Click here to open 'USArmyGermany' frameset
 1. Kelley Barracks, 1978 (132 KB) |
 2. Robinson and Grenadier Kasernes, 1978 (257 KB) |
 3. Nellingen Kaserne, 1978 (174 KB) |
 4. US Army Hospital Bad Cannstatt, 1978 (135 KB) |
 5. Stuttgart Army Airfield, Echterdingen, 1978 (201 KB) |
 6. Panzer Kaserne, Böblingen, 1978 (135 KB) |
 7. Panzer Kaserne, 1955 (122 KB) |
 8. Patch Kaserne, Vaihingen, 1978 (183 KB) |
 9. Patch Barracks, Vaihingen, prob 1951 (KB) |
 10. Patch Barracks, Vaihingen, early 1960s (KB) |
 11. Stuttgart area installations, early 1960s (KB) |
 12. Flak Kaserne, Ludwigsburg, prob 1980s (183 KB) |
 13. Funker Kaserne, Esslingen, 1963 (KB) |
 14. Wilkin Bks and Ludendorff Ksn, Kornwestheim, 1963 (KB) |
| 1966 Topographical maps of Stuttgart and surrounding area. This map compiled and printed by the 320th Engr Co (Topo), May 1966. Click on the thumbnail to view a larger format of the same map. Click here for a list of the facilities. |
 Ludwigsburg (472 KB) |
 |
| 1980 Topographical maps of Stuttgart and surrounding area. These maps are reproduced from the "U.S. Military Installation Atlas" published by the 37th Transportation Group in 1980. Click on the thumbnail to view a larger format of the same map. Click here for a list of the installations. |
 Stuttgart North (432 KB) |
 Stuttgart South (391 KB) |
 Vaihingen (449 KB) |
 Ludwigsburg (172 KB) |
 |
|
|
||||
 A. Flandern Kaserne |
 B. Flandern Kaserne |
 C. Flandern Kaserne |
||
|
||||
 1. Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof, 1952 |
 2. Stuttgart Hauptbahnhof, early 1950s |
 3. Special Service Center near Hauptbahnhof, early 1950s |
||
|
||||
 1. Kelley Bks, early 1960s |
 2. Kelley Bks, late 1960s |
|||
 3. Road to Main Gate, Kelley Bks, 1958 (115 KB) |
 4. Kelley Bks Main Gate (116 KB) |
 5. Inside the kaserne, looking back at the main gate (116 KB) |
||
 6. Hqs building (121 KB) |
 7. Hqs building (101 KB) |
 8. POV parking (113 KB) |
 9. Another view of the parking lot (129 KB) |
|
 10. Oak Strasse (121 KB) |
 11. 34th Sig Bn and 39th Trans Co buildings (156 KB) |
 12. 34th Sig Bn building (133 KB) |
 13. Entrance to "E" Co (104 KB) |
|
 14. Dependent housing next to Kelley (151 KB) |
 15. Kelley Post Chapel (161 KB) |
|||
|
||||
 1. Aerial of Robinson and Grenadier (KB) |
||||
|
||||
|
||||
 1. Hqs ARC Europe (KB) |
 2. Hqs ARC Europe (KB) |
 3. Hqs ARC Europe (KB) |
||
|
||||
 A. Panzer Kaserne |
 B. Panzer Kaserne |
 C. Panzer Kaserne |
||
|
||||
 1. Böblingen Maintenance Facility (223 KB) |
||||
|
||||
 1. Panzer Ksn, Böblingen, 1990s |
||||
 2. Main Gate, 1958 (KB) |
 3. WOC Barracks (KB) |
 4. Panzer Kaserne (KB) |
 5. WOC motor pool (KB) |
|
 6. WOC motor pool (KB) |
 7. Entrance to PX (KB) |
 8. PX building (KB) |
 9. Bowling Alley (KB) |
|
 10. NCO Club (KB) |
 11. Post Theater (KB) |
 12. Guard mount (KB) |
 13. Snack Bar (KB) |
|
 14. Sig Sup Point 771 (155 KB) |
 15. 547th Trans Co (126 KB) |
 16. Panzer PX (182 KB) |
 17. Post Theater (210 KB) |
|
 18. Post Chapel (153 KB) |
 19. EM Club? (165 KB) |
|||
 20. Waldbergstrasse, 1984 (KB) |
 21. Inside new gym, 1984 (KB) |
 22. Tower near Teen Center (KB) |
||
|
||||
 A. SS-Kaserne |
||||
 1. Aerial view of Ellwangen Kaserne |
||||
|
||||
 A. Hindenburg Ksn |
||||
|
||||
 1. Wilkin Bks from the B27, 1963 |
 2. Wilkin Bks, early 1960s |
 Wilkin Barracks, 1960, Photo series |
slide show A slide show B |
 3. Main gate, Wilkin Bks |
 4. Main gate |
 5. Main street, looking towards main gate |
 6. Main street |
|
 7. Bldgs 706 & 700 |
 8. Consolidated Mess Hall |
 9. Consolidated Mess Hall |
 10. Bldg 701 |
|
 11. Bldgs 701 & 702 |
 12. Bldgs 702, 703 and 704 |
 13. Bldgs 704 & 705 |
 14. Bldgs 705 & 706 |
|
 15. Guard mount |
 16. B Company jeeps |
 17. C Company jeeps |
 18. Bldg 701 |
|
 19. Open House |
 20. Kornwestheim Service Club |
|||
|
||||
 A. Reinhardt Kaserne |
 B. Flak Kaserne |
 C. Flak Kaserne |
||
|
||||
 1. Coffey Bks, 1955 |
 2. Coffey Bks, 1955 |
 3. Coffey Bks, 1955 |
||
 4. Coffey Bks, 1955 |
 5. Coffey Bks, 1955 |
|||
|
||||
1. (KB) |
2. (KB) |
|||
|
||||
 1. Main Gate, Krabbenloch Kaserne, 1955 |
 2. 109th Trans Co barracks, Krabbenloch Kaserne, 1955 |
 3. Krabbenloch Kaserne, 1952 |
||
|
||||
 1. Nellingen Kaserne, Sept 1952 |
 2. Nellingen Kaserne, Sept 1952 |
 3. Nellingen Kaserne, Sept 1952 |
||
 4. Main Gate, Nellingen Ksn, 1985 |
||||
|
Additional photo sets: (1) Patch Bks, 1954-57 |
|||
 A. Kurmärker Kaserne |
 B. Kurmärker Kaserne |
 C. Kurmärker Kaserne |
||
 1. Patch Bks, HQ US Constabulary, 1950 Click here to supersize (524 KB) |
 2. Patch Bks, HQ Seventh Army, 1957 (KB) |
|||
 3. HQ USEUCOM, early 1980s |
 4. HQ DCA-E, early 1980s |
 5. Sign in front of DCA-E, early 1980s |
 6. Patch Bks gym, early 1980s |
|
 7. AAFES Cafeteria, early 1980s |
 8. EM Club, early 1980s |
 9. Commissary, early 1980s |
for more photos of Patch Bks, see Roger's web site | |
 10. Main gate (KB) |
 11. Flag pole and ceremonial guns (KB) |
 12. Bldg 24 (160 KB) |
 13. Post gym (151 KB) |
| Great web-site.
I am passing it around SOCEUR and the boys are really enjoying it.
You have one picture of Panzer Kaserne in Boeblingen that says 1970's?
on it. The picture was actually taken between 1997-1998. I know this
because of the new orange roof top on my old company's building. Our
