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Message
Down the AI Rabbit Hole Again. Luxury POW Camp in Mississippi during WWII.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 9:53 am
Posted on 5/22/23 at 9:53 am
I don't know why I got to thinking about stories I heard many years ago about enemy general officers being held in Mississippi so I asked my friendly AI person(?). Here is our conversation.
This is her reply:
quote:
User
I've always heard of a World War II POW camp in Mississippi that housed enemy general officers. It was said these prisoners lived a life of luxury with servants and top cuisine. Is that true? If so, please give me some details about this camp. One story I heard was that this camp housed Japanese general officers, but I wonder if there were any such Japanese general officers taken prisoner.
This is her reply:
quote:
During World War II, there were indeed several prisoner of war (POW) camps in the United States that housed high-ranking enemy officers, including general officers. One of these camps was located in Mississippi and is commonly referred to as Camp Clinton.
Camp Clinton, officially known as the Clinton Enemy Alien Detention Facility, was established in Clinton, Mississippi, in 1942. Initially, it served as an internment camp for civilian enemy aliens, primarily German and Italian nationals residing in the United States. However, in 1943, the camp's purpose shifted to housing high-ranking German and Italian officers captured during the war.
While it is true that the conditions at Camp Clinton were relatively comfortable compared to other POW camps, the notion of luxury and servants is an exaggeration. The camp aimed to maintain a standard of humane treatment in accordance with the guidelines outlined by the Geneva Convention. The officers were provided with suitable accommodations, proper food, medical care, recreational facilities, and access to educational materials.
As for Japanese general officers, there were no Japanese general officers held at Camp Clinton or any other camp in the United States during World War II. The majority of Japanese prisoners of war (POWs) were held in camps in the Pacific Theater or in countries allied with the United States, such as Australia.
It's important to note that the treatment of prisoners varied across different camps and countries during World War II. While some camps provided relatively better conditions, others had harsher environments. Overall, the aim was to adhere to the guidelines of the Geneva Convention and provide adequate care and treatment to prisoners, regardless of their rank or nationality.
8
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:00 am to blueridgeTiger
I'm not aware of any Japanese flag officers that were captured alive before war's end.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:01 am to blueridgeTiger
very intresting never heard of this
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:03 am to blueridgeTiger
I lived in Clinton for the first 26 years of my life and I have never heard of this.
I do know of a POW camp in Jackson close to Clinton that eventually became Butts Park.
Butts Park info
I do know of a POW camp in Jackson close to Clinton that eventually became Butts Park.
Butts Park info
quote:
The approximately 200 acres that Butts encompasses was originally the site of a World War II German and Italian POW camp, and for fans of Atlas Obscura ruin porn, is today beloved for the overgrown, abandoned scale model of the entire Mississippi River watershed, built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers using POW labor.
This post was edited on 5/22/23 at 10:06 am
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:03 am to blueridgeTiger
There is no telling if any of that is true or not.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:06 am to blueridgeTiger
General Dietrich von Choltitz was a POW in Mississippi. He was the one who refused Hitler's orders to destroy Paris before the Allies arrived.
This post was edited on 5/22/23 at 10:40 am
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:07 am to chryso
quote:
There is no telling if any of that is true or not.
it takes 2 seconds to google dude
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:11 am to Jim Rockford
The very first Japanese POW was a junior officer in command of a midget sub that ran a ground in Hawaii during the attack on Pearl Harbor.
He spent time at with Camp Ruston or Camp Livingston in Louisiana.
He spent time at with Camp Ruston or Camp Livingston in Louisiana.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 10:12 am to chryso
I have been reading about these camps.
There was a German camp in Excursion Inlet which is super isolated, but after the war some stayed and there are a bunch of blued eyed natives that live across the strait in Hoonah, a traditional native village.
The Aleuts were interned near here too. Many died, graves still mark the area. The USA was marginally better than Germany.
There was a German camp in Excursion Inlet which is super isolated, but after the war some stayed and there are a bunch of blued eyed natives that live across the strait in Hoonah, a traditional native village.
The Aleuts were interned near here too. Many died, graves still mark the area. The USA was marginally better than Germany.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 1:39 pm to Ghost of Colby
I think he was at Livingston. They cover that at the museum in the former Camp Beauregard (Now designated Training Center Pineville).
Posted on 5/22/23 at 1:46 pm to blueridgeTiger
Some of them even played a football game.
Barbwire Bowl Classic
Barbwire Bowl Classic
quote:
In December 1945, the commanding officer of Camp Stockton, Colonel Kenneth Barager, proposed a football game between the German prisoners of the main camp in Stockade and the smaller camp at the San Joaquin County Fairgrounds as part of the reeducation program for the POWs. Barager hoped the game would encourage the Germans to spread the sport of football in their home country upon being repatriated.[3]
44 prisoners expressed interest in participating and received equipment through donations from organized football teams. Although the items were of quality, only the first-string players received certain articles like shoes, and only one player's helmet featured a facemask.
The Germans were split into two teams based on their station. The Fairgrounds players, who worked on tomato farms in the camp, were named the Fairgrounds Aggies, while those in the Stockade were dubbed Stockade Tech. The teams were later nicknamed after various figures: Fairgrounds, coached by former Marquette player Sergeant Johnny Polczynski, was called "Barager's Bears" after Barager; Stockade, led by Texas Longhorn Ed Tipton and backfield coach Captain James M. Kiernan Jr., was named "Kiernan's Krushers".
Posted on 5/22/23 at 1:56 pm to VADawg
Camp Robinson in Arkansas held 4000 pow's, both German and Japanese..
Posted on 5/22/23 at 2:09 pm to JustDooIt
My father grew up outside of Clinton and went to school in Clinton. He grew up in the 1930's/early 40's. He told me about the pow camp in Clinton and how the kids would stand outside the fences and watch the prisoners.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 2:26 pm to JustDooIt
There were over 400,000 German POWs in this country during WWII, mostly in camps all over the South.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 2:34 pm to blueridgeTiger
There were German POW’s in Houma during WW2. Some escaped and returned the next day after spending the night in the cane fields. Mosquitoes so bad they gave up and returned.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 2:44 pm to TideSaint
There is a group that has been doing a great job restoring the Mississippi River Watershed model at Butts Park over the last few years.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 2:48 pm to bayoudude
Some Germans housed in a POW camp near Phoenix, AZ, got hold of a map, dug a tunnel, and constructed an inflatable raft from materials they stole. Their plan was to escape the camp, go to the Salt river, and paddle down to Mexico.
The found them the next day, sitting on the banks of a stream that fed into the Salt river with their raft. The stream bed was dry.
The found them the next day, sitting on the banks of a stream that fed into the Salt river with their raft. The stream bed was dry.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 2:55 pm to mauser
My wife is on the board of that group. Her and a few colleagues got it started
Posted on 5/22/23 at 3:02 pm to Civildawg
I had heard about the model from the Atlas Obscura and stopped by there when I was up that way a few years ago. Bumped into several people who were planning the next stage of the project. Your wife may have been one of them. I follow their group on Facebook. It's a great thing they are doing.
Posted on 5/22/23 at 3:20 pm to blueridgeTiger
There was one in Kansas where the Germans would even sneak out sometimes because they had girlfriends in town. Nobody really cared. It isn't as if they could get back to their units...or would even want to.
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