FepowMail - the mails of POW's and internees in East Asia in WWII

INFORMATION UPDATES
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Any information you have regarding the mails to or from the prisoners in any territory in East Asia is welcome. Either make contact by email to davidtett@aol.com or by writing to David Tett c/o BFA Publishing PO Box 34 Wheathampstead Herts AL4 8JY.
Specific questions posed by Volume One include:
CLICK on green questions for accompanying illustrations
QUESTION VOLUME ONE	PAGE REF
Dates of opening and closing camps	26-29
Details of other camps	29
From what date was surface mail from UK returned	35
From what date was airmail from UK returned	36
From what date was surface mail from Australia returned	41
From what date was airmail from Australia returned	41
What is origin of handstamp on Fig 1-3-13	43
Was Fig 1-3-26 ever used on mail addressed to East Asia. Examples?	53
Was Fig 1-3-27 ever used on mail addressed to East Asia. Examples?	53
What was date of use/issue of Red X covers with various obliterations	114-117
When were cards/covers illustrated in Figs 1-4-58 to 1-4-84 issued	119-138
Who issued cards/covers illustrated in Figs 1-4-58 to 1-4-84	119-138
To where were parties X4, P N2 and X10 and any others not mentioned sent	163
What dates were first cards issued to other camps not mentioned	197
Where were the cards with the small Marai sent from	216-217
Where were camps numbered 6, 8,9,10,11, 13, 15-22	225
Where was Indian cover Fig 1-7-33 sent from.	232
Where was Indian cover Fig 1-7-34 sent from.	233
What was the route used for sending mail from India/Ceylon to Malaya	304
What was arrival date in Australian ports of Arawa	337
QUESTION VOLUME TWO	PAGE REF
Do other instructions exist published in Holland advising relative how to communicate with their relatives who were POWs or internees	32-33
Were all the handstamps applied at a central point, and if so where	49- 62
Are any other examples known from Djawa WK- Liang Ambon	102
Where was the card, Fig 2-7-2 sent from	199
Were there two Asanuma’s in Sumatra or did one censor use two handstamps at various times or on certain items	200
How many cards were the POWs and internees in Celebes allowed to send and on what dates	228-245
Are there other marks known on POW/internee mail not illustrated	305-338
Where were the stickers/handstamps illustrated in Chapter 13 applied	339-348
Where were the No Record handstamps applied and what dates were they used	349-350
QUESTION VOLUME THREE	PAGE REF

Where were the INCONNU RETOUR handstamps applied	9-15
Why were cards from the Bangkok Internment camp only allowed on two occasions	26-29
What is the source reference for the formation and movement of the Group HQs	39 & 61
Why were Group 5 cards from Burma not censored	46
Did Suzuki censor all 1942-1943 cards from Thailand and if so where was he based	68- 98
Why were the first 1944 cards handstamped with an additional Furyo Yubin	86
Was Adachi censor applied in Java or Thailand	96
Was Ishikura censor applied in Java or Thailand	96
Was Sato censor applied in Java or Thailand	97
Where was Marpery	99
Was Choshi censor applied in Java or Thailand	122
Where was Hughesdon, inscription on Fig 3-4-34	130
Where was No 3 Branch resealing tape applied and why was it produced	132-133
How did Fig 3-4-46 come to have an Ipoh censor mark	140
What was the purpose and meaning of the Transferred to Ko handstamp Fig 3-4-53	144
Was Kawai censor applied in Java or Thailand	148
Where was incoming mail censored – centrally, at Group HQ on in camps	152
Were there any further postal offices other than the eight listed	224-225
Did the postal workers censor their own mail	234
Were Burmese postal workers drafted in at the Burma end of the railway to handle
Civilian worker’s mail, as in Thailand	250-255
What date did Orbita leave Rangoon	292

