What was Macon’s Camp Wheeler? Thousands in Army trained there during two World Wars

On Monday, construction workers discovered an old grenade at a construction site in Macon alongside Jeffersonville Road while laying down sidewalks.

The Bibb County Sheriff’s Office believes the grenade may have been left over from nearby Camp Wheeler, which was used by the U.S. Army during World War I and World War II.

What was Camp Wheeler?

Camp Wheeler was established in 1917 as one of 16 Army National Guard Mobilization and Training Camps. It cost $4 million to build and was named for Joseph Wheeler, who served as a brigadier general for the U.S. Army and as a lieutenant general for the Confederacy.

It was home to the 31st infantry division in World War I, known as the Dixie Division. The 31st infantry division was sent as a replacement division in France, which meant members were dispersed to existing units already engaged in combat in Europe. As a whole division, the 31st never saw combat. By the time the camp closed in 1919, 80,000 troops had trained there

On the orders of Congressman Carl Vinson, in 1940, the camp reopened when the U.S. entered World War II under the command of Col. A. R. Emery (who the Emery Highway is named after). The rebuilt camp, which could house almost 25,000 people, cost about $13.5 million to build. In 1942, German spies confessed that the camp was one facility that they concentrated on before their capture.

It closed permanently in 1946.

Where in Bibb County was Camp Wheeler?

A historical marker for Camp Wheeler is located near Riggins Mill Road in southeast Bibb County. The training camp was situated on 21,480 acres in what is now east Macon for World War I, and then on 14,394 acres during World War II.

Additional facts about Camp Wheeler:

• Camp Wheeler, along with many U.S. Army camps, fielded a baseball team during World War I. Professional baseball teams would play the Wheeler team while barnstorming across the country. In 1918, a Wheeler team took on the New York Yankees and lost 14-1.
• The U.S. government sold all the camp’s buildings for lumber when it shut down in 1919. In addition to the buildings, a number of horses and mules were also sold.
• In World War II, the Army constructed a 1,000-bed hospital for those injured and returning from the war. There was also a prisoner-of-war camp added as well.
• The land returned to its owners at the end of the Second World War as it was just leased, and was later used for a municipal airport.