INTERNMENT OF GERMAN/AMERICANS AT THE OUTBREAK OF WWII - ANNELIESE KRAUTER'S STORY
Excerpt
Today we are featuring Anneliese Wiegand Krauter, one of the former child internees featured in Joe Crump’s documentary film, “Children of Internment.”
This native-New Yorker, Anneliese, was only 8 years old when she was interned—first at Ellis Island, then in Crystal City, Texas. We thank Anneliese for permitting us to post these excerpts from her published memoirs.
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The day internment began for the Wiegand family:
(The Wiegands were Anneliese’s father, Otto, whose naturalization process was nearing completion; her mother, Alma, a naturalized US citizen; and his two American children, Freddie and Anneliese, both born and raised in New York)
"On the morning of July 10th, 1942, two FBI agents entered “Wiegand’s Quality Meats” and arrested my father. They walked my him across the street to our apartment so he could change clothes, assuring my shocked-with-angst mother that they were only taking him in to the Manhattan FBI field office for questioning. They would bring him back afterwards – but on second thought, it might be a good idea for him to take along a toiletry kit and a change of underwear. I was screaming and crying – hanging on to “Mein Pappi” …….. “Where are you taking him?” I cried ……… He bent over, hugged and kissed me and assured me everything would be okay. The two FBI agents waited patiently as my parents said goodbye to each other, Pappi assuring her as he did me that he would return – not to worry.
My father never came back home and the course of our lives had just changed forever!"
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The three us citizens joined their husband and father behind walls and barbed wire:
"My mother had heard of a family internment camp somewhere in Texas. That became her mission to reunite us … The authorities informed her there was no way they could intern her - a naturalized American citizen - and certainly not her American-born children. … Not getting any movement in our case, she called on our pastor, who had friends in high places, including the Swiss consulate, our family doctor, who documented her deteriorating physical condition and an elderly semi-retired Jewish attorney who lived in our neighborhood and offered pro-bono help filling out forms early on when she applied for welfare and later with the drafting of any necessary documents. Shortly thereafter she was put on notice to … stand by for notification to proceed to Ellis Island to be reunited with our father. When we walked out of our apartment in Brooklyn for the last time, my mother simply closed the door on our lives. Seventeen years of work and achievement, of chasing the American dream, was gone. My parents lost everything. My father was being transported back from Fort Lincoln, Bismarck, North Dakota to Ellis Island. it was a very poignant re-union in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty – the lady who stands in New York harbor – who welcomed my young immigrant parents back in the twenties. We were now on our way to the Crystal City family internment camp in Texas, a small agricultural town (the spinach capitol of the world…) approximately 100 miles southeast of San Antonio, close to the Mexican border, to live behind barbed wire, watchtowers and patrolling armed guards on horseback."
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The Wiegand family arrives under armed guard to board the MS Gripsholm, February 15, 1944 to Germany—and bombardment
"We were among one of the earliest groups (head count 634) to be leaving Crystal City internment camp to be delivered to the port of New York. On February 15th, 1944, we boarded the MS Gripsholm and sailed across the southern Atlantic – all lit up and under the flag of the International Red Cross, to the port of Lisbon, Portugal. From there we were bussed to the seaside town of Estoril to be housed until we were processed and a final – intact – destination for each family was established in Germany. … we crossed the frontier at Saarbruecken. No sooner had we arrived when the sirens sounded to take cover and we were in the midst of our first air raid. We just all clung to each other in a bunker. Nobody had ever told us about this. Welcome to WWII!"
New Yorkers Interned!: the Wiegand family
THE DAY INTERNMENT BEGAN FOR THE WIEGAND FAMILY—Otto whose naturalization process was nearing completion, his wife, Alma, a naturalized US citizen, and his two American children, Freddie and Anneliese, both born and raised in New York.
ON THE MORNING OF JULY 10TH, 1942, TWO FBI AGENTS ENTERED “WIEGAND’S QUALITY MEATS” AND ARRESTED MY FATHER. THEY WALKED MY HIM ACROSS THE STREET TO OUR APARTMENT SO HE COULD CHANGE CLOTHES, ASSURING MY SHOCKED WITH ANGST MOTHER THAT THEY WERE ONLY TAKING HIM IN TO THE MANHATTAN FBI FIELD OFFICE FOR QUESTIONING. THEY WOULD BRING HIM BACK AFTERWARDS – BUT ON SECOND THOUGHT, IT MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA FOR HIM TO TAKE ALONG A TOILETRY KIT AND A CHANGE OF UNDERWEAR. I WAS SCREAMING AND CRYING – HANGING ON TO “MEIN PAPPI” …….. “WHERE ARE YOU TAKING HIM?” I CRIED ……… HE BENT OVER, HUGGED AND KISSED ME AND ASSURED ME EVERYTHING WOULD BE OKAY. THE TWO FBI AGENTS WAITED PATIENTLY AS MY PARENTS SAID GOODBYE TO EACH OTHER, PAPPI ASSURING HER AS HE DID ME THAT HE WOULD RETURN – NOT TO WORRY.
MY FATHER NEVER CAME BACK HOME AND THE COURSE OF OUR LIVES HAD JUST CHANGED FOREVER!
