Post by quigondon1 on Dec 4, 2013 22:49:34 GMT -5
Hello everyone. We have a tape of my Grandfather, Milton Lewis Tech 5 424th 1st Bn Hdq Medical detachment, talking about his time in the BOB. He talked about being in Sprendlingen, Germany for I think 3 months being in charge of the camp at Biebelsheim. He said at the time there were about 53,000 prisoners there. He said that most of the German soldiers "......were just like us. They just wanted the war to be over and wanted to go home and see their families". He said most were very polite and courteous.
He also said that every morning they would pick a work crew from the POW camp to cook, clean etc." They would be exceeding excited if they got picked because they knew they were going to get fed good that day."
He became pretty close to one German soldier in particular who was very distraught because he thought his entire family had been killed in the bombing of Germany. Well somehow while he was waiting to be processed and released they must have figured out a way to get a letter out. He said "......and then early one morning this particular German soldier came running over yelling 'Milton, Milton' in his broken English. He had received a letter from his family and they were alive."
If anyone has any more information or stories about this camp I would be grateful.
And like Mr. Ragsdale mentioned in earlier post he said the German POW's were treated very well and that for a time the American soldiers would give up a meal so the POW's could be fed.
He also said that every morning they would pick a work crew from the POW camp to cook, clean etc." They would be exceeding excited if they got picked because they knew they were going to get fed good that day."
He became pretty close to one German soldier in particular who was very distraught because he thought his entire family had been killed in the bombing of Germany. Well somehow while he was waiting to be processed and released they must have figured out a way to get a letter out. He said "......and then early one morning this particular German soldier came running over yelling 'Milton, Milton' in his broken English. He had received a letter from his family and they were alive."
If anyone has any more information or stories about this camp I would be grateful.
And like Mr. Ragsdale mentioned in earlier post he said the German POW's were treated very well and that for a time the American soldiers would give up a meal so the POW's could be fed.
