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This list of Prisoner of War Camps, Italian Service Unit Camps, and Prisoner of War Hospitals is based on weekly reports located on NARA microfilm #66-538 (population lists June 1942-June 1946). Additional locations based on newspapers, interviews, and other NARA records (at College Park and Regional Archives).
The POW Camps in California during World War II included:
•Angel Island, Tiburon, Marin County, CA (Prisoner of War Processing, 277 Germans, and 500 Japanese POWs), (branch camp under Stoneman, CA), part of San Francisco Port of Embarkation, includes Ft. McDowell, a California State Park since 1958
•Anza (Camp), Riverside County, CA (branch camp under Haan, CA, 200 Germans)
•Arbuckle, Colusa County, CA (branch camp under Beale, 200 Germans)
•Ashview Branch, Madera County, CA (see Dairyland)
•Bacon Island, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Banning General Hospital, Banning, Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Beale (Camp Edward F.), Yuba County, CA (base camp, 1200 Germans), now Beale Air Force Base
•Benicia Arsenal, Pittsburg, Contra Costa County, CA (base camp, 500 ISU)
•Birmingham (Henry P.) General Hospital (PWC), Van Nuys, Los Angeles County, CA (base camp, 50 Italians, and 2 German patients), now Birmingham High School and Birmingham Junior High School
•Blythe, Riverside County, CA (branch camp under Florence, AZ, 172 Italians)
•Blythe Army Air Field, Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Boswell Ranch, near Corcoran, Kings County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 250 Germans)
•Bouldin Island, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Buttonwillow, Kern County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 400 Germans)
•Byron Hot Springs, Contra Costa County, CA (restricted listing, interrogation center)
•California-Arizona Manuever Area (CAMA), Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Imperial and Riverside Counties, CA; Yuma, La Paz, Maricopa, and Mohave Counties AZ; and Clark County, NV (branch camp under Florence, AZ, 800 Italians)
•Cherry Valley Hospital, Beaumont, Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Chico (Camp), Butte County, CA (branch camp under Beale, 475 Germans)
•Chino, San Bernardino County, CA (branch camp under Pomona, 500 Germans)
•Chowchilla, Madera County, CA (branch camp under Ord, 365 Germans)
•Clarksburg, Yolo County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Clipper (Camp), San Bernardino County, CA (see Camp Essex)
•Coalinga, Fresno County, CA (branch camp under Ord, CA, 80 Germans)
•Cooke (Camp Phillip), Lompoc, Santa Barbara County, CA (base camp, 1800 Germans), now Vandenburg Air Force Base and the Federal Penitentiary at Lompoc
•Corcoran, Kings County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 500 Germans)
•Coronado Amphibious Training Base, San Diego, San Diego County, CA (base camp, 1000 Germans), active military installation.
•Coxcomb (Camp), Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Cucamonga, San Bernardino County, CA (branch camp under Florence, AZ, 499 Italians)
•Dairyland, Madera County, CA (branch camp under Ord, 249 Germans)
•Davis, Yolo County, CA (branch camp under Beale, 250 Germans)
•Delano, Kern County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, CA, 560 Germans)
•Desert Center Army Air Field, Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•DeWitt (Calvin) General Hospital (PWC), Auburn, Placer County, CA 95603 (base camp, 200 Germans), later a state hospital until 1972, now DeWitt Government Center
•Dibble (John) General Hospital, Menlo Park, San Mateo County, CA, open between 1943-1946, turned over to the Federal Public Housing Authority, then was replaced by Stanford Research Institute and Menlo Park Civic Center.
•Dos Palos, Merced County, CA (branch camp under Ord, CA, 230 Germans)
•Edwards Ranch, Santa Barbara County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 200 Germans)
•Essex (Camp), San Bernardino County, CA (later Camp Clipper) (see CAMA)
•Firebaugh, Fresno County, CA (branch camp under Ord, 250 Germans)
•Five Points #1, Fresno County, CA (branch camp under Ord, CA, 500 Germans)
•Five Points #2, Fresno County, CA (branch camp under Ord, CA, 500 Germans)
•Flint (Camp), Auburn, Placer County, CA (200 Germans) (former Civilian Conversation Corps camp), now part of the fairgrounds
•Garden Grove, Orange County, CA (branch camp under Pomona, 500 Germans)
•Goffs (Camp), San Bernardino County, CA (see CAMA)
•Goleta, Santa Barbara County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 250 Germans)
•Granite (Camp), Riverside County, CA - Sp 1942. 45 miles East of Indio on I-10, North on Highway 62 for 5.4 miles. (see CAMA)
•Haan (Camp William G.), Riverside, Riverside County, CA (initially under Florence, AZ, base camp, 1600 Germans and 350 Italians), separation center for POWs at the end of the war, now the Riverside National Cemetery, March Joint Reserve Air Base, Headquarters 15th AF, golf, and housing. The camp itself opened in 1941 and closed August 31, 1946.
