Prisoner of War presentation by Chad Timm

Description

The Marshalltown Public Library has received funding from Humanities Iowa, a private, non‐profit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, to host a presentation called Working with the Enemy: German, Italian and Japanese Prisoners of War in Iowa during the Second World War by Chad W. Timm at 2 PM on Sunday, September 19th. A cultural resource for Iowans since 1971, Humanities Iowa offers many cultural and historical programs and grants to Iowa's communities. This program will focus on the creation of two POW camps in Iowa during the Second World War: one in the Northern Iowa town of Algona and one in the Southwestern Iowa town of Clarinda. Some of the topics discussed will be life in a prisoner of war camp, community relations, the POW labor program, branch camps in more than 30 Iowa communities and the arrival of Japanese prisoners at Camp Clarinda in early 1945. Camp Clarinda was one of only two camps in the country to house Japanese soldiers. The story of POW interment in Iowa is a fascinating story of Iowans being confronted by the enemy: an enemy they not only needed to help them meet their wartime goals, but also challenged them to find their humanity. Chad W. Timm is an Associate Professor of Education at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. He taught high school history for 15 years and has also been teaching future social studies teachers since 2010. His Master’s Degree in Agricultural History and Rural Studies and his PhD in Education are both from Iowa State University. This program is free and open to the public. For more information please call the library’s Information Desk at 641-754-5738 ext. 4. If you are a person with a disability who requires special assistance, please call in advance. Following current CDC guidance, masks will be required for attendees of this program.