Major General Allen W. Guillion, the Provost Marshall General, explained the treatment of prisoners of war on the "Army Hour" broadcast this week. He explained that the treaty drawn up at Geneva in 1929 governs such treatment. The United States, Germany and Italy ratified the treaty, but Japan did not.

Gen. Guillion further stated representatives of Switzerland have made frequent visits to the prison camps where Germany and Italy hold our men as prisoners of war. Over 125 reports from these representatives assure us that both Germany and Italy are complying with the treaty and are treating our men well.

"The history of war shows that retaliation upon prisoners should never be employed without positive proof that our enemy had been mis-treating our prisoners. Otherwise rumor races with rumor in each of the belligerent countries, the spin of cruelty ascends and prisoners suffer without any compensation gain."

"What I have said applies not only to corporal punishment but also to matters as food, lodging and pay. At first blush, it would seem very reasonable not to permit the prisoners of war in our hands to have the full army ration while hard working civilians in the immediate vicinity, under the political system have less. But the treaty requires that prisoners be given the same rations that our soldiers enjoy. Should we begin to deviate from that treaty requirement, not only the Japanese, but also the Germans would immediately retaliate and our boys in enemy hands would be given ersse food and very little of that.

A few hours after Washington announced that 36,688 enemy prisoners of war are now being held in this country, newspapermen and photographers were invited to Atterbury for a tour of the internment camp.

Built to accommodate 3,000 war prisoners, the internment camp is situated in the west section of the military reservation, well apart from the cantonment in which American soldiers live and train.

Lt. Col. John L. Gammell, commander of the internment camp and the 1537th Service Unit which serves as the escort guard, said there are no commissioned officers among the prisoners here.

The camp is organized as a regiment of three battalions of five companies. Each battalion is composed of one escort guard company and four PW (Prisoner of War) companies. The escort guard company, of course, is an American Army unit. The PW companies are made up of the prisoners themselves.

HAVE "OWN LEADERS"

The PW's have one regimental leader, three battalion leaders and twelve company leaders. The leaders are the intermediaries between the army and the prisoners. Leaders are appointed by the camp commander, according to relative rank. All leaders are non-commissioned officers, and are know as sergent maggiore, sergents, corporale maggiore and corporale.

On arrival at Camp Atterbury, all sick and wounded are rushed to the Post Hospital. All the other prisoners or war are marched to the internment camp, where they are searched, examined physically, given a shower bath, fed a good meal and then allowed to rest. The next day they are processed. Each individual is interviewed relative to his name, age, date of capture, grade in the army, civilian occupation, name and address of nearest relative, army occupation and serial number. He is then issued individual equipment and assigned to a company for work duty,

Before the newsmen were admitted to the internment camp, Col. Welton M. Modisette, Atterbury Post Commander emphasized the fact that prisoners of war here are treated not as criminal prisoners, but just as thought they were captured American soldiers.

HOPE FOR RETURN TREATMENT

They are subject to the same requirements relative to custom and courtesies as the soldiers of the United States Army, and to the same disciplinary action when necessary. "They are in a position that a lot of our soldiers might be." said Col. Modisette. "We hope that by adhering to the Geneva rules we can expect in return for our soldiers held prisoners by enemy nations to be treated likewise."

Immediately after a prisoner of war arrives in camp, he is given a basic course, which for the most part includes courtesies and English. This course includes training in recognizing the National Anthem, "T the Colors", bugle calls, and insignia of rank; understanding and executing commands. Most of the commands are simple ones, such as "halt," "attention," "at ease," "forward march," etc., but one command the prisoners are taught is "same thing". This command is used when it is desired that a prisoner obey a verbal order, which the person issuing cannot express in the language of the prisoner, but can illustrate by his own actions.

Prisoners of war receive the same ratios as are issued to the soldiers of the United States Army with the exception that, due to their own personal desires, extra flour is issued in lieu of a portion of the meat. The Italians are strong on starchy foods, such as spaghetti and bread. They don't care much for vegetables and will get along fine without much meat.

PW WELFARE

Two canteens are operated for the benefit of the prisoners. The purchases for the canteen and expenditure of profits are determined by a canteen council composed of the canteen officer - an American - the three battalion commanders - Americans - and the camp and three battalion leaders - PWs. The clerks in the canteens are prisoners. All profits made in the canteens are used for the welfare of the prisoners. Each prisoner, whether or not he works, is granted an allowance of ten cents per day, starting at the time of his capture. Prisoners who are detailed on labor not for the personal benefit of the PW's are paid eighty cents a day in addition to their monthly allowance of $3.