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THE THREE US CITIZENS JOIN HUSBAND AND FATHER BEHIND BARBED WIRE:
MY MOTHER HAD HEARD OF A FAMILY INTERNMENT CAMP SOMEWHERE IN TEXAS. THAT BECAME HER MISSION … THE AUTHORITIES INFORMED HER THERE WAS NO WAY THEY COULD INTERN HER - A NATURALIZED AMERICAN CITIZEN - AND CERTAINLY NOT HER AMERICAN BORN CHILDREN. … NOT GETTING ANY MOVEMENT IN OUR CASE, SHE CALLED ON OUR PASTOR, WHO HAD FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES, INCLUDING THE SWISS CONSULATE, OUR FAMILY DOCTOR, WHO DOCUMENTED HER DETERIORATING PHYSICAL CONDITION AND AN ELDERLY SEMI-RETIRED JEWISH ATTORNEY WHO LIVED IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND OFFERED PRO BONO HELP FILLING OUT FORMS EARLY ON WHEN SHE APPLIED FOR WELFARE AND LATER WITH THE DRAFTING OF ANY NECESSARY DOCUMENTS. SHORTLY THEREAFTER SHE WAS PUT ON NOTICE TO … STAND BY FOR NOTIFICATION TO PROCEED TO ELLIS ISLAND TO BE REUNITED WITH OUR FATHER. WHEN WE WALKED OUT OF OUR APARTMENT IN BROOKLYN FOR THE LAST TIME, MY MOTHER SIMPLY CLOSED THE DOOR ON OUR LIVES. SEVENTEEN YEARS OF WORK AND ACHIEVEMENT, OF CHASING THE AMERICAN DREAM, WAS GONE. MY PARENTS LOST EVERYTHING. MY FATHER WAS BEING TRANSPORTED BACK FROM FORT LINCOLN, BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA, TO ELLIS ISLAND. IT WAS A VERY POIGNANT RE-UNION IN THE SHADOW OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY – THE LADY THAT STANDS IN NEW YORK HARBOR – WHO WELCOMED MY YOUNG IMMIGRANT PARENTS BACK IN THE TWENTIES. WE WERE NOW ON OUR WAY TO THE CRYSTAL CITY FAMILY INTERNMENT CAMP IN TEXAS, A SMALL AGRICULTURAL TOWN (THE SPINACH CAPITOL OF THE WORLD…) APPROXIMATELY 100 MILES SOUTHEAST OF SAN ANTONIO, CLOSE TO THE MEXICAN BORDER, TO LIVE BEHIND BARBED WIRE, WATCHTOWERS AND PATROLLING ARMED GUARDS ON HORSEBACK.
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THE WIEGAND FAMILY ARRIVES UNDER ARMED GUARD TO BOARD THE GRIPSHOLM FEB 15, 1944 TO GERMANY—AND BOMBARDMENT
WE WERE AMONG ONE OF THE EARLIEST GROUPS (HEAD COUNT 634) TO BE LEAVING CRYSTAL CITY INTERNMENT CAMP TO BE DELIVERED TO THE PORT OF NEW YORK. ON FEBRUARY 15TH, 1944, WE BOARDED THE M.S. GRIPSHOLM AND SAILED ACROSS THE SOUTHERN ATLANTIC – ALL LIT UP AND UNDER THE FLAG OF THE INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS, TO THE PORT OF LISBON, PORTUGAL. FROM THERE WE WERE BUSSED TO THE SEASIDE TOWN OF ESTORIL TO BE HOUSED UNTIL WE WERE PROCESSED AND A FINAL – INTACT – DESTINATION FOR EACH FAMILY WAS ESTABLISHED IN GERMANY. … WE CROSSED THE FRONTIER AT SAARBRUECKEN. NO SOONER HAD WE ARRIVED WHEN THE SIRENS TO TAKE COVER SOUNDED AND WE WERE IN THE MIDST OF OUR FIRST AIR RAID. WE JUST ALL CLUNG TO EACH OTHER IN A BUNKER. NOBODY HAD EVER TOLD US ABOUT THIS. WELCOME TO WWII!
Full story
MUCH HAS BEEN WRITTEN ABOUT THE INTERNMENT OF JAPANESE/AMERICANS AFTER PEARL HARBOR. MOST AMERICANS KNOW ABOUT THIS HISTORY. TO THIS DAY, HOWEVER, SURPRISINGLY FEW ARE AWARE OF THE FACT THAT GERMAN/AMERICANS WERE ALSO INTERNED AND DETAINED BEHIND BARBED WIRE AND OBSERVATION TOWERS IN CAMPS ALL OVER THE UNITED STATES. I AM ONE OF THEM.
MY PARENTS, OTTO KARL AND ALMA (WIEDRICH) WIEGAND CAME TO THIS COUNTRY IN 1925 AND 1927 RESPECTIVELY. THEY MARRIED, FOUND JOBS, MADE THEIR HOME AND STARTED THEIR FAMILY IN “YORKVILLE” THE GERMAN SECTION OF NEW YORK CITY. MY BROTHER, FRIEDRICH OTTO KARL (FREDDY) WAS BORN IN 1931, YOURS TRULY (ANNELIESE KARLA) IN 1935. WE WERE TRULY THE “POSTER FAMILY”OF WHAT A GERMAN IMMIGRANT FAMILY LOOKED LIKE, LIVED AND STROVE FOR – NAMELY THE PROMISE OF THE AMERICAN DREAM.
