Hill Field Chapel: Military church gave troops refuge

The two old military veterans — one Army, the other Air Force — have long since retired from active duty. Time, which once passed by in years, now flies by in decades.

These two soldiers — both with a strong spiritual side and religious nature — never made it to any overseas conflicts, but they did support and nurture others who spent time with them in Utah at Fort Douglas and Hill Air Force Base.

The aging vets still find themselves getting gussied up for special events, looking their best for weddings, funerals and other ceremonial occasions. But they're being invited to participate in such things less and less. And few visitors nowadays stop in to say "hello" and listen to stories from days gone by.

And yet, the two don't fit the adage about old soldiers fading away. They've endured. They still stand tall, proud and ready to serve at a moment's notice.

So give a salute for old time's sake to the two spiritual giants of Utah's major military sites — the Post Chapel of Fort Douglas and the Hill Field Chapel.

HILL FIELD CHAPEL

Ogden's Hill Field (since renamed Hill Air Force Base) dates back to just prior to World War II, and the Hill Field Chapel wasn't far behind, constructed in late 1942 to building specs common at the time for Air Force chapels.

The chapel suffered considerable growing pains its first decade, with fire forcing a renovation just three years after it was built and another remodel project carried out in 1948.

Hill's growing population prompted a new, larger chapel in 1964 — more families mean more children, and more children mean needs for more space and more Sunday School classrooms.

With the replacement, the original Hill Field Chapel continued to serve — not as a house of worship or spiritual sanctuary, but rather as an educational building and makeshift office space.

Two decades later, the Hill Field Chapel was destined for demolition before the Aerospace Heritage Foundation stepped in and funded the chapel's 1984 relocation to the Hill Aerospace Museum complex on the base's northwest corner.

Once there, the chapel was restored to its World War II layout and appearance. Rededicated in 1989, it stands surrounded by the museum's Memorial Park.