Research of descendants and survivors on POW Camp 65 Gravina-Altamura Italy

thank you, will make a note of this

 

Thank you Janet. Since posting this, I've found his service number 82210 and confirmation (supporting the family oral history) that he was in this camp and in Stalag IV-G, his POW number in Germany 274454 on "Find my Past". Will now be following your advice and email the Department of Defence. Thanks again

 

Thanks

 

Hi
Just found this sight. My Dad was a Pow here at camp65 DA Wilkinson 6993. I believe he escaped. Would love to find info. He might have been taken to Germany and then escaped, he often spoke about the Gerry Prison guards, not sure?
Thanks Michael Wilkinson

 

Your father does feature in the listing for South African POWs held by the Italians as of August 1943 and at Camp 65:

 

Thanks Sir, Great to find out, not sure how much information they collected about POW's, are there any Pictures or other records
Thanks
Mike

 

There is a report for Camp 65 already posted on the forum. It may be of some interest to you going forward. Other forum members may be able to tell you more.
Campo 65 Gravina Report

 

HI Bamboo43
Thanks for the report .I cannot open any of the files, says I must login in , I already am and when I do try again is says "faulty" do I need to pay to see files?
Thanks
mike

 

Thanks Bamboo managed to open files
Mike

 

thanks Owen working now
Mike

 

Apologies for the glitch there Mike.....and thanks to Owen for getting you past the problem.

 

Hello Mike and welcome.

First of all, camp 65 had been emptied by August 1943 - the register WO 392/21 is out of date in that it shows the last KNOWN camp in which the prisoner had been registered/ recorded by the International Red Cross. By August all the southern camps had been emptied - the allies were already in Sicily and these camps were judged to be too near to the front. The men from PG 65 had been sent to a variety of northern work camps - the South Africans specifically to 146 Mortara and 106 Vercelli to work in the rice fields. Some had been sent to camps in the Marche Region, escpecially to PG 53 at Macerata, but again from there a fair number of them ended up in the north.

I have checked and your father is not registered as present in a camp in Germany or German-occupied country - he is not in WO 392 /5 (September '44) or WO 392/15 (Spring 1945). I cannot find him in Switzerland either but will have a further check.

I suggest you send for his service records and I will check the link and edit this post,

Vitellino
Edited:
Offices to Contact
For any queries regarding military history, contact the Department of Defence Archives at the South African Military Records Centre via email at sandfdoc@mweb.co.za. They are located at:
Schweikert Building
20 Visagie Street
Pretoria
Telephone: (012) 339-4600
Fax: (012) 339-4631

 

Thanks for this. I know my Father escaped from prison, he spoke a lot about escaping into Italy, stayed in cow sheds , presume escaping from Germans and Italians.
He did speak of German Prison Guards not sure if they had them at camp65 , he didn't speak of being recaptured>
Will contact Pretoria
Many Thanks
Mike

 

Email bounced back , no longer valid, maybe Pretoria has been sabotaged
Mike

 

Ellie Hi
Did you ever hear from DOD in Pretoria the email seems to bounce back
Thanks
Mike

 

Try a letter, or look for a private researcher.

Best of luck,

Vitellino