MY PARENTS WORKED HARD, SAVED THEIR EARNINGS AND LEARNED ENGLISH BY ATTENDING NIGHT SCHOOL. AS SOON AS FREDDY AND I WERE OLD ENOUGH TO ATTEND PUBLIC SCHOOL, THEY ALSO ENROLLED US IN A PRIVATE SCHOOL SO WE WOULD LEARN HOW TO READ AND WRITE GERMAN. SPEAKING GERMAN IN OUR HOME WAS A GIVEN. WE GREW UP BI-LINGUALLY, BUT GERMAN WAS OUR MOTHER TONGUE. BOTH OF MY PARENTS WERE ALSO DEVOTED TO THEIR GERMAN ROOTS AND WERE PASSIONATE ABOUT TEACHING US THEIR CULTURE AND TRADITIONS SO FREDDY AND I WOULD CARRY THESE VALUES INTO THE FUTURE – NOT TO KEEP US FROM BECOMING GOOD CITIZENS AND MESHING INTO THE AMERICAN FABRIC – BUT TO ENRICH OUR LIVES AND INSTILL PRIDE IN OUR HERITAGE. ADDITIONALLY, THEY DID THIS BY JOINING VARIOUS GERMAN ORGANIZATIONS IN NEW YORK CITY. ORGANIZATIONS, I MUST ADD, THAT WERE TOTALLY TRANSPARENT AND OPEN TO AMERICANS, AS WELL. WE BELONGED TO THE NEW YORK TURNVEREIN (MUCH LIKE THE ATHENAEUM), MY FATHER SANG IN THE MAENNERCHOR, MY MOTHER IN THE LIEDERKRANZ,HE ACTED IN THE VOLKSTHEATER AND WERE ACTIVE
MEMBERS IN THE DEUTSCH/AMERIKANISCHE BERUFS GEMEINSCHAFT – “DAB”FOR SHORT. (trans: GERMAN AMERICAN VOCATIONAL LEAGUE.) IT WAS THIS PARTICULAR ORGANIZATION THAT ULTIMATELY LANDED BOTH OF MY PARENTS’ NAMES ON LISTS OF GERMANS, DEEMED TO BE “DANGEROUS ENEMY ALIENS.”
MY FATHER WAS A MERCHANT SEAMAN WHO CREWED ON GERMAN FREIGHTERS AS A YOUNG JOURNEYMAN, SIGNING ON WITH THE STEAM SHIP LINE “HANSA LLOYD” OUT OF HAMBURG. HE WAS THE ON BOARD BUTCHER AND COOK, SAILING AROUND THE WORLD FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS BEFORE ARRIVING IN THE PORT OF NEW YORK IN 1925 AND ALONG WITH SEVERAL COMPANIONS, DECIDING TO “JUMP SHIP.” THIS WAS NOT UNUSUAL BACK THEN AND IT ONLY TOOK HIM A FEW DAYS TO FIND LODGING AND A JOB IN THE GERMAN SECTION OF NEW YORK CITY. AFTER SETTLING IN AND GETTING HIMSELF SOMEWHAT ESTABLISHED, HE SENT FOR HIS FIANCE, MARRYING HER THE DAY AFTER HER ARRIVAL IN MAY 1927.
MY MOTHER APPLIED FOR US CITIZENSHIP SOON AFTER FREDDY WAS BORN. NOT ONLY DID SHE FALL IN LOVE WITH THIS COUNTRY FROM THE MOMENT HER FEET LANDED ON AMERICAN SOIL – SHE FELT IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO AS THE MOTHER OF AMERICAN BORN CHILDREN IN WHOSE PUBLIC SCHOOL EDUCATION SHE SOUGHT TO BECOME FULLY INVOLVED. IN 1938 SHE BECAME A NATURALIZED AMERICAN CITIZEN.
MY FATHER DIDN’T START THE PROCESS UNTIL 1937 FOLLOWING AN EXTENDED SUMMER VACATION BACK TO HIS “HEIMAT” (HOMELAND), GIVING HIM THE OPPORTUNITY TO PROUDLY INTRODUCE HIS WIFE AND CHILDREN TO HIS PARENTS AND SIBLINGS. THEY WERE SO SURPRISED THAT FREDDY AND I WERE FLUENT IN GERMAN. WE WERE JUST LITTLE KIDS – SIX AND TWO YEARS OF AGE, RESPECTIVELY.
THE OBSERVATIONS MY PARENTS MADE DURING THE SUMMER OF 1937 WERE DISTURBING. HITLER HAD COME TO POWER, APPRECIABLY IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR MOST PEOPLE. BUT THERE WERE ALSO UNDERCURRENTS MY PARENTS PERCEIVED, WHICH MADE THEM VERY UNEASY. Ex: THE PEOPLES’ SEEMINGLY BLIND ACCEPTANCE AND WILLINGNESS TO FOLLOW HITLER’S RANTINGS AND RAVINGS, THE PERVASIVE NATIONALISM AND THE MILITARY BUILD-UP, AS WELL AS THE EXPRESSED WANT FOR MORE “LEBENSRAUM.” (HITLER’S WISH TO EXPAND BEYOND THE [THEN] BORDERS OF GERMANY.) MY MOTHER WAS PARTICULARILY APPALLED BY HITLER’S PLAN TO BREED THE PERFECT ARYAN RACE : TALL, ATHLETIC, BLOND, BLUE-EYED YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN. SHE HAD ALREADY BEEN IN AMERICA TOO LONG, THE MELTING POT WHERE RACE, COLOR AND CREED PRESENTED NO OBSTACLE TO OPPORTUNITY, SUCCESS AND FREEDOM OF THE INDIVIDUAL.