QUESTION VOLUME FOUR	PAGE REF
What date in August were the senior officers transferred to Taiwan	31
Does any mail addressed to the Indian POWs exist	57
Do further types of the mimeographed card exist	84-88
Do other examples of cards from Indian POWs exist	89
Does M signify Male or Man for Men's dormitory	120
Where was the censoring of mail carried out	139
Was the civilian cover coded E14 produced by the International Red Cross	146
Is the South African “Flag” mark a censor mark or if not, what is it	153
Were Sce des Prisonniers de Guerre handstamps applied in Tokyo	156 & 157
Why is only one example of Nakasone's censor seal known	182
Why is only one example of Kawamoto's censor seal known	183
Is 4-6-21 written in code	198
How did Shanghai Americans know the names of the POWs in Shanghai	207
Does any Hainan Island mail exist	214
Does the handstamp 4-7-21 include the name of the camp - Chapei	223
Does the handstamp 4-7-46 include the name of the camp - Great Western Road	241-242
Does mail exist to/from Lincoln Road and, if so, was there a special handstamp 242
Does mail exist to/from the smaller camps listed	243
Does anybody have mail from Ash Camp available for examination by the author	287
Does anybody have mail from Chapei available for examination by the author	287
Does anybody have mail from Eastern Area available for examination by the author	287
Does anybody have mail from Yu Yuen Road available for examination by the author	287
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of HMS Glengyle	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of HMS Smith	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Gerusalemme	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of Repose	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of Letitia	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Guardian	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Glenearn	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Logan	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of HMS Reaper	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of Empire Chieftain	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of HMS Alacrity	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Empire Clyde	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of USS St Olaf	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of Queensborough	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Tamaroa	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Highland Monarch	372
Can anybody supply the date of arrival of Highland Chieftain	372
Can anybody supply the destination and date of arrival of Strathmore	372
When was 4-12-31 sent and where and when was it censored	376-377
QUESTION VOLUME FIVE	PAGE REF
What was the location of Camp 7	66
Where were Camps 5, 6, 12, 14 and up located if they existed	66
Do Type cards exist for the various camps that are not listed in the table	66
Are their dated cards existing to add to or change the date cards were sent	66-67
Are other censor marks found on incoming or outgoing mail	67
Do other handstamps exist to direct mail to the correct camp	80-88
Are other manuscript marks known directing mail to other camps	76-95
How many men were carried on the Ryukyu Maru on 13th October 1942	97
What was the name of the ship that sailed from Lasang on 20th August 1944	98
How did mail addressed to POWs carried on hellships get on the philatelic market	98
Were the un-numbered camps actually assigned numbers	162
Are further examples of the two handstamps on Fig 5-6-15 known	176
Did Bob Paradise attend Boys Town and if so why is there no record	197
Why were the civilians permitted to send and receive philatelic covers	255
What was the exact date the USS General A E Anderson left Tacloban	332
What was the exact date the USS Monterey left Tacloban	332
What was the exact date the USS Pueblo left Tacloban	332
QUESTION VOLUME SIX	PAGE REF
What was the nationality of the POWs taken from Macassar on 14th December 1942	18
Which camps did the POWs carried on Kamakura Maru on 28th November 1942 get sent to	18
What was the name of the ship that sailed from Singapore on 2nd April 1943	18
Which camps did the POWs she carried get sent to	18
Which camps did the POWs carried on Kyokko Maru on 28th November 1942 get sent to	18
Was the ship that left Singapore on 20th September 1943 the Asama Maru	18
Which camps did the POWs carried on Maru Shichi on 6th November 1943 get sent to	18
What was the name of the ship leaving Thailand on 5th June 1944	18
What was the name of the ship leaving Java on 5th June 1944	18
What was the name of the ship leaving Thailand on 4th July 1944	18
What was the nationality of the POWs carried on the ship and where did they get sent to	18
Which camps did the POWs carried on Awa Maru on 23rd December 1944 get sent to	18
Why are many of the outgoing covers and cards from Japan multi-censored, sometimes as many as three times	31-75
Only cards from Hoten are recorded by the author. Were cards from other camps in Manchuria sent?	177-180
What does ICM/130817 signify on Fig 6-6-20	190
What was the name of the ship leaving Singapore on 9th October 1942	193
What was the name of the ship carrying 104 men and what date did it leave	193
What was the name of the ship leaving Jesselton on 3rd April 1943	193
How many men did it carry and what were the composition by nationality	193
What was the name of the ship leaving Sandakan on 13th August 1943	193
Were civilians held in Banjermasin ever allowed to send or receive mail	193
Were civilians held in other camps in Dutch Borneo allowed to send or receive mail	193
Were cards ever sent from Jesselton and if they were why aren’t any recorded	196
Were cards ever sent from Labuan and if they were why aren’t any recorded	196
Were the Indian POWs in Kuching allowed to send cards	196
Was any mail sent to the Indian POWs actually delivered to the POWs in Kuching	229
What date did HMS Glory sail and from where	334
What date did USS Constitution sail and from where	334
What date did USS Gosper sail and from where	334
What date did MS Tjitjalengka sail	334
What date did USAT Etolin sail	335
What date did USS Perida sail	335
What date did HMS Slinger sail	335
There are many other questions posed within the text of the books and if further information is forthcoming, please contact the author at davidtett@aol.com.

