“Most of us know surprisingly little about these men who lived and worked in America while the war went on without them.”

By Kathy Kirkpatrick

HITLER’S ARMIES NEVER invaded the United States. Yet amazingly hundreds of thousands of German troops did land on America’s shores — as prisoners of war. They were captured in all theaters. Many were taken prisoner by U.S. forces. Others were captured by British armies and only transferred to American camps when holding facilities in the United Kingdom became overcrowded.

At the war’s peak, as many as 30,000 POWs were landing in the U.S. ports each month. Eventually, there were camps in every U.S. state except Vermont, plus the territories of Hawaii and Alaska.

Most of us know surprisingly little about these men who lived and worked in America while the war went on without them. Few realize that American farmers and businesses used their labour. Only a handful of these detainees escaped – in fact, thousands willingly settled in the United States after the war and even married American women. Here are 10 remarkable facts about enemy prisoners in the United States.

Pitching camp

America’s first POW in World War Two wasn’t German, but Japanese. He was the pilot of a mini-sub that damaged outside of Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. The first full-scale POW camps in the U.S. opened on Feb. 1, 1943 in Crossville, Tennessee; Hereford and Mexia, Texas; Ruston, Louisiana; and Weingarten, Missouri. Eventually, there were 1,204 camps and hospitals for wounded enemy combatants on U.S. soil. They would receive inmates right up until August 1945. California was home to 106 camps – the most of any state. Texas came in second with 80.

Population explosion

By VE Day, there were more than 370,000 POWs from the Third Reich being held on American soil. In addition to German facilities, there were camps in the U.S. to house more than 51,000 Italian POWs and 5,000 Japanese prisoners. More POWs were detained by American forces in Europe, the Far East and elsewhere.

By the book

The U.S. camps were run in strict accordance with the terms of the 1929 Geneva Convention. All prisoners were entitled to housing, food, medical care and clothing appropriate to the climate in which they were being held. Each enlisted prisoner was granted space roughly equivalent to that enjoyed by a U.S. Army conscript – while officers enjoyed larger quarters. Many of the captured German generals and admirals, there were 43 in all held in the U.S., were housed in private bungalows in a facility at Camp Clinton, Mississippi.

Food and entertainment

POWs subsisted on the same rations as American soldiers. Enlisted men were permitted to buy beer in camp canteens, while officers enjoyed wine. Many POWs wrote home that they ate better in captivity than in the German army with some reporting that they had actually gained weight while in the U.S. The perks didn’t end there. Prisoners could appoint representatives to take part in some decision-making with their jailers or to file complaints with the camp commander. POWs were also provided recreational facilities, religious services and hobby and sports equipment, as well as theaters for plays and movies. Musical instruments, books and magazines were also supplied, as was printing equipment for the production of camp newspapers. Detainees could send and receive letters and packages, subject to approval of military censors.

Walking the streets

Amazingly, POWs were given liberty passes to visit nearby towns. Many interacted with the locals; some even became romantically attached to American girls. Ironically, in Southern states, German POWs could eat in segregated diners not open to black Americans. Italian POWs in ISU units also had great freedom with passes to dances in town (usually arranged by Italian-American groups or Catholic Churches) and even weekends at the home of a sponsor.

Earning their keep

While living conditions were relatively good, particularly when compared to those faced by Axis troops in Soviet captivity, German enlisted POWs were expected to work. Many laboured for local farmers and toiled in nearby factories. But in accordance to the Geneva Convention, none were permitted to work in war-related industries, such as armaments plants. Although much of the work could be back-breaking, the POWs were paid a minimum wage of 80 cents a day (the competitive rate for day labor in the U.S.) By war’s end, many POWs returned home with hundreds of dollars. These funds helped stimulate Germany’s struggling post-war economy, as well as Italy’s.

Loyal Nazis

Although many prisoners reportedly enjoyed their life in captivity, among their number were an abundance of ardent Nazis who sought out and punished POWs were too friendly with their captors. Detainees who collaborated were condemned by secret barracks tribunals; some were proven to have been murdered. After a short while, the more militant prisoners were sent to different camps.

Busting out

Escapes were rare, but hardly non-existent. While fugitives had virtually no chance of returning to action in Europe, many sought refuge in South America. None are known to have committed any acts of sabotage while at large. In one high profile breakout, 25 POWs tunneled out of a camp in Papago Park, Arizona on Dec. 23, 1944. All were recaptured within a month.

Release

As soon as the war ended, the U.S. government arranged to repatriate all POWs held on American soil and elsewhere. Many requested permission to stay and even applied for citizenship. Some had been born in the U.S. and had citizenship, but had been conscripted on trips back to Italy or Germany prior to America’s entry to the war. Their hearings were delayed until all were returned to the nation whose Army they served. Many, whose homes were suddenly in Soviet-controlled territory, were reluctant to be repatriated. After a massacre at a port where Soviets were supposed to ship returning POWs (who had served in the German army) home, the U.S. stopped sending Russian Germans back. At least two Germans bound for Eastern Europe escaped and hid in the United States. One by the name of Georg Gärtner assumed a new identity and eventually settled in California, got married and raised a family. The former Afrika Korps soldier finally revealed himself in 1985, at which point he published a book of his experiences entitled Hitler’s Last Soldier in America.

American sweethearts

It was illegal for a POW to marry in the U.S., but after the war Washington enabled the fiances of former POWs set sail for Italy on surplus troop transports with a chaperone (often an aunt or mother). Each carried the documents required for a legal marriage in Italy and two trunks of personal luggage. By marrying in Italy, the women could then legally bring their new husbands back to America to live.

Kathy Kirkpatrick is a historian and genealogist and is the author of American Prisoner of War Camps in Idaho and Utah. The book focuses on the 35 camps that operated in those two states. Subsequent books will include coverage of camps in Arizona, Nevada, and both Northern and Southern California, ultimately a 26 book series for all of the United States.