SHORTLY BEFORE THE END OF OUR FAMILY VACATION IN GERMANY IN THE SUMMER OF 1937, MY FATHER TRAVELED TO THE AMERICAN CONSULATE IN BERLIN AND IMMIGRATED LEGALLY. IN LATE 1937 HE APPLIED FOR CITIZENSHIP. AT THAT TIME IT TOOK FIVE YEARS TO BECOME A NATURALIZED AMERICAN CITIZEN. “FIRST” PAPERS WERE FOR THREE YEARS, “SECOND” AND FINAL PAPERS TOOK TWO MORE YEARS, AT WHICH TIME HE WOULD HAVE MET THE CRITERIA TO TAKE THE OATH OF LOYALTY AND BECOME A NATURALIZED AMERICAN CITIZEN. THAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IN THE AUTUMN OF 1942. IT NEVER DID.
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MY FATHER’S DREAM WAS TO SOMEDAY OWN HIS OWN “METZGEREI.” (BUTCHER STORE) BOTH OF MY PARENTS WORKED HARD AND SAVED TO ACHIEVE HIS GOAL AND IN THE LATE THIRTIES IT FINALLY CAME TO FRUITION. HE PURCHASED A LITTLE STORE IN A SECTION CALLED “RIDGEWOOD” IN BROOKLYN AND WE MOVED TO A TOP FLOOR APARTMENT IN A BROWNSTONE HOUSE ACROSS THE STREET FROM OUR STORE IN BROOKLYN. WE HAD A WONDERFUL, PRODUCTIVE LIFE. FREDDY AND I HAD A HAPPY “ALL AMERICAN” CHILDHOOD. WE ATTENDED P.S.#88 WITH ALL THE KIDS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. MY FATHER DEVELOPED A SOLID CUSTOMER BASE AND WAS KNOWN AS “OTTO – THAT GERMAN BUTCHER ON THE CORNER.” (“WIEGAND’S QUALITY MEATS”) MY MOTHER WAS A “STAY AT HOME MOM” – BUT SHE BUSIED HERSELF BY TAKING ON CLEANING JOBS, WASHING AND IRONING AND COOKING SPECIAL OCCASION GERMAN MEALS FOR OTHERS – TO EARN EXTRA MONEY. WE ALSO ALWAYS HAD A ROOM FOR RENT – A BEDROOM WITH A SHARED BATHROOM.
OUR SOCIAL LIFE CONSISTED MAINLY OF INTERACTION WITH OTHER GERMAN FAMILIES THAT BELONGED TO THE SAME ORGANIZATIONS MENTIONED EARLIER, CELEBRATING THE MANY TRADITIONS AND TRADITIONAL HOLIDAYS ON THE GERMAN CULTURAL CALENDAR. ADDITIONALLY, MY PARENTS WERE VERY ACTIVE IN THE SUMMERTIME, VOLUNTEERING AS COOKS IN CAMP “BERGWALD.” THIS WAS A PROPERTY IN RIVERDALE, NEW JERSEY, WHICH THE GERMAN AMERICAN VOCATIONAL LEAGUE HAD PURCHASED FOR THE USE OF ITS MEMBERSHIP. IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF LAND – ALL WOODED, HILLY, WITH A FRESH WATER LAKE NEAR THE TOP, A COMMUNITY HOUSE SURROUNDED BY MANY CABINS – ALL DEVELOPED AND BUILT BY MEMBER VOLUNTEERS. FOR OUR ENTIRE SUMMER VACATION, MY MOTHER WAS ONE OF THE MAIN COOKS DURING THE WEEK. MY FATHER WOULD JOIN US ON WEEKENDS AND FREDDY AND I WERE THE BENEFACTORS OF THEIR VOLUNTEERISM, SPENDING ENDLESS SUMMERS IN THIS BEAUTIFUL SETTING AWAY FROM THE CITY. THERE WERE SONGFESTS, DANCES, GERMAN MOVIES AND LECTURES. WEEKENDS WERE USUALLY PACKED WITH SPECIAL EVENTS. GERMAN CELEBRITIES WERE OFTEN INVITED AND ONCE THERE WAS EVEN A RECEPTION FOR THE GERMAN CONSUL – CHILDREN IN OUR GROUP SINGING GERMAN FOLKSONGS FOR HIM. BUT WHAT FREDDY AND I LOVED AND LIVED FOR THE MOST WAS SWIMMING IN THE NATURAL LAKE AND PARTICIPATING IN ATHLETIC EVENTS. IT HAD ALWAYS BEEN MY PERCEPTION THAT THE DAB WAS STRICTLY APOLITICAL; AT LEAST MY PARENTS NEVER SPOKE OF THE ORGANIZATION IN ANY OTHER CONTEXT.
THE ALIEN REGISTRATION ACT OF 1940 HAD BEEN SIGNED INTO LAW AND AS 1940-41 EVOLVED, WE BEGAN TO FEEL THE PRESSURES OF THE SCREENING PROCESS MORE AND MORE. MY FATHER REGISTERED, OF COURSE. HE WAS NOT A CITIZEN YET, BUT THIS MADE HIM AS LEGAL AS HE COULD BE. WE HEARD OF MEMBERS OF GERMAN FAMILIES BEING PICKED UP BY THE FBI AND TAKEN IN FOR QUESTIONING. SOME WERE FRIENDS OF OURS, OTHERS MERE ACQUAINTANCES OR FRIENDS OF FRIENDS, BUT THEY ALL HAD SOME CONNECTION TO THE DAB OR SIMILAR GERMAN/AMERICAN GROUPS. THERE WERE RUMORS THAT THE “BUND” (THE AMERICAN ARM OF THE GERMAN NAZI PARTY) HAD INFILTRATED MANY GERMAN/AMERICAN ORGANIZATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES AND THAT NAZI SPIES WERE ACTIVE UNDER THE COVER OF THESE OUTWARDLY LEGITIMATE AND HARMLESS GROUPS.
