Tables Turned on Them: Jews Guarding Nazi POWS Held in the United States

By Imagetripping LLC Greenberg

As the systematic murder of six million Jews by Nazi Germany and its collaborators was taking place, Jewish soldiers in the United States Army participated in guarding, healing, and reeducating of some of the four hundred thousand German prisoners of war (PW) held in camps scattered across the United States. History has paid little attention to the participation of Jewish GIs at these camps and the role they played in preparing PWs to return and participate in a postwar democratic Germany. Very little is known about the experiences of these Jewish soldiers that prepared them to go face-to-face with German PWs, some of which were hardened Nazi party members. In addition, little is known about how the tour of duty in these camps affected the GIs' postwar lives. It was fifty years after the German PWs returned home that I found an unexpected gift my late parents left me that became a portal to discover stories of individual Jewish men whose deeds should inspire future generations on confronting anti-Semitism and racism. These men did not feel sorry for themselves being assigned to PW camps, did not request transfers, and embraced the change and focused on the things they could control. They viewed their roles not as custodians or babysitters of prisoners but as role models of Jewish men who were fit, trim, educated, held rank, and wanted to do more than just "ride out the war" in the zone of the interior. Their stories are about affecting positive change in the PWs' thinking and behaviors. Their mission of tikkun olam—"repair of the world"—is the subject of this book. How, where, and when they started and completed this mission is unique to each Jewish GI despite them having common basic training in Jewish upbringing and values. It is hoped that this book will inspire other Jewish soldiers who served at PW camps or their family members knowledgeable about their service to step forward and share their experiences. This could lead to a future updated edition of this book.JUF News Article

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 13, 2019
• ISBN: 9781644621998

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German PWs Held in the United States

It was at the request of the British government that German PWs were interred in the United States during World War II. The British stated that an influx of prisoners from wholesale captures would overtax accommodations in Great Britain. In August 1942, Great Britain proposed that the United States intern 50,000 British captured prisoners of war on one month’s notice and that an additional 100,000 be sent on a three-month notice. On September 8, 1942, the joint chiefs of staff agreed to accept 150,000 prisoners of war from the European theater with the condition that the war department be given one month’s notice prior to receipt of the first consignment of 50,000 prisoners. Housing prisoners of war in the United States would relieve overseas forces of housing, feeding, and guarding prisoners of war. At the time, there was space for about 32,000 prisoners in the southwestern United States. The provost marshal general submitted plans for the construction of additional facilities to house prisoners of war and their security and employment. Before April 1943, there were about 2,000 German prisoners of war in the United States. On May 13, 1943, Armee Gruppe Afrika (Afrika Korps) under Colonel General Hans Jürgen von Arnim surrendered in Tunisia to British and American Forces. Approximately 125,000 Germans were taken prisoner and sent to the United States over a six-month period. After the invasion of France, the average age of German PWs was about thirty-two years and reflected that of the Wehrmacht in December 1943. In addition, PWs were not just native Germans but were also Austrian, Russian, Czech, and others. This required them to be segregated when housed in the PW camps.¹⁵

The process from capture to internment involved searching prisoners for contraband and information and placing them in holding areas—usually penned enclosures until transport could be arranged to ports. Depending on location, PWs were transported by small ship, rail, or truck to holding areas at ports. In North Africa, prisoners arrived by train to ports at Casablanca, Morocco, or Oran, Algeria. Afrika Korps member Hans Prager told about arriving at Oran, Algeria, by tugboats similar to those used on the Rhine River. At this location, the prisoners were assigned numbers, fingerprinted, photographed, given some medical attention, further interrogated for military information, given receipts for nonessential personal property (medals and other prizes were looted upon capture or at the initial holding pen), and placed aboard available ocean transport to the United States. Franz Prager talked about his experiences at Oran in which he told of German speaking American soldiers, often Jewish, who guarded them and answered questions. In his diary, he wrote, There were never any difficulties with the Jewish Americans. I never heard of or experienced any ill-will myself.

Convoys of returning Liberty or other ships were loaded with thousands of German prisoners. Authority was maintained by American military police battalions and discipline maintained by German officers or NCOs. Prager describes life on board a transport ship and of a U-boat alarm going off during the second day at sea. On deck with a life jacket on, Prager observed that they were part of a large convoy of thirty to thirty-five ships, including approximately three destroyers. He observed that the ship’s bell had the name of the ship—General Robert E. Lee, which was a Victory-class cargo ship. Upon arrival at ports such as the Port of Norfolk, Virginia, Boston, Massachusetts, or New York City, the prisoners entered a building for delousing and allowed to shower. They were transferred to a train station, accompanied by interpreters and military police, and the group boarded trains bound to prisoner of war camps. The prisoners rode in style—comfortable upholstered seats on a Pullman car. Prager describes his train trip as taking two days passing by fields of tobacco, wheat, and fruit plantations.

