German POWs in Kansas Expected Their Last Meal. The Army Served Them Ice Cream.

#WW2 #WWII #POW In the summer of 1943, German prisoners of war captured from Rommel’s army arrived at the new POW camp in Concordia, Kansas, and sat down for their first meal. The mess hall was clean and orderly, with white plates, cups and saucers arranged on the tables. Along the wall stood sugar, salt, pepper, and a bottle of ketchup. Sergeant William Oberdieck, a 21-year-old translator who had served on Rommel’s staff, later recalled how the prisoners feared that the Americans might serve them a final meal in comfortable surroundings before making them pay for Germany’s wartime actions. This WWII story follows the journey of German POWs from the battlefields of North Africa to American prisoner of war camps. From the sugar bowl that helped expose Oberdieck in Tunisia to the long journey through Oran, Glasgow, and aboard the Queen Mary, discover what German prisoners experienced on their way to Kansas. The story also explores DDT, barred train windows, the crowds that gathered at Concordia station, and why the Geneva Convention of 1929 shaped the meals served to German prisoners of war—including white bread, milk, and ice cream. We also examine Alfred Klein’s first meal, the 1945 controversy over the alleged “coddling” of German POWs, the orders that reduced prisoner rations, and the Nebraska orchard where Oberdieck worked as a prisoner before eventually buying it. SOURCES William Oberdieck, America's Prisoner of War 1943–1946 (Carlton Press, New York, 1995), especially pp. 42–43 and the jacket text. Charles L. Tucker, Taking a Look Back: Great Stories of the Past and Present (Remnant Publications, 2001), chapter on William Oberdieck. Arnold Krammer, “When the Afrika Korps Came to Texas,” Southwestern Historical Quarterly* 80 (April 1977), p. 255, including his interview with Alfred Klein (25 August 1975); Arnold Krammer, Nazi Prisoners of War in America (1979). Patrick G. O’Brien, Thomas D. Isern and R. Daniel Lumley, “Stalag Sunflower: German Prisoners of War in Kansas,” Kansas History 7 (Autumn 1984), pp. 189–190. Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, Geneva, 27 July 1929, Article 11. Office of the Provost Marshal General, A Brief History of the PMG’s Office, World War II, pp. 402–404 (PMG circulars 39, 72, 150 and 191 of 1945). Fort Worth Press, 1 May and 28 May 1945; Palacios Beacon, 1 July 1943; Kansapedia (Kansas Historical Society), “Camp Concordia.” FILM AND PHOTOGRAPHS Public-domain archival footage and photographs: National Archives: U.S. Army Signal Corps films 111-ADC-3883, 3884, 3887, 3903, 6115, 9839; U.S. Navy films 428-NPC-15438, 15873, 20661; OWI United News 208-UN-52, 53, 66, 95; Soil Conservation Service film 33-587; Signal Corps photographs 111-SC-186049, 186051, 186053, 186057, 186071, 315592, 315593, 340156; OWI photograph 208-AAN-121-1. Additional footage: Troop Train (OWI, 1943); The Passenger Train (1940, Prelinger Archives); Lawrence, Kansas (1941, archive.org); Universal Newsreel, 10 December 1945. No known archival film of the Concordia mess hall has been identified. The archival footage and photographs used in this documentary depict other camps, ships, and towns from the same period and serve as historical illustrations. On-screen quotations have been re-typeset from the cited sources. Maps were created for this video. Any scene labelled “AI RECONSTRUCTION” is an AI-generated illustration, not original archival footage. CHAPTERS 0:00 — The Table in Concordia 1:14 — A Sugar Bowl in Tunisia 2:32 — The Long Journey to Kansas 4:08 — It Was the Law 5:36 — Coddling 7:04 — The Orchard 8:05 — The End #WW2 #WWII #POW #Kansas #History