Rare photos of the establishment of Linkou on February 16, 1955 by the U.S. Army 327th CRC, ASA and the May 16, 1955 arrival of the U.S. Air Force 6209th Air Base Squadron at Linkou (redesignated Det. 1, 6925th Radio Squadron Mobile (RSM) on May 24, 1955).
However, the presence of the U.S. Air Force on Taiwan goes back several months earlier. In October 1954 the first contingent of 18 airmen set up camp at an old Japanese air strip six miles down the road from Linkou near Taoyuan. This initial group was designated Flight "B", 29th Radio Squadron Mobile (RSM) with its parent unit at Clark AB, Philippines. Included are many photos showing Linkou's rapid transformation from tents to buildings.
(1.) Tent City (327th CRC ASA) Linkou March 1955. (2.) May 1955 photo of the Chapel under construction. It one of the first permanent buildings on base.
(Photo on Right-Click to Enlarge) 1955 shot of the completed Chapel shown under construction in the photo above.
"Members of the detachment [USAF Det. 1, 6925th Radio Squadron Mobile] constructed this chapel in 1955. A Chaplain was not assigned to the station in those days, so someone had to get up at four in the morning and go to Taipei to pick up the Catholic chaplain after he completed services at the HSA compound. After mass the chaplain would also conduct services for other faiths." This original Chapel was later replaced by the Chapel built next to the Linkou Club around 1956 and 1957. (source: Shulinkou Devil Dog base newspaper, Feb. 23, 1977 edit.) provided by Roger & Catherine Jarvis (1975-77)
Feb 1977 comments by Colonel James E. Kater, Shulinkou Air Station 6987th Group Commander (1974/75-March 1977), and a Feb 1977 article about the 1955 establishment of Shulinkou that appeared in the February 23, 1977 special commemorative final edition of the Shulinkou "Devil Dog" base newspaper, covering the past 22 years of Shulinkou history. This was the newspaper's last edition prior to the base closing five weeks later on April 01, 1977.
Chronology of the Formation of USAF Det. 1, 6925th Radio Squadron Mobile (RSM)/Radio Group Mobile (RGM) and 6987th Security Group
2nd Lt. Jack Tress 1955
(Click on Photo to Enlarge) Summer 1955 shot of 2nd Lt. Jack Tress at the Linkou "BOQ". photo by Jack Tress
Jack Tress (Jun '55-Jan '56), Lt. Colonel USAF Retired: "When I arrived in June of 1955, all personnel were housed in eight-man squad tents. The only 'permanent-type' buildings were the mess hall, the two Ops buildings, and the Comm Center (although this may have been a trailer). There was also a little round building that served as the AP [Air Police] shack and entrance to the Ops [Operations] compound. The Orderly Room and Supply Room were tents. I know, because in addition to being an Intelligence Officer, I was also Adjutant and Supply Officer. There was an Army ASA unit (253rd USASA Det.) adjacent to our site and also a small Navy detachment (Det.-2 USNSG). There was a small airbase squadron detachment to take care of the physical facilities.The latrine was a slit trench over which were wooden seats, and the whole thing was inside a tent. Can't remember if it was a six or eight-holer." [Sept. 15, 2001]
Jack Tress continues: "I was a brand new 2nd lieutenant, fresh out of OCS, when I was there. Several of the Chinese linguists that were there were in the same class with me at Yale...Re that picture of me [photo on left] standing in the entrance to the tent, that was the BOQ prior to the other metal one that was built in the fall of 1955. You can see the brick floor in the tent. As far as I know, that was the only tent with a brick floor, and all of the officers (including myself) layed the bricks.
...The ChiNat troops used the old Japanese airstrip to practice for the Double-10-Day parade. Our DF site was a couple hundred yards down the strip from our compound and the Chinese trucks, going 'round and 'round, caused a lot of interference. The DF would follow the trucks." [July 29, 2008]
1.) Air Force Bachelor Officers' Quarters (BOQ) built in the fall of 1955. Jack Tress: "If I remember correctly, that BOQ was the first of the 20' x 60' metal buildings (with a concrete slab floor) constructed for living quarters...the tents behind the BOQ belonged to the air base squadron and were used for supplies and equipment. The general direction of the photo was towards the old Japanese air strip." [July 29, 2008]
2.) Christmas 1955 at the BOQ. Jack Tress: "...Picture was taken in our 20' x 60' BOQ at Xmas '55. Those included are (from left) Lt. Will Geiger, Cpt. King Clayton (AB squadron), I think Fred Yee, Maj. Shugert (CO, AB squadron) and Cpt. Bob Wade." [July 29, 2008]
3.) The new Mess Hall opened in June 1955. General Benjamin O. Davis, commander of the 13th Air Task Force at Taipei, attended the grand opening. Note: The original Dining Hall in the photo above was moved to its new building and location across base in 1959/60 where it remained until the base closed in 1977.
