POW Christmas Cards from WW II and After

POW Holiday card


Introduction

MPHS offers a major collection of military-themed holiday cards at http://www.militaryphs.org/holiday_cards/index.html.

Lost among its many items of military-inspired greeting cards mainly from WWI are a few cards from WWII POW camps. The purpose of this page is to focus attention on the WWII POW Christmas cards. A few hand-drawn/painted cards have been reported, and these will be listed at some point. For now, the listing is confined to printed cards.

This project grew out of Paul Albright's article in the January 2021 MPHS Bulletin on what appears here as USA4401. To that I have added some cards found on eBay, and Harold Krische has contributed images of cards that he has owned.

The information shown in the table below is intentionally very bare bones. This is conceived to be first a catalog, though additional information that might eventually turn it into a handbook is welcome.

The Item "ID" (first column) can be thought of as a catalog number. If there are more details and any illustrations of the card, there will be a link shown just below the ID. The link will take you to a "detail" web page with illustration(s) and any additional notes regarding the item.

The fields shown below include ID (described above), country of issue, year (if known), issuing organization (such as YMCA), and indication of the source, such as a collector or "eBay" (for an unattributed item seen online at that website).

Whether this project grows will depend largely on contributions from the people who visit it. I plan to scan eBay listings fairly regularly, but these are not likely to be very productive, in the 2 months since this project was conceived, only one new item has turned up there.

Reporting New Items

When you report a new item, please provide the Country Year and Produced By information shown in the table on this page along with scans of the image side and address side where available, along with whatever notes you want. I will supply Item ID and Notes numbers and in due course Bob Swanson will do his magic to put all this onto the pages.

Scans should be 300 dpi .jpg files.

Notes can be whatever you feel is important. My fantasies extend as far as:

This is the card that my dear old Dad sent from Stalag Luft 3 for the Christmas of 1944. He was shot down September 18th 1944, when 206 Lancaster bombers of the Royal Air Force attacked the centre of Bremerhaven and destroyed it within 20 minutes. The artist who drew the card was Flight Lt. Archibald Waverly, DFC, DSO, CBE, Dad's pilot, who went on to be a studio art director for the Royal Shakespeare Company after the war. It was printed in the camp print shop using card stock taken from Red Cross parcels received during the year.

Or it could be as mundane as noting the type and thickness of the card stock.

Please send information to dannmphsmayo1jkjt98w8285yty5@yahooncnden796958tugu.com3cnsitu79889

All Card Groups

WWII

CAN4101
Image and Notes
Canada1941The World’s Committee, YMCA Krische
CAN4102
Image and Notes
Canada1941The World’s Committee, YMCA Krische
CAN4201
Image and Notes
Canada1942The War Prisoners Aid of the YMCA Krische
CAN4202
Image and Notes
Canada1942The War Prisoners Aid of the YMCA Krische
CAN4203
Image and Notes
Canada1942The War Prisoners Aid of the YMCAKrische
CAN4301
Image and Notes
Canada1943The War Prisoners Aid of the YMCAKrische
CAN4401
Image and Notes
Canada1944The War Prisoners Aid of the YMCAKrische
CANxx01
Image and Notes
Canada19??The World’s Committee, YMCAKrische
GER3901
Image and Notes
Germany1940Oflag VIIAeBay
GER4001
Image and Notes
Germany1940Oflag VIIC/HeBay
GER4002
Image and Notes
Germany1940Front Stalag 122, France; Silburn Finnegan
GER4003
Image and Notes
Germany1940Oflag VIIAeBay
GER4004
Image and Notes
Germany1940Oflag VIIC/Z, GoodfliffeFinnegan
GER4101
Image and Notes
Germany1941Oflag VIBeBay
GER4102
Image and Notes
Germany1941Stalag VIIIB; OS Tageszeitung, OppelnKrische
GER4103
Image and Notes
Germany1941Stalag XB / IlageBay
GER4104
Image and Notes
Germany1941(Stalag XB) / MarlagKrische
GER4105
Image and Notes
Germany1941Stalag XB / MarlagLievin
GER4106
Image and Notes
Germany1941Stalag XXA, “The Camp” Thomas BurkeLievin
GER4107
Image and Notes
Germany1941Internment Camp Saint-Denis; FisherNelson
GER4108
Image and Notes
Germany1941Internment Camp Saint-Denis; SilburnFalla
GER4109
Image and Notes
Germany1941Oflag VIID, GoofliffeGoodliffe
GER4110
Image and Notes
Germany 1941Stalag Luft 1Finnegan
GER4111
Image and Notes
Germany1941Internment Camp Saint-Denis; SilburnDelcampe
GER4112
Image and Notes
Germany 1941Oflag IVCDelcampeB,F
GER4201
Image and Notes
Germany1942Stalag VIIIB; OS Tageszeitung, OppelneBay
GER4202
Image and Notes
Germany1942Marlag u. Milag Nord; GobleeBay
GER4203
Image and Notes
Germany1942Stalag XXII; H GordonLievin
GER4204
Image and Notes
Germany1942Marlag u. Milag NordFinnegan
GER4205
Image and Notes
Germany1942Oflag IXA/HFinnegan
GER4301
Image and Notes
Germany1943Oflag VIIB; M. GoodliffeeBay
GER4302
Image and Notes
Germany1943Oflag IVCKrische
GER4303
Image and Notes
Germany1943Front Stalag 122, France; SilburnFinnegan
GER4304
Image and Notes
Germany1943Ilag VIIFinnegan
GER4305
Image and Notes
Germany1943Oflag IXA/H; A. ScarboroughFinnegan
GER4401
Image and Notes
Germany1944Ilag VIIFinnegan
GER4402
Image and Notes
Germany1944Oflag VIIBFinnegan
GB4301
Image and Notes
Great Britain 1943eBay
GB4302
Image and Notes
Great Britain 1943 Burrows
JPN4301
Image and Notes
Japan1943Finnegan
USAxx01
Image and Notes
US19??War Prisoners Aid Y.M.C.A.Krische
USA4401
Image and Notes
US1944Kriegsgefangenenhilfe CVJM (YMCA)Albright
USA4402
Image and Notes
US1944War Prisoners Aid Y.M.C.A.eBay

Post-War

FRA4701
Image and Notes
France1947eBay
GB4701
Image and Notes
GBMELF1947
MELF4701
Image and Notes
GBMELF1947YMCA (MELF – Middle East Land Forces)eBay
RUS4701
Image and Notes
Russia1947Printed, hand colored, or both?eBay



More Links

Back to Military Postal History Main Page

Page Information

Page Layout Design Made Possible by: water css

Webpage design by The Swanson Group

Page Created 4 December 2024

PHP code created: Thu 03 Oct 2024 01:43:39 PM CDT