World War ll: Camp Atlanta It may surprise you that during World War ll (WWll), here in America, we also had Prisoner of War (POW) camps. What might be even more surprising is that there were even a few here in the state of Nebraska. There were many POW camps in Nebraska, but who would have guessed there would be a camp in Atlanta, Nebraska, a little town of one hundred thirty-one people. The thousands of prisoners held in Nebraska, the design of the Camp Atlanta, and last but not least, what the conditions were like inside the camp are three of the main points to discuss. The thought of having prisoner of war camps located in America never came about until World War ll. There were close to twelve thousand prisoners housed in the state of Nebraska. Camp Atlanta was located around eight miles west of Holdrege on highway thirty-four. This camp was one of the biggest camps in Nebraska. Camp Atlanta housed around four thousand prisoners compared to other camps in Nebraska that contained only around three thousand. Of all the camps in the United States (U.S.), Camp Atlanta had the lowest death rate; although, there was still a lot of disease. Malaria was a common disease in the camp at one time, so there were a lot of lab tests that had to be done. …show more content…
During the war there was an agreement with the government to put in a three million dollar installation of an Axis Conscientious Objectors Camp (a camp for pacifist religious groups) right outside Atlanta but it turned into a POW camp instead. Camp Atlanta opened on November 29, 1943, which was the only time the public was allowed to enter the camp. After the POW camp was built, people around the area were told to never leave their keys in their cars and to always bring in their clothes that were hanging on the clothes line. Also the camp only had twenty-eight original camp
Japanese Internment in WWII The Internment of Japanese Americans is a big part of American history, it was a terrible thing that the United states government did and caused harm to many innocent people. But, before we can judge if it was a bad thing that the government did or a good thing we must first take a in depth look at this part of history. In order to understand Japanese internment it is necessary to examine Japanese Americans’ lives before,during and after internment: what they dealt with, how it affected them, and how they moved on? Pearl Harbor is not the sole reason why we chose the Japanese Americans over German Americans for internment, they were other factors at play.
In "The Train to Crystal City: FDR's Secret Prisoner Exchange Program and America's Only Family Internment Camp During World War II" (published 1/5/16) Jan Jarboe Russell recounts the Crystal City in Texas which is one of the many detainment facilities we had. Within her story she goes on to perceive the Crystal City as a cover-up of racial scare, explained how foreign American citizens we’re treated during the war, and showed insight on Franklin D. Roosevelt’s(1882- 1945) Secret prisoner Exchange program. Crystal City was the main family camp among the U.S. detainment facilities, and the INS Supplied the basic housing requirements: family homes, schools, salons and a doctor's facility. It could be compared to most other American towns at that time the only difference was that the occupants we’re forced to live there.
About 9,000 of them resided in Kentucky’s camps such as Fort Knox, Campbell, and Breckinridge. These prisoners of war interaction proved a profitable experience for all. The Geneva Convention, ratified by the U.S. in 1932, required that captured enemy troops be supplied with food, clothing and shelter equivalent to the nation’s own personnel. U.S. ships carrying supplies and personnel to Europe often returned with POWs. Kentucky’s first prisoners arrived in the early summer of 1943.
45,000 prisoners. From those 45,000 men, 12,920 died as a result of poor sanitation, diseases, overcrowding, and malnutrition; and were buried in the cemetery located just outside the prison walls (unknown, 28). Around the perimeter of the prison 90-foot walls and there were two entrances on the west side. Inside the camp, a short distance from the wall, was a “deadline,” which prisoners were forbidden to cross. If a prisoner were to cross the deadline, Captain Wirz had them shot.
Ulysses S. Grant took no part in the operation in the prison camps. He did not have anything to do with the creation of these camps let alone taking part in the operation, which he could not have done based on his rank early in the war. Most of the camps were built and officially started operating between the years 1861 and 1862, when Grant was off "displayed his military prowess early in the conflict. In 1861, he led 3,000 troops into his first major engagement.” This meaning he was busy in combat while other leaders when discussing the camps.
