Camp Frank Knox
Summary of the locations of Camp Frank Knox
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Camp Frank Knox was located at Ballygunge [22-32 88-22] on the south side of Calcutta, India
Camp Regent was expanded and renamed Camp Frank Knox, which was commissioned in April, 1945. The camp was located at Ballygunge [22-32 88-22] on the south side of Calcutta, India.
The camp was a staging area for personnel awaiting transport over the Hump. It was designed for 450 transients but space was difficult to acquire and by June, 1945, there were twice that number.
In India our Camp Knox was bulging with almost a thousand men who had been carefully selected, expensively trained, and started on their way to SACO. They had been trained at Roger Amphibious School at Fort Pierce, Florida, and in October 1944 the first 150 of an authorized force of 750 had begun a course that included scouting, raiding, and demolitions. These men were to work specifically with our coast groups. The idea was that they would capture and clear ports and harbors, and would also lend a hand in operating with junks. They were experienced in small boat handling, outboard motors, close unarmed combat, booby traps, demolition, underwater demolitions, beach jumping, and more besides. (Miles, 1967, p 469)
Other facilities included the Calcutta DF (direction finder), Radio Calcutta with antenna farm, a truck assembly and repair unit and the U.S. Naval Printing Unit.
The print shop was headed by LT V. H. Ellis and Ship’s Clerk J. F. Dennis; the equipment included large-format copy cameras and multicolor multilith printers. It handled most of SACO printing needs from secret intelligence reports, to maps, to promotional posters.
Cited reference:
Miles, M. E., 1967, A Different Kind of War: Doubleday & Co, Garden City, NY. 629 p.
Provided courtesy of Charles H. Miles on November 20, 2010