Camp McKay, Italian Prisoner of War Camp
No. 15261 Camp McKay
During World War II there was a prisoner of war camp near Carson Beach for Italian prisoners of war by the name of Camp McKay. The prisoners were allowed out on liberty from time to time, and many of them went to the North End, where some of them settled after the war. Joe McNamara remembers: My memory of Camp McKay has to do with Sundays at the beach in the mid 40’s. There were lots of visitors on Sunday and they would bring the prisoners gifts of food and items of clothing that were passed through or over the fence. The guards didn’t seem to care and I don’t recall anyone being shooed away from the enclosure. Many visitors were from the North End and Italian was the predominant language spoken. The prisoners were also allowed to have and tend to fairly large gardens and lots of tomatoes were passed out to those visiting or those just curious.
No. 15262 Camp McKay
