Camp Concordia WWII POW Camp – Concordia, Kansas
From July of 1943 until November 1945 through the gates of this POW camp there were 4000 German POW’s. There were also 880 soldiers and 179 civilian employees working at the camp.
In total there were 300,000 German Prisoners of War interred in the United States. Those that were interred in Kansas often worked on farms but some worked on the railroad or in the ice plant. They also had their own band and newspaper.
The camp consisted of 304 buildings including a 177 bed hospital, fire department, warehouse, cold storage, and officers club, barracks, mess halls & administrative buildings for both the German POW’s and the American soldiers. There were also officers and nurses quarters, complete with roads, electricity, sewer, water (including a 100,000
gallon water tower), telephone systems, and fencing.
The majority of those at Camp Concordia were captured in Africa but were members of the German Army. The first POW’s came over from Rommel’s Afrika Korps.
Camp Concordia officially closed on November 8, 1945. Many of the buildings were torn down and others were moved. Some are still serving as homes in Concordia. The only structures remaining at the original location are Guard Post 20, a ware house, some stone walls, the officers club, a few foundations, and the tower which once supported a 100,000 gallon water tank. A two story stone guard tower has been reconstructed. Some of the buildings were torn down and others were moved, some of which can still be seen in town as houses.
The POW Camp Concordia Preservation Society uses the Guard House 20 as a small museum but it isn’t open on a regular schedule. The Cloud County Museum has a number of exhibits devoted to the camp so not only should you visit the camp itself but also stop in at the Museum and look around.
During the war there were approximately 9 POW camps in Kansas alone. Throughout the rest of the country there were many more, each with their own history and stories to tell.
To visit the remains of Camp Concordia and see the museum you can contact the Society at 785-243-1710.
Directions: go north of Concordia on US 81, 2 miles to Union Road. (also known as Fort Kearney Road) Then turn right (East) on Union Road where you will find the reconstructed guard tower on your left. Guard House 20 is a few blocks farther east.
When you are in the Wichita area and headed north you may want to alter your plans to go search out the history of this camp. Concordia is located 150 miles north of Wichita. Of course, if you are in Topeka you can go 175 west and be there or 110 miles southwest of Lincoln, Nebraska. None of these are so far away that you can’t make an educational trip to the area and learn about the life of the POW’s while the history is still there!
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