Company SGM used to have us go up the scaffolding over the roof and
down the other side as part of our PT while the renovation took place
in 1995. Anyway I was stationed in Nurnberg as well and I think this is one of the best web-sites I have ever come across. |
| Photos are from a photo album, owner unidentified. Owner was apparently associated with the transportation motor pool at Stuttgart in the 1951-52 period. Can anybody provide details on the location of the Stuttgart motor pool no. 1 during this period? It does not appear to be part of one of the kasernes occupied by the US Army. (Source: Phil Boehner) I found a website online, which displays pictures from the Stuttgart Military Post Motor Pool #1. It was called Wallace Barracks. Now the Technische Hilfswerk (Federal Agency for Technical Relief) is housed there. It is amazing, if you look at the recent taken pictures how things haven't changed a bit!
Here's the link: http://members.trainorders.com/usa4624/USAEUR/wallace/
|
 1. Stuttgart Military Post Motor Pool 1, 1951 |
 2. Various shops & Foreman's office |
 3. Maintenance shops |
|
 4. Various types of vehicles at the motor pool |
 5. Several VWs |
 6. Motor pool POL station |
 1. Stuttgart Military Telephone Directory, 11 Mar 1946 |
 2. Stuttgart District, SACom Telephone Directory, 15 Dec 1953 |
 3. Stuttgart and Schw Hall Sub-Areas, SACom Telephone Directory, 1 Oct 1954 |
|
History of Naval Network and Space Operations Command (NNSOC) Detachment Echo
Kelley Barracks,
| Community's past seen through the eyes of longtime resident, By Friedrich Schiller, Directory of Resources & Management, GSMC; August 7, 1989 |
| Who
would believe that communities within U.S. Army, Europe, (USAREUR)
are only 15 years old and who really bothers to think back? Isn't
"today" all that counts, generally speaking? Well, I think it's beneficial to jog memories on occasion because if we want to find out who we are, we first have to discover where we've been. The history of the U.S. Army in the Stuttgart area reflects constant change as priorities in force structure shifted over the years. Shortly after the end of World War II, the occupation forces agreed on areas where they would assume respective responsibility. The Stutgart Military Communiy was established with headquarters at McGee Barracks in Bad Cannstatt (now the home of the European headquarters of the American Red Cross). In the fall of 1946, the Stuttgart Military Community was redesignated as the Stuttgart Military Post and moved to Patch Barracks, which currently houses the Headquarters, U.S. European Command. Under the concept of occupation, Stuttgart Military Post was in charge of all military units located within its boundaries. At that time, sub-post headquarters existed at Stuttgart Metro (Koenigstrasse), Esslingen, Boeblingen Ludwigsburg, Heilbronn, Crailshem, Schwaebisch Hall, Bad Mergentheim (established as a dependent staging area for USAREUR after dependents started to come to Europe), Goeppingen, Schwaebisch Gmuend, and Ulm. In January 1948, Headquarters for the Stuttgart Military Post moved to Ludwigsburg, occupying the building of GDF (a renowned German housing and loan company). Patch Barracks had to be vacated to make room for Headquarters, U.S. Constabulary, the cornmand which a year later became Seventh Army. (Webmaster Note: Actually, HQ US Constabulary was not reorganized and redesignated as HQ Seventh Army until 24 November 1950.) In 1949, the headquarters moved to its present location at Robinson Barracks, Stuttgart. At that time, Stuttgart Military Post, as did the other military posts within the U.S. area of responsibility, reported to the Director of Post, Headquarters, USAREUR. In March 1953, regional commands were established throughout the U.S. area of Germany. The Stuttgart Military Post was redesignated Stuttgart Sub-Area and assigned to Southern Area Command with headquarters at Munich. In addition, the area of Schwaebisch Hall, including Crailsheim and Bad Mergentheim, was separated and established as Schwaebisch Hall Sub Area with headquarters at Dolan Barracks, Schwaebisch Hall. Consolidation of the Stuttgart and Schwaebisch Hall sub-areas followed. Confiscated or requisitioned properties were returned to German owners and construction began on dependent housing. The Stuttgart district's area of responsibility, then, again covered the original area, excluding only Ulm (which had been assigned to the Augsburg district). In 1956, the Stuttgart Sub-Area was, once again, redesignated. This time it was called the Stuttgart Post. |
On
July 1, 1965, it was redesignated yet again as the North Wuerttemberg
District. After the consolidation of Northern and Southern Area Commands
that same month, the District was assigned to the newly created U.S.
Army Area Command and later, on July 1, 1966, to the U.S. Army Communications
Zone, Europe. This occurred after COMZ had left France and merged
