Orange in Orange County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Site Of World War II P.O.W. Camp
Photographed by Cajun Scrambler, April 7, 2021
1. Site Of World War II P.O.W. Camp Marker
During World War II, over 50,000 German prisoners of war were interned in over 70 Texas P. O. W. camps. Base camps were established at military bases throughout the state. The base camps operated a number of branch camps in their respective areas. Detailed from a base camp at Huntsville, about 140 German prisoners were housed in a U. S. Army tent camp near this site in 1944. Located on land owned by the Lutcher Moore Lumber Company, the camp was built with construction materials and labor provided by the Orange County Farm Labor Committee of the U. S. Agricultural Extension Service.
Transported to their work details by army trucks each day, the German prisoners worked as laborers in area rice fields, helping to bring in the harvest of farmers whose employees had gone to war. The work of the prisoners became a crucial element in the area's wartime food production, and many of the prisoners enjoyed good working relationships with their employers.
Although the original prison camp operated for only a short time in 1944, prisoners transported from camps in China, Texas, and Edgerly, Louisiana, were once again employed on Orange
this page online
Erected 1991 by Texas Historical Commission. (Marker Number 11557.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, World II. A significant historical year for this entry is 1944.
Location. 30° 6.696′ N, 93° 48.007′ W. Marker is in Orange, Texas, in Orange County. It is on Old Highway 90 west of Davis Street, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Orange TX 77630, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Texas’ Golden Triangle. It is also in the American South, on the Gulf Coast, and in the Piney Woods. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the Republic of Texas, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Absalom Jett (approx. 0.7 miles away); Old First Orange Baptist Church (approx. 1.7 miles away); Winfree Baptist Church
Photographed by Cajun Scrambler, April 7, 2021
2. Site Of World War II P.O.W. Camp Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on December 2, 2024. It was originally submitted on April 30, 2021, by Cajun Scrambler of Assumption, Louisiana. This page has been viewed 2,911 times since then and 199 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 30, 2021, by Cajun Scrambler of Assumption, Louisiana.