But neither the allowance nor the pay for labor is transacted in actual cash. The prisoners are paid in coupons, redeemable only at the PW canteens. They receive coupons once a month, but not for the full amount due them. They may receive one-half their monthly pay, but not more than $10, plus the $3 monthly allowance. A possible maximum total of $13 is available in coupons for them to spend during a month. The remainder of their pay is put in trust with the government until they are repatriated as required by the Geneva convention.

"Coupon" issued by the 1537^th Service Unit at Camp Atterbury

LIFE INCLUDES PLAY

PW's are required to work when so detailed. They are now working on projects on the Atterbury reservation and also on nearby local farms. The working day is limited to a maximum of ten hours, including travel time to and from work. The number of working days is limited to six days a week.

Work on civilian projects is limited to agricultural pursuits, and only when all other sources of labor are exhausted. The farmer who applies for and received prisoners of war to help him on the farm makes a contract with the government and pays the government directly.

Life is not all work and no play for the prisoners. A large recreation field provides facilities for three soccer fields, six volley bal courts, one boxing ring, three boccie fields, and a gymnasium area in which are erected horizontal bars, parallel bars and other equipment. Boccie is one of the Italians' favorite games. It is a cross between bowling and pitching pennies to a line. A cue ball is placed on the ground and the players roll other balls to see who can come closest to the cue ball.

Plans are being made to organize a 100-piece band, providing instruments cane be solicited for such a project. A glee club is now being formed among the prisoners, most of whom are good singers. There is a PW club in each battalion, equipped with furniture which has been donated.

"HUMAN INTEREST" NOTES

The "human interest" angles of the internment camp for Italian prisoners of war at Camp Atterbury are many and varied.

The Italian prisoners prefer fruits and flour dishes to meats and vegetables.

At a conference between the leaders and the camp commander, the prisoners' only complaint was that the guards should not carry arms.

Lawn mowers were a novelty to the prisoners. They actually expressed a personal desire to be employed on lawn mowing work.

The prisoners were fond of sining and often sing while marching to and from work. Strange to relate, one of their favorite marching songs is "Beer Barrel Polka," sung in Italian.

The prisoners are talented in artistic work, such as sculpturing and masonry. Many of them have indertaken projects of this type on the reservation around their quarters. Several prisoners, for example, are fashioning an American flag with a 15-foot banner in small pieces of stone on the side of a little hill in the internment camp area.

"INDIA" PERPLEXES ITALIANS

On their arrival at Atterbury, many of the prisoners could not understand how they got to India. They believed that Indiana was a part of India. Some expressed wonder at how New York City could have been rebuilt so quickly. They had the impression that New York had been destroyed by bombs. When asked what they desired to be put in stock in their canteens, they were unanimous in requesting suspenders, hair oil, hair tonic, facial creams and hand lotions.

An efficient Army organization and capable business management are combined in the 1537th Service Unit, in charge of operating the German Prisoner of War Camp here. The organization and camp are under the supervision of the post commander, Col. Welton M. Modisette. Col. John L. Gammell is the commanding officer of the unit.

In addition to the base camp here, four branch camps are now operating in Indiana, giving the unit a large area to cover in their work of guarding, utilizing and maintaining prisoners of war.

The organization is largely self contained and to a certain extent, self supporting, since the revenue realized from prisoners of war labor in outside civilian activities and turned over to the federal treasury may amount to $135,000 monthly, the figure anticipated for October.

The establishment of four addition camps, together with their work program at a maximum during the summer and fall, has necessitated the officers and men working on overtime schedule. Leaves and furloughs are necessarily reduced to a minimum. However, when possible, enlisted men guard prisoners of war on transfer to other camps near the formers home are granted delays enroute to compensate for the lack of usual furloughs.

Much of the organization's work is concerned with utilizing to the maximum prisoner of war labor. Prisoners of war are not permitted to work on projects directly connected wit combat war effort. Those working are paid 80 cents a day for each full day's work. This is in addition to the 10 cents a day allowed all prisoners of war, whether they work or not. Payment is made in the form of coupons which are honored only in the prisoner of war canteens.

While many are engaged in maintenance work on the post, may more are used to relieve the labor shortage in near-by plants, and in harvesting and processing farm crops.

