Nurses of BataanCenter for Research
 
Allied POWS Under the Japanese
日本軍政下の連合軍捕虜
研究センター

Website for the detailed study of Allied POWS of the Japanese during World War II

Check here first:
SEARCH HELPS

For Camp Lists, see:

SITE MAP

ALL-JAPAN POW CAMP GROUP CHART

POW and INTERNEE CAMP STATISTICS
About Us and Copyright Information

IMPORTANT NOTE
Due to filesize limitations on shared servers, some PDFs have been removed. Please ask.
The purpose of this website is to provide a primary source of documentation for all of the Allied prisoners of the Japanese during WWII. Our goal is to determine what each man's unit was at capture then record what camps he was taken to and where he was rescued. Where possible, we will provide rosters of the hell ships, and, if a man perished, where, when and how.

We freely cooperate and welcome links amongst the many dedicated researchers who join us in the great effort.

These POWs were the men sacrificed at the beginning of WWII and their service should never be forgotten.

We honor them... by remembering them.
"Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands.
Protect them as they protect us.
Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. Amen."





ホームページ日本語訳


DeepL 翻訳 和英・英和

Roger Mansell Oct. 8, 1935 - Oct. 25, 2010

Roger Mansell
October 8, 1935 - October 25, 2010

Visit website dedicated to Roger Mansell
Research Collection of Roger Mansell, Concerning World War II Prisoners of War, Donated to Hoover Institution Library and Archives

See Roger Mansell in War Stories with Oliver North -- Final Justice: War Crimes Trials of WWII

Read Roger Mansell's book, Captured: The Forgotten Men of Guam. (Book review by Kinue Tokudome)


"No one knows you were there unless you tell your story"
--- Roy Livingstone, ex-POW



"Listen attentively, and remember that true tales are meant to be transmitted --- to keep them to oneself is to betray them."
--- Anonymous


Logo of American Defnders of Bataan & Corregidor
American Defenders of Bataan & Corregidor



Hiroshima POWs - includes complete English translation of book written by Shigeaki Mori about American POWs killed in Hiroshima and his incredible work to inform families.

TOKYO #13 (OMI) MEMORIAL
Memorial sites can be and are being built to remember our POWs in Japan. The Japanese company employing POW labor at this camp erected a memorial in Sept. 2014. See the Tokyo #13 webpage for more details.


Special: A remarkable tribute to an airman who perished over Rangoon. Take a few moments to understand the loss of a young man to his young widow. She remarried and this is the story of how her son, Matt Poole, unveiled the story.

Roger Mansell at Internet Movie Database

WWII People's War - BBC's archive of reader-contributed POW stories


American Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor Museum - Located at the Brooke County Public Library in Wellsburg, WV, this museum has the largest collection of documents, photos, and maps devoted exclusively to the ADBC membership -- view some of these on their Flickr site. See also Philippine Defenders Main Page.

Report on Medical Activities in the Philippines & Japan by Col. Wibb Cooper -- very good history of events prior to & during WWII, including activities at POW camps

Prisoners of War in the Philippine Islands -- Sept. 1944 Military Intelligence Division report on POW and civilian internee camps in the Philippines, with maps and photos

Ten Escape From Tojo by Cmdr. McCoy and Lt. Col. Mellnik - Original report on the escape of 10 POWs from Davao Penal Colony

Office of the Provost Marshal General Report on POWs in the Philippines -- Produced in Nov. 1945, containing much vital info on the major camps in the Philippines, including disease data; with drawings

Research papers by Edward Jackfert, Past National Commander, ADBC:


Legacies of Captivity: Sharing family archives, histories and the post-war impact of health issues

SURVIVING FAR EAST CAPTIVITY AND THE AFTERMATH: 70 YEARS ON - 2015

Researching FEPOW History Group 2010 Conference with Mansell talk on video

FEPOW 2007 Research Conference- Read Summary Report

FEPOW 2006 POW Research Conference (England)- Read Summary Report.


Singapore Malay Volunteers- learn the history & Units of the Malay Volunteers- fast growing web site

Summary of Singapore & Malay States Volunteers- courtesy of Ron Bridge

Great Web Site: The story of a young girl, Elizabeth van Kampen, taken captive by the Japanese in Java. A unique story told with pictures and passion. Worth reading.

