Prisoner of War Cemetery Atterbury

Francisco Tota died on February 28^th, 1944 and became the first prisoner to be buried in the Camp Atterbury Prisoner of War cemetery. In all there were eighteen prisoners buried at Camp Atterbury, three Italians and fifteen Germans. These prisoners all died of wounds suffered in the war, or illnesses while at Atterbury.   For many years after the prisoners of war left Camp Atterbury, members of the German-American Society and the Indianapolis Italian-American Club honored these prisoners by decorating their graves with wreaths and firing a twenty-one gun salute. In 1970 the graves were moved to Camp Butler in Springfield, Illinois. The Army did this so the graves could receive better care.  Also Camp Atterbury ceased to be a Federal facility.

Italian

Heinrich Giere
Obergefreiter
German
February 7, 1945

During the night before Pentecost Sunday ( 24 May 1953), the buddies were awakened by the wail of  sirens. The barn of farmer Hilda Giere was in bright flames. The work in the fields was done, the housewifes had completed their final preparations for the upcoming celebration, the night had come and the village was at rest. Even the owner of the big and beautiful farm , Hilda Giere, the 41 year old widow  had retired to bed. Her husband, Heinrich, had died during his POW internment at Camp Atterbury in Indiana, USA on 7 Feb, 1945.

All photos in this section are courtesy of
E & M Worman
webmaster@elaineandmike.us
http://www.elaineandmike.us
Visit their Camp Butler Web Site