The decade of the 1940s was extremely important to the history of Redstone Arsenal. It was not only the time when the arsenal complex was physically founded, but also marked the beginning of the arsenal's modern mission. This chronology commemorates the tradition of excellence that began in the 1940s and remains the hallmark of today's Redstone Arsenal.

April 1941: Congress approved funds for the construction of a chemical manufacturing and storage installation to supplement the production of the Chemical Warfare Service's only chemical manufacturing plant at Edgewood Arsenal, Maryland.

May 27, 1941: President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a proclamation declaring the existence of a state of unlimited emergency. In response to this action the Army Ordnance Department undertook to expand its facilities in order to assure adequate production of ammunition in keeping with the time-objective requirements of the General Staff. Among the projected facilities to be acquired was a chemical shell assembly plant.

June 8, 1941: The first stop on the Army's inspection tour for a new chemical manufacturing and storage facility site was made at Huntsville, Alabama. The inspection team was escorted initially to a spot on the south side of the Tennessee River. After this location was rejected as unsuitable for building without a lot of leveling, the Army team looked at an alternate site on the southwestern edge of the city. Though no one knew it at the time, this site would eventually become the home of the CWS's new arsenal.

June 18, 1941: The Chief, Chemical Warfare Service wrote a letter to the President of the War Department Facilities Board, Under Secretary of War, regarding additional facilities for the CWS that were to be located near Huntsville, Alabama. The letter outlined the plant requirements and requested the authorization and necessary funds to acquire the land and equipment as well as provide for building.

July 3, 1941: The War Department announced that a site on the southwestern edge of Huntsville, Alabama, had been selected as the location for a new chemical munitions manufacturing and storage plant.

July 8, 1941: The War Department announced the establishment of a $6 million Ordnance Corps assembly plant to be operated in conjunction with the neighboring chemical munitions manufacturing and storage plant.

July 12, 1941: The first civil service employees were hired for the CWS arsenal. They were a janitor, a secretary, and a mail clerk.

July 16, 1941: The War Department signed a cost-plus-fixed-fee contract with Whitman, Requardt, and Smith of Baltimore, Maryland, for architectural and engineering services. This contract called for the preparation of necessary reports, designs, drawings, specifications, and other documents as well as technical supervision for the construction of the new chemical munitions manufacturing and storage plant.

July 21, 1941: A cost-plus-fixed-fee contract was concluded with C.G. Kershaw Contracting Company of Birmingham, Alabama; Engineers Limited of San Francisco, California; and the Walter Butler Company of St. Paul, Minnesota, for the construction of the CWS arsenal.

July 24, 1941: The War Department announced Huntsville Arsenal was the name of the new chemical munitions plant.

July 24, 1941: The Office of the Quartermaster General issued the first construction authorization for Huntsville Arsenal, totaling $31,589,493.

July 24, 1941: The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Northeastern Division, entered an order granting possession of the selected arsenal site to the U.S. Government.

July 28, 1941: The Army took possession of the initial tract of 160 acres, and the first families were moved from the Huntsville Arsenal reservation to make way for the construction of temporary headquarters and administration buildings.

August 4, 1941: The first Commanding Officer of Huntsville Arsenal - COL Rollo C. Ditto - arrived and broke ground for the initial construction of the arsenal.

August 19, 1941: The Chief of Ordnance submitted the initial request for contract negotiations for a proposed Ordnance plant near Huntsville Arsenal. Funds to cover the original cost estimate were furnished on August 28, 1941.

September 1941: Huntsville Arsenal's Commanding Officer, Rollo C. Ditto, was promoted to Brigadier General.

September 1941: The first track of the Huntsville Arsenal Railroad was laid. It was among the first construction work begun on the arsenal, because it was needed to deliver heavy equipment and supplies to other construction areas.

September 2, 1941: Actual construction on the first permanent buildings at Huntsville Arsenal began.

September 14, 1941: Temporary headquarters and other administration buildings were completed on Huntsville Arsenal, and the new occupants moved in. Previously, the Commanding General and his staff had operated from the Huntsville National Guard Armory and the Huntsville High School gymnasium.

September 25, 1941: MAJ Carroll D. Hudson was named Commanding Officer of Redstone Ordnance Plant, which was to be constructed adjacent to Huntsville Arsenal. In his capacity as commander, Hudson also served as the Army Inspector of Ordnance.

October 1, 1941: Because Huntsville Arsenal was located in one of the most malarias areas in Alabama, a malaria control program was started at the installation.

October 6, 1941: Major Hudson arrived in Huntsville to finalize construction plans for an Ordnance shell loading/assembly plant to be located on a 4,000-acre tract east of but adjacent to Huntsville Arsenal. Redstone Ordnance Plant, so named because of the preponderance of red soil, was the seventh of the Ordnance Corps manufacturing arsenals and the only one located below the Mason-Dixon line.

October 25, 1941: Ground breaking ceremonies for Redstone Ordnance Plant were held.

October 30, 1941: This was the original date set for former residents of the Huntsville Arsenal reservation to vacate the premises. It was later changed to January 1, 1942, although some families were given a special extension because of difficulties associated with their relocation. By the middle of January, all of the former residents of the area purchased for Huntsville Arsenal had moved off the Army's land.

November 8,1941: The first sick call at Huntsville Arsenal was held in Building T-144, which had been designated the Post Hospital. The hospital subsequently moved to Building 117 on May 1, 1942. The first nurse reported for duty on 16 May. The Dental Clinic opened on June 10, 1942 in the same building.

November 11, 1941: The first Redstone Ordnance Plant building-the Bachelor Officers' Quarters (A-131)-was completed. It also served as the temporary headquarters building until the Administration Building was completed in March 1942.

December 1941: Railroad tracks connecting the east and west classification yards at Huntsville Arsenal, as well as lines to the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot and Redstone Ordnance Plant, were finished. The complete system consisted of about 75 miles of track.
 

December 7, 1941: After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on this date and the subsequent U.S. declaration of war on December 8, work at Redstone Arsenal was placed on a 24-hour basis instead of the usual one-shift operation. Simultaneous with the construction of the production lines, every effort was made to rush completion of such structures as storage warehouses, igloos, magazines, shops, and the fire and police building.

December 21, 1941: The First War Powers Act of December 18, 1941 was in effect when Redstone procurement began operating on this date. Under this act it was permissible to negotiate purchases of needed materials and supplies without too much deference to the lowest bidder, time being of the essence in the acquisition of all materials considered essential for administrative or manufacturing activities.

January 2, 1942: The Office of the Chief of Engineers issued a construction directive for the building of a chemical warfare storage depot having facilities for the storage of 20 million units. Among the facilities to be erected were 200 concrete igloos.

February 1942 to July 1945: There were eight fatalities in the Operations Division of Huntsville Arsenal: seven civilians and one Army officer.

February 1, 1942: Major Hudson, Commanding Officer of Redstone Ordnance Plant, was promoted to lieutenant colonel.

February 5, 1942: The War Department officially activated Redstone Ordnance Plant. Hiring of personnel for the ammunition production lines (including women) also began.

The original hiring policy was to take as much unskilled labor from the immediate vicinity as possible because: 1) it centralized plant personnel in one locality; 2) it acted as a goodwill gesture for residents of the community; 3) it was much easier to check the references of local applicants. Contrary to existing thought at that time, Lieutenant Colonel Hudson began to lay plans for the employment of women in the event that manpower became scarce. Arrangements were made with the Civil Service Commission, which shortly announced job examinations for female trainees. At the time, the use of women was definitely frowned upon, but subsequent events more than justified Hudson's actions. By December 1942, about 40 percent of Redstone production line employees were women.

