The Fort Francis E. Warren POW Camp was located on Fort Francis E. Warren near Cheyenne, Wyoming during WWII. The Camp housed 3,560 Italian and German POWs, from 1943 to 1946. Only about 900 POW's were housed at the camp at one time. The Camp was Wyoming’s longest serving POW Camp during WWII, originally established as a branch camp, but was expanded in 1945 to a major camp.     

In November 1943, the Fort Francis E. Warren POW camp received its first group of 350 German POWs. These German POWs were part of the German Afrika Corps (German Army in Africa) fighting in the Tunisia Campaign in North Africa. The camp consisted of several small buildings that were used to house mostly German POWs, with a small group of Italian’s later in 1943. The Camp was located along Crow Creek, away and isolated from the other military buildings and sections of Fort Francis E. Warren. Several of the 1910, stable buildings were converted to barracks to house the POWs (see Camp Photos tab).  Two buildings housed military camp guards quarters, and were located directly across from the main compound. The prisoner compound was enclosed by a wired fence, with two Guard Towers located on the Northwest and Southeast ends of the compound. In June 1944, a third barracks building was constructed to house additional POWs. By June 1944, the number of German POWs had increased to 500. In February 1945, the number of POWs again increased to 742 and finally around 900 German POWs were interned at the camp.        

Unlike Camp Douglas, Fort Francis E. Warren was unique for not letting their POWs out of camp for agriculture work like other major and smaller POW branch camps in Wyoming. While interned at Fort Francis E. Warren, the POWs were allowed recreation activities including theater, sports, and leisure activities. The POWs also established a school and were provided material by their American captures. The POWs also started two Camp Newspapers titled Der Zaungast and Lager-Magazin (Written in German). The newspapers are listed and linked below.

In November 1945, German POWs were repatriated following the Allied victory and the ending of WWII. In April 1946, the U.S. Army officially closed the POW Camp at Fort Francis E. Warren. The camp was demolished, except for the old stable and guard buildings that are currently in use by the United States Air Force at part of Francis E. Warren Air Force Base today. 

Source:

Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office. Wyoming Military Historic Context, 1920-1989.  Ohio: Toltest Inc, 2009.

A picture of genuine prisoner of war clothing in a case behind glass. The clothing consists of a faded brown collared, long sleeved shirt and old fashioned linen pants with a drawstring waist and the letters "P" and "11" painted on the thighs.

POW clothing found at F.E. Warren (left) and a portrait painted by an Italian POW at F.E. Warren (right). Both are part of an exhibit at the F.E. Warren ICBM & Heritage Museum.  

A large oil painting of a white woman in a 1940s style blue dress, curly red hair, sitting in front of a green floral background with a bust of a little boy reading a book on a shelf next to her.

A portrait painted by German POW Hans Pirker in 1945. This portrait was donated to the Warren ICBM & Heritage Museum in the 1980s after it was bought at a garage sale in Cheyenne, Wyoming for $5.00. Photo curtesy of the Warren ICBM & Heritage Museum.  

Image Credits

Newspaper images are from Wyoming Newspapers.

Copyright notice: Digitized collection materials are accessible for educational and personal research purposes.

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