The Subculture of the U.S.Army during WWII and Its Impact on the Construction of a New Airbase in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska

Summary

This presentation reviews my MA thesis which examined how the subculture of a military organization can influence the construction of a new facility. During World War II, the U.S. Army had an upper class of commissioned officers who had access to many resources and a lower class of enlisted personnel who had limited resources. The U.S. Army also segregated African American and female soldiers, each group being restricted in unit assignment, work done, and separation from other white or male soldiers. This thesis analyzed maps of the airbase, Fort Glenn, as it was constructed on Umnak Island in the Aleutian Islands during World War II.  The analysis demonstrated that the Army’s hierarchy and segregation were reflected in the manner in which the Army constructed and located separate buildings for use by officer, enlisted, and female personnel.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Bring the Boys Back Home: War, Conflict, and Commemoration   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2013

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 314