February 14, 1942: The Adjutant General authorized the Chief of Engineers to begin construction of the Huntsville Chemical Warfare Depot as part of the Depot Storage Program.

February 28, 1942: Huntsville Arsenal's first production emerged from a pilot line for M-54 incendiary bombs set up in Warehouse 642. This production continued intermittently until April 21, 1942, when fire destroyed the entire plant and its equipment.

February 28, 1942: The first two ungraded (per diem) female employees were hired at Redstone Arsenal to work on the first production line.

March 1942: Huntsville Arsenal's first production facility was activated. The arsenal became the sole manufacturer of colored smoke munitions and was also noted for its vast production of gel-type incendiaries. During WWII more than 27 million items of chemical munitions, with a total value of more than $134.5 million, were produced. Personnel of Huntsville Arsenal won the Army-Navy "E" Award four different times for their outstanding record in the production of war equipment.

March 1942: Kershaw Butler Engineers, Limited, completed construction of one of two mustard gas filling plants at Huntsville Arsenal. A third plant was authorized but was ultimately adapted for incendiary oil munitions filling. These two mustard gas filling plants were more or less active until March 1944, when both were placed on standby. One of the plants was reactivated in October 1944 to fill an M-70 bomb schedule. After being placed in standby condition in January 1945, the plant was once again reopened in August 1945 for M-70 bomb filling. The schedule was canceled on August 10, 1945 in anticipation of the capitulation of Japan.

March 1942: The first civilian employees of the Huntsville Chemical Warfare Depot were hired. The civilian strength of the depot crested at 656 in July 1944.
 

March 1942  to September 1945: Over 45.2 million units of ammunition were loaded and assembled at Redstone, the only government-owned and operated arsenal established by the Ordnance Department during WWII. For their outstanding services in the manufacture of munitions, Redstone employees won the Army-Navy "E" Award five different times.   
 

March 1, 1942: Redstone Ordnance Plant's first supervisor of training, supplied by the Alabama Department of Vocational Training, arrived. He planned and implemented the necessary classes to instruct the unskilled workers who made up the bulk of the available labor supply.

March 6, 1942: The War Department formally activated the Huntsville Chemical Warfare Depot. Located in the extreme southern portion of Huntsville Arsenal, the depot received, stored, and issued Chemical Warfare Service materiel such as munitions, bulk chemicals, decontaminating apparatuses, and protective materials.

March 6, 1942: General Order No. 5, issued on this date, established differing colors for the margins of the Redstone Ordnance Plant identification badge in order to confine workers to their respective areas. Red gained admittance anywhere on the reservation; white was the administrative area; blue was for the lines 1 and 2; orange was for lines 3 and 4; yellow was for the magazine area; and green was for the igloos.

March 12, 1942: The main processing plant for the 4-pound M-54 thermate incendiary bomb was activated for production at Huntsville Arsenal. It operated until April 21, 1942, when the building was completely destroyed by fire. No further attempt was made to manufacture the M-54 bomb at Huntsville Arsenal after this time. Because there was no need for the storage buildings associated with the M-54 production line, they were torn down on May 1, 1942 and the lumber was salvaged.

March 20, 1942: In compliance with a directive from higher headquarters, the Chief of Transportation at Redstone Ordnance Plant established a Share-A-Ride program on this date for the benefit of Redstone employees who were without transportation. Under this plan, the Army provided assistance in getting gasoline to those drivers with cars who were willing to transport fellow employees to and from work. The 1-2 percent of ride seekers not accommodated by this new program could not be assisted primarily because of residential isolation.

March 28, 1942: The first production line began operation at Redstone Ordnance Plant.

April 6, 1942: In conjunction with the city of Huntsville, Redstone Ordnance Plant participated for the first time in the national celebration of Army Day. Hudson spoke to both assembled plant employees and at the parade and celebration staged by the city.

April 7, 1942: The first mustard gas produced at Huntsville Arsenal was made at Plant #1, Building 311. Between May 8 and November 22, 1942, five more mustard production plants began operations. They were shut down between May 23-28, 1943. Production officially ceased on the latter date.

April 7, 1942: The two mustard gas filling plants at Huntsville Arsenal filled the first item of production (105mm M-60 shells). Both filling plants operated until March 1944, at which time they were placed in standby. The No. 2 plant was reactivated in October 1944, deactivated again in January 1945, and reactivated again in August 1945. The fact that mustard gas was never used in WWII caused much variance in the manufacturing program and schedules.

April 9, 1942: Operation of the Clothing Renovating Plant at Huntsville Arsenal began on this date. The primary objective of the facility was to make permeable clothing protective against vesicant vapors by impregnating the clothing with a compound that neutralized the vapors. The plant's secondary objective included the laundering of impregnated clothing to remove soil or slight vesicant contamination, flameproofing of permeable clothing with an agent to make the material resistant to flames and laundering of flameproofed clothing.

April 26, 1942: The first medical officer was assigned temporarily to Redstone Ordnance Plant.

April 28, 1942: The first loading and assembly line (#3) for chemical ammunition began operation at Redstone Ordnance Plant. It was called the "Redstone line" because of the many modifications made to the Picatinny Arsenal recommendations for equipment and material. This system of assembly proved to be efficient during a week-long experiment which compared the modified line with one that functioned on the original Picatinny recommendations. As a result, all of the loading and assembly lines for chemical ammunition at the installation began using the Redstone-designed equipment.

April 1942 to May 43: During this period, production at Huntsville Arsenal was dependent upon the supply of components, the availability of trained personnel, and the successful operation of the manufacturing plant or filling line. There were no schedules to meet or forecasts to make. The prevailing idea was to produce everything possible as quickly as possible. The Army Supply Program subsequently showed that definite plans had to be formulated and schedules established so that end items produced at CWS arsenals would balance in a satisfactory manner. This program provided an overall picture to indicate quantities to be produced monthly as well as grand totals achieved by each CWS installation.

May 1942: Preliminary operations began at the two chlorine plants on Huntsville Arsenal which generated chlorine for the manufacture of mustard gas. Production continued until July 1945.

May 14, 1942: Redstone Ordnance Plant's first Post Surgeon reported for duty. His staff consisted of three nurses. The temporary first aid station where he was headquartered until completion of the hospital was initially equipped with a sterilizer, a very crude operating set left from WWI, and a few medicinals.     

May 15, 1942: Huntsville Arsenal's only white phosphorus filling plant started production. Ten different munitions types were filled (including mortar shells and grenades) until production ceased on August 14, 1945.

May 29, 1942: The first carload of finished products left the Redstone Ordnance Plant classification yard           

May 29, 1942: To help alleviate the severe housing shortage caused by the construction of Huntsville Arsenal and Redstone Ordnance Plant, a contract was awarded for the construction of 300 family units on a tract of land near Farley, Alabama (southeast of the Army installations). Because of its proximity to the tracks of the Redstone Ordnance Plant spur of the Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railroad, plans were laid to substitute rail transportation for inhabitants of the housing area should curtailment of motor transportation become necessary.

June 15, 1942: The first edition of the Redstone Ordnance Plant weekly newspaper, the Redstone Eagle, came off the press on this date. Colonel Hudson urged the publication of a plant newspaper as part of the program to maintain high morale among the civilian employees. The last edition of the paper was issued on September 17, 1946.       

July 7, 1942: The Office of the Chief of Engineers authorized the construction of a Civilian War Housing, Dormitory Project for Huntsville Arsenal. A total of 18 dormitories capable of housing 24 persons were erected by the Chambers Lumber Company of Athens, Alabama.