Among the factors to be considered in planning a single detail are the number of men to be used, the classification of the prisoners of war, the number of guards needed, mess arrangements and the transportation required. Three eight hour shifts are used with most of the details leaving for work at 0700. Other shifts move out at 1300 and 1700.

Contracts for labor on civilian projects are made by the 1537th contract section after the project had been certified by the War Manpower Commission, which determines whether there is a need for labor which cannot be met through civilian channels. The agreement with the contractor covers the wage scale, hours and other conditions of employment.

In addition to preparing and maintaining all prisoner of war forms and records of the work performed each day by each prisoner of war belongs to the prisoner of war personnel and finance section. A form is opened for each prisoner of war upon arrival, and thereafter daily entries are made accounting for the hours worked, wages, project and the kind of work performed. Over 22,000 entries a day are made on this form alone for the camp here and the branch camps. This form originated with the 1537th SU and has now become standard in most prisoner of war camps throughout the country, as have other forms and methods used here.

An assembly line technique is used by the 1537th in receiving and processing prisoners of war upon arrival. Before each train bringing in a shipment of prisoners of war arrives at the camp loop, it is boarded by a staff officer who lines up the prisoners of war in their coaches, luggage in hand. When the train stops, the prisoners of war file out on the double between rows of guards and are counted. Immediately they are marched to the stockade, where they are stripped and given a medical examination. They then bathe and are issued a complete set of clothing and fed. Recently a very large shipment was received and completely processed in two hours from the time the train arrived until the last prisoner of war was fed.

It had been 40 years since Peter von Seildein of Stuttgart, Germany, had been in central Indiana but last month he returned to an area where he lived for almost two years,... as a prisoner of war. Now a professor of architecture at Stuttgart University, von Seidlein was in Columbus last month as part of a university tour group studying the city's architecture. Forth years earlier, he was at Camp Atterbury as a prisoner of war. While in Columbus he met Graziella Bush, director of the Visitor's Center. On arriving back in Germany, he wrote her detailing the experiences of a German soldier serving as a prisoner of war at Atterbury. Some of those memories are reprinted here.

From: Peter C. von Seidlein, Professor of Architecture, University of Stuttgart, Germany

To Graziella Bush, Visitors Center, Columbus

Thank you so much for sending me "The Atterbury File." When it arrived last week I was rather busy, but at 6p.m. I started to read the book and by 10 p.p. I had finished it.

Naturally it was the chapter on the POW camp which interested me most. But there were also some other parts I found most interesting, especially the one on life in the area before it became a military camp in 1942. When I was working with a detail cutting trees in the winter of 1944-45, we once spent much time in a deserted 19^th century farmhouse. I always wondered what became of the farmers.

When I arrived at camp Atterbury in the middle of September 1944 (I was wounded and taken prisoner on August 20^th in Normandy) life in the POW camp was heaven. We received a new U.S. Army outfit, got as much to eat as we could eat and slept in a bed with a mattress.

There were no German officers and no non-commissioned officers in Camp Atterbury, except for a short period of time when a few hundred officers passed through, which was probably late in 1945. The first few months I was working in one of the 12 kitchens within the POW camp, but I found this rather tiresome and volunteered for work outside the camp.

There is hardly a menial job I didn't do during the next year; picking tomatoes and apples, working in a slaughterhouse, driving a tractor, pressing shits and trousers, washing dishes and so on. Some of this work was done as far south a the Kentucky border and some as far north as Indianapolis.

During the winter I was orderly in an officers' club in Camp Atterbury, cleaning up the club and serving on the bar. My last POW job was interpreting for an "ash and trash" detail, which had to clean up barracks after they were left by discharged soldiers - one of the most sought after jobs as the GIs left all and everything they couldn't carry with them in the barracks.

I left Camp Atterbury after almost 22 months with the last transport late in June 1946, got on board a Liberty freighter in New York, arrived in Le Havre early in July 1946 and stayed at another POW camp, at Bolbec, afraid of being handed over to the French to work in a coal mine for another two years. Eventually we were put on a train to be discharged in Nuremberg on the 20^th of July 1946.

The prisoner of war compound at Camp Atterbury covered 45 acres in the extreme western edge of Camp Atterbury, about one mile from the regular troop quarters. The compound, built to house 3,000 prisoners at one time, was enclosed with guard towers on all four corners in the alley between the fences. The prisoner compound, which functioned from May, 1943 to June, 1946, was equipped very similarly to the American soldier facilities.

