Prisoner Life
The first 250 German prisoners arrived in December, unannounced to anyone but the officer in command at the camp. On a Saturday morning early in February 1944, 830 more arrived, making the total number of prisoners 1080. The camp had its own train stop across from the prison gates, a chapel, a theater, a hospital, post exchange, a bakery, a laundry, and repair shops for all purposes. A 12-piece drum and bugle corps made up from the military men marched in the Holdrege Memorial Day parade in 1944. A ball club was organized to compete with the nearby Indianola P.O.W. camp.
Prisoners were hired out to local farms to help retrieve the increased crop production demanded by the war. More than 30 local farmers sought assistance, paying the government for work completed by the P.O.W.s.
Read more about this topic: Camp Atlanta
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