Upon arrival at their destination, PWs were loaded onto trucks or were marched into the internment camp. PWs were provided with identification cards, which were updated over the course of internment to reflect a new rank or a change in camp location. Prager described his entrance into the Clinton Internment Camp. German-speaking Jewish American soldiers stood in front of each barrack to instruct PWs on where they were housed, procedures, and locations for showering, laundry, etc. Prager describes that the PWs arriving with him at Clinton were divided into twelve companies with 250 men each. There were three streets in the camp with four companies on each street. Each company had five barracks housing fifty men each, one kitchen barrack, one dining barrack, and an administration barrack. Behind these barracks was a wash barracks with sinks and a large shower room. A schematic diagram of the Clinton POW Camp from late 1943 presents a view of the entire camp. The German-officer area to the north is fenced off from the enlisted men’s recreation area and three streets of enlisted men barracks denoted as compound one through three as described by Prager. Clinton was designated as a camp to hold captured high-ranking German officers. The quarters for the guards, hospital, and dentists offices were outside the barbed wire fence in another fenced-in area on the far southern part of the camp.¹⁶

Clinton Prisoner of War Camp internal-security map (photo submitted by J. Lofton)

The image below represents an enlargement showing the southern section of the camp featuring the main camp entrance with the garrison barracks (right) adjacent to a circular drive and administrative building. To the left, one finds the fenced-off station hospital area. To the north of the hospital are the three streets holding PW barracks.

Southern section, Clinton Prisoner of War Camp station hospital and garrison quarters (photo submitted by J. Lofton)

By August 31, 1943, there were 72 PW camps in the United States. By June 1, 1944, there were 141 permanent base camps and about 319 branch camps in the United States holding 146,000 German PWs. By April 1945, there were 150 permanent camps and 340 branch camps. By January 1945, the camps held 306,000 PWs, reaching a peak number of German PWs in June 1945 at 371,683. PW daily life in the camps, including contact with their families and inspections by the Swiss and International Red Cross, has been extensively reviewed by Krammer.¹⁷ Despite the war ending in Europe in May 1945, most of the German PWs stayed in the United States to harvest crops and work until American troops could be brought back from European and Pacific theaters of operation. German PWs returned to Europe primarily in the first six months of 1946, with 37,000 remaining in May 1946. On July 23, 1946, the last 1,388 German PWs held in United States–based PW camps departed from the port of embarkation at Camp Shanks, New York, to Europe on the transport Texarkana.

Gustav Jochem identification card (photo submitted by Victor Jochem)

Postcard sent home—Gustav Jochem seated second from left (photo submitted by Victor Jochem)

The table below presents a scorecard indicating specific POW camps, the number of PWs held there, and Jewish GIs stationed there with their rank and title.

Reeducation camps

The Jewish GIs described in the upcoming chapters served at camps holding a total of 51,000 German PWs that represent about 14 percent of the total German PW population. One GI, John Neumaier, served at three different reeducation camps that held about 24,000 German PWs in addition to the 3,000 PWs who were at Fort Robinson, where he served. This statistic does not translate into the total number of PWs who actually interacted with individual Jewish GIs. The majority of the large camps holding thousands of PWs were located in the southern or western United States. The majority of Jewish GIs identified were either members of the military police or interpreters. Four physicians were identified, with two of them serving at Clinton Prisoner of War Camp outside Jackson, Mississippi. The stories of five Jewish GIs who served at that camp were collected, the most of any specific camp. Those stories also include that of the highest-ranking Jewish GI we found, Major Harold Bellin, MD.

The Enablers

There are two Jewish GIs described in this section who shared a common aspect of their military service record; they were not military police or interpreters (translators) with the US Army stationed at camps in the United States holding German PWs. Neither soldier was assigned to a POW camp after basic training. After almost two years of service in very different roles, they were transferred to a POW camp to serve in very specific administrative roles. In the case of Arthur Greenberg, he was assigned to be a supply sergeant at Clinton Prisoner of War Camp. He trained as a medical NCO—military occupational specialty (MOS) 673—and worked as one for nine months when later transferred to a hospital in France. Prior to duty at Clinton, he became a surgical technician grade three and was qualified to dress injuries such as wounds and cuts in the field, dispense medicine for minor ailments, and complete casualty emergency medical tags. As a supply NCO (MOS 821), he received, stored, and issued military supplies, clothing, and equipment. He performed administrative duties such as supervision of subordinates, performance reviews, preparation of inventory, and other reports. In addition, he taught topics on supply to classes at basic training camp, and individuals who reported to him.

Jason Silverman was a captain in the infantry and was in combat on Guadalcanal. He was wounded and, after a lengthy recovery period, transferred to Fort Robinson Prisoner of War Camp as an assistant executive officer. In 1943, prisoner of war camps were placed under the jurisdiction of the army service command, and in mid-1944, the provost marshal general created the position of assistant executive officer (AEO) to be assigned to each of the service commands for each base POW camp. Each AEO would report to the camp commanding officer. About 150 AEOs were to provide German PWs with intellectual diversions such as movies, newspapers, and educational courses to correct misinformation and prejudices of Nazi doctrine. The AEOs were company-grade officers who were fluent in German, college educated, had imagination and good judgment. They had to be objective about the Germans they were to instruct and had to undergo a ten-day training program in November 1944. The entire program was kept secret from the public until after the war.