ON DECEMBER 7TH, 1941, PEARL HARBOR WAS ATTACKED BY THE JAPANESE. AMERICA DECLARED WAR ON JAPAN; GERMANY SUBSEQUENTLY DECLARED WAR ON AMERICA. THE WORLD WOULD NEVER BE THE SAME. HATRED AGAINST GERMANS, PROPAGANDA AND ANTI-NAZI HYSTERIA BEGAN TO REAR ITS UGLY HEAD. IT TRICKLED ALL THE WAY DOWN INTO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD. SOON OUR OWN LITTLE WORLD WAS ABOUT TO EXPLODE. ON THE MORNING OF JULY 10TH, 1942, TWO FBI AGENTS ENTERED “WIEGAND’S QUALITY MEATS” AND ARRESTED MY FATHER. THEY WALKED MY HIM ACROSS THE STREET TO OUR APARTMENT SO HE COULD CHANGE CLOTHES, ASSURING MY SHOCKED WITH ANGST MOTHER THAT THEY WERE ONLY TAKING HIM IN TO THE MANHATTAN FBI FIELD OFF ICE FOR QUESTIONING. THEY WOULD BRING HIM BACK AFTERWARDS – BUT ON SECOND THOUGHT, IT MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA FOR HIM TO TAKE ALONG A TOILETRY KIT AND A CHANGE OF UNDERWEAR. I WAS SCREAMING AND CRYING – HANGING ON TO “MEIN PAPPI” …….. “WHERE ARE YOU TAKING HIM?” I CRIED ……… HE BENT OVER, HUGGED AND KISSED ME AND ASSURED ME EVERYTHING WOULD BE OKAY. THE TWO FBI AGENTS WAITED PATIENTLY AS MY PARENTS SAID GOODBYE TO EACH OTHER, PAPPI ASSURING HER AS HE DID ME THAT HE WOULD RETURN – NOT TO WORRY.
MY FATHER NEVER CAME BACK HOME AND THE COURSE OF OUR LIVES HAD JUST CHANGED FOREVER!
FBI AGENTS WERE COMBING THE AREA, ASKING OUR NEIGHBORS AND CUSTOMERS WHAT THEY KNEW ABOUT “OTTO THE BUTCHER.” BY THIS TIME, RUMORS WERE RAMPANT. EVERYBODY KNEW HE WAS ARRESTED BY THE FBI. SOME THOUGHT HE WAS A NAZI. A SIXTEEN YEAR OLD BOY, THE SON OF THE DRY CLEANER AROUND THE CORNER, WHO SOMETIMES DELIVERED MEAT ORDERS FOR MY FATHER TOLD THE AGENTS HE THOUGHT HE MIGHT EVEN BE A SPY, BECAUSE HE SPOKE GERMAN, ENGLISH WITH AN ACCENT, AND HAD A SHORT WAVE RADIO IN THE KITCHEN BEHIND THE STORE. THIS BOY EVEN ACCUSED MY BROTHER OF TAKING SOME KIND OF HITLER YOUTH TRAINING. FREDDY WAS JUST ELEVEN YEARS OLD!
MY FATHER WAS BEING HELD ON ELLIS ISLAND. WE WERE ALLOWED TO VISIT HIM. HE WAS SUBJECTED TO MANY INTERROGATIONS AND FALSE ACCUSATIONS. RIDICULOUS QUESTIONS WERE REPEATEDLY POSED TO HIM. WHICH SIDE SHOULD WIN THE WAR? WOULD HE FIGHT FOR AMERICA? INASMUCH AS HIS WIFE BECAME A CITIZEN, HIS CHILDREN AMERICAN BORN, WHERE WERE HIS LOYALTIES? WHY DID IT TAKE HIM SO LONG TO APPLY FOR CITIZENSHIP? (HE WOULD HAVE BECOME A CITIZEN THAT VERY AUTUMN) WAS THERE ANOTHER REASON – OTHER THAN A FAMILY VACATION – FOR TAKING HIS FAMILY BACK TO GERMANY IN 1937? AND SO IT WENT, ON AND ON. HE FLUNKED ALL INTERROGATIONS WITH FLYING COLORS AND WAS INTERNED “FOR THE DURATION.” THEY SENT HIM TO CAMP MEADE, MARYLAND, THEN ON TO CAMP FORREST, TENNESSEE AND FINALLY FORT LINCOLN, BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA.
MY MOTHER MADE EVERY EFFORT TO KEEP THE BUTCHER STORE OPEN. BUT IT WAS AN EXERCISE IN FUTILITY. WE WERE BEING BOYCOTTED – NO CUSTOMERS SHOWED UP AND FORMER FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS SIMPLY KEPT THEIR DISTANCE. EVEN THE KIDS DIDN’T PLAY WITH US ANYMORE. WE USED TO SKATE, PLAY STICK BALL, HOP SCOTCH, HIDE ‘N SEEK AND TAG. NOW OUR FRIENDS WERE PLAYING WAR GAMES AND WE WERE BEING CALLED “HEINIES” AND RIDICULED ON OUR WAY TO SCHOOL
ONE MORNING MY MOTHER WENT TO OPEN THE STORE AND ALL THE SHOW WINDOWS HAD BEEN PAINTED WITH SWASTIKAS, IMAGES OF HITLER AND THE WORDS “HEINIES” AND “NAZI GO HOME.” THE WINDOW WASHERS CAME AND MY MOTHER BRAVELY CARRIED ON. BUT THE FINAL BLOW CAME WHEN ON ANOTHER MORNING SOON THEREAFTER SHE FOUND THE WINDOWS HAD BEEN SMASHED IN WITH BRICKS. SHE CLOSED THE STORE AND WE WENT ON WELFARE.
