WWII German and Italian Soldiers Buried in Massachusetts

Fort Devens Cemetery

Fort Devens, Massachusetts

 

 

The story for today's post is one I stumbled upon quite accidentally. As an Army Reserve Chaplain in Maine, I at times need to go down to Fort Devens, MA for training. This weekend was one of those weekends. As you might imagine, I had no prospects of exploring cemeteries while there. So what I am about to tell you presented itself unexpectedly. A fellow Chaplain had been asked to give the invocation and benediction for a memorial ceremony held in the Fort Devens Cemetery. I of course asked to tag along. What I discovered was that this was no regular ceremony. We had not gathered together to honor American soldiers, but rather twenty Germans and two Italians who had fought during WWII.

 

 

 

Now you may not know, and I did not know, that during WWII Fort Devens contained a POW camp. German and Italian prisoners captured over seas where sent here to wait out the rest of the war. From what I heard during the ceremony, nearly 5,000 were held here at one time or another. However, not all of them were fortunate enough to make it home. Twenty two died during there imprisonment and were buried here at Devens. Interestingly enough they were buried right along with the American soldiers and their families also buried in this cemetery. On a regular basis family, friends, and persons of Italian and German heritage gather here to pay homage to these men. Their  countries, once enemies of the United States, are now allies.

 

 

While attending the ceremony and viewing the graves, I discovered a few interesting things. One is a simple observation, and the other is an interesting story about one of these men told to me by one of the gentlemen present at the ceremony. The observation is that many of the men seemed to have died within a short time period. Conditions within a United States POW camp were likely pretty decent. It would seem that the men died of some sort of sickness or epidemic. Perhaps it was even the common flu. Part of my suspicion that this is the case is that one of the men buried there was a doctor. Perhaps as a German medical officer he had attempted to save the sick men only to find himself also debilitated. While I have not confirmed this it seems like a plausible scenario and adds interest to the story.

 

 

The second story told to me by one of the gentlemen present for the ceremony concerns one of the deceased men named Friedrich Steinhoff. According to the man Steinhoff was a U-boat (German submarine) captain. Knowing the war had been lost, he surrendered his boat off the coast of New York. While much of the equipment was destroyed to keep it out of U.S. hands one device escaped destruction. That device was something designed to launch a rocket from the submarine. This was technology the U.S. had not yet developed, and there is speculation that part of Steinhoff's mission was to launch a rocket at New York. The story he told me was that because of this Steinhoff was interrogated and placed in a prison near Boston. That is where he died of what has been deemed to be suicide. Supposedly, Steinhoff slit his wrist. However, the plot thickens since it is claimed that the slit wrist was that of his dominate hand. If he had done it to himself it is more likely he would have used the dominate hand to cut the wrist of the non-dominant hand. Apparently this has made some wonder if he was murdered, and of course if this is true who committed the crime. Was it the U.S. or Germans who viewed him as a traitor?

 

 

You will find Fort Devens Cemetery along Patton Road, just outside of the base area. It is a typical military cemetery with the stone looking pretty identical. However, in light of this discovery I hope to explore it more in the future.