ENCAMPMENTS

Hokkaido
 North Japan
 Tokyo
 Central Honshu
Kyushu
Formosa
 China-Manchuria-Korea
 Shanghai
 Southeast China

[NOTE: The material on the following webpages is for historical purposes only and is not to be taken as accurate in many cases. The information with which the US military had to work was limited at the time. What is striking is the effort put forth to locate these POW camps in an attempt to find out exactly where our men were and how many there were in the various camps. For more accurate details on the Japan camps, please refer to the POW Camp Group History chart. More definitive information on Korea, China, Taiwan and other Asian camps will be forthcoming -- for a start, see Asia Pow Camp Group History and Asia Pow Camp Strengths. For additional informaton on the efforts to locate POW camps and subsequent recovery efforts, see this page, Appendix A, Marine POWs, under heading "Recovery."]

Prisoner of War Encampments

CINCPAC - CINCPOA
BULLETIN NO. 113-45
15 June 1945


Introduction

The primary purpose of this publication is to provide an accurate location and description of Prisoner of War and Civilian Internment Camps within Japan and Japanese occupied territory from HOKKAIDO to HAINAN Island. In order to achieve this end, camps have been located by geographic description, coordinates and also marked on aerial and ground photographs where possible. In addition to location, other pertinent facts concerning individual camps, such as the number of POWs, nationality, type of building, number of guards, etc., have been included where such information is available.

It should be emphasized that the information herein contained is not be be construed as an official government list of numbers or locations of POW camps. In order to facilitate the definite spotting of camps in the future, corrections and additions to any of the date in this Information Bulletin are invited. (Address CinC, JICPOA, Navy 128).

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

Two publications and their supplements were used as primary sources of names of camps included in this volume:
  1. CPM, MID Confidential Publication, 20 December 1944 -- "LOCATION AND KNOWN STRENGTH OF POW CAMPS AND CIVILIAN ASSEMBLY CENTERS IN JAPAN AND JAPANESE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES."
    Change 1 to above publication -- 15 February 1945
    Change 2 to above publication -- 1 April 1945
  2. "E" group, SEA and INDIA Commands published at NEW DELHI -- "E" group Broadsheet #2.

Numerous other sources of reference have been employed in the preparation of this publication, and it must be pointed out that information in some cases may be false, inaccurate, or very limited due to the standard Japanese practice of concealing the numbers and locations of POWs. Notwithstanding photographic coverage, information on all camps is not to be regarded as positively confirmed. However, all reported camps of which this activity is cognizant have been included, it being realized that some may no longer exist while undoubtedly others have been established.

METHOD OF LISTING CAMPS

The Japanese government has alloted numbers to officially designated camps as follows:


POW: Tokyo group 1-20

Osaka group 21-40

Fukuoka group 41-60

Zentsuji group 61-70

Hakodate group 71-80

Korea group 81-90

Formosa group 91-100



Civilian: Tokyo - Yokohama 201-210

Kobe Region 211-220

Nagasaki 221

Fukushima 222

Korea 223


The numbers 101-200 are reported to be alloted to new POW camps which are to be created.

Allied Intelligence has determined the following camp numbers for the remainder of the Japanese-occupied territories considered in this publication:


Dominions 261-520
Korea - Keijo & Dt. No. 1 Camp 261; 262; 263; 266
Korea - Jinsen 271; 272
Manchuria 301




China 521-780
Shanghai 521; 531; 532 Kulangsu 581; 582
Canton 571 Tientsien 561; 562
Yanchow "A" 541; 542 Hong Kong 601; 602
Yanchow "B" 551 (Camp "N" - Argyle St., 611)

Civilian Internment 621; 622; 623; 624


POW STRENGTH FIGURES AS REPORTED BY MID (Not including Civilian Internees camps).



 U.S.
 Total Allied
Japan

Tokyo Group
 3,130 14,639
Osaka (Kobe) Group
 3,748 13,607
Fukuoka Group
 852 6,270
Zentsuji Group
 425 690
Hakodate Group
       88       945
Total Japan
 8,243
 36,151



Korea Group
 ---
 1,035
Formosa (Taiwan)
 234
 5,688
Manchuria
 980
 1,080
China
 925
 6,953
French Indo-China
 221
 2,671
Burma
 600
 4,944
Thailand
 196
 34,516
Malaya
 6
 22,406
Netherland East Indies
 502
 30,312
South & Central Pacific
 175
 595
Philippine Islands
   2,800
       2,800

14,882
 149,061*

* These figures are based on minimum Allied estimates. Nearly half of these are reportedly native troops.

U.S. POW (As of 20 December 1944)

PMG Accounting
Army
 14,323
Navy
 3,178
Marines
   2,514

20,015
Reported Deaths
 3,390
Returned to Duty
        98
Total Captured
 23,503


Rather than treat camps by successive number or by Japanese administrative area, they have been listed alphabetically by geographic areas as shown on the base map on page 111. This method combines civilian and POW camps which have been reported, whether assigned a number or not in order to facilitate the location and accounting of camps within certain definite areas.



Hokkaido Camps





















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