The Army had specific job descriptions for both supply NCO and AEO, but Greenberg and Silverman were really enablers. Through their interactions with the PWs, they empowered them to be individuals and break away from the traditions of a superior race, control of news and information, nationalism, and loss of individuality. The enablers offered PWs motivations to recapture their individual value by enhancing mental, spiritual, and social health. The PWs were allowed to grow mentally through one-on-one or group discussions with Greenberg or Silverman, who offered informal cultural information, training for jobs in the camps, and or education programs. Greenberg trained two companies of Germans and their sergeants on supply and inventory control at Clinton Prisoner of War Camp. He talked with PWs about life in America, family, and being an American Jew and a Jew with rank in the US Army. PWs were able to grow spiritually by reading, listening or playing music, participating in visual arts, and much more. Silverman provided a range of educational and cultural programs in each of those areas at Fort Robinson Prisoner of War Camp. The result—PWs were able to imagine what it would be like to live in a democracy, to think as an individual, to be proactive, and to have an opportunity to rescript what their lives might be after the war.

The two men also shared some common background attributes. Both came from Eastern European immigrant families, had siblings, were raised as Orthodox Jews and were bar mitzvoth. Both completed high school, went to college, and worked prior to army service. Both experienced anti-Semitism while serving in the Army, some from the German PWs but mostly from the Army, that went beyond name-calling. You will read how Greenberg and Silverman responded to these events, which affected their postwar lives in very different ways.

Arthur Greenberg, sergeant T3, 4408th Service Unit, supply NCO, from Chicago, Illinois, assigned to Clinton Prisoner of War Camp, Mississippi, in 1944 (photo from A. Greenberg)

Arthur Greenberg, Sergeant T3, from Chicago, Illinois

Approximately eighteen months after induction into the US Army, Arthur Greenberg arrived at the 790-acre Clinton Prisoner of War Camp located about six miles west of Jackson, Mississippi. On February 16, Greenberg reported for duty and described Camp Clinton in a letter to his sweetheart, Betty Broodo, as a mud hole that was muddy, smoky, damp and dirty. They are not very strict here so far, he added.¹⁸

Greenberg’s prewar family life, education, and work experience prepared him for his tour of duty at Camp Clinton. He was born in 1913 to Orthodox Jewish parents who were both immigrants from Eastern Europe. Yiddish was spoken at home, and he took one year of German in high school. In 1932, Arthur graduated from Englewood High School in Chicago after majoring in science and being active in sports. This south-side school had a diverse student population composed of about 28 percent African American students, 12 percent of the Jewish faith, and the rest of Irish, German, and Swedish heritage. Greenberg had interactions with members of these groups in school and assorted clubs. Many friends were non-Jewish per comments in his yearbook. Greenberg was a premed student at Crane Junior College in Chicago for one year until the school closed due to the Depression. He and his younger brother, Charles, went into business, owning a liquor store on the south side. As a small business owner, he gained valuable experience in supervising employees, inventory control, customer relations, and assorted financial skills.

Greenberg was drafted on July 3, 1942. He was first stationed at Camp Swift, Texas, about twenty-eight miles from Austin. The Army leveraged his background in premed and retail-store management by assigning him supply duty in the medical detachment of the 378th Infantry.¹⁹ While at Camp Swift, Greenberg observed Passover, attending a seder at an army buddy’s home in Waco, Texas, and High Holidays in Houston.²⁰ From November 29, 1942, to February 10, 1943, the detachment was stationed at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, where Greenberg was promoted to corporal. He applied for Officer Candidate School (OCS) and passed both the written and oral examinations as well as a medical examination. Within ninety days, he was to receive orders to be transferred to OCS at Fort Benning, Georgia. Yet on December 26, 1942, he was promoted to line sergeant and sent to Camp Bullis for field training.²¹

In March 1943, Arthur returned to Camp Swift after being assigned to a new medical detachment of the 386th Infantry and was told he would have to reapply for Officer Candidate School. Commander Major Webster B. Majors encouraged Greenberg to apply again, which he did. He passed the written exam a second time, yet the oral exam left him completely discouraged. Greenberg discovered that the questioning was not on leadership skills but rather on his own and parents’ backgrounds. The oral examination regarding Greenberg’s ethnic background would be illegal today based on the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the enforcement measures by the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Yet there were no laws at the time prohibiting this kind of discrimination. In late July 1943, he received notice that he was not accepted to OCS, with no explanation. Thus, it appears that Greenberg was a victim of American anti-Semitism. Despite this episode, by October 1943, he was promoted to sergeant, technician grade 3 (T3).²² On December 17, 1943, he was transferred to the Third Provision Company, part of the Chemical Warfare Service at Camp Silbert, Alabama. The camp was fondly called Camp Siberia by Greenberg, and he indicated that he was bored to hell with little to do. This camp was about sixty miles from Birmingham and had temporary barracks with stove heat that could not adequately heat the facilities. Still fuming about the OCS examination process and the boredom at Silbert, Greenberg intensified efforts to transfer to Gardiner Hospital in Chicago, where his skills could be better utilized and he would be close to his sweetheart. The Army had other