Sacrifices Made

For Camp Adair to be constructed, many families had to give up their homes. The government rerouted railroad tracks and roads, relocated cemeteries, and wiped out the small community of Wells, Oregon.

Most evacuees were farmers. Many were descendants of pioneers who had crossed the plains in covered wagons to make their homes in the Willamette valley. They had no choice but to sell their land, livestock, and machinery and move out.

During the construction of Camp Adair, it was necessary to move cemeteries located within camp boundaries. The government relocated pioneer cemeteries with graves dating back to 1850. A total of 414 graves were moved.

Relocation Remininscence

"The government purchased the 150-acre farm my grandmother, Bonnie Smith, owned in the Lewisville (Lewisburg) community. It had been her home since her marriage to my grandfather in 1893. Her four daughters, my two sisters, and I were all born on the farm. Needless to say, it was a sad, traumatic time for her when she was forced to move out of her home and off the farm after 49 years."