In 1940, the Camrose Fair Grounds (now Rudy Swanson Recreation Park) was taken over by the Canadian Army for use as a training centre. Several training facilities were constructed including the Drill Hall, which has since been renovated into the Camrose Community Centre. Just metres away, on the west side of the valley in the trees, a series of war trenches were dug into the hillsides in order to teach and train soldiers about trench warfare.