It took months of planning, but on the night of December 23, 1944, 25 German prisoners of war escaped from Camp Papago Parkin Phoenix. They crawled through a handmade tunnel with hopes of heading home via Mexico.
Later known as "The Great Papago Escape," it was the largest POW escape on American soil during World War II.
And it happened in our backyard — literally. There are now houses where the camp existed.
In this episode, editor Katie O'Connell explores what happened that fateful night. And what can we learn from it now?
If you have additional questions about this story, you can reach out to historian Steve Hoza directly by clicking here.
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In this episode you'll hear:
- What life was like in the prisoner of war camp.
- Why and how the 25 German POWs escaped from the camp.
- How locals reacted to news of the POW escape (Hint: It's not what you think).
- How the escape fits into what we know about WWII history today.
- Why some prisoners of war came back to America after they were released.
- Great Papago Escape: 25 German POWs dug out of Phoenix prison camp
- Tempe history: When German POWs escaped from Papago Park
- How German POWs pulled off the largest escape ever
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