Wreath ties two communities together

When the German consul general laid a wreath Thursday to honor prisoners of war buried in Chattanooga National Cemetery, he said the gesture should be a symbol of friendship between his country and the United States.

“Today we create a tradition, and I hope it will live on far beyond the tenure of the two of us,” said Consul General Lutz Görgens, referring to himself and Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield.

The general first laid a wreath on the monument last year after an invitation from Mr. Littlefield.

The German government installed the monument in 1935 to honor German POWs from World War I, but with the onset of World War II just years later, more POWs were buried at the site.

“What the heroes remind us is that stretching of hands can heal wounds, but we must also be aware of the atrocities when we celebrate these days,” Dr. Görgens said.

Mr. Littlefield noted that the ceremony should serve as a symbol of togetherness and not war.

At Chattanooga National Cemetery, 186 German POWs are buried, 78 from the first World War and 108 from the second, said Paul Martin, cemetery director.

In the United States, German POWs were held at three permanent camps and one temporary camp during World War I, and the largest of the permanent camps was in Fort Oglethorpe, said Gerry Depken, author of the forthcoming book “Fort Oglethorpe,” which traces the history of the North Georgia town. One chapter is devoted to the POWs held at the fort during both wars.

Ms. Depken said her research shows that 3,000 POWs were held at the fort during World War I and an estimated 400 were held there during World War II. The POWs often were hired out to do work in the surrounding communities, towns and farms, she said.

Treaties honored by the U.S. government provided for humane treatment for POWS, so they received medical care, food and also recreation at all camps, forming sports teams and even writing POW newspapers.

The off-base work often built bonds that lasted long after the men returned to their home countries, said Joan McKinney, a preservationist of the German POW cemetery at Fort McClellan in Anniston, Ala.

She has letters from an Alabama family and a former German POW, who did work at the family farm while he was interred at Fort McClellan. After he returned home to Germany, the family sent food and money to him in his war-torn country.

More than 3,500 German POWs were housed at Fort McClellan during World War II, and 26 are buried at the fort’s cemetery.