July 31, 1942: In compliance with guidelines to induct all guards into the Civilian Auxiliary Military Police (CAMP) under the authority of a commissioned officer, the entire guard force of the Redstone Ordnance Plant was read the Articles of War and inducted into the CAMP.

August 1942: The Redstone Ordnance Plant hospital, a 29-room building, opened. The first patient of the new facility was the post surgeon, who suffered a fractured arm after being thrown from a horse. This hospital was inactivated on June 30, 1947, and all Surgeon General property and equipment were turned over to the Huntsville Arsenal Hospital. The latter facility subsequently provided medical services for the neighboring installation.

August 16, 1942: The first baby was born in the Huntsville Arsenal Station Hospital.

August 19, 1942: Construction on Redstone Park, the housing project contracted out in May 1942, began. It was completed early in the following year. During the war, Redstone Park was occupied exclusively by Redstone Ordnance Plant and Huntsville Arsenal employees, with precedence being given to Redstone personnel.      

September 1942: The AN-M8 hand grenade, a smoke munition, began production at Huntsville Arsenal. Production continued on an intermittent basis until final termination in March 1945.

October 1942: Production of colored smoke grenades at Huntsville Arsenal began. The dye used in the grenades colored the workers' clothing and stained their skin. Reportedly it was not uncommon to see people of rainbow hues in the Huntsville area.

October 1942: The military strength (580) at Huntsville Arsenal reached its peak.

October to November 1942: The manufacture of M-16 colored smoke grenades began at Huntsville Arsenal. An initial order for 30,000 grenades was filled during this period. Production of the M-16 grenade continued until the M-18 grenade superseded it on November 16, 1943. The daily capacity of the M-16 plant prior to its conversion was about 15,000 grenades per 24-hour work period.

October 1, 1942: The Commanding General of Huntsville Arsenal was assigned additional duties as the Commanding General of the Huntsville Chemical Warfare Depot.

October 31, 1942: In recognition of its outstanding production record, Huntsville Arsenal received the first of four Army-Navy "E" awards.

November 1942: A plant safety organization was set up at Huntsville Arsenal under the guidance of the newly formed Industrial Safety Division. Progress in establishing a viable safety program was slow because the workers, both white and black, male and female, were drawn largely from the agrarian sector and had no industrial experience. Headway on safety practices was impeded further by the fact that many of the employees were illiterate and labor turnover was high. Also, because of the need to meet production goals, the time allowed for safety instruction was often too short to satisfactorily train workers in cautious practices. The weak link in safety supervision in the arsenal's Operation Division was at the line foreman level. Several of the sub-foremen were illiterate and none had had previous industrial experience. Too frequently in their zeal to get the end item made, too little attention was paid to job safety training, resulting in a high rate of accidents due to carelessness.

November 1942: Production of white smoke munitions began at Huntsville Arsenal. Among the items produced were smoke pots, smoke shells, M-20 rifle grenades, and smoke canisters. Production of these types of munitions continued until Victory-Japan (V-J) Day.

November 2, 1942: Production of the M-4 floating smoke pot began at one of Huntsville Arsenal's facilities. The limited capacity of this plant led to the construction of a larger line that began production in May 43. Production continued until August 17, 1943, when 2000 rejected smoke pots stored in a warehouse were set on fire by an ignited fuze lighter thrown into a pile of starter cups. A girl who was dismantling pots and had thrown the lighter was killed. The warehouse and its contents were a total loss. Production resumed in January 1944. It was discontinued in April 1944, when the M-4 was replaced by the M-4A2 floating smoke pot.

November 6, 1942: The first Lewisite manufacturing plant began operations at Huntsville Arsenal, although its construction was not formally completed by Kershaw Butler until 18 November. By May 1943 three other Lewisite plants were in operation. All Lewisite manufacturing operations were permanently halted on October 30, 1943, and the plants were declared surplus in 1944.

November 9, 1942: Huntsville Arsenal's Smoke and Incendiary Loading Department Branch Property Office, organized on this date, pioneered the use of War Department Shipping Documents, a new method for transferring property accountability. The Chemical Warfare Service selected the arsenal to be the first of its installations to implement the system.
 

November 18, 1942: The first uniforms for the women employees of Redstone Ordnance Plant arrived. This distinctive garb was indicative of their participation in war work, an innovative step at that time. The uniform the women selected was a two-piece suit of regulation "Army pink" material, which was also known as officer's pink cavalry twill. A jacket, skirt, visor cap, and leather belt were considered "regulation," with an optional overseas cap and matching belt.

November 28, 1942: The first Army-Navy "E" Award was conferred on Redstone Ordnance Plant. The presentation ceremony was held on December 21, 1942.         

December 1, 1942: Civilian barracks opened at Huntsville Arsenal.

December 22, 1942: In accordance with instructions received from higher headquarters on October 29, 1942, Redstone Ordnance Plant prepared disaster plans to cope with such emergencies as fire, explosion, gas, electrical storm, riot, air raid and blackout, and paratroop invasion.

Beginning this year, a particular specialty of Redstone Ordnance Plant was the manufacture of demolition blocks for the Corps of Engineers and Airborne Troops. Some of the common uses of the blocks included the demolition of bridges and other installations to delay the enemy, assault demolitions of fortifications and pillboxes, and destruction of underwater obstacles during amphibious assaults. By August 1945, Redstone had produced and shipped 11,756,000 demolition blocks.

Because the extremities of the reservation were not completely fenced, a mounted guard was started at Redstone Ordnance Plant to patrol the installation's borders. The problem of feed for the horses led to the planting of corn on abandoned farmland adjacent to the stables. Huntsville Arsenal also donated several acres of hay that Redstone employees cut and baled. Following V-J Day, the horses were declared surplus property and sold.

During the year, Redstone established a diversified program of outdoor activities that was highly successful. Both the women's and men's basketball and softball teams won several titles in competition with other area teams. Intramural teams were also formed. In addition, volleyball, badminton, and ping-pong facilities were set up.

In conformance with the trend of replacing male employees with female workers whenever available, the Commanding Officer of Redstone Ordnance Plant ordered the Plant Guard Officer to hire a number of female guards. Their duties included escorting visitors, assisting at entrance gates, writing passes, conducting searches of female employees, and acting as headquarters sergeants where desk work was required.

Problems concerning the needs of Redstone Park inhabitants were worked out during this period. Great difficulty in getting adequate milk deliveries established for the project were encountered because local tradesmen were reluctant to supply commodities in short supply if doing so would deprive their regular customers in Huntsville. The distance from the city to the project also affected deliveries because of the shortage of trucks and tires for delivery purposes.

1943 to May 1944: An innovation in the Huntsville Arsenal Post Exchange operation was the cultivation of a truck garden, products of which were used in the cafeteria and sold in the PX. The PX also owned 90 hogs, fed mostly with swill from kitchens, which were to provide pork for the cafeterias. The farm was discontinued because of continuing monetary losses.

1943 to 1945: A significant decrease in the production of chemical agents at Huntsville Arsenal occurred in 1943, with an attendant increase during 1944-1945 in the manufacturing importance of incendiaries and smokes.

January 1943: The first 4.2-inch mortar shells were proof-fired at Huntsville Arsenal. In May 1943, an Air Corps Detachment was stationed at the arsenal with the assigned mission of incendiary proofing. Several proofing ranges, as well as a simulated village known as "Little Tokyo," were constructed on the arsenal during the year.

January 1943: As a result of closer scrutiny of job applications the number of draft eligible males hired was reduced. Male employees were not put on the payroll unless they were over 30 years of age, were married, and had children. Consequently, very few draft exemptions were requested. The arsenal's policy of hiring as many women as possible eliminated any great labor difficulty in the Huntsville community.