The first public announcement about the internment camp and the prisoners of war at Camp Atterbury was made by Colonel Welton M. Modisette, Post Commander, on May 19^th, 1943. The announcement stated that the prisoners of war at Camp Atterbury were available for agricultural labor in the surrounding five counties within a 25 mile radius of the Camp. Requests for prisoners of war for labor were made through the county agriculture agents to Lt. Col. John Gammell, the internment camp commander.

Lt. Col. John L. Gammell, the commanding officer of the prisoner of war compound at Camp Atterbury, was also in charge of the 1537^th unit that was in charge of the camp. Gammell graduated from Brown State University and attended Oxford University in England. At Ohio State University he was on the ROTC Staff as a professor of military science. Gammell was awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in action during World War I. He was a veteran field artillery officer in the regular army, and fought in four major battles in WW1, one while he was serving with the French Army.

Colonel Gammell has been described as a humane and sympathetic man who tried to give the prisoners as much as he could without disobeying regulatios. He ran a very tight military operation and had frequent conferences with inmate commanders. Although he was on a personal basis with many of the prisoners, there was never any question about who was the commanding officer. Colonel Gammell remained the commanding officer eht entire time the prisoner of war compound functioned.

The first shipment of prisoners arrived 30 April 1943. They were Italians and had been captured in the African Campaign before a western front had been established. Before a train carrying a shipment of prisoners arrived at Camp Atterbury, it was boarded by a staff officer that lined up the prisoners with their luggage. After the train had stopped, the prisoners filed out between rows of armed guards. All the sick or wounded prisoners went to the post hospital. A high percentage of the prisoners needed medical care. Some suffered from sand colic and many had malaria. After they had been counted, they were marched to the prisoner compound. There they were stripped and given a medical examination. They took a shower, received an issuance of clothing, and ate thier meal.

Processing began the next day so the prisoners would have time to rest after their long journey. Each prisoner had an interview concerning his name, age, rank in the army, army occupation, civilian occupation, serial number and name and address of his nearest living relative.

On the arrival of a prisoner a from was opened concerning any hours he had worked, how much he had been paid, what kind of work he had done, and the nature of the job. Each prisoner had to send a card to his fmily or next relative immediately, telling them of his situation, safety, and well-being. After that, one card and two letters a week could be sent home. All mail was censored. Next the prisoners were issued a barracks bag, a hat, two coats, two blankets, a toiletry set, a razor, two pairs of shoes, a belt, two pairs of pants, two sets of underwear, four pair of socks, and two shirts.

After processing, the prisoners took a basic course that included instruction in the English language and military courtesies. This course taught recognition of the National Anthem, "To the Colors", bugle calls, insignia of rank, and several asic commands. The commands taught were: halt, attention, forward march, and at ease. There was a great language barrier between the American soldiers and the prisoners. To break down this barrier, the prisoners were taught to understand the words "same thing". When a soldier wanted to give an order to a prisoner he would say the words "same thing" and then provide an example.

The prisoners at Camp Atterbury had the same military discipline as any American soldier. They were to salute American Officers and the salutes would be returned. The times for getting up in the morning and going to bed were the same as the rest of the post. Regular inspections and occasional shakedown inspections were made. The rules at Camp Atterbury also required the prisoners to have proper health and a good appearance. They were expected to practice god hygiene.

The disciplining of the prisoners was apparently not very harsh. A prisoner being disciplined was usually restricted to his quarters. The prisoners had their own brig and a building in the compound where a prisoner could be incarcerated.

All prisoners had to follow all common military regulations and codes. In addition to these codes and regulations, prisoners were not allowed to have any item they could use as a weapon. Women were kept away from the prisoner compound. Pets were not allowed, although the adoption of a rabbit or rat was sometimes ignored. The prisoners could move freely inside the compound, but could not go outside the gates unguarded. All pictures of the prisoners that were going to be published or printed had to have the faces blotted out. Visitors were allowed twice a moth for two hours each visit.

The unit in charge of the prisoner compound was the 1537^th Service Unit. This unit was formed on December 15^th, 1942. At that time, the unit contained fifty enlisted men. These men then received specialized training for a job in the internment cmp during the next six weeks. On February 10, they moved to the prisoner compound to prepare for the arrival of the prisoners. Since there was no standard operating procedure for operating prisoner of war camps at this time, regulations, forms and records had to be made and a fiscal system set up.

