Question: Is it true that during World War II there was a prisoner of war camp in Kennett?

Answer: Yes it is true. It was located east of the Kennett Square in an area just across the street, or south, of where the Senath Bank is now. There was a drainage ditch running north and south where the prisoners caught small fish. There are presently several businesses in operation where the camp was laid out.

A newspaper account for Aug. 17, 1943 said that there were around three hundred POWs in the camp. This, along with a staff of guards and administrative people, brought the total population to about four hundred.

Just how long it was there is uncertain, because it was a temporary camp made up of POWs transferred from Camp Weingarten, just outside St. Genevieve, Mo. Camp Weingarten was considered a model prison, and was one of several POW installations constructed in Missouri.

The need for the POWs was brought about by the fact the Bootheel had produced a bumper cotton crop in 1943. The prisoners were to help make up for a drastic labor shortage created by so many young men being away in military service. Prisoners were paid a small amount for their work. Officers were not required to work, but many of them did.

The prisoners were Italians who had been treated well at Weingarten. They presented no discipline problems, except on one occasion where they threatened a sit-down strike over some labor issue. When they were denied their breakfast the next morning they quickly got back to work. Observers of prisoners on off days saw them participating in sports such as volley ball and soccer. Their work was a definite benefit to local farmers. The cost for food rations were about 70 cents per day per prisoner.

Germans and Italian prisoners in this country apparently fared much better than the American counterparts in enemy hands. They were fed better, had superior shelter, and were given clean clothing. They were also allowed to form their own entertainment and educational programs. Books and various documents on the subject reveal that Italian prisoners caused no serious trouble at all. In fact some Italians made friends in this country, and came back after the war to become citizens. The main problem was the one universal to all soldiers scattered over the world: they were homesick.

Most of the German prisoners behaved well, except for the die-hard Nazis. The U.S.. Army attempted to separate Nazi influence from the regular soldiers by giving them indoctrination programs on democracy and the blessings of free will. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't.

There is a story -- true, or not -- that two hard core Nazis escaped from a POW camp and got as far as the hills of Tennessee. They made their way to a cabin that had a well in the yard. They were having a drink of water when an irascible old granny came out on the porch with a loaded gun. She demanded to know what those two fellows were up to. When they answered her in German she took dead aim and put one of the Nazis in the great unknown. The county sheriff arrived and explained to her that she had shot a German POW. At that granny broke into tears. "Well, grandmother," the sheriff said. "You killed the man." "What did you have in mind?" "I thought they wuz Yankees," the granny sobbed.

Even the best intentions are often marred by hasty action.