3rd Canadian Division Support Base Detachment Wainwright, commonly referred to as Canadian Forces Base Wainwright or CFB Wainwright, is a

Canadian Forces Base A Canadian Forces base or CFB (french: links=no, base des Forces canadiennes, BFC) is a military installation of the Canadian Armed Forces. For a facility to qualify as a Canadian Forces base, it must station one or more major units (e.g., army ...

located in Denwood,

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, adjacent to the town of Wainwright.

Military Camp Wainwright

The

Buffalo National Park Buffalo National Park was created near the town of Wainwright in east central Alberta on . It was closed in and delisted in 1947 when the land was transferred to the Department of National Defence. The park land was developed for use by Canadi ...

was closed in 1940 and the property leased by the Government of Alberta to the Department of National Defence (DND) for the creation of an ammunition storage facility as well as an army training camp. DND owned an adjacent property and used the facility for live-fire artillery, armoured and infantry training. Called Wainwright Military Camp, or just Camp Wainwright, after the nearby

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I railroad, Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern United States, M ...

s division point, the facility saw use from January 29, 1945, to May 24, 1946, as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of ...

(POW) internment camp for 523 captured

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

officers, soldiers and civilians from its first day of operation to 1,100 POWs at its peak. During the 16 months the POW camp was in full operation, only two prisoners made a successful escape, although they were recaptured just over a month later, but not until they had reached

Gary, Indiana Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city has been historically dominated by major industrial activity and is home to U.S. Steel's Gary Works, the largest steel mill complex in North America. Gary is located along the ...

.CFB Wainwright history
Decommissioned as a POW internment camp in 1946, Camp Wainwright reverted to a

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases acr ...

training facility. The camp staff and guard company were reduced to nil strength a few weeks later, marking the end of this chapter of CFB/ASU Wainwright's history. Wainwright's infrastructure expanded significantly during the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top: ...

as buildings were constructed to house and train soldiers in three Canadian Army

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

s, as well as units that would form

British Commonwealth Forces Korea British Commonwealth Forces Korea (BCFK) was the formal name of the British Commonwealth army, naval and air units serving with the United Nations (UN) in the Korean War. BCFK included Australian, British, Canadian, Indian, and New Zealand units. ...

such as the

25th Canadian Infantry Brigade The 25th Canadian Infantry Brigade was Canada's primary combat-formation intending to be sent as part of the British Commonwealth Forces Korea. Originally composed of three infantry battalions and two armoured squadrons, several individual units ...

. The February 1, 1968 merger of the Canadian Army,

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack subma ...

and

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environ ...

to form the

Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Ai ...

was predated by a number of major changes to Canada's military structure. One of these saw Camp Wainwright transferred on January 1, 1967, to become an auxiliary satellite training camp of

CFB Calgary CFB may refer to: * College football *Canadian Forces base, military installation of the Canadian forces * Caminho de Ferro de Benguela, railway in Angola *Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District *Cipher feedback, a block cipher mode i ...

. This was reverted on August 1, 1967, due to command and control problems, and Camp Wainwright became Canadian Forces Base Wainwright (CFB Wainwright) as a separate entity within the establishment of

. An airfield was opened at CFB Wainwright in October 1967 and at the time of official unification, CFB Wainwright became a component of Training Command as the facility was tasked as a training area. CFB Wainwright offered both officer and basic training courses, battalion-level unit operations and acted as a host for training foreign detachments. Wainwright also offered administrative support services for 1 Canadian Brigade Group units. Subsequent changes to the force structure saw Wainwright's role as a training facility evolve, particularly as the garrisons at CFB Calgary and

CFB Edmonton CFB Edmonton (also called 3rd Canadian Division Support Base Edmonton) is a Canadian Forces base located in Sturgeon County adjacent to the City of Edmonton in Alberta, Canada. It is also known as Edmonton Garrison or "Steele Barracks". His ...

shifted some of their training to the newly established and much larger

CFB Suffield Canadian Forces Base Suffield (also CFB Suffield) is a Canadian Forces base, host to the largest military training area in Canada. It is located in southeastern Alberta, north-northwest of Suffield, northwest of the city of Medicine Hat and sou ...

. On July 15, 1974, the 1 Combat Group Operational Training Detachment was formed at CFB Wainwright to conduct individual training for two or more units of Mobile Command's 1 Combat Group. In 1980, to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the formation of Alberta, a small number of bison was transferred from

Elk Island National Park Elk Island National Park is a national park in Alberta, Canada, that played an important part in the conservation of the Plains bison. The park is administered by the Parks Canada Agency. This "island of conservation" is east of Edmonton, alon ...

to the grounds of the base. The herd remains on the base today. In 1983, CFB Wainwright consisted of the training facilities, the 742 Communication Detachment and a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gur ...

liaison detachment. Defence cuts following the end of the Cold War during the 1990s resulted in the closure of CFB Calgary and consolidation of units at CFB Edmonton. CFB Wainwright was also impacted by defence cuts and was reduced to an Area Support Unit (ASU). ASU Wainwright, as the facility is also called, has 690 military personnel and 300 civilian workers. As part of 3rd Canadian Division Support Group (3 CDSG), it hosts the

3rd Canadian Division The 3rd Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for the command and mobilization of all army units in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as well as all units extending westwards from th ...

Training Centre (3 CDTC) and the

Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre The Canadian Manoeuvre Training Centre (CMTC) is the Canadian Army's functional centre of excellence (FCoE) for collective training (CT) and is the army CT training authority on behalf of its higher headquarters, the Canadian Army Doctrine and Tr ...

(CMTC), as well as the following units: * 3rd Canadian Division Support Group Signal Squadron * 1 Field Ambulance Detachment * 1 Dental Detachment * 1 Garrison Military Police Company detachment * 1 Engineer Equipment Troop The transient military population averages over 1,000 personnel at any given time, and in the summer it grows significantly when hundreds of primary reservists undertake annual training. As of 2009 it is the main training base of the

1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group (1 CMBG; French: '')'' is a Canadian Forces brigade group that is part of the 3rd Canadian Division of the Canadian Army. Originally headquartered at CFB Calgary, it is currently based in CFB Edmonton ...

, including

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI, generally referred to as the Patricia's) is one of the three Regular Force infantry regiments of the Canadian Army of the Canadian Armed Forces. Formed in 1914, it is named for Princess Patri ...

(PPCLI), and covers an area of , which includes 25 weapons ranges. Although primarily a training base for the

it is also used by the

to train

fighter bomber A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, wh ...

s and

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

practice. The base also includes Wainwright/Wainwright (Field 21) Airport () located west of Wainwright, approximately west of CFB Wainright, with a asphalt runway. The Wainwright Military Family Resource Centre (MFRC), located on CFB Wainwright, provides resources and support for military families. Since 1942, 140 Royal Canadian Sea Cadet Corps Cayuga has operated on CFB Wainwright. In 2015, 3003

Royal Canadian Army Cadet The Royal Canadian Army Cadets (RCAC; french: Cadets royaux de l’Armée canadienne) is a national Canadian youth program sponsored by the Canadian Armed Forces and the civilian Army Cadet League of Canada. Under the authority of the National D ...

Corps Battle River (PPCLI) was relocated to CFB Wainwright from Edgerton, Alberta.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wainwright, Cfb Canadian Forces bases in Alberta Heliports in Canada Military airbases in Alberta Cfb Wainwright

Military Camp Wainwright

See also

References

External links