World War II impacted almost every corner of the Earth, including Massachusetts. Between the onset of war in 1939 and the Allied victory in 1945, this state saw its fair share of upheaval, tragedy, and triumph. 

However, even many lifelong residents don’t know that the Bay State was actually home to a German prisoner-of-war (POW) camp. Here’s the story behind Camp Edwards. 

Camp Edwards is a military training installation located in Mashpee on Cape Cod. It was first opened in 1938 and quickly transformed from a small training post to a bustling hub of military activity.

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The camp was originally built to house and train 30,000 service people. A mock German village was actually constructed on the base in order to train soldiers.

Wikimedia Commons/Library of Congress

In 1942, the base expanded to become a hospital and a POW camp for captured German soldiers. As many as 2,000 German troops were held there at any given time.

Wikimedia Commons/Master Sgt. Nicholas Giammarco

Many of the German soldiers were from the infamous Afrika Korps. The prisoners worked various jobs around the base and were also sent to work on nearby farms and in local cranberry bogs.

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German prisoners were also responsible for helping to salvage lumber after a hurricane swept across Cape Cod in September of 1944.

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By the war’s end, more than 5,000 POWs had been detained at Camp Edwards. Most of these were eventually repatriated.

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Today, Camp Edwards is still an active training site for the Army National Guard. It’s now home to a “theatre immersion training” area, where soldiers train in simulated, realistic combat environments.

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The POW camp at Camp Edwards is just one of many hidden pages of Massachusetts history.

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It’s easy to forget how much history is hiding just out of sight in Massachusetts. Did you know about the wartime history of Camp Edwards in Massachusetts? Do you know anyone who served at Camp Edwards?

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Wikimedia Commons/Master Sgt. Nicholas Giammarco

Wikimedia Commons/US Government

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Address: Camp Edwards, Mashpee, MA, USA