Fairchild AFB - The Birth of a Base, Spokane Army Air Depot Published June 6, 2013 By Jim O'Connell 92 Air Refueling Wing Historian FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- Fairchild has been an important part of the Inland Empire since 1942. The base has enjoyed a great relationship with Spokane and the surrounding communities. In fact, the local community is largely responsible for making the base a reality. This is part one in a series on the Spokane Air Depot's role in World War II. Under the leadership of James Ford, the Spokane Chamber of Commerce began promoting economic expansion by pursuing increased military involvement with the city. The Chamber then began a program offering military interests to the city. The city had just taken some daring steps to reverse the fiscal downtrend brought about by the Great Depression. Just west of the city, two Army Air Corps bombardment wings and several support units occupied Geiger Field. Two years later, United States Congressman Charles Leavy (a Spokane native) began talks with General Arnold, regarding Spokane as the site. Also in 1935, a congressional party set out to tour Washington, in an effort to find a location in the Pacific Northwest in which to establish an Army Air Corps supply and maintenance depot. The process of selection took several years, but the group soon narrowed the choices to Salt Lake City, Utah, Everett, Wash., and Spokane. The competition was keen, but Spokane won out in the end for several reasons. In his memorandum to the Secretary of War, General Carl Spaatz, Chief of the Air Staff stated that Spokane was preferred for the following reasons: a better strategic location, 350 miles from the Pacific Ocean and a mountain range as a natural barrier to possible Japanese attack. Also the interior flying route to Alaska assuring better flying weather for delivery of supplies, better flow of raw materials and supplies and presented no obstacles to early and expeditious construction. The War Department awarded the depot to Spokane on September 11, 1941. On December 5, 1941, the Chief of Engineers, War Department, authorized the construction of the Northwest (later Spokane) Air Depot. Before construction could begin, though, the War Department had to receive the title for the land, which financially fell on the shoulders of the citizens of Spokane. The land had to be provided to the government free of charge, so it was up to the citizens of Spokane. To purchase 1,500 acres, the city needed to raise around $110,000. While that amount was a daunting amount of money to raise during a slumped economy, the people of Spokane saw the benefit of having the depot and were willing to put their money where their goals were. In two days they raised $76,000, and by the end of the week they reached their goal, with $15,000 extra. The city raised a total of $124,996.77. Over 570 businesses, community leaders and civic-minded citizens donated to the fund. The first unsolicited donation of $5 came from Mr. Charles d'Urbal, a former French teacher at Lewis & Clark High School. In October, 1941, the property near Galena Railway station was purchased by public subscription by citizens of Spokane for a total of $101,078.66. In January 1942, the title for the land was officially transferred to the U.S. Government. The final sale included 2,400 acres, rather than the 1,500 originally sought by the government. The War Department allocated an initial $20-million for the depot and construction began on January 19, 1942. Construction of the depot took more than a year at of a cost of over $25 million. At one point, 2,500 workers were employed on the construction project. The workforce erected 262 buildings, the largest of which was a 12 acre repair hangar. Construction also resulted in eight miles of railroad track traveling throughout the depot and 12 warehouses that were each larger than a city block. There was a great deal of administrative work to be done before the completion of the construction process. However, there were no completed buildings at the depot, nor space available at Fort George Wright or at Felts Field, both of which saw military activity. As a result, administrative and headquarters were based in downtown Spokane in the Hutton building, later moving to the Kemp & Herbert building, also downtown. Finally, in March 1942, the first buildings were completed and were available for occupation by Army engineers. The depot was to be home to the Spokane Air Technical Service Command (the maintenance portion of the depot), and Spokane Air Material Command (the supply portion). Although the newly constructed depot would go through several names over the years, and was often called "Galena," by locals due to the depot's proximity to Galena Railway Station, the first official name was Spokane Army Air Depot.