Interesting story of a
Hollywood star who served in WWII

Student wins
essay contest- state championship- Ron Currens
Read story of his triumph!
Picture with trophy of Ron Currens and his teacher, Mr. David Pinholster
Georgia Council for Social Studies- Web now updated with the 2007 winners.

A Soldier died today- worth reading for a few minutes.

Why China distrusts Japan

Dutch Civilian Camps
in the Netherlands East Indies- Amazing research and information (although in Dutch, translation is easy using "Bablefish") Outstanding research and information by Henk Beekhuis.

East Indies Camp Archives: Camps in the Dutch East Indies (1942-1948) - Excellent website with maps of camps

Victims of Circumstance - The story of the war in Manila and what happened to the civilian internees at Santo Tomas Internment Camp. Be sure to view the trailers and the sound recordings.

Hell Ships Memorial Fund - Subic Bay- A truly worthy cause- creating a monuments to those who perished on the Hell ships.
Hell Ships- short list of major losses based upon Michno's Death on the Hell Ships
Cruise of Death series from Nov. 8, 1945 published in the Chicago Daily News

JAVA Memorial Fund:
Worth a read and definitely worth your contribution. A rare tribute to the Allied and women men captured on Java.


Links of Merit:

Links deemed accurate for research on the POW experience.

UNIT ROSTERS
Rosters for Combat units & Ships; featuring China Marines, 60th CAC, 59th CA, Wake Marines, 59th CAC, 26th Cav, CPNAB (Civilians on Wake, Guam and the Philippines) and much more.

SEARCH HELPS
including How to Obtain Medals for POWs

New webpages on "secret" camps:

Camp Bunka (Radio Tokyo)



Camp Kanigaya, Radio Listening Post

ALL U.S. POWs - Original roster, Feb. 1946
DEATH ROSTERS - Unreported deaths for all nationalities PDF1 - PDF2 - PDF3 (see this contents file)
Misc. deaths (RG 407 Box 186) - Nagasaki, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Nagoya, Ofuna, Yokohama, Tokyo, Mitsushima, Hirohata, Hong Kong, Narumi, Toyama
Asst. death rosters for SE Asia and Japan (contents file)
ALL FUKUOKA CAMPS - Original rosters
Tokyo Camps, Original Rosters - contains rosters of many Tokyo camps (all nationalities, camp numbers not listed)
Tokyo camps, death rosters, all nationalities
Roster of assorted nationalities at Tokyo and Sendai camps - Many PDF's for Osaka Camps have been compiled from original archives and placed on Osaka Main Camp webpage.

POW rosters and asst files from NARA - Organized list of thousands of document images from the US and British National Archives. Let us know your requests!

Abbreviations used on camp reports and rosters

Recently published books and books recommended that contain valid research, sufficient facts, and dialogue to give a full understanding of the POW experience.


Upcoming POW Events & Reunions
This page maintained by the Descendants Group of the ADBC


Japan Assaulted More Than Pearl Harbor - Excellent article on what else happened on that fateful day.

The Tragedy of Bataan -- A must-see!
TV documentary and radio series on the fall of the Philippines and Bataan Death March. Very interesting excerpts and links.


News Archive at US-Japan Dialogue on POWs


American POWs of Japan blog site -- Lots of good information here; also see this collection of POW-related YouTube videos


Hong Kong War Diary exhibit - Photos showing POWs from Hong Kong at work sites while at Kobe #2


The Artwork of Des Bettany - British POW who was at Changi drew some remarkable art of POW life. Article


Victory From Within: The American Prisoner of War Experience - Keep your eyes on this site where the Andersonville National Historic Site is working on a 1,200 square foot exhibit scheduled for completion in 2011.