SHE HAD HEARD OF A FAMILY INTERNMENT CAMP SOMEWHERE IN TEXAS. THAT BECAME HER MISSION - TO GET US REUNITED WITH MY FATHER AT ANY COST. AND SO, WITH A GREAT DEAL OF COURAGE AND WHAT ENERGY SHE HAD LEFT SHE CONTACTED THE FBI AND THE INS, DEMANDING AN AUDIENCE. SHE HAD A REAL BATTLE ON HER HANDS. THE AUTHORITIES INFORMED HER THERE WAS NO WAY THEY COULD INTERN HER - A NATURALIZED AMERICAN CITIZEN - AND CERTAINLY NOT HER AMERICAN BORN CHILDREN. MY MOTHER RESOLUTELY RESPONDED THAT IF HER NATURALIZATION WAS THE ONLY ISSUE PREVENTING HER AND HER CHILDREN FROM BEING REUNITED WITH MY FATHER IN A FAMILY INTERNMENT CAMP, SHE WAS PREPARED TO RELINQUISH HER CITIZENSHIP. STILL NOT GETTING ANY MOVEMENT IN OUR CASE, SHE CALLED ON OUR PASTOR, WHO HAD FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES, INCLUDING THE SWISS CONSULATE, OUR FAMILY DOCTOR, WHO DOCUMENTED HER DETERIORATING PHYSICAL CONDITION AND AN ELDERLY SEMI-RETIRED JEWISH ATTORNEY WHO LIVED IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND OFFERED PRO BONO HELP FILLING OUT FORMS EARLY ON WHEN SHE APPLIED FOR WELFARE AND LATER WITH THE DRAFTING OF ANY NECESSARY DOCUMENTS. SHORTLY THEREAFTER SHE WAS PUT ON NOTICE TO PACK TWO OVERSEAS TRUNKS AND ONE PIECE OF HAND LUGGAGE EACH – THE MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE – AND STAND BY FOR NOTIFICATION TO PROCEED TO ELLIS ISLAND TO BE REUNITED WITH OUR FATHER. WHEN WE WALKED OUT OF OUR APARTMENT IN BROOKLYN FOR THE LAST TIME, MY MOTHER SIMPLY CLOSED THE DOOR ON OUR LIVES. SEVENTEEN YEARS OF WORK AND ACHIEVEMENT, OF CHASING THE AMERICAN DREAM, WAS GONE. MY PARENTS LOST EVERYTHING. MY FATHER WAS BEING TRANSPORTED BACK FROM FORT LINCOLN, BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA, TO ELLIS ISLAND. IT WAS A VERY POINIANT RE-UNION IN THE SHADOW OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY – THE LADY THAT STANDS IN NEW YORK HARBOR – WHO WELCOMED MY YOUNG IMMIGRANT PARENTS BACK IN THE TWENTIES. WE WERE NOW ON OUR WAY TO THE CRYSTAL CITY FAMILY INTERNMENT CAMP IN TEXAS, A SMALL AGRICULTURAL TOWN (THE SPINACH CAPITOL OF THE WORLD, NO LESS) APPROXIMATELY 100 MILES SOUTHEAST OF SAN ANTONIO, CLOSE TO THE MEXICAN BORDER, TO LIVE BEHIND BARBED WIRE, WATCH TOWERS AND PATROLLING ARMED GUARDS ON HORSEBACK.
IT TOOK TWO AND A HALF DAYS BY TRAIN TO REACH CRYSTAL CITY. THOUGH UNDER GUARD, IT WAS A HAPPY RIDE, THE PASSENGERS CONSISTING OF MANY THANKFULLY RE-UNITED GERMAN FAMILIES. WE WERE MET BY CAMP PERSONNEL IN CRYSTAL CITY AND LOADED ONTO OLD MILITARY BUSSES TO BE TRANSPORTED TO THE CAMP – OUR NEW “GATED CUMMUNITY” ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN. IT WAS DUSTY, DRY AND HOT. WE WERE WELCOMED IN CAMP, GIVEN A MEAL, PROCESSED AND ASSIGNED LODGING. MY FAMILY WAS ASSIGNED TO Q-12, A FOUR UNIT BARACKS IN A LONG ROW OF THE SAME, ROWS THAT WERE SEPARATED BY SHOWERHOUSE-LATRINES AND LAUNDRIES. EVERYTHING WAS THERE: AN ADMINISTRATION BUILDING, DISPENSERY, SCHOOLS, A GROCERY STORE, BUTCHER SHOP, BEAUTY SHOP, COMMUNITY BUILDING, EVEN A CAFÉ (CAFÉ VATERLAND) AND A GREAT WALL (THE SIDE OF A LARGER BUILDING) WHERE WE COULD WATCH MOVIES OUTDOORS UNDER THE STARRY SKIES OF TEXAS. MY FATHER WORKED IN THE BUTCHER SHOP, MY MOTHER IN THE SEWING ROOM, BOTH EARNING TEN CENTS AN HOUR. WE WERE GIVEN “SCRIP” – PAPER BILLS AND PRESSED CARDBOARD COINS. U.S. DOLLARS WERE NOT ALLOWED.