with the U.S. Army Area Command. At around the same time, Headquarters,Seventh Army moved to Heidelberg and was consolidated into a new headquarters - U.S. Army, Europe, and Seventh Army. On March 15, 1967 Headquarters, U.S. European Command, became fully operational at Patch Barracks. To support it, a fourth sub-district, known as USEUCOM Support Activity.was established. In 1968, the 10 districts comprising the area support mission of U.S. Army Communications Zone, Europe, were consolidated to five districts conforming roughly to the German state boundaries.In this reorganization, North Wuerttemberg District was consolidated with the North Baden District to form the U.S. Forces Support District Baden-Wuerttemberg. The headquarters remained at Robinson Barracks, Stuttgart, with its span of control and operations extended to cover all supported installations within the political boundaries of the State of Baden-Wuerttemberg (again, excluding Ulm). The new configuration of the district included Support Activities at EUCOM (Patch Barracks), Goeppingen, Heilbronn, Karlsruhe, Schwaebisch Hall, and Seckenheim (the Mannheim-Heidelberg area). A number of major military headquarters were located within the district. They included Headquarters, USAREUR and Seventh Army; Headquarters, Central Army Group; Directorate, U.S. Dependent Schools, European Area; Headquarters, U.S. Army Strategic Communications Command, Europe; Headquarters, VII Corps; Headquarters, VII Corps Support Command; and Headquarters, 1st Armored Division. Support in those days was provided by separate stovepipe organizations. Tlie Baden-Wueruemberg Support District, for example, provided all base operation support; including commissaries, troop issue facilities, consolidated maintenance, etc. The B-W Engineer District took care of all engineer support, the Medical Command handled support in the health and dental area and tactical units drew upon all these support organizations. To consolidate all these disparate support elements, a new and more cohesive organization was found on July 1, 1974. USAREUR was divided into three major areas: one under VII Corps, one under V Corps and another at 21st Support Command. This organization blended support elements (support and engineen districts) and, of course, tactical units, with major tactical headquarters, crealipg communities. Today, the word "Community" is the key word of GSMC. The dictionary defines community as a "social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government and have a common cultural and historical heritage." This in my view, we should not forget. |
| The Greater Stuttgart
Military Community is located in the heart of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg,
West Germany. In geographical area, it roughly equals the size of
the state of Delaware. More than 2.4 million people live within the
confines of GSMC, 572,000 of whom dwell within the city limits of
Stuttgart. Stuttgart is the political and cultural capital of Baden-Wuerttemberg. It takes its name from the stud farm or Stuttengarten founded by Duke Liutolf von Schwaben around 950 A.D. Valleys and hills yield an ideal climate for nurturing vineyards and, indeed, Stuttgart is noted for the quality of its wine. The area, furthermore, is the source of the richest mineral springs in Western Europe. They are located in Bad Cannstatt and Berg and produce 22 million liters of water per day. The city first gained prominence during the Industrial Revolution as a center of commerce. Today, its economy is dominated by manufacturing, an endeavor which employs a little over 47 percent of the local workforce. The Stuttgart area is especially noted for the making of autos, auto parts, machinery, electronics, and electrical equipment. Daimler-Benz, Porsche and Bosch all have their roots and international headquarters here. Stuttgart today, in fact, ranks just below Frankfurt as a piston in the West German economic machine. The area, accordingly, is affluent. Average income for a Stuttgart resident is over $20,000 a year. Unemployment rates are low, too. While there is a 6.4 percent unemployment rate for West Germany as a whole so far in 1989 (according to figures released by the Statistisches Landesamt Baden-Wuerttemberg), the rate was 4.9 for Stuttgart and a miniscule 4.2 percent for Baden-Wuerttemberg. The U.S. Army, if you count the employment of soldiers, is the fourth largest regional employer in the area. GSMC employs a little over 20,000 people including 14,000 soldiers, 3,500 US family members (out of a possible 16,400) and 2,900 Americans and German civilians. |
|
| The people in
these places are tasked with fulfilling GSMC's mission. That involves
providing logistical, administrative, quality-of-life, and transition-to-war
support for military agencies, soldiers and their families within
our geographic perimeter. Simultaneously, members of GSMC are obliged
to maintain liaison and harmonious relations with German agencies
