Training
Hendrickson trained in two major locations, Camp Parker in Quincy, Illinois and Camp Logan in what is now Memorial Park in Houston, Texas. Camp Logan emerged quickly at the edge of a growing Houston, and provided a significant economic boost to the city as more than 50,000 troops were trained there. But Camp Logan is also tied in historical memory with the Houston Riot and the racial segregation that structured the US military at this time.
During construction of the camp, members of the 3rd Battalion, 24th Infantry (African American troops commanded by white officers) were assigned to the camp as guards and were stationed about a mile to the east. "On the night of August 23, 1917, African-American soldiers from Camp Logan incited by police violence earlier that day, armed themselves and marched into town in the only race riot in American history that saw more white casualties than black." (Crow 2017) Fifteen whites, including four policemen were killed, and twelve others were seriously wounded one of whom, a policeman, subsequently died. Four black soldiers also died.
Between November 1, 1917, and March 26, 1918, the army held three separate courts-martial in the chapel at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio. The military tribunals indicted 118 enlisted men of I Company for participating in the mutiny and riot, and found 110 guilty. It was wartime, and the sentences were harsh. Nineteen mutinous soldiers were hanged and sixty-three received life sentences in federal prison. One was judged incompetent to stand trial. Two white officers faced courts-martial, but they were released. No white civilians were brought to trial. (Haynes 2018)
Hendrickson arrived at Camp Logan on September 17, less than a month after the revolt. Although there still must have been some lingering tension from this event he never mentions anything about the race riot in his letters or postcards home. He rarely mentions the African American regiments stationed at Camp Logan as a whole, but one of his letters states "Well the negroe Regiment is leaving here tonight. I don't know where they are being moved to." (March 02, 1918)
Hendrickson was focused on multiple concepts during training. He initially entered the army as a musician, working as a reveille bugler and as a cornet player, but during training he learned signaling and mapmaking. He also learned telegraphy, Morse Code, field telephone operation, horsemanship, long range marching, and studied French.
Hendrickson enjoyed training, saying "they are strict, but it makes a man out of you. I honestly [believe] it is the best thing I ever could have done" (May 24, 1917). Along with this the material goods provided by training were welcomed, "and the Armory is something like a hotel on inside - swell place for the boys. we eat at a hotel" (May 1, 1917). Through training, Hendrickson not only learned the specialized skills of mapmaking and signaling, but also learned about trench warfare, gas masks, and airplanes in preparation for the Western Front.
The facilities at Camp Logan were designed to prepare soldiers for battle in the trenches and included a rifle range, trench replications, drill fields, a cavalry remount station, and an artillery range. He also experienced rifle training at Camp Logan, which is something Hendrickson enjoyed learning. Hendrickson's gas mask training at Camp Logan consisted of simulations of tear gas along with tests using some of the more lethal gases.