Written by Amanda Coers – The 36th Division Memorial Park recently installed a new addition to the site: a restored Willys M38A1 Jeep. The memorial park’s newest element is thanks to the work of the Central Texas Veterans Memorial Committee, specifically the committee president Harold Stieber, and Tommy Blevins.

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“I knew the Jeep, it was next to my hanger for 15 years with flat tires, rusted up,” said Steiber, speaking of the military vehicle that had been stored at the Brownwood Airport.

The Jeep had been donated to the City of Brownwood by the National Guard, thanks to the former Commander Everett Pitts, who later became the airport manager. As the Jeep was listed as a military vehicle it could not be sold in a traditional manner, and without a place to be displayed, it sat for several years.

With the completion of the 36th Division Memorial Park, Steiber felt the time was right to move the Jeep to a more fitting location. The committee approached the City of Brownwood with the hope of acquiring the Jeep for the park.

“Bobby Burks, the airport manager, and City Manager Emily Crawford were instrumental in getting us the Jeep,” said Steiber. “I rebuilt the Jeep, and Tommy agreed to paint the jeep for us using the best paint you could buy.” Blevins brought the Jeep back to its original glory, using a special paint which will last for years in the elements.

The total restoration project took eight months to complete, with great attention to detail, right down to finding the correct tires for the 1952 model.

“The history of this Jeep is just amazing,” said committee chairman Dr. Steve Kelly.

The Willys M38A1 Jeeps were produced between 1952-1957, and were appreciated by the military, having a stronger chassis and reversed front spring shackles, in addition to accoutrements such as standardized GI instruments and a 24 volt electrical system. The M38A1 had a long history in military service. Many of the more than 50,000 A1’s built in the first two years, went straight to service in Korea. Information from: cj3b.info/Siblings/MD

The markings on the Jeep installed at the memorial park in Brownwood include 36th division, 142-1 (First Battalion of the 142nd Infantry Regiment), Company A. The restored Jeep is a welcomed addition to the displays of World War II military equipment.

The 36th Division Memorial Park includes 12 granite tablets around a 75-foot diameter concrete circle. The 12 tablets honor:

• All Veterans;
• Brown County’s 259 local heroes with individual names engraved on four tablets;
• Fighting 36th Infantry Division-Texas National Guard, which trained at the memorial site in World War II;
• Camp Bowie;
• Major General Fred Walker – commanding general of the 36th Division in World War II; the memorial represents all officers from Brown County;
• Commando Charles Kelly – The One Man Army, the first recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor in Europe in World War II; the tablet represents all enlisted men from Brown County, especially those who returned from all wars with post-traumatic stress disorder;
• Lost 36th Division Battalion in the Vosges Mountains of France;
• Lost 36th Division Battalion on Java; and
• Colonel Jack Bradley, Brownwood’s most decorated combat veteran.

In addition to the granite tablets and monuments, plaques are in place honoring veterans from the Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, Operation Enduring Freedom – Afghanistan, and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The 36th Division Memorial Park is located next to the Brownwood Regional Medical Center and the Brownwood Veterans Outpatient Clinic, on Memorial Park Drive in Brownwood.