Can anyone put names to these photos from PG106?

These two attached group photos are on Bill Rudd's website-Chapter 5: Italian Prison Camps, Part C: PG 106: Vercelli.

Can anyone put names to any of the men?

 

Hello,

I have the identification names of several men of these pictures... In an Italian book I have at home.
Unfortunately it will take some days... We're moving house this weekend and all my books are stored away.

I remember for instance that in your first picture, on the extreme left, the Italian guard was placed on his side since he had a terrible toothache and he didn't want to show that his cheek was puffed out.

 

Hi Varasc,

Oh really, wonderful, thankyou! I look forward to your reply.

 

Hi Varasc,

Oh really, wonderful, thankyou! I look forward to your reply. Apparently my friend's great uncle is in these group photos but we're not sure which one he is. (Frederick Sing)


Don't hesitate to remember me this book by mail this weekend, ok?


I just started the move this night...

 

Hello,

As promised, here we are.
Taken from the Italian local history book "Prigionieri di Guerra" by the late Giorgio Nascimbene, published by the Società Operaia di Mutuo Soccorso Villata, 2004.
At pag. 28 I see the same photo. Translating the Italian text, I may say that:

1. The name of the place was Tenuta Baraccone, near Salussola, XX satellite camp of Campo PG 106.
2. The Italian guard on the left, with toothache, was an Italian sergeant.
3. The fourth POW from the left, standing, is Douglas Dynock, smoking.
4. On the second row, sitting, the fourth from the left is Bill Gyd.
5. On the first row, fifth from right, we have George Coridon.
6. On the background a storage used as mass bedroom for all the prisoners.

At present I am working on the stories of few Allied prisoners who, escaping from the northern Italian camps, tried to reach the Swiss borders through the Western Alps, through the Aosta Valley.

From my personal search I may add that one of the men in this picture was the Australian infantryman Frederick Garland.
Therefore, if Frederick Sing spent some times on the mountains and above all in the Aosta Valley, I may be very interested in his story.

Very kind regards and let me know if you need more,

Marco

 

Hello

Thankyou-so these names go with the lighter photo with the sergeant with his face turned from the camera?
Would you happen to know any other names?
Or names for the other photo?
I believe Bill Rudd is also another soldier who is in these photos.

If you like I can send you a copy of Frederick's 4 page POW report. He crossed into Switzerland through Mount Moro.

I've also come across this other photo I can send you if you're interested. It's caption reads: AIF escaped POWs, Wil, Switzerland, 7 October 1943. I don't think Frederick is in this one as he still would've been travelling to Switzerland.

Would you happen to have a better quality copy of the photos you could email me? Even a scanned copy of the page from your book would be good.

Best wishes

 

Good morning,

Yes, I would be interested in this report, even if he passed through the Monte Moro area and not from the Aosta Valley: this document may refer to one or more of "my" prisoners.

I shot two pictures of the above mentioned pages - my scanner is somewhere under tons of boxes, still unopened after our recent move. I modified one of the picture with Photoshop, drawing three red arrows in order to indicate the three names I already wrote you here in this topic.
I don't know if Bill Rudd was in that photo, too, but surely there was Frederick Garland.

Very kind regards,

Marco

 

It's good evening here in Australia,

That's ok, thankyou for taking a photo of the page instead. What is your email address I can send the report to?

 

It's good evening here in Australia,

That's ok, thankyou for taking a photo of the page instead. What is your email address I can send the report to?

Hello,

I don't publish my e-mail in open topics, just to avoid any possible spam from the various bots...
You just have to click on my nickname, Varasc, then "Sent email to Varasc" and it will open a new page. Thanks indeed.

Marco

 

Marco nel Libro ci sono foto del campo 106/3di Vettigne'?

 

Hi Marco. I believe that my father, Fred W Price was in that camp. In the first picture, 2nd from the right in the front, could possibly be him, but it is difficult to tell. I would be pleased if anyone could give me any info on him.

Cheers,
Jenn.

 

Hello Jenn and welcome to the forum.

Your father appears in a document held in the National Archives, London, catalogue no. WO 392/21 as being held in PG 57, which was at Gruppignano.

The work camps at Vercelli were opened on 15 March 1943 and he would have been transferred there after that date. You should be able to find out exactly when he moved camp as Australian POW records as held by the Red Cross are now available on line from Melbourne Archives:


How to Search the Red Cross Missing, Wounded and Prisoner of War Enquiry Cards
You can search on a surname by using the ‘Search digitised items’ box available from here:
archives.unimelb.edu.au
Note that summary information about all enquiry cards held by the University of Melbourne Archives is available online, and digitised copies of cards from the period 1940-1945 are also available online.)

Regards,

Vitellino

extract from WO 392/21

 

Hi Vitelino,

Thanks for the information. I will follow up the links you suggested. I have a postcard from my father to my grandmother which quotes campo 106/1. I may have other information. I'll see what I can find. I did have my father's war diaries but I lent them to another family member and they seem to have been mislaid. I am hoping that they will be found as I am pretty sure that one of them has details of his escape and time spent in Switzerland.

Regards,
Jenn.

 

Hello Jenn,

According to a list I have 106/1 was at San Germano. You can check this out on Google Maps/Earth,

Regards,

Vitellino

 

Thanks for that Vitellino. I know he crossed to Switzerland through the Monte Moro Pass, so maybe, as you suggested before, he was transferred to Vercelli after he sent the postcard to my grandmother.

Unfortunately I was not able to find any information in the University of Melbourne site.

Cheers,
Jenn.

 

Hello Jenn,

Vercelli , Campo PG 106, was made up of a series of work camps - 22 in all.

Vercelli no. 106/1 meant work camp no. 1 at a place called San Germano near Vercelli. So the post card DID come from Vercelli - that is from work camp no.1.

Sorry you didn't get anything from the Melbourne website.

Regards,

Vitellino

 

Hi Vitellino

Thanks for that information. I am planning to be in Italy next May. Would there still be any remains of the camps in San Germano or Vercelli?

Cheers, Jenn.

 

Hello Jenn,

I'll do a bit of searching for you.

The point is that they were nearly all farms.

Vitellino

 

Hello Jenn,

I've just found out that a person called Annette O’Connor from Brisbane, whose father George Alford was at a farm at San Germano, visited the town on 30 June last year and was met by the mayor. She was taken to the farm, called Robarello, where her father was working. There is another farm called Petiva at San Germano which employed prisoners of war.

Annette obtained some details about her father from an Australian called Katrina Kattel whose father was an ex POW in Italy. I suggest you 'Google' her to see if you can track down the exact farm at San Germano where your father was .

I have also discovered that the base camp for seven of the Vercelli work camps, including San Germano, was at a place called Salussola.

If you like I will contact the local authorities to find out what, if anything, remains of the original structures,

Regards,

Vitellino

 

That's fantastic. Thankyou so much.. I would very much appreciate anything that you can tell me.

Regards,
Jenn.