Pingley P.O.W. Camp, Brigg; a letter home from prisoner Otto Weitendorf 1946.

An original P.O.W. letter.

Pingley Farm Camp, P.O.W.Camp 81, was located on Bigby High Road, Brigg. The camp was used to house Italian and German prisoners. Almost 1,000 prisoners were there in the spring of 1946. The prisoners worked on local farms including some in the Grimsby area.

Pingley Camp was demolished in c2010. The site is being used for building land.

We are grateful to Geoff Scargill who has expertly translated the letter for us. A few words are indecipherable but the translation is accurate. It reads:

5th August 1946. (Approved 17th August 1946.) My darling, shy little Ellen I have obtained this form from one of my comrades because the Englishman cannot get any more. They ran out four weeks ago. I haven’t written for ages and might not be able to in the future. Today we are being allowed to send a card but a letter as well. I am writing in between the lines that are printed on the page. Do write to tell me, my little Ellen, whether this letter has reached you. If you are not too embarrassed, don’t spend time looking at the envelope (Read the letter??) Today is Monday and a holiday – they are called ‘Bank Holidays’ here, like Whitsun. They have four bank holidays here. You won’t believe it: they’ve just blown for Roll Call. It’s 7 o’clock in the morning! Well, that’s now over. It didn’t take long – sometimes it takes half an hour. My best thanks for your lovely letter, written on 18 July, received on the 30th . I have thought often about the so kind lines that you have sent me, my darling D….(?private and loving nickname). You are of course right: I must look at things more calmly. It will be all right. But you must remember, my darling D….., that there is a big difference whether I am behind or outside the barbed wire. That has a real psychological effect on me! Darling little Ellen, I won’t write about these dark things any further – it doesn’t help me with my incarceration. I have plenty of opportunities to study conditions in England. I hope for both of us that you can keep going. We’ve been inoculated against everything, including on the boat coming over. There is a radio in the washroom, where German POW’s are on guard and there are loudspeakers in the camp. We don’t get any news! Last week I’ve (the next word has been rubbed out). If you can find a good book for me, please send it. That is allowed. But nothing else. I do not need anything else, please believe me, my darling little Ellen! I’ve got real pleasure in bringing the flower gardens here into shape. Everything is looking lovely. Flowers are my friends. I loved your floral greeting. Last week we had second helpings of bread and yesterday we were presented with two pieces of cake and a tart. The food is good now but not plentiful because of rationing. When I see the ripe cornfields out there, I long to lie down at their edge and dream. It is a wonderful feeling to hear the corn rustling in the wind. Mother Nature helps you put up with so much! Darling Ellen, how wonderful it would be to go for a long walk together on a beach of the Baltic Sea. I hope it will be reality soon. I went to the theatre last night: ‘A Great Idea’! Very good! A comedy. New supplies from Canada. Great! Suits and clothes that remind you of the real world. Last week we had a film in the cinema: “Marika Rock, love me!” Terrific! It made me have other thoughts. Yes, my little darling D… how often in the day my thoughts fly to you (and yours to me). Our happy time is yet to come – and it will. Now, sadly, I must close. Please send my love to our dear Musli and Jodi and to you, my darling, I send many heartfelt kisses in words. Soon in reality, we must hope. Your so lonely X

Note: There is some evidence that Otto was back living on the Baltic Sea coast in 1957.

Note: “A Great Idea” / “Ein Toller Einfall” is a 1932 German comedy film (farce). “Love Me” / “Hab Mich Lieb” is a 1942 German musical comedy film starring Marika Rökk.