January 1, 1943: Directions from higher headquarters required that individual earnings records were to be set up for each employee. These were to serve as a permanent record of all earnings and deductions. From this date, the Victory Tax was deducted from individual earnings. This tax remained in effect until replaced by the Current Tax Payment Act (also known as the "Pay-As-You-Go-Act") which became effective on June 9, 1943. This act introduced the withholding of federal income taxes on wages and salaries before being paid.

January 15, 1943: Huntsville Arsenal began publishing its own newspaper entitled The Patriot. The paper was published every Friday by and for the arsenal's military and civilian personnel under the direction of the Special Service Officer. Publication ceased on August 25, 1945.

January 16, 1943: Three old passenger railroad coaches were delivered to Redstone Ordnance Plant for use in transporting employees from Redstone Park.

February 26, 1943: Redstone Ordnance Plant was re-designated Redstone Arsenal.

March 1943: One of Huntsville Arsenal's H Filling Plant buildings was converted for use as an Incendiary Oil Plant. As of June 30, 1945, four different type of incendiary oil munitions had been produced. Each time a new munition was put into production, a redesign and alteration of the existing facilities had to be accomplished. Aside from the M-47 program, which operated during a period when more men were available, operations were carried out using about 60 percent women. It was found that women could efficiently handle almost any assembly operation that did not require more than moderate physical exertion.

March 15, 1943: Production of thionyl chloride, a drying and chlorinating agent used in the treatment of crude Lewisite, began at Huntsville Arsenal. It was discontinued on October 4, 1943, and never resumed.

March 20, 1943: Another plant contributing to the manufacture of Lewisite at Huntsville Arsenal, the arsenic trichloride plant, began operation. Placed on standby until November 11, 1943, the plant's equipment was subsequently removed to make way for a plasticized white phosphorus plant.

March 22, 1943: Production of the M-1 smoke pot began at Huntsville Arsenal. This first run continued until April 30, 1943. A second run started on August 10, 1943 and was concluded on January 15, 1944.

April 1943: Mary G. Parker of New Market, AL, joined the Redstone Guard Force. She was the first female member to be assigned to the guard organization

April 1943: The first Public Relations Officer for Huntsville Arsenal was appointed.

April 1943: In accordance with federal government direction, victory gardens were started at Redstone Arsenal. Though given a fair trial, according to contemporary accounts "by no stretch of the imagination could it be said they were successful."

April 17, 1943: The H.K. Ferguson Company of Cleveland, Ohio, completed construction of a thionyl chloride plant at Huntsville Arsenal. The purpose of this plant was to supply the drying and chlorinating agent used in the treatment of crude Lewisite to decrease sludge formation. Although the plant was not actually completed until April, production operations were initiated on March 15, 1943. Production was discontinued on October 4, 1943.

April 24, 1943: In compliance with Circular 74 of the War Department, a Legal Assistant Officer was established at Redstone Arsenal to provide legal assistance to military personnel and their dependents.

May 1943: Huntsville Arsenal began producing M-1 105mm canisters. Several widely scattered buildings were used to produce this type of smoke munition to reduce the fire hazard. After being discontinued and resumed several different times, production finally ceased in January 1945.

May 1943: Beginning this month, Huntsville Arsenal filled spot orders for the ANM-3 grenade. This munition was actually the red M-16 or red M-18 grenade placed in an outer metal container with retainer fins. The last order was filled in January 1945. A total of 155,725 grenades were produced in WWII.

May 1, 1943: Huntsville Arsenal started manufacturing the M-1 fuze, a component of the M-69 bomb. The first facilities used for fuze assembly were designed for about 10,000 fuzes per 8-hour period. The best performance reached a maximum sustained production rate of 16,000 per 8-hour period. Manufacture of the M-1 fuze continued intermittently until 7 July 7, 1945, at which time it was discontinued because the M-69 bomb was no longer being produced at Huntsville Arsenal.

May 4, 1943: Huntsville Arsenal started producing M-2 canisters for colored smokes which were to be shipped to Redstone Arsenal for assembly into base ejection shells. The last canister was produced on July 5, 1945.

May 15, 1943: Redstone Arsenal became the first activity in the Fourth Service Command privileged to fly the Minuteman "T" banner conferred by the Treasury Department on those installations having over 90 percent of their employees investing 10 percent of their earnings in War Savings Bonds. By this time, 93.84 percent of Redstone employees were investing 10.56 percent of their gross payroll in War Savings Bonds.

May 6, 1943: An explosion, or series of one major explosion and three smaller ones, occurred at one of Huntsville Arsenal's mustard gas manufacturing facilities, resulting in the death of two persons and the serious injury of a third.

May 22, 1943: The first Commander of Huntsville Arsenal, BG Rollo C. Ditto, transferred to a new assignment.

June 1943: A 300-unit housing project for black employees of Huntsville and Redstone Arsenals was opened. Known as Binford Court in honor of Henry C. Binford, a well-known educator and prominent member of Huntsville's black community at the turn of the century, this project was located close to the city of Huntsville. It provided badly needed housing relief to this group of arsenal workers.

June 15, 1943: It was announced that Redstone Arsenal would comply with a directive of the War Manpower Commission by not releasing necessary employees to take employment elsewhere for their own advantage. The purpose of this directive was to stabilize the workforce as much as possible in their present positions to cut down on labor turnover and frequent transfers from one war agency to another.

June 18, 1943: Construction authorization was received for a concrete bomb target mat 500 feet in diameter and a bomb target wall 75 feet long by 25 feet high, adjacent to the edge of the mat. These facilities were required for testing bombs produced at Huntsville Arsenal.

July 1943: The first mechanical equipment for use at Huntsville Chemical Warfare Depot was introduced. The new forklifts, tractors, and trailers materially reduced handling costs and labor. Initially operation of the depot was totally manual.

July 1943: A 76mm artillery munition first developed at the request of the British for screening and marking, the M-89 smoke shell began production at Huntsville Arsenal. It was discontinued in October 1944.

July 9, 1943: Production of carbonyl iron began at Huntsville Arsenal. This facility, constructed by the H.K. Ferguson Company, was established primarily to serve as a standby plant in the event that the only successful carbonyl iron plant then in operation (General Aniline Works, Grasselli, New Jersey) should cease production. Instructions were to produce 125,000 pounds of carbonyl iron and then put the plant on standby. When the quota was reached on October 26, 1943, the plant was shut down.

July 28, 1943: In keeping with guidance from the War Department, Redstone Arsenal established an employee suggestion program. The Civilian Personnel Branch set up 17 boxes at various points around the post and offered rewards ranging from $5 to $250 for acceptable suggestions.

August 1943: As an incentive toward better employee morale and in accordance with directives from higher headquarters, Huntsville Arsenal initiated the Suggestion for Victory Program. The first suggestion was received on August 7, 1943.

August 1, 1943: Effective this date, per diem employees at Redstone Arsenal were paid on a biweekly basis, receiving their checks every other Saturday. This change was made so employees could shop on Saturday evenings after work and count on a regular day twice a month on which to receive their pay.

August 1, 1943: Production of the AN-M14 grenade, a modified thermate incendiary that could generate enough heat to melt through a sheet of 3/8-inch steel, began at Huntsville Arsenal. Manufacture of this item ceased in December 1943.

August 7, 1943: The Office, Chief of Ordnance informed the Redstone Arsenal Commanding Officer of its plan to turn over operation of the installation to the Concan Ordnance Company, Inc., a subsidiary of the Continental Can Company. This was in keeping with Ordnance Department policy of having certain government establishments operated by industry so that needed military personnel could be released for troop duty. However, negotiations between the Ordnance Department and Concan Ordnance broke off in November 1943, with the Army retaining management of arsenal operations.

