CIVILIANS AND GERMAN AND AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN POW'S INTERNED IN THE U.S. DURING WORLD WAR I

Funeral procession for a sailor from either the interned German cruiser SMS Prinz Eitel Fredrich or SMS Kronprinz Whilhelm.

Purpose: This is the postal history story of the approximately 5500 Germans, Austro-Hungarians, and United States citizens confined for various periods of time in military prisons, civilian jails or immigration stations in the United States during WWI. In the presentation the postal history elements of delivery routes, usage, rates and censorship and various types of official stationary are covered.

Background: In late 1914 and early 1915, 105 German and Austro-Hungarian Naval and merchant ships took refuge in the ports of the United States and its Possessions. After the United States entered the war on 4/6/1917 the crew members of these ships were imprisoned. The imprisonment in the US of the interned crews of enemy Naval and mer­chant marine ships and later enemy aliens, anti-war activists, radical trade unionist, socialist and conscientious objectors is generally a little known facet of our WWI involvement

Early in the war internees, military POWs and people deemed harmful to the war effort were held in numerous scattered locations throughout the country. However, by early 1918, most captives were concentrated into the war prison camps at Fort Douglas, Utah, Fort McPherson, Georgia and Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia. Thus the greatest availability of postal history material comes from these three camps.

Organization: The exhibit is organized along the type and location of confinement facilities. The major headings are:

I. Interned Ships II. Temporary Holding Facilities III. Interned German Sailors as Saboteurs IV. Department of Justice Locations V. War Department Detention Facilities VI Foreign Correspondence to Other Then Europe VII. Closing the Detention Camps and Going Home

The text box for important or scarce items are outlined in red.

Interned Ships Hawaii

SMS Geier German Feldpost Marking Accepted

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7 <A»7 #

SMS Geier Marine Schiffpost No. 67, 12/22/1914. The German Feldpost making accepted and forwarded as first c lass mail. Note the return address of: SMS Geier/ Berlin/Marine Fildpost

The Imperial German gunboat SMS Geier, her collier the SMS Locksun and nine German merchant ships were interned in Honolulu and Hilo. The Geier and Lockson arrived in Honolulu for repairs on October 15,1914. When the Japanese battleship Hizen arrived outside the US three mile limit on October 21 , the German Captain decided to intern in Honolulu.

Interned Ships Hawaii

SMS Geier— Classified as Internees/POW's SS C.J Ahler

OPENED BY CENSQ

P.W. 238

SMS Grier (11/29/1916). Sent to Stockholm, Sweden, German Help Committee. Classified as prisoners of war, the crew by international convention received free franking privi­lege to Germany. However, since this cover went to Sweden, it incorrectly received free frank­ing. The international rate of five cents was required.

Censorship: British censor label

SS C.J.Ahlers interned at Hilo (8/28/1916). Ahlers did not have an on-board post office, so use of the U.S. post office was required. Correct two cent international post card rate.

Censorship: None indicated.

" I LO AIJC 2 8 — ^ 10—30 A M

i A WAN ( T H I S S I D E O F C A R D I S F O R A D D R E S S

Interned Ships Hawaii

Mail From Germany Forwarded and Returned

Konigsberg, Germany card to a SMS Geier crewman (4/22/1916). The card was mailed to the Berlin German Naval post office, for­warded through the Netherlands and then sent by neutral shipping to Honolulu. The red "prisoner of war" hand stamp was applied at the Berlin Naval Post Office.

Censorship: The purple censor hand stamp was applied at the Cologne censor office for foreign mail going to the Netherlands. . .

Kiel, Germany card to a SMS Geier crewman (7/4/1916). The card was likely sent to the Berlin German Naval post office, where ^ it was returned to the sender for lack of transportation. Again the red "prisoner of war' hand stamp was applied at the Berlin Naval Post Office

Censorship: None indicated.

Interned Ships Hawaii

Mail From British Templemore, Ireland, POW Camp

Prisoners of War.

4 c <£~**&a^*?i ?

British Templemore, Ireland, POW camp mail to an interned Honolulu German sailor (4/3/1915)

Censorship: Templemore censor hand stamp.

Interned Ships Guam

SMS Cormoran German Feldpost Marking Accepted

29 '' — I i 3 A I

SMS Cormoran Marine Schiffspost No.8, 1/22/1915. The German Feldpost marking was accepted and forwarded as first class mail.

At the outbreak of war in Europe the SMS Cormoran was located in the German colony at Tsingto, China. To escape capture by the British or Japanese, it made for the safety of an American port. The SMS Cormoran was interned on the island of Guam on September 14, 1914.

Interned Ships Guam

SMS Cormorman PAQUEBOT and Registered Mail

A 1 £

(7^ VP* V

Guam PAQUEBOT letter to a sailor on the SMS Prinz Eitel Fredrich. (German cruiser interned in Ports­mouth, VA). As the receiving post office, the cover was cancelled in Manila. The four cents paid the double weight postage.