and the civilian population. Logistical support involves making available required accommodations, real property, billets, family housing, offices, technical areas and shops, schools, transportation, equipment and supplies to those who need them. Resource management, military police, training, security, public affairs, medical and legal support and personnel administration fall under the realm of administrative support. Quality-of-life support involves any service or facility designed to enhance the morale and welfare of soldiers and their families. Clubs, dining facilities, recreational and leisure time programs, youth activities, shopping centers, theater, libraries, social services, counseling in personal and family programs, religious activities, and spiritual support all involve the quality of life. Transition-to-war support includes planning to handle the reception and processing of reinforcing units from the United States, management and utilization of existing facilities in a wartime situation, and the evacuation of family members from the Stuttgart area. GSMC's mission is important enough to warrant the stationing of several major military headquarters here. Headquarters, U.S. European Command (USEUCOM), the highest U.S. Forces headquarters on this continent, is located at Patch Barracks and the Vaihingen subcommunity is dedicated primarily to its support. Kelley Barracks is the home of Headquarters, VII Corps, while the Bad Cannstatt/Zuffenhausen subcommunity hosts 5th General Hospital and the Headquarters for GSMC. Headquarters, 2d Corps Support Command (2d COSCOM) and several combat support units are housed in Nellingen Barracks along with some aviation units (who also utilize the Stuttgart Army Airfield in the Nellingen/Esslingen/Echterdingen subcommunity). A concentration of major combat support units of various branches is stationed in the Ludwigsburg/Kornwestheim subcommunity and elements of the 1st Infantry Division (Forward) are fielded at Panzer Kaserne in Boeblingen/Sindelfingen. Major challenges facing GSMC are twofold. The first, housing, involves taking care of our own people. The second concerns safeguarding the environment and entails significant repercussions in relations with our host country. Close to 4,500 economy apartments and houses have been privately rented by soldiers, U.S. civilian employees and their families. They pay an average of DM 1,400 per month per unit, totalling DM 75.6 million per year. This includes utilities and other fixed costs. GSMC headquarters, additionally, has leased 236 housing units from German owners for long terms. This housing is being used like government quarters. Rentals, utilities and maintenance costs total DM 4.3 million annually. Housing demand still outpaces supply, though. Approximately 200-300 soldiers arrive here monthly and attempt to obtain rental housing. Environmentally, GSMC's Department of Engineering and Hosuing (DEH) has an office staffed with eight people who deal exclusively with measures designed to protect the environment and curtail energy waste. Information on the environment is continually exchanged with various county commissioner offices, water protection agencies, and the federal assets office. GSMC closely cooperates with environmental working groups at the state government level and within the city of Stuttgart. |
Stuttgart military community: A look back to 1967 By Col. Robert Chevas When U.S. European Command moved to Stuttgart 40 years ago, the American military community numbered 45,000 spread across more than 40 installations, compared to 10,000 on four installations today. The North Württemberg District, U.S. Army Area Command, included two major headquarters, Seventh Army and VII Corps, the 5th General Hospital in Bad Cannstatt, a shopping center at Robinson Barracks (said to have been the first of its kind in Stuttgart), a large commissary at Ludwigsburg, and several dependent schools, including the American high school at Ludwigsburg. Patch Barracks was home to Seventh Army, which was the U.S. Army’s largest field army. The post itself was named for Seventh Army’s commander in World War II, Lt. Gen. Alexander M. Patch. |
|
Panzer Kaserne in Böblingen was home to several support units. The Böblingen Maintenance Facility near the Böblingen train station performed depot-level maintenance on tracked and wheeled vehicles. Housing areas dotted the metropolitan area. Pattonville Family Housing was located near Kornwestheim and Ludwigsburg. The Aldingerstrasse Housing Area supported Wilkin Barracks and Ludendorff Kaserne. The senior officer housing in Roosevelt Village in Möhringen-Degerloch was named for Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., the first American general officer ashore at Normandy on June 6, 1944, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his decisive leadership that day. Coffey Barracks in Ludwigsburg was home to the 35th Combat Support Battalion, 30th Medical Group, and various engineer units. Originally named Frommann Kaserne, it was renamed for Brig. Gen. John W. Coffey, who died in an airplane crash in 1951. Bad Cannstatt was home to the Army hospital, as well as Wallace Barracks and McGee Barracks. Wallace Barracks was named for Pfc. Herman Wallace, Company B, 301st Engineer Battalion, 76th Infantry Division, who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously. Krabbenloch Kaserne near Ludwigsburg was home to the 34th Signal Battalion. Southeast of Stuttgart, Echterdingen Army Airfield was home to the 67th Aviation Company (Corps). Funker Kaserne near Esslingen was a maintenance facility operated by labor service units under 2d Support Command (Corps). Nellingen Kaserne housed various VII Corps support troops. Murphy Barracks housed a communications center. It was named for Pfc. Frederick C. Murphy, a medic with the 259th Infantry, 65th Infantry Division, who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously. Wilkin Barracks in Kornwestheim housed the 3rd Missile Battalion, 71st Artillery (Nike) and the 385th Military Police Battalion. Originally named Hindenburg Kaserne, the Americans re-named it after Cpl. Edward G. Wilkin, 57th Infantry Regiment, 34th Infantry Division, who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously. Flak Kaserne in Ludwigsburg was home to the 1st Support Battalion, which provided general support to Seventh Army units. When EUCOM headquarters arrived in 1967, Seventh Army departed, but many support organizations remained. The biggest changes came in the early 1990s, when VII Corps inactivated and the Army closed most installations in the region. Today only four posts remain within U.S. Army Garrison Stuttgart. Their primary mission is to provide support to EUCOM and its supporting organizations. Today they remain as a reminder of a once much large American military presence. |