Although the camp's security was not as tight as the nearby American stockade, it did require the services of approximately five hundred army officers and enlisted men in mid-1943. These officers stayed outside the compound in nearby barracks.

The Germans got special treatment at Camp Atterbury. According to the rules of the Geneva Convention, the American Army had to get orderlies for the German Officers. These orderlies were German enlisted men. A German Officer could nto be made to work outside the compound or on civilian projects. They specifically requested remunerative occupations and could not be assigned to supervisory work unless it could not be done by any other prisoner. These German Officers were paid their allowances according to their rank in the army. For warrant officers and first and second lieutenants, their allowance was the equivalent of twenty dollars a month, for captains it was thirty dollars, and for anyone in the rank of major and above it was forty dollars. These officers were reluctant to work at first, but after seeing other men earning money, they soon changed their minds.

The prisoners were treated very well, and some did not want to be sent home ater the war. One prisoner, a German, tried to escape when he found out he was going to be sent home. This prisoner did not object to the prisoner camp and was soon caught by the military police.

The prisoners of war at Atterbury were involved in a work detail program while they were there. Work inside the compound included keeping the grounds, working in the kitchens and laundries, decorative construction, maintenance and farming a 220 acre farm inside Camp Atterbury. In 1944 the yields of this small farm were: 40 tonsof tomatoes, 20 tons of squash, 86,700 ears of corn, 15,600 pounds of cucumbers, 8,830 pounds of turnips, 7,610 pounds of cabbage, 6,969 pounds of string beans, egg plants, green peppers, onions, radishes and watermellons.

For this work the prisoners received ten cents a day. They could earn as much as three dollars of flat allowance a month.

On May 19^th, 1943, Colonel Modisette announced that prisoners of war at Camp Atterbury were available for civilian work projects outside the camp. The prisoners could not be forced to work on these project, but most did. At first they could not work outside a 25 mile radius of the camp, but this was soon lifted so the prisoners could work as far away as Decatur County.

Many tomato farmers used German prisoners to plant tomato plants, care for the plants as they matured and help harvest the plants once they ripened. At times the mortality rate of the newly planted seedlings would be higher than normal. It was later found that the cause of this as that some German prisoners would pinch the plants as they put them in the ground.

The first group pf prisoners arrived on April 30^th, 1943. There were 767 and all were Italians. On May 1^st, 1943, 400 more arrived and by September, 1943, approximately 3,000 Italian prisoners were at Camp Atterbury. When the Italians first arrived, they could not understand where they were. They thought Indiana was part of India. They also could not understand how New York had been rebuilt so fast. Mussolini had told them that New York had been completely destroyed by bombs.

Most of the Italians were skilled artisans in masonry, painting, wood carving and stone carving. These prisoners carved the words, "Camp Atterbury - 1942" on a large stone that sits at the inner east entrance to the camp. There were unveiling ceremonies at Camp Atterbury to commemorate the stone. When the stone was unveiled, many of the American officials were surprised to see that an Italian dagger was carved into the stone.

There is also a stone on which "Atterbury Internment Camp, 1537^th S. U., 12-15-42" is carved. This stone is in the former compound area. The prisoners also made a fifteen foot American flag on the side of a hill in the compound area. They made the flag out of small pieces of stone.

On September 8^th, 1943 the Italian prisoners were told of Italy's surrender. By January of 1944 the Italians were leaving Camp Atterbury to go to other camps before going home. All of the Italian prisoners were gone by May 4^th, 1944.

May 8^th, 1944, four days after the Italians left, the first group of Germans arrived. By June 30^th there were 2,940 Germans at Atterbury and by September 19^th there were 5,700. In October there was a maximum of 8,898 German Prisoners of war at Camp Atterbury. Even though most of the new prisoners were German, there were also Belgians, French, Hungarians, Mongols, Italians, Poles, Rumanians and Slovenes. This created language problems and required many interpreters.

It was not until more than a year after Germany surrendered in 1945 that the German prisoners began leaving Camp Atterbury. Some of the prisoners did not want to go back because they knew they would be returning to a divided and destroyed homeland. The last prisoner left Camp Atterbury, June 27^th, 1946. The prisoner of war compound was then closed permanently.

