Site of World War II Prisoner of War Camp Historical

Site of World War II Prisoner of War Camp Historical (HM1TFC)

Location: Wharton, TX 77488 Wharton County
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Country: United States of America
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N 29° 19.351', W 96° 4.987'

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Inscription
Included in a land grant awarded in 1824 to Martin Allen, one of Stephen F. Austin's "Old Three Hundred" colonists, this property has had a long and varied history. In the 1840s Allen's heirs sold most of his land to Albert Clinton Horton, Wharton County planter, Texas Revolution veteran, and the state's first lieutenant governor. Horton's heirs sold the property in 1930 to a group of investors who planned to develop the area into a county fairground, and several structures were built on the site. Fair organizers sold the land to the county in 1942.

During World War II, over 50,000 German prisoners of war were interned in camps throughout Texas. Camp Swift in Bastrop County operated a number of branch camps along the Texas Coast, and in 1943 Camp Wharton was established at this site. The old county fair buildings were converted for use by the prisoners and U.S. Army, and the prisoners worked as farm laborers throughout Wharton and Colorado counties.

After the camp was closed at the end of the war, the site was offered to the newly created Wharton County Junior College District in 1946. Both fairgoers and students used the facilities here until 1967, when the entire grounds were purchased by the college.
Details
HM NumberHM1TFC
Tags
Year Placed1991
Placed ByTexas Historical Commission
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, August 1st, 2016 at 1:03pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)14R E 783281 N 3247251
Decimal Degrees29.32251667, -96.08311667
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 29° 19.351', W 96° 4.987'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds29° 19' 21.06" N, 96° 4' 59.22" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)409, 979
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling West
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 387 Farm to Market Rd 1301, Wharton TX 77488, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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