| PATCH BARRACKS (Source: Official EUCOM Web site) When the Post was New More than a dozen military units -- both German and American-- had occupied Patch Barracks before Headquarters United States European Command became operational there in March 1967. The original name was Kurmärker Kaserne. Constructed during 1936 and 1937, the kaserne was brand new when light tanks of the German Panzer Regiment 7 rolled through the main gate on 7 May 1938. Arriving by train, the soldiers of Regiment 7 re-formed their ranks at the bahnhof and proceeded through Shiller Platz and Vaihingen's main street. Standing in the first tank, the regimental commander, Colonel Franz Landgraf, led the column as far as the brewery and then turned left to an open area at the edge of Vaihingen where the Burgermeister waited to extend the official welcome. |
||||
|
||||
| On 10 May 1940, the regiment crossed Luxembourg, and the southern
tip of Belgium, and spent the remainder of May in the Northeast portion
of France. After ten months in France, the 7th Panzer Regiment, as
part of the 10th Panzer Division, returned to Germany, but not to
its Kaserne in Vaihingen. Following the 7th Panzer Regiment's departure from the Kaserne, Companies 2 and 7 operated out of what we know as Patch Barracks until October of 1940 when they moved to Panzer Kaserne. French Soldiers in Kurmärker Kaserne Several more German regiments moved in and out of Kurmärker Kaserne until the closing days of World War II. As Allied Forces approached Stuttgart, the boundary separating the zone of General Patch's U.S. Seventh Army from that of General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny's First French Army ran along the north edge of the city, placing Stuttgart in the zone of the French Army's II Corps. After difficult fighting for Heilbronn, the U.S. 100th Infantry Division met no organized resistance as it enveloped Stuttgart on the north and east edge of the city on the 20 and 21st of April 1945. At the same time, French Units pushed into Stuttgart also without resistance. The day before the arrival of the French in Stuttgart, the Allied Sixth Army Group commander, General Jacob L. Devers, shifted the army boundary slightly to the south to place Stuttgart in the zone of the Seventh Army, which needed the city to maintain supply routes to American units moving towards Ulm. At this point General de Gaulle intervened. Precipitating one of several disturbing incidents that challenged Allied authority, he directed his commander to ignore General Devers' orders and to remain in Stuttgart until the Allies had agreed upon a suitable occupation zone in Germany for France. General Eisenhower and President Truman became involved in the "Stuttgart Incident" before it was settled seven weeks later and French forces, mostly soldiers from Senegal, Tunisia, and Morocco, vacated Stuttgart, Vaihingen, and the Kurmärker Kaserne. Arrival of the Americans The first American unit, the 373rd Field Artillery Battalion (155mm howitzers) of the U.S. 100th Infantry Division, came to Vaihingen on 7 July 1945, the same day that French troops vacated the area. In mid-summer 1945, Kurmärker Kaserne was littered with the rubble of combat, much of it left by American bombing and strafing attacks that occurred near the end of the war. Cleaning up the Kaserne was a slow process. The howitzer battery moved to the Kaserne as living space became available. By early fall, the battalion commander undetook the rehabilitation of the officers' club, which was in good condition except for damage to the roof. One of Stuttgart's better architects used a western motif to decorate the small room that is now adjacent to the bar, and carved the four corner posts and the Indian heads that still remain today. The wrought iron grill work over the two windows on both sides of the main club entrance remain today and bear the initials of Kurmärkerkische Dragoner Regiment 14 on the left window and of Panzer Regiment 7 on the right. The artillery battalion remained at Kurmärker Kaserne until 12 December 1945, when it left to return to the United States. Other American Units Early in 1946, the US. Army in Europe began forming the U.S. Constabulary by redesignating combat units as part of the constabulary force. On 1 April 1946, the 15th Cavalry Reconnaissance Squadron was redesignated as the 15th Constabulary Squadron and stationed at the Kurmärker Kaserne. Part of this unit was mounted on horses that were stabled in one of the former tank halls. From then until 1950 the Kaserne was the home of constabulary units, including