Tor Hanson Livres

Today, Sunriver is an idyllic community in Central Oregon, but during World War II, it was the site of Camp Abbot, the westernmost engineer replacement training center of the US Army Corps of Engineers. Under the leadership of Col. Frank Besson, the US Army trained 90,000 men at the camp from 1943 through 1944. Mimicking the European landscape, the surrounding terrain and the swift-flowing Deschutes River were deemed perfect for training young soldiers how to build and demolish bridges. Located about 15 miles south of Bend, the quickly built installation included administration buildings, a hospital, over 50 barracks, mess halls, training grounds, recreation facilities, and a chapel. There, among pine trees and sagebrush, soldiers endured subfreezing winters and 100-degree summers.

"The idyllic community of Sunriver sits at the crossroads of Central Oregon. The region was inhabited as early as 11,500 years ago by native tribes. The first non-native explorers filtered through the area in the early 19th century, and homesteaders began farming the region in the late 1800s. During World War II, large tracts of land in the area became a training center for the US Army Corps of Engineers called Camp Abbot. In 1965, developer John Gray and attorney Don McCallum announced plans to build a residential and resort community on the former Army site. Named for the area's two main features, sunshine and recreational waters, Sunriver is a dynamic community. Today, permanent residents and vacationing visitors take advantage of Central Oregon's recreational opportunities, including golfing, fishing, hiking, biking, skiing, and snowboarding."--Back cover

This book will take readers back in time to the pioneering days of Central Oregon, when birdmen and barnstormers crisscrossed the skies in their Wright Flyers, Curtiss Jennys, and Ford Trimotors. In the early days, the dusty high desert airfields were home to flimsy airplanes. As air travel evolved from utilizing seat-of-the-pants construction to becoming a new mode of mass transportation, the Central Oregon region developed along with the technology. Over the next century, a dedicated group of visionaries--aviators and city officials--built a thriving economy around Redmond Municipal Airport. Today, this transportation hub, also known as Roberts Field, sees an average of 1 million passengers each year. It is complemented by smaller general aviation airports that are home to private and corporate pilots, as well as a flourishing aviation industry.