•Haan (Camp) Regional Hospital, Riverside, Riverside County, CA
•Hammond (William A.) General Hospital, Modesto, Stanislaus County, CA, (1 German, 1 Italian) now Yosemite Junior College and Stanislaus County Juvenile Justice Center.
•Hobbs, CA (branch camp under Pomona, 150 Germans)
•Ibis (Camp), San Bernardino County, CA - Sp 1942. 8 miles East of Needles on Highway 40, go North on Highway 95 for 1.9 miles. (see CAMA)
•Indio Rail Transportation Office, Riverside County, CA
•Iron Mountain (Camp), San Bernardino County, California
•Irwin (Camp George), San Bernardino County, CA (initially under Florence, AZ, base camp, 100 ISU) (see CAMA, now Fort Irwin)
•King Island, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Knight (Camp John Thornton), Oakland, Alameda County, CA, part of San Francisco Port of Embarkation, now Oakland Army Base
•Kohler (Camp Fredrick L.), Sacramento, Sacramento County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 590 Germans)
•Laguna (Camp), Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Lakeland, Kings County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 1000 Germans) AKA Corcoran #2
•Lamont, Kern County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 1000 Germans)
•Lathrop Engineering Depot, Lathrop, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, CA, 17 Germans)
•Lemoore, Kings County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, CA, 800 Germans), now Lemoore Naval Air Station.
•Letterman (Jonathan) General Hospital (PWC), San Francisco city and county, CA (base camp, 200 Italians)
•Lockett #1 (Camp), San Diego County, CA (initially under Florence, AZ, branch camp under Haan, CA, 100 Germans)
•Lockett #2 (Camp), San Diego County, CA (initially under Florence, AZ, branch camp under Haan, CA, 100 Germans)
•Los Angeles Port of Embarkation, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA
•Madera, Madera County, CA (branch camp under Ord, 250 Germans)
•McArthur (Fort Arthur), San Pedro, Los Angeles County, CA, now Los Angeles Air Force Base
•McDowell (Fort), Marin County, CA, part of San Francisco Port of Embarkation, part of Angel Island, CA
•Mendota, Fresno County, CA (branch camp under Ord, CA, 464 Germans)
•Mira Loma General Hospital, Riverside County, CA
•Mira Loma Quartermaster Supply Depot, Riverside County, CA (base camp)
•Mitchell Convalescent Hospital (PWC), Campo, San Diego County, CA (base camp, 300 Italians), at Camp Lockett
•Napa, Napa County, CA (branch camp under Beale, 250 Germans)
•Needles Airport, San Bernardino County, CA (see CAMA)
•Needles Station Hospital, Needles, San Bernardino County, CA (see CAMA)
•Old River, Kern County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 500 Germans)
•Ono (Camp), San Bernardino County, CA (see Mira Loma Quartermaster Supply Depot) (see CAMA)
•Ord (Fort), Monterey County, CA (base camp, 1000 Germans), now used by the new CA State University at Monterey, a research center for UC Santa Cruz, the Monterey Institute of International Studies, and the US Army
•Palen Pass, Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Palm Springs, Riverside County, CA (branch camp under Haan, CA, 150 Germans)
•Pilot Knob (Camp), Imperial County, CA - Sp 1943. On Sidewinder Road, 200 yards North of I-8, town of Felicity. (see CAMA)
•Pomona Ordnance Depot, Pomona, Los Angeles County, CA (base camp, 1350 Germans) (see CAMA)
•Rankin Field, Tulare County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 750 Germans)
•Reynolds (Camp), Marin County, CA (see Fort McDowell)
•Rice Army Air Field, San Bernardino County, CA (see CAMA)
•Rindge Tract, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Roberts (Camp), San Miguel, Monterey County, CA (inititally under Hill Field, UT, base camp, 1000 Germans), now a National Guard facility
•Roberts Island, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Ross (Camp), San Pedro, Los Angeles County, CA, part of Los Angeles Port of Embarkation (base camp, 1100 ISU)
•Sacramento Signal Depot, Sacramento County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 450 Germans)
•Sacramento Supply Depot, Sacramento County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA
•San Bernardino Replacement Depot, San Bernardino County, CA (see CAMA)
•San Fernando, Los Angeles County, CA (branch camp under Pomona, 300 Germans)
•San Francisco Port of Embarkation, San Francisco, San Francisco County, CA
