1953. After graduating he was assigned to the 604 Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron in Germany. This view is of the base gate into Francis E. Warren AFB. |
| Rex Raymond standing next to his barracks. |
| I arrived at Francis E. Warren in Oct., 1950. School for me did not start until Nov.18, 1950. Until that date arrived I and other airmen did odd jobs around the base. One of these that I pulled was fire guard. To the right in this photo of Rex's barracks is a pile of coal with a cement berm around it. This coal supplied heat for three barracks. It was my duty one night to fire the furnaces and water heaters for three barracks. The coal was hand carried in five gallon pails between the barracks. The inside wall of the furnace room divided the showers from the furnace room and when the fellows ran out of hot water they would pound on the wall and holler, "Get that fire going!!" Ha.. |
| Mess hall located at the end of a row of barracks. Rex related how after their arrival there, that they were marched down to the mess hall from their barracks and on arriving a couple of the fellows passed out. They couldn't stand the altitude of Cheyenne. Cheyenne was 6062 ft. above sea level. |
| T/Sgt. Bennum taking a short siesta. |
| Unknown airman washing his fatigues |
| Three of Rex's friends. From left, Seal, Roger Coggins, Ted Laytart. |
| Airman Seal readying his footlocker for inspection. Looks as though he received some goodies from home. |
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The Air Force assumed command in 1947 and in 1949 the fort was renamed F.E. Warren AFB. During the first ten years the installation was used as a train- ing facility. I along with other airmen of First Communications Construction Squadron attended the Installer Cable- man School at this installation. I attended the school before being assigned to First Comm. while others attended after being assigned to First Comm. This school was to learn basic telephone cable splicing along with some telephone construction. There were classes on basic electricity, where I first met Ohms Law. Soldering techniques, hanging cable plat- forms and basic telephone cable splicing. This last item was splicing by "pig tailing" wires and wiping lead sleeves with molten solder to make a water proof joint. |
