American Civil War Camps
Lacking a means for dealing with large numbers of captured troops early in the American Civil War, the U.S. and Confederate governments relied on the traditional European system of parole and exchange of prisoners. While awaiting exchange, prisoners were confined to permanent camps. Neither Union or Confederate prison camps were always well run and it was common for prisoners to die of starvation or disease. It is estimated that about 56,000 soldiers died in prisons during the war; almost 10% of all Civil War fatalities. During a period of 14 months in Camp Sumter, located near Andersonville, Georgia, 13,000 (28%) of the 45,000 Union soldiers confined there died. At Camp Douglas in Chicago, Illinois, 10% of its Confederate prisoners died during one cold winter month; and Elmira Prison in New York state, with a death rate of 25%, very nearly equaled that of Andersonville.
| Combatant | Name | Location | Notes | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union | Camp Chase | Columbus, Ohio | Established in May 1861 and closed in 1865. The camp's original capacity was for 4,000 men but at times more than 7,000 prisoners were accommodated. The capacity was increased to 7,000 but towards the end of the war up to 10,000 men were crammed into the facility. | |
| Union | Camp Douglas | Chicago, Illinois | ||
| Union | Fort Slocum | Davids' Island, New York City | Davids' Island was used from July 1863 to October 1863 as a temporary hospital for Confederate soldiers injured during the Battle of Gettysburg. | |
| Union | Elmira Prison | Elmira, New York | Established as Camp Rathbun as a training base, the site was converted to a prisoner of war camp in 1864 with a capacity for approximately 12,000 prisoners. Before its closure in 1865, 2,963 prisoners died from various causes. | |
| Union | Fort Delaware | Delaware City, Delaware | ||
| Union | Fort Warren | Boston, Massachusetts | ||
| Union | Gratiot Street Prison | St. Louis, Missouri | ||
| Union | Johnson's Island | Lake Erie, Sandusky, Ohio | ||
| Union | Ohio Penitentiary | Columbus, Ohio | ||
| Union | Old Capitol Prison | Washington, DC | ||
| Union | Point Lookout | Saint Mary's County, Maryland | ||
| Union | Rock Island Prison | Rock Island, Illinois | A government owned island in the Mississippi River | |
| Confederate | Andersonville | Andersonville, Georgia| | The site is the National POW Museum | |
| Confederate | Belle Isle | Richmond, Virginia | ||
| Confederate | Blackshear Prison | Blackshear, Georgia | ||
| Confederate | Cahaba Prison (Castle Morgan) | Selma, Alabama | ||
| Confederate | Camp Ford | Near Tyler, Texas | ||
| Confederate | Castle Pinckney | Charleston, South Carolina | ||
| Confederate | Castle Sorghum | Columbia, South Carolina | ||
| Confederate | Castle Thunder | Richmond, Virginia | ||
| Confederate | Danville Prison | Danville, Virginia | ||
| Confederate | Florence Stockade | Florence, South Carolina | ||
| Confederate | Fort Pulaski | Savannah, Georgia | ||
| Confederate | Libby Prison | Richmond, Virginia | ||
| Confederate | Salisbury Prison | Salisbury, North Carolina |
Read more about this topic: Prisoner-of-war Camp
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