4.) The first Linkou Chapel under construction, May 1955. This Chapel was one of the first permanent buildings on base in 1955.
5.) This permanent Chapel at Linkou, located next to the Linkou Club and Swimming Pool, was later built around 1956 and 1957.
A3C Delano Sylvester 1955:
"I was assigned to Detachment 1, 6925th Radio Squadron Mobile (Shu Lin Kou Air Station, Formosa) effective May 1955 and stayed there until October 1956...many of us were involuntarily extended 90-120 days due to personnel. At that time I was an A/3C (Airman 3rd Class) and served a an Radio T/A (Radio Traffic Analyst). I was a "Trick" worker but no longer remember which trick. Some of us also performed 30 day rotations to Quemoy (I was not on of them)...that was scary as Hell as Amoy and Quemoy were being shelled daily by the ChiComs.
When we arrived in Formosa, "Peiking Polly" would welcome us by name. She'd give all the sports scores each night but most were soccer games and cricket matches, She was always warning us of imminent invasion by the Red Army. Of course she called us spies.
Shu Lin Kou (originally known simply as Lin Kou) was "tent city" [see photos above]. A series of 10-man tents were pitched in the mud along with an occasional pup-tent. The only "permanent" buildings we had were the Ops Building and the Mess Hall [photo on left]. I first lived in a pup tent, then a 10-man tent and then the luxury of a "Baker" building.
Most meals were made from World War II "C" rations and reconstituted products flow in from Clark Air Base, P.I. The "C" rations were dated 1943 and 1944. The reconstituted products were not what one would call good. Eggs (only scrambled) had a green cast to them. Fresh food was not on the menu on the "Hill". ASA (Army) did much better as did the small contingent from the Navy. The Navy enlisted personnel named their barracks the USS Neversail and had painted it battleship gray.
The "bus" to town was a 6x6 known as a "6-by". No sitting while in transit to Taipei or returning to "the Hill" as the ride was so rough it was not possible to sit. Uniform of the Day was fatigues (many of us had those miserable one-piece things tailored into an "Ike jacket" and trousers) and rubber boots. Initially we tried to wear our brogans, but the mud, water, and mold made that impossible. Red mud was constant and every place." [Sept. 29, 2004] Delano Sylvester (Del) (May '55-Oct '56), Major USAF Retired
(Click on Photo to Enlarge) 1955 shot of the new Mess Hall that opened in June 1955. Photo by Al High ('55-'56)
(Left Photo) Loading trucks and equipment from Camp Momoyama onto USNS LST-491 at the Kobe, Japan port facilities (March 1955 photo).
"On 12 February 1955, the Company [327th CRC, ASA - 327th Communications Reconnaissance Company, Army Security Agency] was ordered to move to a permanent change of station from Camp Momoyama, Fushima, Japan to the island of Formosa (Taiwan) to a site 16 miles west of Taipei [Shulinkou]. This was an emergency move with the first element of the 327th CRC, ASA arriving on Formosa on 16 February 1955. Additional elements arrived by air on February 17, 20, and 21, 1955. Most of the organizational equipment arrived by ship at Keelung (see map below), two LSTs [USNS LST-47 AND USNS LST-491], on March 3rd and 6th, 1955.
The main body composed of three officers and 117 enlisted men arrived by military air on March 3, 1955. The rear element officially closed Camp Momoyama on March 16, 1955 and departed for Taipei.
(Click on Photos to Enlarge) Photos by Les Hamilton, 327th CRC, ASA (Right Photo) 327th CRC billets at Linkou March 1955.
Initially, the company lived in tents with the move into semi-permanent [prefab] buildings beginning in June 1955 [see photos below]. The EM Club, originally housed in a tent, was moved to a prefab building in December 1955 [first named the "Armies Club"] where it gradually acquired a snack bar, juke box, slot machines, draperies, and Chinese help in the form of waitresses, bartenders, and a cashier. Rest and Recuperation [R&R] leaves to Japan, Okinawa, Hong Kong, and the Philippines were authorized.