•San Francisco Presidio of California, San Francisco County, CA
•San Joaquin, San Joaquin County, CA
•San Joaquin Fairgrounds, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•San Luis Obispo (Camp), San Luis Obispo County, CA (base camp, 250 Italians), now a National Guard facility and US Army and CA Military Academy
•Santa Anita (Camp), Arcadia, Los Angeles County, CA (branch camp under Hill Field, UT, sometimes Rupert, ID, 100 Italians)
•Saticoy, Ventura County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 450 Germans)
•Shafter, Kern County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 600 Germans)
•Shavers Army Air Field, Riverside County, CA (next to Camp Young) (see CAMA)
•Shoemaker Naval Distribution Center, Livermore, Alameda County, CA (base camp, 800 Germans), part of "Fleet City"
•Soledad, Monterey County, CA (branch camp under Ord, 400 Germans)
•Spadra General Hospital at Spadra, Los Angeles County, CA (see CAMA)
•Stockton (Camp) Ordnance Depot, Stockton, San Joaquin County, CA (base camp, 2500 Germans)
•Stoneman (Camp), Pittsburg, Contra Costa County, CA, part of San Francisco Port of Embarkation (base camp, 600 Germans)
•Tagus Ranch, Tulare County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 250 Germans)
•Thermal Army Air Field, Riverside County, CA (see CAMA)
•Tipton, Tulare County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 400 Germans)
•Torney General Hospital, Palm Springs, Riverside County, CA (base camp, 250 Italians and 199 Germans)
•Tracy Quartermaster Sub-Depot, Tracy, San Joaquin County, CA (base camp, 750 Germans)
•Tranquility, Fresno County, CA (branch camp under Ord, CA, 502 Germans)
•Treasure Island Naval Training and Distribution Center, San Francisco city and county, CA (base camp, 1000 Germans)
•Tulare, Tulare County, CA (branch camp under Cooke, 250 Germans)
•Tule Lake, Siskiyou County, CA (branch camp under White, OR, 150 Italians, then 300 Germans)
•Upper Jones Tract, San Joaquin County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 250 Germans)
•Vernalis, Stanislaus County, CA (branch camp under Stockton, 1000 Germans)
•Windsor, Sonoma County, CA (branch camp under Beale, 250 Germans)
•Yermo Holding and Reconsignment Point, San Bernardino County, CA (base camp, 100 ISU), now the USMC Logistics Base
•Young (Camp), Riverside County, CA - Sp 1942. 28 miles east of Indio on I-10, exit north at Chiriaco Summit. (see CAMA)
Camp Haan had a branch camp in AZ.
Enemy alien internment camps:
•Angel Island, Tiburon, Marin County, CA (temporary detention station) (German, Italian, and Japanese)
•Cow Creek, Inyo County, CA (Japanese)
•Griffith Park, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA (German, Italian, and Japanese)
•La Tuna Canyon, Sun Valley, Los Angeles County, CA (temporary dentention station) (Italian and Japanese)
•Manzanar, Inyo County, CA (Japanese)
•Marysville, Yuba County, CA (assembly center) (Japanese)
•Pinedale, Fresno County, CA (assembly center) (Japanese)
•Sacramento, Sacramento County, CA (assembly center) (Japanese) (see Camp Kohler)
•San Francisco INS Detention Facility, CA (Italian)
•San Pedro, Los Angeles County, CA (temporary detention station) (Japanese)
•Santa Anita (Camp), Arcadia, Los Angeles County, California (assembly center) (held Japanese civilians from April 1942 to October 1943)
•Sharp Park, San Mateo County, CA (Italian and Japanese)
•Tanforan, San Mateo County, CA (assembly center) (Japanese)
•Tule Lake, Siskiyou County, CA (Japanese)
Cemeteries:
•Benicia Arsenal Post Cemetery, Benicia, CA, now under the care of the National Park Service.
•Prisoner of War Burial Plot, Camp Beale, CA (transferred to Golden Gate Nat'l Cem. in CA)
•Prisoner of War Cemetery, Camp Cooke, CA (transferred to Golden Gate Nat'l Cemetery, CA on 26th of November 1947)
•Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, San Mateo County, CA (The Golden Gate National Cemetery contains POWs who died in CA and ID.)
•Presidio of Monterey Post Cemetery, Presidio of Monterey, Monterey County, CA, still an active military installation.
For more information about these camps, please see:
www.militarymuseum.org
www.globalsecurity.org
www.volksbund.de
www.kriegsgefangen.de
www.denkmalprojekt.org
www.weltkriegsopfer.de
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© Kathy Kirkpatrick 2003-2011