As some may have noticed, I’ve neglected my blog as of late, with only one post in the last two months. This, I assure you, was not intentional but instead the result of me having been on the road for most of that time. Now, 12,000 kilometers later, I have returned to London following theContinue reading “Museums, Marshes, and Mountains – Summer Research, Part 1”
Tag Archives: Research
Mapping PoWs in Canada
Few Canadians realize just how close the Second World War came to home, that from 1939 to 1947, Canada held over 34,000 prisoners of war. While many spent their days in one of twenty-eight internment camps, almost half of them were employed on a labour project by the end of the war. With some freeContinue reading “Mapping PoWs in Canada”
Mapping Canada’s Internment Camps
From 1939 to 1947, German Prisoners of War, Enemy Merchant Seamen, and Civilian Internees were held in twenty-eight different locations in Canada. While thousands were eventually employed in small, low-security labour projects, these twenty-eight camps formed the backbone of Canadian internment operations. As part of my research for my PhD, I am attempting to mapContinue reading “Mapping Canada’s Internment Camps”
A Secret Message
In the summer, I ran the first of a series of posts about prisoner of war mail (see here) and I briefly mentioned the censorship of PoW mail. Incoming and outgoing mail was censored by Canadian military and civilian officials to prevent PoWs from leaking sensitive information about Canadian wartime operations, their locations, and informationContinue reading “A Secret Message”
Exploring and Sharing the Past with iGIS
This post is long overdue but better late than never! About a year-and-a-half ago, I started using iGIS, an iOS app that allows you to visualize geospatial data on your mobile device. My Professor, Josh MacFadyen, had demonstrated the possibilities of this app in our digital history class and I was eager to find waysContinue reading “Exploring and Sharing the Past with iGIS”
Camp 31 – Fort Henry: Then and Now
Of all twenty-eight-or-so internment camps in Canada during the Second World War, I can only think of five that have either changed relatively little or haven’t been completely destroyed (at least from the external appearance) in the last seventy years. Among these few is Camp 31 (originally Camp F) at Fort Henry in Kingston, Ontario.Continue reading “Camp 31 – Fort Henry: Then and Now”
An Athlete: Leutnant Hilmar Schmidt
Continuing my last post’s brief discussion of sports in PoW camps in Canada, today’s post showcases a few pieces in my collection relating to the sporting achievements of one German officer in Camp 30. Camp 30, located in Bowmanville, Ontario, was among the many camps to have organized sporting events. The camp was built aroundContinue reading “An Athlete: Leutnant Hilmar Schmidt”
Following In Their Footsteps
For my 50th post and my one-year anniversary on WordPress, I’d like to share what I’ve been up to these last few weeks. Two years ago, I was forwarded an email from someone in Germany whose father had spent time in Canada during the Second World War as a prisoner of war. Lutz, the senderContinue reading “Following In Their Footsteps”
Postcard from Malte Sacolowsky, U-501
Last week I posted about “Real Photo” picture postcards sent home by PoWs interned in Canada. Today, I’d like to focus on one of those postcards and share a little more about one of the men featured in it. In the seventy years that have passed since these postcards were mailed, the provenance of manyContinue reading “Postcard from Malte Sacolowsky, U-501”
Juno Beach: Then and Now
To mark the 70th Anniversary of the D-Day landings, here is one of the projects I have been working on. Earlier in the year, the Laurier Military History Archive released thousands of aerial photographs taken during the Second World War. Among the collection was a number of photos taking during reconnaissance missions leading up toContinue reading “Juno Beach: Then and Now”
POWs in Canada 