August 10, 1943: The War Department changed the name of the Huntsville Chemical Warfare Depot to Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot to avoid confusion with Huntsville Arsenal.

August 14, 1943: The first serious explosion at Redstone Arsenal occurred at 2326 hours on Line #1, killing one woman and injuring seven other workers.

September 1943: It was announced that LTC Carroll D. Hudson had been assigned to a new post with the Field Director of Ammunition Plants in St. Louis, Missouri. This reassignment was part of the effort to contract out the operation of Redstone Arsenal to the Concan Ordnance Company, Inc.

September 30, 1943: Huntsville Arsenal won the privilege of flying the Minuteman "T" banner. It actually received its flag on November 17, 1943.

October 1943: Production began in earnest at the two chlorine plants constructed on Huntsville Arsenal by the H.K. Ferguson Company of Cleveland, Ohio. Production of the chlorine, which was used for the manufacture of mustard gas, continued until July 1945. The chlorine plants were shut down and placed on standby on September 1, 1945.

October 1, 1943: Redstone Arsenal's first change of command took place as part of the Ordnance Department's decision to contract out management of arsenal operations. MAJ Leslie J. Solar replaced LTC Carroll D. Hudson. After negotiations between the government and Concan Ordnance ended in November 1943, Lieutenant Colonel Hudson was reassigned as Commanding Officer of Redstone Arsenal on December 7, 1943. He retained this post until the end of WWII.
 

October 9, 1943: The original contracts and change orders thereto for the construction of Huntsville Arsenal and the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot (later known as the Gulf Chemical Depot) were terminated.

October 17, 1943: Redstone Arsenal officials announced that service awards would be conferred upon eligible civilian employees. There were three classes of awards: the Emblem for Civilian Service, the Emblem for Meritorious Civilian Service, and the Emblem for Exceptional Civilian Service. Appropriate ceremonies were held on December 8, 1943 when 1793 employees received awards.

November 16, 1943: The first M-18 colored smoke grenade (violet) was produced at Huntsville Arsenal on this date. Production continued until May 8, 1945. Persons working in colored smoke were paid one grade higher to offset the danger involved in the manufacture of these munitions; to compensate for the dusty conditions under which they worked; and to make up for the staining of the employees' skin. The higher wage scale applied to all of the different colored smoke operations.

December 1943: The first members of the Women's Army Corps arrived at Huntsville Arsenal for administrative duty.

December 1943: Huntsville Arsenal began producing tear gas grenades. This manufacturing effort continued until May 1944.

December 1943: Huntsville Arsenal first began producing the M-20 rifle grenade. Production of this smoke munition continued intermittently until February 1945.

December 20, 1943: The manufacture of the M-7 tear gas grenade began at Huntsville Arsenal and was completed on schedule on March 18, 1944. The total produced was 243,020.

The Army Corps of Engineers built a camp on Huntsville Arsenal originally designed to accommodate 250 prisoners of war. The remainder of this facility, which ultimately housed about 1100 captured German Soldiers at one time, was constructed under the supervision of the Post Engineer using POW labor.

In every practicable instance, women employees were substituted for men. An innovation in this policy was the hiring of black women as laborers. Previously, only black men had been employed.

Because of the continued difficulty in recruiting adequate numbers of skilled and unskilled workers, the War Manpower Commission, with the help of Redstone Arsenal officials, implemented an extensive campaign to attract applicants. Handbills, sound trucks, newspaper advertisements, and displays of ammunition manufactured at the arsenal were used in the campaign.

February 1944: Production of the M-3 and M-4 colored smoke canisters to be assembled by Redstone Arsenal, began at Huntsville Arsenal. The buildings used in this manufacturing process were scattered over a 12-acre area as a double precaution against fire, explosions, or enemy attack. Production of these canisters continued until April 1945.

February 11, 1944: Production of phosgene, a toxic agent, began at Huntsville Arsenal. Filling of 500-pound M-78 bombs lasted from April 15-27, 1944, while filling of 1000-pound M-79 bombs was accomplished between April 28, 1944 and January 17, 1945. This effort was discontinued on January 17, 1945, after all the phosgene made and stored at this facility had been filled into bombs.

February 26, 1944: Redstone Arsenal acquired new rank when its Commanding Officer, Carroll D. Hudson was promoted to full colonel.

March 1944: The highest dollar value of production at Huntsville Arsenal was reached during this month, when a total of over $5.7 million was produced. The reason for this peak was not the fact that maximum work was done, but that the large output of an expensive item-the M-69 bomb-added considerable dollar value to the month's total.

March 10, 1944: Operations for the production of the M-6 tear gas grenade began at Huntsville Arsenal and were completed on schedule on May 23, 1944. A total of 252,348 of these grenades were manufactured.

March 14, 1944: Huntsville Arsenal began producing the M-22 (T8E1) rifle grenade. Manufacture of this munition continued until the end of the war.

March 29, 1944: 2LT Eleanor B. Wilson was the first member of the Women's Army Corps to be assigned to Redstone Arsenal. She was temporarily assigned from the Fourth Service Command to assist in Signal Corps work.

April 1944: Production of the M-4A2 floating smoke pot began at Huntsville Arsenal. This item replaced the M-4 pots that had been completely discontinued after several improvements were made to the munition.

April 27, 1944: A second serious production line explosion occurred at Redstone Arsenal, killing one woman and severely injuring two other employees.

April 30, 1944: The first M-23 rifle grenade was manufactured at Huntsville Arsenal. Production continued until the plant was shut down at the termination of hostilities in 1945.

May 1944: Huntsville Arsenal's civilian personnel reached a peak of 6,707.

June 1944: Huntsville Arsenal's refuzing program began and continued sporadically until July 1945. Because the M-200 fuzes used in hand grenades produced before July 1944 were not waterproof, the percentage of duds was excessive. The munitions were returned to Huntsville Arsenal for installation of an improved fuze (M-201). The crew used for refusing grenades had been trained previously to produce M-8 and M-18 grenades, and the new operation was essentially the same. Women were used on a majority of the line operations, although men were required for strenuous work and heavy lifting.

June 1944: The M-88 smoke shell measured 75mm in diameter and was designed to be fired from an artillery weapon. The principal munition of smoke took place after the shell reached the target, at which time it functioned as a smoke grenade or a small smoke pot. Production of this munition began at Huntsville Arsenal during this month. The work on this shell was largely a repetition of that done earlier on the M-89 smoke shell. Production of the M-88 ceased in November 1944.

July 1944: Redstone Arsenal was designated the official center for the screening and renovation of chemical artillery ammunition returned from overseas (ARFO) and from depots in the United States. The actual renovation of complete rounds of ARFO began in January 1945 and continued until V-J Day in September 1945.

July 4, 1944: Redstone Arsenal participated in the Town Meeting for War at the Madison County Fair Grounds. The arsenal's products, including smoke shells; colored canisters; colored rifle grenades; and demolition blocks, were spectacularly demonstrated for the public.

August 1944: Redstone Arsenal submitted an extensive mechanization program for approval by higher headquarters. The project involved the reconstruction, alteration, and addition of equipment for all production lines and the ARFO renovation line. As a result, arsenal officials expected to meet greatly increased production schedules with minimum personnel requirements.

August 25, 1944: An "Employees' Welfare Association" was organized to contribute to the welfare, comfort, pleasure, contentment, and mental and physical improvement of Redstone Arsenal employees.

