
Tressa Bush is a guest on WGNS-FM Roundtable Podcast
On July 3 2024, I was the guest on a WGNS-FM’s Roundtable Podcast hosted by one of my classmates from MTSU, Chip Walters.
He took notice of our group’s social media posts related to our efforts to remember the Tennessee Maneuvers and invited me to come to the WGNS-FM studios in Murfreesboro to chat.
If you don’t know me, I want to warn you — I talk fast! And Chip was ok with that!
I do not claim to be an expert on the maneuvers, but I believe my years of television experience has helped me learn about this part of our history and condense it so that folks of all ages can understand it. And hopefully what they hear from me will be enough to entice them learn more on their own.
Listen to the pod cast by clicking here!

If you’d like to know more about the maneuvers I suggest you buy these books.
In the Presence of Soldiers written by Woody McMillin and Jerry McFarland. It goes into detail about each of the seven sets of maneuvers that took place here in Middle Tennessee. The book is no longer in print. You will have to search it on the internet and buy from a third party vendor.
Rick Beyer wrote an award-winning book about soldiers who served in the 23rd Headquarters Special Troops titled; The Ghost Army of World War II. The Ghost Army organized and trained at Camp Forrest during the Tennessee Maneuvers. Rick was the guest speaker at our first Tennessee Maneuvers Remembered event in the fall of 2021.
Rick recently updated the book. This is a link to the latest version.
Also, please take a moment to check out Rick’s website by following this link: https://ghostarmy.org/. Newspaper reporter Eugene “Gene” Sloan wrote a book about the maneuvers. It’s titled Somewhere in Tennessee. Like Woody’s book, it is not longer in print . If you find one on line, you should get it.
Dr. Elizabeth Taylor is the Vice-President of our group and an expert when it comes to Camp Forrest, TN. She’s written two books about this WWII training, induction and Prisoner of War Camp that was located in Tullahoma, TN.
This is a link to the group’s website: https://www.campforrestfoundation.org/ – Click on the SHOP tab to find her books along with a lot of other branded items.
If you or someone you know witnessed the maneuvers, please let us know. If you or someone you know has an artifact from the maneuvers, please let us know that, too.
Thanks for reading – and PLEASE share this blog on your social media – it means a lot to us!
Mark your calendar for our next Tennessee Maneuvers Remembered – Saturday, May 3, 2025 in Downtown Carthage, TN.
Chip Walters, Tressa Bush, WGNS-FM Roundtable Podcast
