“They did not feel like the Enemy”: German prisoners of war in Michigan

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dc.contributor.advisorDenning, Robert
dc.contributor.advisorChan, Christopher
dc.contributor.authorRunk, Abigail
dc.date.accessioned2019-06-16T20:19:52Z
dc.date.available2019-06-16T20:19:52Z
dc.date.issued2018-09
dc.description.abstractSeventy years after the end of World War Two, many topics concerning the United States’ involvement are rarely discussed. One of these topics is the German Prisoner of War (POW) camps that dotted the United States from 1942-1945/46. The United States began transporting POWs to the United States due to pressure from its Allies in Europe. Allied camps could no longer house captured troops. Land and economic food supplies within Allied camps were lacking, due to the British being unable to financially supply these necessities. With misgivings, due to the proximity to the American people, the United States began to erect camps. Approximately, 378,000 prisoners of war arrived from the European theater. Of those, 4,000-5,000 prisoners arrived in Michigan to begin a process of becoming economic laborers. Viewed as workers, according the residents, these men did not feel like the enemy. These laborers, though prisoners, allowed Michigan to maintain its economic stability. Utilizing unpublished letters, contemporary newspaper articles, personal interviews, National Archive records, and secondary sources, it is possible to review how the camps and the prisoners in Michigan were viewed. These camps followed the confines of the Geneva Convention. However, escapes still happened from the camps. Despite these instances, without the prisoners during the war, Michigan’s economy would have suffered due to the lack of farming crops. Without these prisoners, Michigan civilians would have been unable to realize the average German soldier was not the same enemy as a Nazi. (Author abstract)en_US
dc.description.bibliographicCitationRunk, A. (2018). “They did not feel like the Enemy”: German prisoners of war in Michigan. Retrieved from http://academicarchive.snhu.eduen_US
dc.description.degreeMaster Artsen_US
dc.description.programHistoryen_US
dc.description.schoolCollege of Online and Continuing Educationen_US
dc.digSpecsPDF/A-1ben_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10474/3526
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.publisherSouthern New Hampshire Universityen_US
dc.relation.requiresAdobe Acrobat Readeren_US
dc.rightsAuthor retains all ownership rights. Further reproduction in violation of copyright is prohibiteden_US
dc.rightsHolderRunk, Abigail
dc.subject.lcshSouthern New Hampshire University -- Theses (History)en_US
dc.subject.otherhistoryen_US
dc.subject.otherAmerican historyen_US
dc.subject.otherlabor relationsen_US
dc.subject.otherGermansen_US
dc.subject.otherMichigan (US)en_US
dc.subject.otherprisoners of waren_US
dc.subject.otherWorld War IIen_US
dc.title“They did not feel like the Enemy”: German prisoners of war in Michiganen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US

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Master of Arts in History