While not mentioned in the documents newly acquired by the Deseret News, Todd said other documents she has obtained suggest that some men involved in the Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb were sent to Kearns in 1945 from Los Alamos, but documents do not say exactly what sort of research or work they did in Utah.

Those who served

Rosters in records obtained by the Deseret News of soldiers at the base include some interesting people.

The base's third commander, Col. Converse R. Lewis, had won the Distinguished Service Cross for action on June 14, 1904, during the Philippines insurrection, "for extraordinary heroism in action against hostile Moros on the Buluan River, Island of Mindanao," according to the citation.

The base's fourth commander, Col. Walter F. Siegmund, was involved after the war in an interesting UFO sighting, often cited by those who believe in the modern existence of pterodactyls or the thunderbirds of Indian legend.

Siegmund and two companions in Alton, Ill., reported in 1948 seeing a bird the size of a large airplane (as did others in that area in later weeks). "I thought there was something wrong with my eyesight," he said at the time. "But it was definitely a bird and not a glider or a jet plane. ... From the movements of the object and its size, I figured it could only be a bird of tremendous size."

What Siegmund could recognize without any doubt was talent, which he saw in a young corporal named Duane Bryers, an artist at the base. One history noted that Bryers "has devoted his time to signs, charts, various posters, lettering, etc." But Siegmund had him paint his portrait.

Bryers created a nationally syndicated comic strip called "Corky" while he was still in the Air Forces. After the war, he worked as a commercial artist and eventually become a well-known Western artist, winning the Trustee's Gold Medal from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame for outstanding contributions to Western art.

Another enlisted man, Sgt. Claude Marks, appears to have become a famous artist. At Kearns, he did such things as paint murals on the walls of the music room in one of the service clubs.

He appears to be the same Claude Marks who became a portrait artist who painted such people as Sir John Gielgud, Sir Alec Guinness, Marlene Dietrich and Julie Harris.

Major league amateurs

Besides the arts, some stood out in sports. The camp's amateur baseball team was especially good, winning the Utah state championship at least twice — and once placing fourth nationally among college and service teams. Of course, it had some people who could be considered ringers.