OUR LIVES HAD AGAIN ENTERED A NEW CHAPTER. AT THE HEIGHT OF CAMP POPULATION, THE OPTIMAL NUMBER OF DETAINEES WAS RIGHT AROUND 3,500. THE FENCED IN SITE WAS 200 ACRES IN SIZE, WITH AN ADDITIONAL 300 ACRES OR SO IN SURROUNDING FARMLANDS, WHICH WERE TILLED WITH SOME HELP BY INTERNEES UNDER GUARD. HALF OF THE CAMP WAS POPULATED BY JAPANESE FAMILIES, THE OTHER HALF BY GERMANS. WE WERE SEPARATED, BUT NOT SEGREGATED. THERE WERE IN FACT MANY CULTURAL EXCHANGES, GERMAN CONCERTS VERSUS JAPANESE PERFORMANCES, AS WELL AS VERY COMPETITIVE SOCCER GAMES AMONG THE MEN, MY FATHER INCLUDED. CAMP LIFE WAS OK FOR THE ADULTS AS ADMINISTERED BY AMERICAN STAFF, WITH LOTS OF GERMAN ORGANIZATION- AN INHERANT CHARACTERISTIC – GUIDING THE DAY TO DAY EXISTENCE OF THE COLLECTIVE GERMAN FAMILIES. FOR FREDDY AND ME, IT WAS CAMP BERGWALD ALL OVER AGAIN. WE HAD A BALL WITH ALL THE OTHER KIDS.
I DON’T KNOW HOW MY PARENTS FELT IN THEIR HEARTS AND MINDS, NOR HOW THEY SHARED THEIR MOST INTIMATE THOUGHTS ABOUT OUR SITUATION. ALL I KNOW IS MY FATHER CHOSE REPATRIATION WHEN THE OPTION WAS OFFERED. MY MOTHER AGREED. MY PARENTS NEVER DEMONSTRATED ANY HATRED FOR THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. DISILLUSIONMENT, RESENTMENT, DISAPPOINTMENT, YES, BUT HATRED, NO. THEY CERTAINLY NEVER VERBALIZED OR INSTILLED ANTI-AMERICAN FEELINGS OR BITTERNESS IN FREDDY AND ME TOWARDS THE COUNTRY OF OUR BIRTH. WE WERE ALL VICTIMS OF THE WAR. BUT MY FATHER HAD LOST EVERYTHING. HE MADE HIS CHOICE AND WAS READY TO MOVE ON. WHATEVER THE FUTURE HELD, WE WOULD FACE IT AND WE WOULD BE TOGETHER.
WE WERE AMONG ONE OF THE EARLIEST GROUPS (HEAD COUNT 634) TO BE LEAVING CRYSTAL CITY INTERNMENT CAMP TO BE DELIVERED TO THE PORT OF NEW YORK. ON FEBRUARY 15TH, 1944, WE BOARDED THE S.S. GRIPSHOLM AND SAILED ACROSS THE SOUTHERN ATLANTIC – ALL LIT UP AND UNDER THE FLAG OF THE INTERNATIONAL RED CROSS, TO THE PORT OF LISBON, PORTUGAL. FROM THERE WE WERE BUSSED TO THE SEASIDE TOWN OF ESTORIL TO BE HOUSED UNTIL WE WERE PROCESSED AND A FINAL – INTACT – DESTINATION FOR EACH FAMILY WAS ESTABLISHED IN GERMANY. THAT DONE, WE WERE LOADED ON TRAINS, TRANSPORTED THROUGH PORTUGAL AND SPAIN TO THE CITY OF BIARRITZ IN THE MOST SOUTHWESTERN CORNER OF FRANCE, WHERE WE WERE GIVEN A GLORIOUSLY FESTIVE RECEPTION BY THE OCCUPYING GERMAN WEHRMACHT (ARMED FORCES). DURING A VERY BRIEF STAY, WE WERE INSTRUCTED ON HOW TO SAFELY LIVE IN OUR OLD FATHERLAND AT THE HEIGHT OF WWII WITH BLACK OUTS, AIR RAIDS, BOMBINGS AND RUNNING FOR BUNKERS. BUT “NOT TO WORRY, THE FUTURE IS SECURE IN THE HANDS OF HITLER, WITH ULTIMATE VICTORY ASSURED.” WE CROSSED THE FRONTIER AT SAARBRUECKEN. NO SOONER HAD WE ARRIVED WHEN THE SIRENS TO TAKE COVER SOUNDED AND WE WERE IN THE MIDST OF OUR FIRST AIR RAID. WE JUST ALL CLUNG TO EACH OTHER IN A BUNKER. NOBODY HAD EVER TOLD US ABOUT THIS. WELCOME TO WWII!
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THIS COMPLETES MY INTERNMENT EXPERIENCE. IT IS A MICROCOSM OF WHAT HAPPENED TO JUST ONE FAMILY RIGHT HERE IN AMERICA AFTER THE OUTBREAK OF WWII. MINE IS ONE OF MANY SIMILAR STORIES. THERE WERE OVER 11,000 GERMANS WHO LIVED THE SAME EXPERIENCE. SOME OF US ARE STILL ALIVE TO TELL ABOUT IT.
NEAR THE END OF HIS LIFE, ATTORNEY GENERAL FRANCIS BIDDLE LAMENTED THAT HIS ROLE IN THE INTERNMENT AND REPATRIATION POLICY HE ENFORCED DURING WORLD WAR II WAS HIS “GREATEST REGRET.”
