Page 5 - RAGBRAI2010

ALGONA TO CLEAR LAKE

WWII PRISONER OF WAR CAMPS

Camp Algona was the home to over 10,000 German Upper: Camp Algona
soldiers between 1944 and 1946. Located just a few miles Center Right: cannery
west of Algona, the camp spanned 287 acres and had a workers
total of 178 buildings in all. The Algona camp was the home Center Left: camp entrance
base of an extensive P.O.W. camp system, with 34 branch Lower: POW workers
camps spread throughout Iowa, Minnesota, and North and
South Dakota under
its supervision;
two of which,
Storm Lake and
Charles City, coin-
cidently, are also
overnight towns
on this year’s
route. Prisoners of
these camps spent
most of their time
as day laborers in
nearby canneries
or on farms, but
in their free time
engaged in music,
sports, arts and
even generated
and circulated
a camp newspaper. For more information check out
http://www.pwcamp.algona.org/, or visit the museum
while in town.

Photographs courtesy of Camp Algona POW Museum.