Fort Missoula Barrack Building

Fort Missoula Barrack Building. . In 1941, Nick D. Collaer of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), was assigned to establish interment camps for Italians and German sailors at Fort Missoula and Fort Lincoln, North Dakota. When Collaer arrived at Fort Missoula, he found many structures in need of extensive repairs. , With over 1,000 Italian seamen en route to Fort Missoula, Collaer had to make quick work of updating the Fort to meet INS standards. Fort Missoula had many buildings that could be repurposed, so many of the earliest arrivals were housed in pre-existing buildings. , There was not nearly enough room for the number of men that would eventually be imprisoned at the Fort. By May of 1941 sixteen wood-framed barracks buildings, like this one, were shipped to the Fort. Another fourteen barracks were completed by August. Many of the early arriving Italians assisted in the construction of these buildings. Upon their arrival Japanese American internees were also moved into this style of barrack. , Following INS standards, these barracks held 40 to 60 men, giving each man 40 square feet of living space. The barracks were outfitted with military-style bunks. , This restored barrack building is original to the World War II Alien Detention Camp at Fort Missoula, but was moved from its original location to the museum's grounds.