{"id":1754,"date":"2017-02-03T13:00:30","date_gmt":"2017-02-03T02:30:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/?p=1754"},"modified":"2021-04-22T05:51:58","modified_gmt":"2021-04-21T19:21:58","slug":"torrens-island-concentration-camp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/2017\/02\/torrens-island-concentration-camp\/","title":{"rendered":"Torrens Island Internment Camp"},"content":{"rendered":"

In October 1914<\/em>, after the outbreak of World War I, Torrens Island off Port Adelaide was turned into an internment camp. It is a lesser known impact of war in Australia, but it is an ugly chapter in our history. Thanks to the diary kept by Frank Bungardy and the photos of Paul Dubotzky, historians Peter Monteath, Mandy Paul and Rebecca Martin have been able to recreate the conditions of the camp in\u00a0<\/em>Interned: Torrens Island 1914\u20131915<\/a>. Here we learn\u00a0about the beginnings of the camp.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Interned<\/a><\/p>\n

Torrens Island is a low-lying island in the Port River estuary, isolated by its geography\u00a0but within easy reach of Port Adelaide. Long and narrow, the island runs north\u2013south,\u00a0bordered with narrow beaches and mangroves. It had been the location of a\u00a0quarantine station since the mid-1850s, and in October 1914 it became the site of\u00a0Torrens Island internment camp. Initially located adjacent to the quarantine station\u00a0on the north of the island, the camp was moved in early 1915 to the southern part\u00a0of the island.<\/p>\n

Life inside the camp was documented by two internees, photographer Paul Dubotzki\u00a0and diarist Frank Bungardy, a boxer who was working in the mines at Broken Hill\u00a0when he was arrested and interned. It also generated official records \u2013 notably, the\u00a0evidence given in a series of enquiries into events on the island. While these accounts\u00a0do not always agree, there is enough common ground to be able to draw a general\u00a0outline of camp life.<\/p>\n

Prisoners travelled by train to Port Adelaide, were taken under guard from the station\u00a0to the wharves, and then by boat to the island. As Bungardy put it: \u2018Ones the gate\u00a0closed behind us, we wher inside of the barbwire fence, our future home\u2019.<\/p>\n

Prisoners and guards alike referred to the main compound as \u2018the German lines\u2019.\u00a0This area housed most of those interned.\u00a0<\/span>Officers, including August Strycker, former\u00a0captain of SS Scharzfels<\/em>, were held in a separate part of the camp. Guards also lived\u00a0on site, occupying available buildings or living under canvas.<\/p>\n

\u2018The German lines\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n

In the main compound, seven or eight prisoners were allocated to each tent. Each\u00a0prisoner was issued a waterproof sheet, two blankets and the makings of a mattress.\u00a0Bungardy, who recorded that he was not issued with any straw to stuff his \u2018sack\u2019 and\u00a0form a mattress, described how the men in his crowded tent \u2018layd hudled together\u00a0like Pigs in a stye during the nights\u2019.<\/p>\n

Days were punctuated by roll call and the distribution of rations at three o\u2019clock\u00a0each afternoon. Rations were distributed by tent, and consisted of meat, potatoes,\u00a0coffee, sugar, bread, jam, salt, pepper, and some vegetables. Those who had the\u00a0funds could order extra stores through the quartermaster, as well as tobacco and\u00a0clothes. Prisoners were also issued a cooking pot, tin plate, tin mug, fork, spoon and\u00a0knife. They used kerosene tins purchased from the quartermaster to fashion other\u00a0items \u2013 Bungardy mentions a coffee kettle, frying pan, water bucket \u2018and various\u00a0other cooking utensils\u2019.<\/p>\n

The men in Bungardy\u2019s tent took the role of cook by turns, for a week at a time. They\u00a0rigged up both a \u2018kitchen\u2019 and \u2018dining room\u2019:<\/p>\n

\n

Owing our tent being small, and very inconvenient to use it as Bedroom, Kitchen and\u00a0Dinning Room combined, we wher forced to procure bags at 4p a piece, old Potatoe Bags.\u00a0Went out into the Bushe under guard, procured some sticks, and we soon had a rough and\u00a0ready Bush Kitchen and dining room. Our Kitchen contained a fireplace, made out of a few\u00a0stones and mudd, to which a few Iron Bars wher addet, for the Pots to stand on, a rough\u00a0bench for the Pots to stand on when not in use. The Dining Room contained two rough\u00a0Benches, around a ditto table, with a Butter-box in one corner as a safe. Our cooler, owing\u00a0the hot season, being another box wich we procured through the officer in charge for wich\u00a0we paid, sunk into the ground.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The sandy conditions made cooking difficult. Bungardy complained that \u2018the Cook\u00a0only had to lift the lid of the cooking pot, when a hand full of sand wher laying on\u00a0top of the stew, instead of the necessary pepper\u2019.<\/p>\n

Sanitary provisions at the camp were rudimentary. The prisoners dug pits in the sand\u00a0into which they emptied waste water. Urinals and latrines were also pits, screened\u00a0on one side with corrugated iron sheet. Prisoners covered old pits and dug new\u00a0ones each day. Soap for washing, including clothes, was issued every three weeks.\u00a0Bungardy noted wryly that those who could not afford extra soap were prey to\u00a0vermin, \u2018in fact the quantity wher almost equall of Germanys fighting force\u2019.<\/p>\n