The 327th CRC, ASA was inactivated effective 15 August 1956. Its personnel and equipment were transferred to the newly organized 176th ASA Company."
(Source: History Office, Headquarters US Army Intelligence and Security Command, courtesy of K. Kovach)
(Top Row) 327th CRC, ASA (Communications Reconnaissance Company, Army Security Agency) headquarters, operations (antenna field in foreground) and barracks at U.S. Army Camp Momoyama, Fushima (Kyoto), Japan.
(Middle Row) Camp Momoyama's Main Gate, 327th CRC trucks, men and equipment, bound for Linkou, depart Camp Momoyama and head to the port facilities at Kobe, Japan to be loaded onto two LSTs (USNS LST-47 pictured and LST-491) and shipped to the seaport of Keelung, Taiwan (see map above).
(Bottom Row) Feb/Mar 1955 shots taken by Bob Skinner on board the USNS LST-47 sailing south to the port of Keelung, Taiwan where the trucks and equipment were unloaded and driven to the new base at Linkou. Bob Skinner and a pet monkey are shown at Shulinkou (far right). The group of soldiers (far left) shown aboard the LST are unidentified.
(Click on Photos to Enlarge) (Left Photo) 1954 Army photo of Les Hamilton (Right Photo) The Citizen-Advertiser, Auburn, NY, Jan. 1955
Les Hamilton (327th CRC: Shulinkou: Mar '55-Dec '55): "I was new to the 327th arriving at Camp Momoyama, Japan in December, 1954. I was fully expecting to have an enjoyable time there completing my one year tour of duty at Kyoto when we got the word we'd be moving out. As a PFC and new to the unit, it was fun to be issued a driver's license to drive one of the big "6 by 6" trucks to the port at Kobe to be loaded on the LST (USNS LST-491 click here). There was one warrant officer on board and a handful of enlisted men. The LSTs took our trucks and most of our heavy equipment from Kobe to Keelung. The trucks and equipment were then driven to the new base at Shu LinKou.
My trick chief had a ticket for the "Double-10 Day" parade [photos below] on October 10, 1955 (10-10-55). He held a drawing for the ticket and I won. I sailed for home in December 1955 barely a year after arriving in Japan (6 Dec 1954).
Amoy, Quemoy, Matsu...they were in the news in early 1955. Before we debarked from the LST in Keelung for Linkou, a Taiwanese LST, heavily loaded, was leaving port. One of our guys - probably spoke Chinese - told us the ship was headed for the offshore islands, packed with troops shoulder-to-shoulder. This story ran quickly through our small group, so I don't know the source. At the time, I didn't question the accuracy of the story." (PFC) Leroy L. (Les) Hamilton - (a draftee selected for ASA) [27 Aug 2010]
Gene Allen (327th CRC, ASA: Shulinkou Feb '55-Aug '55): "I was already at Lin Kou before the LSTs left [Japan] for Taiwan. I was in the advance group [Feb '55] living in pup tents and waiting for the LSTs to arrive with the squad tents and additional equipment. I will agree that the c-rations we had were outdated, the biscuits were so hard we tossed them at each other like frisbees. the tobacco in the Lucky Strike cigarettes would fall out of the paper before they could be smoked. I left Taiwan in August of 1955 two years after I was assigned to the 327th in Momoyama. [30 Aug 2010]
1.) 1955 shot of the tent that housed the 327th Base Barber Shop and Tailors ("K Shoe Co.", Taipei). 2.) 1955 shot of the new Post Exchange (PX) under construction (see photo below of the newly completed PX) . 3.) Crated prefab buildings for new permanent 327th barracks being unloaded, June 1955. 4.) Prefab barracks under construction. 5.) New buildings 1955.
