MARCH IN REVIEW: Wish you were here

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. John Hale
  • 452nd AMW Historian
MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, CALIF. --  Wish you were here. Postcards have been very popular souvenirs in the United States since they originated near the end of the nineteenth century, and March Field was no exception. Soldiers stationed at, and processing through, March Field sent postcards, such as the one shown here, home to their families and friends. This postcard features the Army Air Force's newest bomber, the four-engine B-17 introduced in 1937, as well as other scenes around the base and locally, such as the Mission Inn, visible in the "L" of "Field."

One of a series of postcards of March Field, this card is printed on linen, a practice popular in the 1930s and 1940s. Other cards in the series featured the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, the Douglas B-18 Bolo (part of which is seen in the "E" ), and troops marching on the parade ground. The Post Exchange, which is now the Finance and Travel building, even had a postcard of the interior included in the series.