POW camp in Medicine Hat remembered

Written by production

Wednesday, 24 February 2010 20:26

Longtime residents of southeast Alberta and are aware of the history of the area, are likely to know that the site where the Medicine Hat Exhibition and Stampede now stands was the location of an internment camp during World War II. During the war years, internment camps  were installed in Medicine Hat, Wainwright, Lethbridge and Kananaskis.  More than 34,000 German prisoners were sent to Canada during WWII. As well, Canadians who were captured while serving overseas, were made prisoners in Germany. A traveling exhibit of wartime memorabilia is being displayed at the Esplanade   Heritage to give the public a glimpse into what life was like for these soldiers. "The exhibit shows the contrast and the similarities between what happened to German prisoners in Alberta and what happened to Canadians who were imprisoned after being shot down over enemy territory, or were captured in Dieppe," said Tim McShane, curatorial assistant for the Esplanade Museum. A public reception was held on Sunday afternoon to open the For You the War is Over: Second World War POW Experiences. Collector, Robert Henderson from Regina, gave a presentation about how he got involved with collecting war items as a young boy. "My becoming a collector began when I was a young boy in a small town in Ontario and my friends and I were not interested in sports, but liked collecting things," said Henderson. "We decided to start a museum and collected fossils, clam shells, stamps and coins," he added. The exhibit includes craftwork, tools, weaponry, and other artifacts from the Galt Museum and Archives in Lethbridge, the Military Museums, Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) Museum and Archivees, King's Own Calgary Regiment (RCAC), and Princess Patricia's Light Infantry Regimental Museum and Archives. The exhibit will be on display until June 14.