In November 1942, construction workers built Camp Abbot during what was called the worst winter since 1919, creating a unique Army base on the site of what is now Sunriver’s great meadow. The camp was named for military engineer Lt. Henry Larcom Abbot, who had camped there in 1855 while leading a railroad survey party. Eventually about 90,000 combat engineers trained at this Engineer Replacement Training Center, chosen because its forest, river, and climate resembled conditions soldiers would face in Western Europe. The men learned a wide range of engineering and construction tasks, including amphibious assault, deploying temporary bridges, constructing permanent bridges, and building airstrips, roads, canals, and buildings. Many of the young soldiers came from the South and Midwest and were struck by the mountain scenery of Central Oregon. The camp opened in 1943 and closed abruptly in June 1944, at the time of the Allied invasion of Europe. During its 14 months, it housed 10,000 men at a time, and a company of WACs was also quartered there. After it closed, all but two buildings were torn down: the former Officer’s Club, now known as the Great Hall, and the base chapel, which was moved to Prineville and continues to serve as a church. The Great Hall was built as a training exercise over six months using local materials, including massive pine beams and ten tons of lava rock for its fireplaces, at a total cost of $4,796. In 1945, the government sold the 5,484 acres of the former camp to the Hudspeth Land and Livestock Company of Prineville. The Great Hall later fell into neglect and was even used to house cattle. In the early 1960s, before Sunriver was developed, the site was used in the filming of The Way West, in which the Great Hall appeared as Fort Bridger. Instead of cash payment, landowner John Gray asked the filmmakers to install a new roof, beginning the renovation that led to the building’s preservation as a memorial to the men and women who trained there and later fought in World War II.