The Peculiar Case of Wilbert Rideau The Farm has destroyed many that have entered its camps. First, it was slaves from Africa, then Union army troops during the Civil War, and finally hundreds of thousand of men of every race and background. For those inmates on death row, Angola can be particularly cruel and inhumane. Prisoners in the row spend most of their time, and in many cases, their life, deprived of human interaction. However, through all the hardships of life in Angola, a select few are able to overcome.
Paul Pearce Andersonville Georgia or as it was used to be called Camp Sumter is used as a historic site but what was it like back when it was in full use? Andersonville was used as a confederate prisoner of war camp during the Civil War. The Camp was built in 1864 and during its time was home to over 45,000 soldiers. The prison was commanded by Henry Wirz. The prison was over 261 acres surrounding it was 15-17 foot logs and at every 90 feet was a watchtower or as they were called pigeon roosts for guards to look over the prisoners.
August 1st, 1863 one of the worst prison camps for confederates in the civil war was created. Point Lookout was established right after the Battle of Gettysburg to take confederate soldiers. Point Lookout had caused many conflicts for prisoners in camp. Some conflicts that Point Lookout caused for soldiers was disease, hunger, and even death. Nearly 50,000 soldiers became prisoners and 4,000 died in the process.
The Hellhole of Andersonville Andersonville, or Camp Sumter, stands out as the worst of the prisoner-of-war camps on either side in the American Civil War. The pressures on the South during the American Civil War created an environment in Andersonville that resulted in a large number of deaths. Prisoners were decimated by disease, dehydration, starvation, overpopulation, and execution during the fourteen months of Andersonville’s existence. It was one of the largest camps during the Civil War holding 45,000 or more prisoners.
During wars, POW camps (prisoner of war camps) have been prevalent in housing soldiers from the opposing side in a general area where they can be monitored and accounted for, for years. However, many POW camps were conducted off the grid and weren’t registered with the Red Cross so many prisoners were counted as missing or dead in action. These secret camps were often execution camps or interrogation camps to gain information from captured soldiers about unknown devices, planes, and weapons. It was two of these secret camps and luckily one non-secret one that Louis Zamperini found himself in during the biography of his life in the novel Unbroken written by Laura Hillenbrand.
The American government mistakenly considered those who were deemed disloyal a threat to the United States. Because of that, the obvious red flag to answering no and no, respectively, to Questions 27 and 28 on the loyalty questionnaire, was being separated from the other inmates and isolated at a concentration camp called Tule Lake. The conditions at Tule Lake were filthy and overcrowded, and riots and protests were commonplace. Those who protested against their imprisonment were often sent to federal jail.
There were many prison camps used during the Civil War and they were all terrible. The prison camps during the Civil War helped claim the lives of thousands of the deaths from the Civil War, and most people don’t know how much of an impact the prison camps had on the total number of deaths throughout the Civil War. They killed thousands of soldiers on both sides, making an impact on each side’s soldier count, and adding another fear to the soldier’s head. The prison camps used during the Civil War killed as many as 56,000
The POW camps were created in order to hold captured enemy personnel during war. They were known as POWs. They were not regulated by officials and were known as torture camps. The POWs became working slaves and were used to obtain information, usually done through violent interrogation. As the wars progressed and weapons became more powerful and deadly, people began to wonder
For example, the red triangle identified political prisoners, pink triangle identified the homosexuals, green triangle identified the criminals, blue triangle identified the foreign prisoners, etc. Approximately 100.000 (Jewish Virtual Library) prisoners died of starvation, disease, forced labor, maltreatment or systematic execution by the SS guards in the area of the execution trench. Many prisoners were also selected for the now infamous Nazi medical experimentations which took place in the infirmary barracks of the camp. When the Soviets reached the Oder River, the commandant of Sachsenhausen ordered the immediate evacuation of the camp. Thousands of prisoners died on the forced "death march" as a result of the freezing weather, weak health and starvation.
Screams and cries of insanity can still be heard echoing down the halls of Eastern State as men and women were being hooded in order to leave their cells. The faint cries of children can be heard as they were roaming around half clothed in Pennhurst. The cells in Eastern State were surprisingly accommodating considering the circumstances, but they were not someplace a person would call “home”. Life in either of these facilities was nowhere near enjoyable. If someone was not crazy when admitted they soon would become so.