Japan Air Raids.org - info about WWII air raids against Japan (in both English & Japanese)
B-29 Missions over Japan
Most remembered by POWs


Detail photo of damage, Kobe Bombing Photographs, Kobe, Japan, 5 March 1945


The Ralph Baggett Story
An unusual story of a man who won the Drake Relay Champions watch, only to have it taken by the Japanese. Drake University heard the story and the tale took another twist. ©Copyright 2000-2010, Roger Mansell

Chariots of Fire - Remember the movie? This was the story of the Olympic runner, Eric Liddell. He was interned by the Japanese but died from a brain tumor on 21 Feb 1945. Now, the rest of the story. UPDATE: Statue has been erected in Tianjin, China, in memory of Liddell. Upcoming film on his life entitled The Last Race.
USS Houston- CA-30
Two pictures of USS Houston survivors upon repatriation.
Houston POW Site
The Lost Battalion - 131st Artillery captured on Java - history & rosters
Vets Home Award

Military.com Award

In Memory of Roderick Suddaby
(Nov. 14, 1946 - June 26, 2013)

Encouraging POWs to believe
that their stories are worthy of preservation

One of the most significant figures in FEPOW history research in Britain, Roderick (Rod) Suddaby, the former Keeper of the Dept of Documents at the Imperial War Museum (IWM) in London, died last Wednesday (26 June) having been ill for several years.

Roger knew and respected Rod. It was reciprocated, I'm sure. It was at the first FEPOW history research conference, organised by the Researching FEPOW History (RFH) Group, that I believe they met for the first time. This was held in April 2006 at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, home to the FEPOW Memorial building. I had first met Roger three years earlier in Kansas City at the Zentsuji Reunion. He had, like Rod, been a constant support and help to me in my search for more information about Dad's FEPOW experiences (also a Zentsujian as you know) and it was a thrill to have the chance to chat with him. When the idea for the research conference took shape a few years later, Roger was one of the first speakers I invited to present his work. Happily for us all he agreed straightaway.

Rod (and through him the IWM) was a staunch supporter of the work of the RFH Group. He had an encyclopaedic knowledge of British military history and in his later working life in FEPOW history in particular. He believed, like Roger, in sharing what he knew. He was an academic historian, a rigourous researcher who had a phenomenal memory for detail. He also had a wonderful knack of putting many untutored family historians at their ease when confronting for the first time the old silent, high-domed reading room at the IWM in Lambeth Road, South London. Nothing was ever too much trouble you felt, just as he intended. Whenever possible he delighted in being able to put in touch relatives of FEPOW who shared common ground in research. I was one of the many beneficiaries of his care and thoughtfulness.

I am sure that there are many American researchers (and of other nationalities too) that are regular visitors to mansell.com who will have heard of Rod Suddaby at the IWM in London. His passing is a huge loss to so many of us concerned with FEPOW history research. His contribution has been extraordinary.
--- Meg Parkes, FEPOW researcher and author
CAN YOU HELP?

* Photo of former POWs, taken at March AFB in the early 1950's. Recognize anyone? Some of these men were at Nagoya #1-B Kamioka.
* Need help identifying individual pictures of 59 men (American?) at Tokyo #8 Hitachi (Motoyama) POW Camp:
Group #1 (1032kb)
Group #2 (998 kb)
Group #3 (995kb)
* Need help identifying these Innoshima HKVDF POW's
* Woosung POW camp sketches - any info on Gurdon Wattles
* Fukuoka #7 Futase medical staff personnel - Dutch perhaps?
* Frank Blazich, Jr. is researching the life of Col. David L. Hardee (Provisional Air Corps Regt.) who was at Davao and Bilibid. Any info would be appreciated. Engravings on Hardee mess kit:
* Three unidentified POW camps here
* George Lord - "short snorter" 10-yen bill
* unknown ship photo
* Photo of Charles Mackenzie and ??? (Sarawak, Borneo)

Do you have documents you would like to share or donate?

We are always more than happy to receive any type of document, digitized or otherwise -- including news clippings, photos, and memoirs -- on Allied POWs. Contact us if you do have something you'd like to share with us. We are especially interested in receiving copies which you may have received from the National Archives. Your information will be of great value to others and save them hours of emails, letters and phone calls, perhaps even a trip to the Archives -- as Roger said, "Share what you have."

The File Bin - an assortment of images and document scans for your perusal, including MANY archival documents in PDF format. See Special Files for this growing collection.