the Headquarters U.S. Constabulary, which moved to Vaihingen during the spring of 1946. In 1950 the Korean War and the threat of communist expansion in Europe led to plans for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the U.S. agreement to return combat troops to Europe. On 24 November 1950, Headquarters Seventh Army took over Kurmärker Kaserne and absorbed the Headquarters U.S. Constabulary. Headquarters Seventh Army stayed 16 years, longer than any other tenant and renamed the Kaserne on 20 August 1951 and left only after it was combined with Headquarters USAREUR in a Department of Defense move to reduce the numbers of U.S. Headquarters in Europe and to make a place for Headquarters European Command, then preparing to leave France. Headquarters USEUCOM commenced operations at Patch Barracks on 14 March 1967. Changes and Construction Of the 44 original buildings in Kurmarker Kaserne, 37 remain. Building 2303 and four of the tank halls have missing sections as a result of aerial attacks. Several other buildings, including the Community Services Building have undergone extensive repairs. Seven of the original buildings have been removed. Rehabilitation of the Kaserne buildings went slowly until after 1950. The largest construction project at the Kaserne were concerned with family housing. The first housing areas that were completed were Craig and Kefurt Villages, which were constructed during 1950 and 1951. Construction of Weicht Village commenced in 1954, and of those building in New Craig Village in 1955. The individual houses along Florida Strasse, Van Steuben Village were erected in 1961 in an orchard that belonged to the City of Vaihingen. The three oldest projects were named for members of the Seventh Army who received the medal of honor for their actions during the war. Monuments on Patch Barracks Six monuments standing in Patch Barracks commemorate persons or ideals. the oldest of these monuments is a small stone tank of the 1st Panzer Company of the 1st Abteilung, 7th Panzer Regiment, made and erected between Buildings 2303 and 2304 in honor of their company commander, Captain Reinhart Walther. Former members of Panzer regiment 7 erected the red stone monument that stands near the Post Chapel to honor members of that regiment and of Panzer Regiment 21 who does or were missing during World War II. The monument was dedicated on 19 September 1959. Another more recent German monument stands on Kurmärker Strasse at the south end of Building 2307 and honors members of the 715th Infantry Division who died during World War II. Americans erected two monuments. On July 4, 1952 Mrs. A.M Patch unveiled the bronze plaque between the flagpoles, naming the post in memory of Lieutenant General Alexander M. Patch. The monument in the northwest corner of Husky Field honors the men who died in Seventh Army's first battle, the 1943 invasion of Sicily. The newest monument, in front of the pine trees across from the flagpoles, explains that the tree stands for Friendship of the German and American people. Minister President Kiesinger of Baden-Wuerttemberg dedicated it in 1960. There is also a cornerstone noting Seventh Army's occupancy of the Command Building 23141 from 1950-1966, and another on Building 2515 which marks the construction of Craig Village in 1950. The Buffalo The 7th Panzer Regiment chose the buffalo, (actually the "wisent", a European Bison) as their regimental insignia, and painted it on their tanks and vehicles. they also commissioned a sculptor to chisel a seven foot high statue of a buffalo from white granite, and it was erected in late 1938 on a pedestal near the present flagpoles. The Statue survived the Allied air attacks with little damage. When the Americans arrived they found the buffalo in place, the last member of the 7th Panzer Regiment in the Kaserne. Just what happened to the buffalo is covered with the dust of history. An officer of the 346th Engineer Regiment recalls that it was removed from the pedestal and pushed by a bulldozer into a nearby bomb crater, but he no longer remembers where the crater was. Mr. Heinrich Elsaesser, who worked in the Kaserne, clearly recalls seeing the buffalo daily during 1946 as it lay at the bottom if a trash dump in a ravine behind what is now Building 2401, Weicht Village. Former members of the 7th Panzer Regiment would like to return the statue to the 363rd Panzer Battalion, near Wuerzburg, which now bears the colors of the old 7th. Meanwhile, the memory of the buffalo is kept alive at Patch Barracks by the Post Headquarters, which uses a buffalo silhouette as its symbol, and by several Patch athletic teams that bear its name. Unfounded Rumors Americans who have been stationed at Patch Barracks have passed along two storied that are without a basis in fact. One of these concerns an underground tank park located somewhere under the Kaserne. Actually, the only underground facilities are tunnels enclosing heating pipes that connect the boilers with some other buildings. Another account describes Kurmärker Kaserne as Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's headquarters, and the Officer' Club as his former living quarters. Rommel had no connection with the kaserne and there is nothing to indicate that he even visited it. The rumor may have arisen from the fact that Rommel was once Commanding General of the 7th Panzer Division, of which the 7th Panzer Regiment was never a part. |
