Camp Barkeley was a large United States Army training installation during World War II.The base was named after David B. Barkley, a Medal of Honor recipient during World War I (a clerical error is believed to have caused the spelling discrepancy).Before it was finished, the 19,000 man 45th Infantry Division began to occupy the camp.[1] In 1942, the Abilene Army Air Field opened nearby to train pilots.[1] According to Krammer, "the few escape attempts invariably found the German prisoners sleeping in the bandstand in Abilene's central park.