Marking time<\/strong><\/p>\n

Those men who were not occupied doing tasks around the camp such as collecting\u00a0wood, digging latrines and cooking, had empty days to fill in bleak surroundings.<\/p>\n

Prisoners were not allowed books or newspapers. Correspondence was permitted,\u00a0and prisoners could send two letters each week. Letters in and out of the camp were\u00a0censored, an exception to the general rule that the Commonwealth censor was not\u00a0concerned with mail within Australia. Bungardy wrote that \u2018anything written, stating\u00a0of our ill treatment, or us asking for money, never wher passed, but went into the\u00a0wastepaper basket\u2019. Prisoners were required to pay for postage, which rankled, as\u00a0they were aware that this contravened the Hague Convention. Prisoners were also\u00a0permitted short visits from their families. The visits took place on the jetty, under\u00a0guard, and lasted only as long as it took to unload from the motor launch whatever\u00a0it was delivering to the camp.<\/p>\n

Those interned on Torrens Island found ways to relieve the monotony. As seen here<\/a>, Bungardy\u00a0wrote of gambling, cards and two-up being played from \u2018morning until late at\u00a0nights\u2019, until a notice was issued banning gambling of any sort. After this, two-up\u00a0ceased, but card-playing continued \u2013 including poker. Bungardy noted that although\u00a0raids and arrests of tentfuls of men for gambling were frequent, the prisoners were\u00a0permitted to purchase as many packs of cards as they could afford.<\/p>\n

In June 1915 the prisoners produced three issues of a handwritten and illustrated\u00a0newspaper. Der Kamerad<\/em> included advertisements for businesses within the camp,\u00a0including Electra tattoos and the Kaiser Caf\u00e9. Paul Dubotzki\u2019s photographic studio\u00a0offered portraits as well as photographs of the camp in cabinet or postcard format.<\/p>\n

\"Interned<\/a><\/p>\n

Music provided amusement and consolation. Prisoners organised a choir and more\u00a0than one band. Bungardy wrote of a sailors\u2019 band, with two accordions, several\u00a0mouth organs, and improvised triangle, kettle drum and big drum. He also observed:<\/p>\n

\n

\u2026 later on we had also a Brass Band. Many a long weary hour during the hot evenings we\u00a0amused ourself, laying in a circle in the soft sand enjoying German Ballats, dittis, Soldiers\u00a0and National songs. If it hadnt been for this their would have been a few more driven mad.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Celebrating the Kaiser\u2019s birthday<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kaiser Wilhelm II\u2019s birthday, 27 January 1915, provided a distraction and outlet for\u00a0ingenuity for weeks. Prisoners who were German reservists drilled for the parade\u00a0march. Bungardy wrote of the uniforms:<\/p>\n

\n

The rifles used wher made out of sticks and broom handles. Every Soldiers wher dressed\u00a0alike. Blue trousers, white shirt, white cap. The caps were made out of white handkerchiefs.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

That only left the problem of how to outfit the prisoners who would play the\u00a0emperor, the high officials, and the ladies.<\/p>\n

\n

We made the spiked Helmets out of kerosine tins, soldered together. Swallow tail coats and\u00a0evening frocks cut off at the bottom part, with yellow painted buttones, suitable brocade\u00a0and tin medals galore, substituted, the smart Officers jacket. White trousers made into\u00a0Riding breeches, seaboots and spurs, borrowed from some civil interned boundary Riders,\u00a0completed the Uniform.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Six prisoners were transformed into \u2018nice and handsome\u2019 ladies with dresses cut by\u00a0an internee who was an \u2018expert cutter\u2019 from material purchased through the stores\u00a0and hats made from fencing wire, cloth and paper flowers. The final touch was long\u00a0hair, made out of dyed rope.<\/p>\n

\"Interned<\/a><\/p>\n

On the evening of 26 January, the German band led a procession \u2018according to\u00a0German custom\u2019, through the camp, carrying torches fashioned out of broken bottles\u00a0and candles. After breakfast the following morning was the parade. Then followed\u00a0sporting competitions, with cash prizes, and, that night, singing and dancing.<\/p>\n

Bungardy recalled:<\/p>\n

\n

We fancied ourself holding a curtlady in our arms and walzing around the emperors palace\u00a0untill the haevy sandy ground remindet us, that we wher on Australian soil, the handsome\u00a0lady, a fellow sufferer like ourself.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

To read more about the Torrens Island internment camp, click here<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In October 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, Torrens Island off Port Adelaide was turned into an internment camp. It is a lesser known impact of war in Australia, but it is an ugly chapter in our history. … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[107],"tags":[569,573,570,451,571,572,574],"class_list":["post-1754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-extract","tag-interned","tag-internment-camp","tag-mandy-paul","tag-peter-monteath","tag-rebecca-martin","tag-torrens-island","tag-world-war-i"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4v1Of-si","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1754"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1754\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4309,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1754\/revisions\/4309"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wakefieldpress.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}