Tom Hatheway (327th CRC Feb/Mar 1955 to Jan 1956): "I was with the 327th when it moved from Kyoto, Japan to Taiwan in Feb/Mar 1955. We laid out the tent city, ran power lines, began operations, and sloshed around in a lot of mud that first spring. prefab barracks replaced the tents in the summer of 1955. Watched unsuccessful attempt to dig a well by hand. Workers went about 30 feet before they gave up. Enlistment was up in Jan 1956. 327th was still trucking water up from Taipei when I left." [27 Dec 2000]
Aug/Sep '55 shots (Top Row) 1.) Mess hall and water trucks (left). Remnants of the site of the WWII Japanese Army airfield are visible in the background just beyond the buildings. Motor Pool is in the upper right corner. 2.) 327th CRC buildings and the old Japanese Army airstrip in the background. 3.) 327th CRC ASA corrugated metal prefab barracks. The WWII Japanese Army airstrip is visible in the background.
(Bottom Row) 1.) Les Hamilton up an antenna tower taking these shots. 2.) Mess hall and water trucks lower right corner. Kuan Yin Mountain in background. 3.) Corrugated metal open-bay barracks that housed about 20 men each. 4.) Miscellaneous buildings.
"...The major problem encountered [at Linkou, 1955-56] was the difficulty in supplying sufficient potable water to meet the needs of the unit [327th CRC, ASA]. It was necessary to haul water by tank trailer from Taipei, a 30-mile round trip over exceedingly bad roads. The water then had to be cooked, utilizing immersion heaters and further treated with iodine. A deep water well was completed in June 1956 which negated the need to haul water although chlorination and purification were still required." (Source: History Office, Headquarters US Army Intelligence and Security Command, courtesy of K. Kovach)
Tom Hatheway (327th CRC ASA, 1955-56): "...Watched the unsuccessful attempt to dig a well by hand [late 1955]. Workers went about 30 feet before they gave up. The 327th was still trucking water up from Taipei when I left (Jan '56)." [27 Dec 2000]
Drilling for Water, Shulinkou 1955 (click here) Film credits: Les Hamilton (327th CRC ASA: Shulinkou: Mar '55-Dec '55)
"YouTube" video link. 1955 8mm movie of a Taiwanese drilling crew unsuccessfully drilling for water at Shulinkou Air Station.
(Click to Enlarge) 1955 shot of the well drilling derrick, photo by Al High (1955-56). (Right) Taiwanese well drilling truck at Linkou in 1955, photo by Donald Thibert (1955-56).
Shinto Temple, Linkou 1955 (click here) Film credits: Les Hamilton (327th CRC ASA, Shulinkou: 1955)
"YouTube" video link. 1955 8mm movie of a Shinto Temple located within walking distance of Shulinkou Air Station.
Brick Factory, Linkou 1955 (click here) Film credits: Les Hamilton (327th CRC ASA, Shulinkou: 1955)
"YouTube" video link. 1955 8mm movie of a brick factory near Linkou on the right side of the winding road to Taipei. Richard Wicklund (327th CRC ASA, 1955) is giving the sculpture to the Taiwanese boy in the video.
(Click on Photos to Enlarge) 1955 Temple photo by Les Hamilton Brick factory photo by N. Carpenter (1969-71)
1.) 327th barracks at Linkou, 1955. Stove pipe on right. All are unidentified. 2.) New 327th prefab barracks and chow hall (center background). 327th soldier unidentified. 3.) Unidentified 327th member outside operations van at Linkou. 4.) Unidentified 327th members at Linkou. 5.) 1955 shot of Donald Thibert (center) and two unidentified 327th CRC friends at Linkou.
1.) Unidentified 327th members. 2.) Donald Thibert (center T-shirt and cap) and unidentified 327th friends at Linkou, 1955. 3.) Unidentified 327th CRC members. 4.) Unidentified and Donald Thibert (right). 5.) Unidentified 327th CRC members.
1.) 1955 shot taken near the village of Linkou. Shulinkou is visible in the background and Kuan Yin Mountain (Mt. Kuanyin) is in the distance. 2.) 1955 shot of Donald Thibert (center) and unidentified buddies at the Enlisted Men's (EM) Club at Linkou. 3.) Supply tent 1955. 4.) Beach located below the cliffs at Hou Keng near Shulinkou, 1955. 5.) Looking west across the Taiwan Strait toward China on the beach located below the cliffs at Hou Keng, 1955.
1.) Donald Thibert (sitting on sofa between the women) and unidentified friends at a house in Taipei, 1955. 2,) Donald Thibert (sitting), others are unidentified. 3.) 1955 shot of the shops at old Haggler's Row in Shimending. 4.) Pedicab in Taipei, 1955. 5.) 1955 shot of the Diamond Horseshoe Bar in Taipei's "Sin Alley".
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