News From the Past
Newspaper and magazine articles about POWs
Latest addition - Story of Navy Nurse Marion Olds, Guam - Zentsuji - Kobe - Gripsholm
We have many articles which need to be transcribed. Can you help?

Paper Lanterns Project - film remembering POWs killed after A-bomb dropped on Hiroshima:
"In the summer of 1945, the United States dropped two atomic bombs on Japan. On August 6th, “Little Boy” was dropped on Hiroshima, and three days later, “Fat Man” was dropped on Nagasaki. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed. What few people know is that 12 American POWs were on the ground in Hiroshima, 1,300 feet from ground zero. Two of the twelve Americans were Normand Brissette of Lowell, Massachusetts, and Ralph Neal, of Corbin, Kentucky." more


Finding Our POWs -- The Recovery and Evacuation of POWs from Japan, 1945


YouTube video interviews of Allied POW's


The Sounds of War includes the audios of famous wartime news broadcasts including Tokyo Rose, Churchill, CBS News, and Tojo announcing the start of war.


Japanese Order to Murder all POWS
Contains Japanese Order to murder all prisoners plus the official authorization for guards to flee and change identities, issued the day of surrender-15 Aug 1945

Text -Surrender speech of Emperor Hirohito- note the dissembling and deceptive nature of his speech. He NEVER said the word surrender to his people.

Guam Related:
GUAM- The story of the attack and surrender - Governor McMillan's report of actions during invasion by Japanese, 8-10 December 1941.
McMillan Interview- Formal Navy Interview, 23 Nov 1945.
Agaña Plaza - Virtual recreation of Agaña Plaza, December 1941. 5 virtual views.
Roster of all Guam personnel.
Guam Time Line - Regular updates for deaths of POWs, misc corrections and additions. Time line for POWs from Guam, captured 10 Dec 1941.
Aerial Views of Guam - 1945, plus the USS Ozark unloads first returned POWS
The Guam "Rooster Club"
- A tradition that ended, December 7, 1941.

Zentsuji Related:
Zentsuji - Aerial view, photographs, sketches & Location Maps
Wake Island POWs at Zentsuji:
List of the men who arrived from Wake Island to join the Guam POWS.
Source: Courtesy of Professor Gregory Urwin, Temple University.


Rokuroshi Camp
Description, roster, and 27 Liberation Photos.
Hirohata - Aerial Photos taken from B-29 dropping food - 9 Aug 1945. Flag Raising ceremony at Hirohata.
Osaka - Ichioka Stadium and Yokohama Stadium Hospitals.
Cabanatuan Burial Roster (external link) - On-going research by John Eakin
Osaka Camp List
Japanese submission to MacArthur of exact names and location of each camp under the control of the Osaka POW Camp Command. Many errors.
Death Railway Camps:
Names & Mileage - First accurate & complete listing of these horrific camps



Reprint from Nippon Newspaper:
Former Allied POWS aid victims of train wreck

For extensive archival data on ethnic Japanese and Japanese Americans in the US, visit Wes Injerd's EO9066 website, The Preservation of a People, dealing with the evacuation and relocation of people of Japanese ancestry during WWII (assembly and relocation centers, internment camps, etc.).


Bataan Blogspot - Robert Hudson's blog with a multitude of photos and stories (be sure to read his own story)

Defense of Bataan - much history here on the various units on Bataan

The Battle of Bataan - Facebook Group (lots of good data here)

War Voices - Growing site containing many stories by POWs. "Oral historian Val Burgess sheds light on the reasons for war, and the human side... of the prisoners, while held during the largest war in world history."

They Shall Not Grow Old... We Shall Remember Them




If it is God's will that I should die here...


Written by Ben Magdon, Osaka POW Camp #4 (Tanagawa), April 15, 1944


From interrogation of a Japanese POW - ATIS G-2 Report, Dec. 27, 1944

About the brutality and horrible experiences as a POW:
"No, it is better to forget. That is a part of past history. Things change and people change. We have to plan today for a better tomorrow." - J. C. Pardue (Fukuoka #3)

"But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all;
yet let him remember the days of darkness..."
Ecclesiastes 11:8


If you can read this, thank a teacher....
If you are reading it in English, thank a veteran!