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G U A M G U | A M

Sender: F. 31 urn. S fM. S . "Co rm or an" t Zuan

iAr.

17 e l k

76 Bsaolia

n i 1 a ,

9 3/

Registered letter mailed through the Guam Post Office (1/17/1918) Guam and Manila registration stamps on the cover back.

Interned Ships Guam

SMS Cormorman Mail Through Guam Post Office & USS Supply

Interned sailors card mailed through the Guam Post Office (6/26/1915). The two cent international post card rate was used

lors card mailed US Navy station S S Supply.

The two cent post card rate

Interned Ships Guam

SMS Cormorman -Classified as Internees/POW's Mail Carried to Philippines & Parcel Post

I

POST CARD

J

Interned sailors card carried out of the mails from Guam to the Phil­ippines. (1/9/1917). The Cormoran sailors now had Prisoner of War free franking privileges.

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Interned Guam sailors parcel post package to San Francisco, CA. The parcel was incorrectly sent post free. Domestic POW mail required payment of postage. "PRISONER OF WAR/FROM S.M.S "CORMORAN" hand stamp applied in Guam

Interned Ships Guam

SMS Cormorman British and German Censorship

OPENED BY CENSOR.

P.W.340

The letter was forwarded to Germany without a canceling postmark and sent by neu­tral steamer to the Netherlands.

Censorship: The British intercepted the steamer and forwarded all mail to the London cen­sor office. The censor sealing label was applied by the London prisoner of war censor's of­fice. The cover was then forwarded through the Netherlands to Germany. The censor hand stamp was applied at Emmerich, Germany (point of entry into Germany from the Nether­lands).

Interned Ships Philippine Islands

SS Coblinz

SS Coblinz interned in Manila Bay (10/4/1916). Letter was carried by the U.S.. Army(A) Transport (T) SS Sherman.to San Francisco.

Censorship: British censor label.

Interned Ships Canal Zone

SS Savoia

Interned 3rd C lass Engineer Rothe (SS Savoia, Hamburg - American Line) letter to Germa­ny (4/28/1915)

Censorship: None indicated..

Early in the war, four merchant ships of the German Hamburg-American line interned in the Colon, Panama har­bor. On 2/3/1917, the day the US severed diplomatic ties with Germany, sailors from the USS Charleston took over the four ships. The 69 German sailors were first likely interned in Empire, CZ and then transferred to the Hotel Aspinwall re­sort on Taboga Island. Following the declaration of war on 4/6/1917, the government arrested and interned 91 German aliens and other non US citizens considered a security risk on Taboga Island. In the spring of 1918, the interned sailors and civilians were sent to the Ellis Island, NY, detention facility. From Ellis Island most internees would have been trans­ferred to the Hot Spring, NC camp and then to Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia.

Interned Ships Canal Zone

SS Grunewald

• -1 —

OPENED BY CENSOR.

Prisoners of War. No

Stamp Required

POW cover from a German interned in the British Knockaloe Isle of Man civilian internee camp, to 1st Officer Emil Blunk. Interned on the Hamburg-American SS Grunewald merchant ship (9/11/1916).

Censorship: The back of the cover has a British POW censor seal.

Interned Ships Portsmouth Navy Yard, Virginia

SMS Prinz Eitel Fredrich

Dock side view of the interned German cruisers SMS Prinz Eotel Fredrich and SMS Kronprinz Whilhelm. /nterned in the Portsmouth Navy Yard since early 1915, the sailors from the two ships built a "Little Germany" on shore.

SMS Prinz Eitel Fredrich Marine Schiffpost No. 3. The cover's German Feldpost marking was ac­cepted, forwarded as first class mail and accorded Prisoner of War free franking privileges

Censorship: British censorship tape.

The German cruisers SMS Prinz Etel Fredrich, SMS Kronprinz Whiihelm and prize ship RMS Appam (captured off the West coast of Africa) interned at the Portsmouth, Virginia Navy Yard. The date stamp from the Prinz Eitel Fredrich was used by all three ships. In October of 1916, the ships were transferred to the Philadelphia Navy Yard.

Interned Ships Portsmouth Navy Yard, Virginia

SMS Kronprinz Wilhelm Converted Oseanliner SS Kronprinz Wilhelm

E. von Thtilon, Salilrseister.

D.Kronprinz Wj lliclr..

Frau N̂ £

C i 1 1 T v o n T h ti 1 • a Bo£,cnstr*ssa 17.

UNDELIv'ERABLB

B r e m e r h a v e n

Germany.

SS Kronprinz Wilhelm United States Sea Post cover (8/1/1914). The SS Kronprinz Wilhelm was engaged in the New York to Germany passenger commerce and was sailing in western Atlantic at the start of WWI The cover was mailed prior to the Wilhelm sailing to rendezvous in the Caribbean with the SMS Karlsruhe. The writer was the Wilhelm paymas­ter (Zahlmeister). With start of war the letter was UNDELIVERABLE.