Stalag Wisconsin: Inside WWII Prisoner of War Camps [Paperback]

Betty Cowley (Author)

Book Description

Series: Wisconsin | Publication Date: January 24, 2002

STALAG WISCONSIN: Inside WW II prisoner-of-war camps is a comprehensive look inside Wisconsin's 38 branch camps that held 20,000 Nazi and Japanese prisoners of war during World War II. Many of these prisoners blended with the local community, drinking at taverns and even dating local girls. Some returned and settled in Wisconsin after their release. Their familiarity with local residents caused resentment by returning soliders who had battled them in Europe and Asia.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A retired history teacher... wrote her book... after her students said they didn't believe that their community once housed POWs." -- USA Today, Jan. 28, 2002

About the Author

Author Betty Cowley is a retired history teacher living in Eau Claire. She spent three years researching the book, interviewed over 300 people, including former prisoners and guards, and collected over 75 photos.

Product Details

• Paperback: 311 pages
• Publisher: Badger Books LLC; First edition (January 24, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 187856983X
• ISBN-13: 978-1878569837
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #242,105 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Knew it as a boy, September 3, 2009

By 

Allan E. Lange "Allan" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stalag Wisconsin: Inside WWII Prisoner of War Camps (Paperback)

My folks had a farm at the time and we had the WWII German POW's working on the peas planted for the canning factory. The farm was located 5 miles to the north of Waupun, Wis. The folks had conversations with the prisoners because they spoke fluent German. They really enjoyed their talks with the prisoners and I remember them sort of talking and laughing even though I could not understand them. They liked me because I guess it reminded them of their children in Germany. I liked them and we never had a bit of trouble with them. So the book has a lot of historical memories for me and certainly is something that I am not sure too many people remember. Thank you for the record of a very historical and importent event of our time.
Allan

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stalag Wisconsin, April 24, 2009

By 

Beth E Florey "Loves purple, loves good books" (Vadnais Heights, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stalag Wisconsin: Inside WWII Prisoner of War Camps (Paperback)

I have read this book twice. I grew up in West Central Wisconsin, close to Altoona, where the author is from. My dad was in WWII and was of 100% German ancestry, so this book intrigued me.

The author has done an excellent job in researching this book, and the topic is fascinating. Wisconsin the 1940's was heavily German, and therefore, POW's could always find somebody who spoke German. Betty wrote about the experience at specific camps, and interviwed local people, and also interviewed some former German prisoners.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and highly recommend it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stalag Wisconsin, May 30, 2011

By 

D. Bennett (Wisconsin) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Stalag Wisconsin: Inside WWII Prisoner of War Camps (Paperback)

I live in one of the towns in this book. We knew about the camp, but it was long gone by the time we were of an age to understand its meaning. I have also shared this with other Wisconsin natives and it has been very informative.