September 1944: Conferences were held with representatives of the Federal Works Agency concerning the establishment of a nursery to care for Redstone employees' children.

October 1944: The Ordnance Department designated Huntsville Arsenal as a key supply point for requisitioning, storing, and issuing automotive spare parts and supplies. Redstone Arsenal, the Resident Engineer at Redstone Arsenal, the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot, Courtland (Alabama) Air Base, and the Gulf Ordnance Works at Aberdeen, Mississippi, drew on Huntsville Arsenal for their supplies.

November 1944: To meet escalating requirements for ammunition, the Secretary of War approved a $500,000 project for the mechanization of Redstone Arsenal's production facilities. The purpose of this project was to increase the capacity and efficiency of manufacturing operations involved in the loading and assembling of ammunition, while reducing manpower requirements.

A $6,228 Federal Works Agency program was approved to provide childcare facilities at Redstone Park to take care of employees' children. Long sought by Redstone Arsenal, this nursery was expected to reduce absenteeism and turnover as well as release some mothers for employment. However, the nursery school never materialized because there were not enough mothers employed at Redstone after V-J Day (September 2, 1945) to justify operation of the school.

During this period, a great many changes were made in Redstone Arsenal's production schedule. These changes were caused by one or more of the following: anticipation of Victory-Europe (V-E) Day; reductions because of V-E Day; and changes in requirements because of the transfer of operations from the European to the Pacific theater of war.

Veterans previously employed at Redstone Arsenal returned with increasing frequency, seeking restoration to their former positions. During this time, the arsenal was able to place all returning veterans who applied for restoration, which in several cases involved the creation of vacancies by use of reduction-in-force procedures. The installation fully supported the War Department's policy of "extending maximum possible assistance" to its returning veterans.

January 1945: The highest average personnel strength for any one month at Redstone Arsenal during WWII was 4,400.

January 1945: The Fred Project, the complex's first contact with the rocket business and the first government in-house liquid propulsion program, was established at Huntsville Arsenal. It was terminated in September 1945, after the system's feasibility had been demonstrated in July 1945. Also, two JB-2 flying bombs (similar to the German V-1 bomb) had been launched at Eglin Field, Florida, in August 1945.

January 16, 1945: When it became apparent that further expansion of plant facilities would be required for the increased production of artillery ammunition, the War Department approved a $3 million expansion program at Redstone Arsenal. Construction on the new facilities began in February 1945 on land ceded by Huntsville Arsenal immediately south of Redstone's original boundary line. The Tennessee River became the new boundary line for the south side of the Ordnance installation's reservation.

March 1945: The Civil Service Commission announced that Redstone Arsenal was leading all other War or Navy Department installations in the State of Alabama in the utilization of physically handicapped persons. Such employees were found to have a very low absentee and turnover rate, while being equal in efficiency in suitable jobs.

March 20, 1945: Redstone Arsenal took over 475 acres of land in the southeast corner of the Huntsville Arsenal reservation to accommodate its expansion program.

April 1945: Huntsville Arsenal produced about 10,000 E-18 canisters during this month. The E-18 canister was essentially an M-18 colored smoke grenade designed for an Air Corps experimental bomb. Eight such canisters were assembled in a single bomb, presumably to be used as an aerial smoke marker for bombing missions.

April 1, 1945: The Chemical Warfare Service increased the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot's mission by directing the installation to receive, store, and issue gas mask spare parts. It assumed this mission from the Indianapolis Chemical Warfare Depot.

May 7, 1945: On this date, the Germans surrendered to the Allies at Rhiems, France. President Harry S. Truman proclaimed May 8 as Victory-Europe (V-E) Day. The labor supply problems experienced by Redstone Arsenal in previous months were overcome during the latter part of this quarter as a result of decreased production caused by the cessation of hostilities in the European theater of war.

June 1945: The first reduction-in-force was implemented at Redstone Arsenal.

June 3, 1945: In accordance with War Department guidance, Redstone Arsenal implemented a tobacco rationing system to control the sale of tobacco to authorized personnel.

June 23, 1945: The Report of the Board on Permanent Construction at Installations Chosen for Postwar Retention was issued on this date. The Spraker Board, as this body was more commonly known, recommended that the mission of Huntsville Arsenal in postwar planning be "primary production of smoke materiel and emergency production of chemical agents." A portion of this report also covered the establishment of the CWS school in the northern portion of the installation's reservation as well as the creation of a proving ground area which would enable "all CWS munitions and chemically filled Ordnance munitions to be tested as developed and manufactured." Other changes proposed by the Spraker Board included estimates for the expenditure of $17,580,650 at Huntsville Arsenal. Fifteen of the proposed projects provided for additional manufacturing facilities either by the relocation of such facilities from other arsenals or industrial organizations, or the purchase or construction of new facilities. The remaining recommendations addressed the improvement of the arsenal's layout to increase the operating efficiency of necessary indirect and overhead activities such as engineering services, the distribution of steam and electricity, establishment of a central classification yard, and the construction of additional warehouses to accommodate the new operations. The report also proposed the building of permanent housing for both military and civilian personnel.

July 1945: The pilot stage of the M-77 bomb and E-51 cluster programs began at Huntsville Arsenal, but all development activity on this smoke munition ceased the following month.

July 25, 1945: Redstone Arsenal employees received the War Department Citation, signed by the Secretary of War, and the Secretary of War's War Bond flag on this date. Awarded in recognition of the fact that 95 percent or more of the arsenal's employees were investing 15 percent or more of their monthly pay in War Bonds, the citation and flag were the first to be presented to an installation in the Fourth Service Command.

August 13, 1945: The Chief of the Chemical Warfare Service instructed the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot to discontinue processing ammunition for shipment and return such ammunition to stock. Because the depot assumed that it would receive a large quantity of materiel for storage from other locations, no immediate demobilization plans were made.

August 14, 1945: The war with Japan ended.

August 17, 1945: Production at Redstone Arsenal ceased, although some lines operated part of the day to complete items already in process. During the last quarter of 1945, there were no items manufactured or assembled at Redstone Arsenal.

August 20, 1945: The Chief of the Chemical Warfare Service issued instructions to put certain Huntsville Arsenal plants in "standby storage" and others in "standby under power." This policy was changed on September 11, 1945, to place all plants in standby storage thereby considerably reducing the arsenal's workload.

August 31, 1945: Effective this date, bus service to Redstone Arsenal from Decatur, Athens, Guntersville, and Arab, Alabama, was discontinued.

September 2, 1945: V-J Day was celebrated. Although it was to continue as a permanent manufacturing arsenal of the Ordnance Department, Redstone's activities were greatly curtailed. The renovation and salvage of ammunition returned from overseas continued as planned. After this date, all employees not needed were placed on annual leave pending the announcement of Redstone Arsenal's work program. Steps to effect, a general RIF were implemented. When completed, this process would reduce the installation's civilian strength from 3048 at the start of the second quarter to about 600 employees.

September 2, 1945: The mechanization and expansion programs started by Redstone in August 1944 were substantially completed by this time. The scope of these programs was to increase the overall production capacity of the installation and lower the unit cost of the items produced.

October 1, 1945: After the inactivation of the Indianapolis Chemical Warfare Depot, the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot assumed responsibility for the storage and issue of all spare parts for CWS items. The movement of materiel from Indianapolis began on 1 November 1945.

October 13, 1945: The Office of the Chief, Chemical Warfare Service, authorized the establishment of a gas mask assembly line at Huntsville Arsenal. Building 481 housed the operation, which began in January 1946.