| STUTTGART
ARMY AIRFIELD (Source: 6th Area Support Group's DPTMS Web Site) Aviation came early, unexpectedly,and dramatically to Echterdingen in the form of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin's airship, LZ-4. while sailing over Stuttgart on August 5, 1908, LZ-4 lost power in one of her engines and Zeppelin was forced to land her. He had never landed one of his airships on solid ground before, since he considered it safer to use special floating platforms on lakes. He brought LZ-4 down safely, however, in the flat fields just southeast of the town of echterdingen, and a crowd quickly gathered to wonder at the unexpected visitor. Their excitement turned to dismay when a sudden thunderstorm blew the ship on its side, tore it from its moorings, and carried it away. Instantly flames shot out from the hydrogen-filled craft, and within a few seconds it was completely destroyed. The loss ruined Count von Zeppelin financially, but within less than a week a spontaneous collection, the "Echterdinger Volksspende," raised over six million marks for him and allowed him to continue his experiments. The site of the destruction of LZ-4 is marked by a "Zeppelinstein," a large stone memorial in a grove of trees a few hundred meters northwest of the entrance to the present Stuttgart Army Airfield. The more recent and happier history of aviation at Echterdingen started in 1936. As the city of Stuttgart expanded in the 1930's, she outgrew her two early airfields, one on the fairgrounds at Bad Cannstatt and the other in boeblingen. When the Luftwaffe decided to take over the Boeblingen field the Air Ministry an municipal officials started a careful topographical and meteorological study of the surrounding countryside in order to find a new airport site with room for expansion. they finally chose the present site on the Filder Plateau near Echterdingen, and strted construction in 1936. Stuttgart's new airport was designed with a grass landing field to handle such aircraft as fifteen-passenger Junkers JU-52, and with terminal facilities to service an estimated 150,000 passengers per year. The airport opened to commercial traffic in 1938, only a year before the start of World War II. During the war the Luftwaffe based night fighters at Echterdingen, sharing the field with commercial aircraft. The fighters flew interceptions against the many Allied air attacks on Stuttgart and other targets in southern Germany. The Luftwaffe put down a concrete runway of 1,400 meters in 1943, but Allied bombers cratered it later in the war and eventually put the airfield out of commission. First French Army drove through Stuttgart in April 1945, and left behind a detachment to repair the Runway at Echterdingen. American troops replaced the French Army in the early summer and put the airfield back into operation. When the U.S. Constabulary, the armed force of the U.S. Military Government, moved into Kurmaerker Kaserne (now Patch Barracks) in 1946, their small flight section operated from Echterdingen Airfield with L-5 liaison planes. In 1950, Headquaters, Seventh Army was activated at Kurmaerker Kaserne, and their flight section replaced the disbanded Constabulary's at the airfield. The next year, Headquaters, VII Corps moved into Hellenen Kaserne (now Kelley Barracks), and VII Corps aviation units joined the Seventh Army section at Echterdingen. German civil air operations started up again at Echterdingen in the fall of 1948. In the spring next year the Flughafengesellschaft (FSG), the corporation that owns and operates the airport, arranged to share the U.S. Army apron and other facilities on the north side of the runway. During the winter of 1953 thru 1954, the Army units moved across the runway into buildings on the south side, some of which dated from 1936 while others had been recently built. This left the north side free for German commercial and private flying. It was on the basis of this arrangement that the separation of military and civil aviation at Echterdingen has continued. The U.S. Army and the U.S. High Commissioner, who represented German civil interests under the occupation, signed an agreement in 1954 which formally stated the terms of the agreement. This agreement was changed slightly after the occupation ended and the Federal Republic of Germany established in May, 1955. Since 1 July 1963, the German-American relationship has been governed by the NATO Status of Forces Agreement and later supplementary agreements. The last supplementary agreement, signed in 1969 covered in detail the American rights to use the facilities and the compensation to be paid for their use. Military flight operations changed markedly in the spring of 1967 when the flight section of Headquaters, U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force aircraft, some of which were multi-engine transports and jets. Because of their greater experience with such aircraft, U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) took over command of the military airfield and also accoutability for real and installed property from the U.S. Army Europe (USAREUR) on 1 July 1967. USAFE took full responsibility for flight operations, but USAFE and USAREUR jointly supported the airfield according to