Share This Article

Bayview, Idaho, a quiet town in the northwestern region of the state, shows few signs today of its World War II past. More than seventy years ago, Farragut Naval Training Station sprung up next door. At its peak, the base sported six self-contained camps, each capable of training 5,000 recruits at a time.

With 7.5 miles of corridors, Farragut’s U.S. Naval Hospital was the largest and most modern medical facility in the Pacific Northwest during the war. At peak the hospital had 2,300 beds. (Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation )

To keep recruits’ haircuts high and tight, Farragut operated a nine-chair barber shop at its receiving unit. (Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation )

Recruits had to pass a swimming test in order to graduate from training. They learned their strokes at one of the facility’s six indoor pools. (Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation)

In February 1945, the U.S. Army began housing German POWs at Farragut. The prisoners, like these men playing with a canine companion, earned 80 cents a day doing landscape work. (Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation)

Related stories