The compound was inspected several times by representatives of the YMCA, protecting neutral powers, the Swiss legation, the International Red Cross, the State Department, the House Military Affair's Committee, the Provost Marshal General's Office, an apostolic delegate of the Vatican at Washington, D. C. and two personal representatives of the President. All of these groups said the prisoner compound at Camp Atterbury was one of the best in the country.

Francisco Tota died on February 28^th, 1944 and became the first prisoner to be buried in the Camp Atterbury prisoner of war cemetery. In all there were nineteen prisoners buried at Camp Atterbury, there were Italians and sixteen were German. These prisoners all died of wounds or illnesses while at Atterbury.

To: John L. Gammell
Colonel - U. S. Army Commanding

In appreciation of the exemplary treatment accorded to the German Prisoners of War at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, we dedicate to the Commanding Officer,

Colonel John L. Gammell

this special edition of the "Lagerstimme" as a remembrance of the time and work he devoted to our camp.

With this modest mark of appreciation the prisoners of war wish to express their gratitude to the officers of the camp, and to Colonel Gammell whose relentless consideration for our welfare, wise leadership, and fair, just and strict administration effected such an unhampered and successful cooperation during the two years of our captivity in the United States.

The Commanding Officer may rest assured that we shall depart from this camp with the best impressions of the United States Army and the country it represents. These years in America will certainly exert an important influence upon the future shape of our homeland which will undoubtedly be the best tribute to the activities of the Commanding Officer.

(Signature)
Camp Leader

DESTINED

To help you recall in years to come the events and scenes of Camp Atterbury, this special edition of the "Lagerstimme" was compiled. May it remind you of the German prisoners as well as it will always renew this friendly attitude which we cherish for you and your country.

Catholic Shrine is Constructed by Italian Prisoners of War

Catholic Shrine is Constructed by Italian Prisoners of War
Italians at the Prisoner of War camp here are building a Shrine to be dedicated to the Blessed Mother. Constructed of brick and stucco, the building is closed on three sides, the open side being approached by concrete steps. Behind the Shrine stand a huge tree, adding beauty to the structure.

Of their own initiative, the prisoners of war have designed the building and done all the work. Chaplain Maurice F. Imhoff, assigned to the camp, has aided them in their ideas and has furnished them small Holy pictures which they have copied and enlarged on the inner walls of the Shrine.

The permanent altar in the Shrine has been painted so that much of it looks like marble. Also a smaller altar has been constructed and this is placed at the front of the Shrine for the celebration of Mass in nice weather.

Many of the Italian Prisoners of War were skilled artisans. In 1943, a group of them received permission to build a chapel from Lt. Col. John L. Gammel, the commanding officer at the internment camp. The prisoners were encouraged to build the chapel by the priest at the camp, Father Imhoff.

The chapel is 11 feet by 16 feet and constructed of brick and stucco. It is enclosed on three sides and open on the south. There are openings in the shape of crosses in the east and west walls. A large cross is on the south pinnacle of the chapel roof. Inside the chapel, a permanent altar was constructed at the north end. It was painted in such a way that much of it looks like marble. A painting of a crucifix with two cherubs adorns the wall above the alter. The eye of God is painted on the ceiling and frescos of the Madonna, angels, St. Anthony and the Dove of Peace are painted on the walls. The floor was painted to simulate a carpet.

The prisoners had limited art supplies. They mixed dyes from berries, flower petals and plants and even used their own blood for the colorful frescos. The chapel was dedicated to the Blessed Mother and was named "The Chapel in the Meadow". Father Imhoff held Mass or the prisoners at the chapel on Sundays.

Since restoration, a glass door is fitted into the front of the chapel and entrance cannot be gained.

It has borne years of damage inflicted by weather and vandals with silent acceptance, much like the Italian and German prisoners of war it once offered solace.

Now it seems prayers for the "Chapel in the Meadow" will be answered. The Indiana Army National Guard plans this spring to beautify the chapel site at the Department of Natural Resources Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area and possibly restore some of the chapel's fresco paintings.

"What we want to do is to rebuild, preserve and beautify and open it back up," said retired Col. Richard King, Atterbury Reserve Forces Training Area maintenance supervisor and a former Camp Atterbury Post Commander.

The chapel was built in the mid-1940s by Italian and German prisoners of war at the west edge of what was Camp Atterbury POW compound, said Howard Stinson, assistant fire chief for the U.S. Army at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indianapolis. "The compound was torn down long ago but building foundations, fire hydrants and other remnants still serve as reminders of those days, said Stinson, a camp security officer in the 1960s.