the terms of an agreement that was signed on 7 April 1967. USAFE designated the 7005th Air Base Squadron to operate the airfield and drew up a base development plan for Fiscal Years 69-72. Under this plan they built apron and taxiway additions on the south side, GCA/TACAN, and telephon exchange, and a VIP lounge. Although the airfield became an Air Force command, about threefourth of the military air traffic continued to be from the Army. USAREUR aviation units at the field included 29th Transportation Company (Direct Support), 25th Aviation Company, and the flight sections of Headquaters, VII Corps Artillery; Headquaters, 2nd Support Command; and Headquaters, 34th Signal Batallion. The military facilities were also used by Air Force and Army transient aircraft, particularly those carrying passengers to the major headquaters around Stuttgart. Military Airlift Command has also operated at Echterdingen, landin troops and equipment from the United States there during the annual REFORGER exercises. German and international commercial operations expanded rapidly after the 1954 agreements, and the corresponding need for more facilities required a continuous program of constuction and improvements. A new main terminal building and several ancillary buildings went up in the years 1954 - 1955. In 1959, the Flughafengesellschaft (FSG) started a runway extension project that took four years to complete. It started with extensive landfills on the east end of the runway and construction of an underpass to take the Plieningen-Bernhausen road under the extended runway. They then laid out a temporary 1,600 meter sod runway parallel original concrete runway, extended the runway to the east, and improved the apron and taxiways. The result was a modern airfield with a strengthened runway of 2,550 meters. The extension project was finished in 1963, and that same year a new radar tower was built on the Weidacher Heights southwest of the airport. Civil passenger traffic passed one million in 1968, doubled within three years, and was expected to exceed three million in 1975. The improvement and expansion of the facilities appeared to be a never-ending process as the original grass field designed for 150,000 passengers per year stretched to handle twenty that number and more. |
 History of Kelley Barracks The Citizen (Stuttgart) |
|
(Source: Email from Maurice J.A. Markworth, 301st Sig Gp, 1951-55; information was originally sent to Emily V.R. Smith)
 Panzer Ksn Info Pamphlet |
|
(Source: Email from Peter Christy, 7th Transportation Aviation Group)
Webmaster Note: Before going to the YouTube website, read up on this popular video sharing website and make sure you understand what it is about and some of the issues revolving around possible copyright infringement - Wikipedia. Then go to the YouTube website, select "Videos" and do a search using "Flak Kaserne Ludwigsburg" as your search words. The author/webmaster is not responsible for the information contained on the YouTube website.
A 6-minute musical tribute to Flak Kaserne on youtube
05:57
05:08
Dokumentation: Flak Kaserne Ludwigsburg Part 1/5
10:00
Dokumentation: Flak Kaserne Ludwigsburg Part 2/5
9:59 min
Dokumentation: Flak Kaserne Ludwigsburg Part 3/5
9:59
9:59
Dokumentation: Flak Kaserne Ludwigsburg Part 5/5
6:59
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION (Source: "Treu zu dienen - 25 Jahre 10. Panzerdivision," published by the 10. PzDiv, 1984) Becelaere Kaserne, Esslingen, was used by the US Army during the Occupation period. The installation was returned to the German government on 13 Sept 1956. Funker Kaserne, Esslingen, was used by the US Army during the Occupation period. The installation was returned to the German government on 15 May 1957. (Source: Email from Birgit Sommer) Wallace Barracks Conversion I am a native of Our 20 year old daughter Emely is studying Architecture. In December 2008, she moved to my brother Boris Bulling to For a presentation about the buildings, now called Roemerkastell (Roman Fort), our daughter Emely is trying to get any information on the former Wallace Barracks, such as who was the commander until 1993, who was stationed there, any famous visitors during the stay, how did military and family live, work etc. |
| Related Links: Flak Kaserne, Ludwigsburg Sean Goodgame's very nice site dedicated to the small post north of Stuttgart. Great photos! Krabbenloch Kaserne, Ludwigsburg A great site featuring the 34th Signal Battalion stationed at Krabbenloch Stuttgart AAF - Bryon Denom's photo album on the OV-1 Mohawk Association's home page Shane's Website  - Shane Deemer, railroad fan and former Army brat, has posted some
great photos of former Stuttgart installations on his personal website. Nellingen Barracks, Nellingen - William Bill's web site dedicated to the history of the Nellingen kaserne Nellingen-Kelley Classmates - a reunion group (MS Group) of old friends & classmates who lived at Nellingen Barracks or Kelley Barracks, Germany, during 1960-64, and attended Nellingen Jr. HS and/or Ludwigsburg American HS. Stuttgart-Ludwigsburg - American High School Alumni Association - another reunion group web site that focuses on military dependents who lived in and around the Stuttgart/Ludwigsburg area Flak Kaserne, Ludwigsburg  - Lars Tellmann, Germany -- tries to keep the past alive.
|