November 5, 1945: The M-54 incendiary destruction program was completed. The munitions were burned in an isolated section of Huntsville Arsenal, but the empty wooden boxes were sold to the public as salvage. The extreme shortage of building lumber created a high demand for these boxes. As a result, many postwar houses in the Huntsville area were floored and sheeted with former M-54 boxes. Container sales receipts paid the cost of the M-54 incendiary destruction program.

November 30, 1945: The major RIF and primary readjustment of Redstone Arsenal activities to a peacetime basis was accomplished.

By early this year, the Huntsville Arsenal Engineer had leased more than 5,000 acres of arsenal land for the growing of small grains. Between January and June 1946, several civilian barracks being used as bachelor quarters were adapted to family quarters. Because of the acute housing shortage prevalent in the city, Huntsville Arsenal made available all possible quarters to civilians. During this period, the post had six families of enlisted personnel, 1,947 families of civilian employees, 20 single male civilian workers and 23 single female employees occupying these quarters.

The mission of the Fifth Echelon Repair Shops for this period was to repack colored grenades to facilitate storage; recondition 4.2-inch chemical mortars, chemical mortar and ammunition carts, and M2-2 portable flamethrowers; and service portable flamethrowers and smoke generators. On June 19, 1946, a program of refusing 29,000 M7-CN grenades was added to the shop's workload.

Another responsibility was added when Huntsville Arsenal was designated as a storage center for vast quantities of production equipment to be placed in war reserve. Because of the enormous demands placed on the arsenal for the warehousing of equipment and gas mask components, every available building was put in service as storage space. Manufacturing plants, fire halls, and open sheds were commandeered for this purpose.

January 1, 1946: After having suffered a drastic curtailment of personnel, effective December 31, 1946, the Huntsville Arsenal Property Division faced one tremendous addition to its responsibilities: the receipt, storage, and issuance of all components for the Gas Mask Assembly Plant which was scheduled for operation around March 1, 1946.

January 9, 1946: The Tennessee River reached flood stage and stayed flooded for 6 days. All roads to the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot were blocked. After the water receded on 16 January, it was discovered that 100 yards of highway and 300 yards of railroad track had been washed away. Needed repairs totaled approximately $5,000.

January 16, 1946: The disassembly line of the gas mask plant began operations on this date. A total of 378,403 masks were disassembled and the parts used in the assembly of lightweight service masks. Operations on this line were discontinued on April 29, 1946, and all personnel were applied to the production of new masks.

March 11, 1946: Practice work putting together lightweight service masks began at the gas mask assembly plant on this date. Actual production began on March 18, 1946, when 390 completed masks were run. Huntsville Arsenal made modifications to the assembly line that increased production to about 4,000 completed masks per 8-hour shift as compared to the former contractor's 3,288 masks per 24-hour-day line. The Gas Mask Assembly Plant ceased operations in September 1946.

March 15, 1946: COL Carroll D. Hudson was reassigned away from Redstone Arsenal.

April 7, 1946: Huntsville Arsenal and the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot sustained significant damage from a severe hailstorm that swept diagonally across the installation from northwest to southeast. The storm severely damaged over 400 building roofs, more than 7,000 windows, and numerous window frames and screens. Steam pipe insulation also was badly damaged. Many buildings, both manufacturing and quarters, were rendered unfit for occupancy until repairs could be made. This unusual circumstance affected the large turnover of civilian personnel in this period. The installation had to hire many temporary employees to make needed repairs to buildings and property that had been damaged by the storm.

May 14, 1946: Memorandum 15, issued on this date, advised Huntsville Arsenal employees that effective May 20, the working hours of all personnel, except those on the night shifts, would be from 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m., during the summer months. This change was based on an arsenal-wide vote conducted by the Employee Relations Department to determine the hours that the majority of employees preferred to work.

July to December 1946: Several temporary buildings, declared surplus to the needs of Huntsville Arsenal and the Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot, were removed from the records of the Post Engineer. Among the buildings eliminated were the compound and all the buildings used as a Prisoner of War Camp as well as one barn and eight farmhouses acquired when the Army took possession of the arsenal reservation.

August 2, 1946: The Gulf Chemical Warfare Depot was renamed the Gulf Chemical Depot.

September 1946: A major RIF in the work force of Huntsville Arsenal occurred as a result of the Gas Mask Assembly program being discontinued, about 350 employees were separated.

September 4, 1946: Huntsville Arsenal leased two chlorine producing plants to the Solvay Process Division of the Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation of Solvay, New York. This 5-year lease provided that the lessee would put the plants in an operating condition, and upon expiration of the lease, Solvay would put all the facilities in a standby condition. However, the terms of the lease were so general that it was often referred to as a "gentlemen's agreement" between the government and the corporation, with much room for different interpretations. The first Solvay plant began operations on December 14, 1946 and the other in May 1947.

1947: Personnel of the Huntsville Arsenal Police Department participated in Army Day ceremonies at the installation by serving as escorts and guides during the time that the reservation was open to visitors. This was the first time since the beginning of production that the general public had been allowed onto the arsenal reservation.

January 1947: The Fifth Echelon Repair Shops at Huntsville Arsenal were ordered to manufacture 135,510 tear gas grenades. After the shops manufactured 1,000 grenades. However, the program was transferred to Edgewood Arsenal.

January to June 1947: Higher headquarters required that the entire program to put all unused production machinery, equipment, and buildings at Huntsville Arsenal in standby storage be completed within this period. Protection and preservation against corrosion, weathering, and the effects of time and disuse were to be provided in accordance with existing directives. A total of 165 temporary per diem workers, representing all specialized crafts, were hired. These employees were released by June 30, 1947, after the program was completed on schedule and according to directives.

January 15, 1947: The Gulf Chemical Depot was abolished, and its functions were transferred to Huntsville Arsenal. The arsenal established the Gulf Chemical Depot Division to perform depot functions. It was renamed the Gulf Chemical Depot Activity on March 26, 1947.

February 1947: Effective this month, 200 Third Army Area motor vehicles within a 150-mile radius of Huntsville Arsenal were satellited on the post's Motor Pool for field maintenance.

February 24, 1947: Redstone Arsenal was placed on standby status, which meant that no further production would be carried out at that time. Only those employees who were necessary to provide essential maintenance of the plant as a reserve Ordnance arsenal were kept on, along with the necessary administrative force.

May 4, 1947: Huntsville Arsenal reopened a 25-bed station hospital.

June 1947: Farmland under lease on Huntsville Arsenal totaled 7120.39 acres.

July 17, 1947: Fine Organics, Inc. signed a 5-year contract to store surplus materials in Building 721 on Huntsville Arsenal.

August 1947: Huntsville Arsenal's Building 481, formerly devoted to the manufacture of gas masks, was leased to Keller Motors Corporation (originally the Dixie Motor Car Corporation). The plant, which had a 15-year lease with a recovery clause, was used for manufacturing, assembling, testing, and selling automobiles and related products.

August 11, 1947: The Calabama Chemical Company and Huntsville Arsenal began negotiating a 15-year lease for three arsenal buildings previously used to manufacture thionyl chloride. The company planned to manufacture organic chemicals, insecticides, and related products. The lease went into effect on March 19, 1948.

September 30, 1947: Huntsville Arsenal received verbal notification that the installation was being declared excess to Department of the Army needs. The prime mission of the arsenal was reoriented to the expeditious removal of production facilities and all stocks of munitions and materiel. The deadline for complete deactivation of the arsenal was set for the period March-June 1949.

December 29, 1947: The Chief, Chemical Corps was advised of the Secretary of the Army's decision to declare Huntsville Arsenal excess to the needs of the Chemical Corps.

