Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Editor's note: This article is a part of a series reviewing Utah history for KSL.com's Historic section.SALT LAKE CITY — Sixty-three years worth of Hill Air Force Base history dating back to 75 years ago is now available for the public to access through the University of Utah’s digital newspaper archive.
More than 61,000 pages of the Hilltop Times and other newspapers from the base were added to the Utah Digital Newspapers database at the J. Willard Marriott Library earlier this July.
The newspapers provide a rare look at the base, which opened in 1940 (though its origins began with the infamous 1934 Army Air Mail program, according to base historians). The first newspaper added to the collection was published in January 1943, as World War II continued. The front page of the 8-page edition featured a giant American flag and photos throughout the base.
“As Hill Field enters the second year of all-out war efforts, in many respects it symbolizes all America,” the first article of the edition begins with. “It has been — and still is — undergoing the pains of prodigious growth. It’s personnel — both military and civilian — has already discovered a stiff price must be paid for victory.”
The base played its part by housing and repairing bombers that were used by the Air Force during the war.
"Battle weary A-26, B-17, B-24, B-29, P-40, P-47, P-61, and many other types of aircraft depended on the men and women of Hill Field for structural repair, engine overhaul, and spare parts," Hill Air Force Base historians wrote in 2008. "Peak wartime employment at Hill was reached in 1943 with a total of over 22,000 military and civilian personnel. These dedicated men and women rehabilitated and returned thousands of warbirds to combat.
The newspaper has continued to be printed for decades since then, including through the various wars the U.S. fought in at the time. The U.’s newspaper archive runs to 2006. Each newspaper was transferred from microfilm to the digital database, making it easier for people to access records.
“Every page of every issue is available in the base's archive, which also houses some 50,000 original photographs covering the building of the base and the history of aviation in Utah. Hill Air Force Base's History Office is a tremendous resource,” said Tina Kirkham, digital library project manager at the U., in a statement.
