A prisoner of war camp was not far from our town during the Second World War. German soldiers captured in Europe were housed at this camp. Several of them worked on farms in the area, and a few worked for our nearby neighbor. At times they were over at our place. They had a pretty good life and seemed to be enjoying it.
One day several truckloads of the prisoners were taken through town. As they went by they waved at everyone, and people waved at them. But there was a certain amount of mystery about these fellows from so far away who were our enemies, here because they were captured in war.
As they went through town there were a few of us in my uncle’s store watching them through the window. Suddenly, one little girl about 10 years old came into the store and said to her dad, “Daddy, I waved at those fellows, was that OK?” He said to her, “Sure, that was all right. I was over there in World War I, and some of them may be your brothers.”
Carl W. Franke
Tucson, Arizona
Back in 1955 a call went out from the editors of the then Capper’s Weekly asking for readers to send in articles on true pioneers. Hundreds of letters came pouring in from early settlers and their children, many now in their 80s and 90s, and from grandchildren of settlers, all with tales to tell. So many articles were received that a decision was made to create a book, and in 1956, the first My Folks title – My Folks Came in a Covered Wagon – hit the shelves. Nine other books have since been published in the My Folks series, all filled to the brim with true tales from Capper’s readers, and we are proud to make those stories available to our growing online community.