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FOR “THE REST OF THE STORY” YOU WILL HAVE TO READ MY BOOK: “FROM THE HEART’S CLOSET – A Young Girl’s WWII Story.” IT TURNS INTO A VERY VIVID WWII STORY OF SURVIVAL DURING THE HEIGHT OF THE WAR, WHICH MANY OF MY FELLOW GERMANS WHO EXPERIENCED THE SAME WILL IDENTIFY WITH. AFTER WE LEFT SAARBRUECKEN BY TRAIN, WE LANDED IN BETTENHAUSEN, DISTRICT OF MEININGEN, PROVINCE OF THURINGEN, MY FATHER’S PARENTAL HOME. WE LIVED THROUGH BOMBINGS, RUNNING FOR BUNKERS, DEATH AND DESTRUCTION, SCROUNGING FOR FOOD, ADVANCING FRONTS AND MERCIFULLY, LIBERATION BY PATTON’S THIRD ARMY AND NOT THE DREADED RUSSIAN SOLDIERS WHO’S BRUTALITY TERRIFIED EVERYONE. IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE WAR THERE WERE SEVERAL MONTHS OF RELATIVE PEACE AND QUIET IN CENTRAL GERMANY. AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT, THE GREATEST LUCK OF ALL HAPPENED WHEN WE WERE SPIRITED OUT OF MEININGEN “BEI NACHT UND NEBEL” (trans: BY NIGHT AND FOG.) FOUR VERY COURAGEOUS YANKS WITH A 6-TON TRUCK AND A JEEP TOOK IT ON THEMSELVES TO ORCHESTRATE OUR ESCAPE FROM RUSSIAN OCCUPATION. THEIR COMMANDING OFFICER KNEW ABOUT IT, BUT TURNED A BLIND EYE. HIDDEN BEHIND AMMO BOXES THEY GOT US OUT OF THE AREA THAT WAS TO BECOME THE RUSSIAN ZONE, LATER EAST GERMANY, AND FELL IN LINE AT THE TAIL END OF AN ARMY CONVOY, DRIVING US TO BAVARIA, WHERE WE FOUND A SAFE HOUSE IN THE VILLAGE OF ATTENKIRCHEN. HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR THESE GOOD SAMARITANS, I DOUBT WHETHER I WOULD BE SITTING HERE TODAY…
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COMMENT:
BEFORE ALL OF THIS BEGAN - THE LAST CHRISTMAS WE SPENT TOGETHER AS A FAMILY IN NEW YORK WAS IN DECEMBER 1941. THE FIRST CHRISTMAS WE WERE ALL TOGETHER AGAIN – IN NEW YORK – WAS IN DECEMBER 1954. THIRTEEN YEARS LATER – TO US IT WAS A LIFETIME.
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ADDITIONAL NOTES:
~ THE CRYSTAL CITY INTERNMENT CAMP CLOSED ON February 27th, l948 AND IS NOW LISTED IN THE REGISTRY OF NATIONAL HISTORIC PLACES AND IS UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE. THERE ARE TWO MEMORIALS ON PROPERTY – ONE COMMEMMORATING JAPANESE DETAINEES, THE OTHER THE GERMANS. ADDITIONALLY, THERE ARE EIGHT INTERPRETIVE SIGNAGE PLAQUES TO REVIEW WHILE TOURING THE SITE. THE CITY OF CRYSTAL CITY NOW OWNS THE PROPERTY, HAVING ACQUIRED IT IN TWO PURCHASES IN 1948 AND 1952. THE CRYSTAL CITY HIGH SCHOOL CAMPUS OCCUPIES PART OF THE ORIGINAL FOOTPRINT. A DEDICATION CEREMONY ATTENDED BY MANY FORMER INTERNEES TOOK PLACE IN NOVEMBER 2011. FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION, WILLIAM McWHORTER, DIRECTOR.
~ ON OCTOBER 8TH, 2012, A RE-UNION OF FORMER INTERNEES TOOK PLACE IN FRANKFURT, GERMANY. THE EVENT WAS PLANNED AND PRESENTED BY COUNTESS INGRID ZU SOLMS-WILDENFELS, PRESIDENT OF THE GERMAN-AMERICAN FRIENDSHIP SOCIETY AND FORMER CRYSTAL CITY INTERNEE DR. HEIDI VON LESZCZYNSKI.
(I KNEW HER AS HEIDI KOLB.) A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE PUBLISHED IN GERMAN IN THE FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG, AS WELL AS MY TRANSLATION IN ENGLISH ATTACHED.)
~ ON JANUARY 26TH, 2013, THERE WILL BE A PRESENTATION OF THE INTERNMENT STORY IN THE KURT VONNEGUT MEMORIAL LIBRARY IN DOWNTOWN INDIANAPOLIS. A PANEL OF FOUR FORMER GERMAN INTERNEES WILL BE THE PRESENTERS. (FRANCES OTT ALLEN, CINCINNATI OH, ALFRED WOHLPART, OAK RIDGE TN, EBERHARD FUHR, PALATINE IL AND YOURS TRULY ANNELIESE KRAUTER, INDIANAPOLIS.) A DOCUMENTARIAN FROM CALIFORNIA, KRISTINA WAGNER, WILL ALSO BE IN ATTENDENCE FILMING THIS EVENT AS WELL AS PRESENTING SOME OF HER RESEARCH MATERIAL.