Bryant-Harper & Company, Inc. leased three Huntsville Arsenal buildings to recover white phosphorus from white phosphorus-filled munitions. Between February and November, two fires and three explosions caused extensive damage to various Huntsville Arsenal buildings.

Also in February, a fire involving two houses in New Market, Alabama, approximately 15 to 20 miles northeast of Huntsville, were reported to Huntsville Arsenal's Security and Intelligence Division. The post dispatched one 750 GPM pumper, the crew of which successfully extinguished the blaze. In June 1948, Huntsville Arsenal land rented as of this date totaled 12,651.82 acres. Of this, 4,000 acres were in grain, 2,700 were in hay, 4400 were in grazing, and the rest was non-productive.

In October 1948, following an extensive survey of all available Ordnance installations, the Chief of Ordnance designated Redstone Arsenal as the center for Ordnance rocket research and development. In November, negotiations on a 10-year lease for buildings 639 and 640 began at Huntsville Arsenal. Planters Warehouse and Storage of Huntsville, Alabama, was granted right of entry the following month for the purpose of storing baled cotton.

January 19, 1948: The Huntsville Arsenal Security and Intelligence Division received a call from Arab, Alabama, located about 35 miles south of Huntsville, for assistance in fighting a fire at a hardware and furniture store.

April 30, 1948: The War Assets Administration advised the Army Chief of Engineers that the agency could not assume jurisdiction of Huntsville Arsenal because the installation had vast amounts of equipment and supplies to be removed to other locations. The presence of large areas of contaminated property also precluded the WAA from assuming jurisdiction. Consequently, the WAA maintained that the arsenal was not surplus property within the meaning of the term as used in the Surplus Property Act of October 3, 1944. Because the CWS could not comply with the WAA's requirements before March 1, 1949, the jurisdiction and administration of Huntsville Arsenal remained a DA responsibility.

June 9, 1948: Miss. Eleanor G. Shaw, an industrial specialist in the Engineering and Facility Planning Branch of Huntsville Arsenal's Procurement and Procurement Planning Division, was named Arsenal Historian.

June 30, 1948: The vast bulk of deactivation work at Huntsville Arsenal not related to demilitarization, decontamination, or destruction was completed.

July 22, 1948: Operations began on the first line constructed for the demilitarization of the M-17 incendiary cluster, the largest of the demilitarization projects at Huntsville Arsenal. Because the production rate was below that required for completion of the program by March 31, 1949, a second line was installed. The estimated average production of one line was 175 clusters per 8-hour shift. About half of the 81,055 clusters were demilitarized during the last half of 1948.

September 1, 1948: The Gulf Chemical Depot Activity was discontinued, after completing the shipment of Class A munitions and standby equipment to other installations. A new Demilitarization, Decontamination, and Destruction Activity was created on the same date. It was responsible for performing all necessary demilitarization and destruction of chemical and toxic agents, equipment, and materiel. The demilitarization of the M-17 bomb clusters was included in the new division's mission.

October 1, 1948: Huntsville Arsenal was put under the command and control of the commanding general, Third Army for participation in the Territorial Command Test for six months.

November 9, 1948: The Chief of the Chemical Corps removed Huntsville Arsenal from the surplus category and placed it on standby status for possible use by the Department of the Air Force. Plans were also made to go on an austerity standby basis in Plant Areas 2 and 3 by July 1, 1949.

November 22, 1948: Huntsville Arsenal was authorized to hire a Post Chaplain. A special allotment was provided to cover services through December 31, 1948.

November 30, 1948: COL Carroll D. Hudson was reassigned to Redstone Arsenal to guide it through its reactivation period. He remained well into the missile era (May 7, 1952).

December 31, 1948: By this date, 419 of the 1,083 buildings and structures on Huntsville Arsenal had been placed in standby status, leaving 558 still to be placed in standby. Another 58 structures were out leased, while 1,950 were used by utilities.

In 1949 Redstone Arsenal received responsibility for technical supervision of the T133 High Explosive Rocket. However, the rocket never reached the production stage. Ordnance terminated the project in March 54 because the Army Field Forces had no requirement for it. In April 1949, the Elkton Division of the Thiokol Corporation, located at Elkton, Maryland, signed an Army contract to research and develop rocket propellants. This activity moved to Redstone Arsenal, where it began operation in June 1949. Also in April, the Rohm and Haas Company signed an Army contract to do research and development work on rockets and jet propulsion at Redstone Arsenal.

During May, the Ordnance Corps initiated a project to develop an improved 3.5-inch-high explosive antitank rocket. Redstone Arsenal's task was to design and develop the rocket motor. Rohm and Haas, the rocket motor contractor, completed motor development at the installation in June 1955.

January 5, 1949: Huntsville Arsenal's Security and Intelligence Division received a general call from the Huntsville mayor and chief of police requesting aid in evacuating people from flooded low-lying areas of the city. Third Army Headquarters approved the use of 10 trucks and 25 men to assist in the effort.

February 1949: The Research and Development Division, forerunner of the Ordnance Rocket Center, was established at Redstone Arsenal.

March 15, 1949: A 5-year lease for buildings 1052, 1053, 1054, and 1058 was signed with Charles H. Cummings. The structures were used for cotton storage and sampling.

March 16, 1949: The John Powell Company was granted right of entry to the north section of building 781 for chemical manufacturing.

March 17, 1949: After the Air Force decided not to use Huntsville Arsenal, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army directed that the post be advertised for sale by July 1, 1949. Previously placed under the command of the Third Army in October 1948, the installation was to have reverted to the Chief, Chemical Corps after March 31, 1949. However, the proposed sale precluded the installation's return as scheduled. Although the opening of bids was set for September 30, 1949, the sale never happened because the Army found it needed this land for the new mission developing at Redstone Arsenal. Huntsville Arsenal remained under the command of the Third Army until June 30, 1949, when it became part of the neighboring Ordnance installation. Third Army funding was finally removed on October 31, 1949 when the Territorial Command Test ended.

March 31, 1949: The Huntsville Arsenal Station Hospital was discontinued; and an Industrial Dispensary was established in its place.

March 31, 1949: Civilian firemen-guards replaced the military personnel assigned to Huntsville Arsenal as guards and fire fighters. The Alabama State Patrol and the Madison County Sheriff's Office agreed to allow military personnel under confinement to be detained in the county prison because no military guards were available after this date.

May to June 1949: The Industrial Research Corporation, Detroit, Michigan, made a comprehensive industrial survey of Huntsville Arsenal's buildings and grounds. The Army Corps of Engineers had contracted for this survey for use in advertising the installation's sale.

June 1949: One of Redstone Arsenal's first assignments was to serve as technical supervisor of the T137 Area Saturation Weapon project. Arthur D. Little, Inc. became project contractor in August 1951. The contract was terminated in February 54 and all other activity on the project ceased by July 1, 1954.

June 30, 1949: Huntsville Arsenal ceased to exist as a separate installation at 2400 hours. Its remaining staff of 450 was transferred to Redstone Arsenal, which also assumed the functions necessary for providing internal security and maintaining essential utilities for lessees pending final disposition of Huntsville Arsenal's land and property. There were no organizational changes in the Redstone Arsenal command except for the addition of the Huntsville Arsenal area, which was officially designated the Chemical Division.

October 28, 1949: The Secretary of the Army approved the transfer of the Ordnance Research and Development Division Sub-Office (Rocket) from Fort Bliss, Texas, to Redstone Arsenal. Among those transferred were Dr. Wernher von Braun and his team of German scientists and technicians, who had come to the United States under "Operation Paperclip" during 1945 and 1946.