Included in Volumes 2-6 are update chapters detailing new information arising since the original books were published. With the final book completed and published, any new information coming to the authors notice will be published under the “new information” page on this site and also in articles in appropriate specialist society journals.

The author would welcome any information, examples, anecdotes or personal histories in relation to the mails from these territories not yet covered Please write to the author c/o the Publishers at PO Box 34, Wheathampstead, Herts AL4 8JY or email him at davidtett@aol.com

Since the publication of Volume 1, the major find has been an example for the August 1944 civilian card. This card was destined for the POW camp at Changi. It is part of a correspondence between a husband in the POW camp and his wife in the civilian camp. Such mail was thought to be prohibited. It was for most people, but for some reason these two were permitted to correspond and the evidence is included in Volume 2. This is the only known example of the August civilian card which in itself supports the theory that the mail was lost at sea.

Another important additional find concerns the mail from the Indian POWs in Singapore
In Volume 1, Chapter 7, two cards were illustrated from Indian POWs presumed to be from Singapore: Figs 1-7-33 and 1-7-34. These were the only two such examples known to the author, and did at least show that the Indian POWs were allowed to write cards. Little is known as to the frequency, dates, routes or other aspects of these communications. Two more examples, illustrated in Volume 3 have come to light which add a little to the scant knowledge on the subject.

The first card, Fig 3-11-1, is not actually from an Indian POW at all but from a Gurkha. The Gurkhas, natives of Nepal, had for years been providing servicemen to the British Army. In the Malayan campaign they were part of the British Indian Army, but the Japanese made no distinction between Indian soldiers and Nepalese Gurkhas as POWs. They were all segregated from the British and their officers and taken to Farrer Park. The Japanese even tried to coerce the Gurkhas into joining the INA, the Indian National Army. Reputedly none did.

The card itself is very similar to Fig 1-7-34. Like this card the address side is identical to the first and second cards sent by the British and Australian POWs except that it has no Marai handstamp. The words to the left of the card read Ken’etsuzumi (Censored), Furyo Shuyosho (Prisoner of War Camp) and across the top, underlined, Furyo Yubin (Prisoner of War Post).

On the message side, however, like Fig 1-7-34, there are preprinted messages to be erased as appropriate. No card given to the British and Australian POWs had this feature – all were plain for the POW to complete as he wished or as instructed. Quite why the Japanese had different cards prepared, albeit with the same address side, for the Indian POWs is a mystery. The preprinted message is a common feature of cards from other territories, as we see from Chapter 3, but not from Singapore.

The card is dated 22nd June 1943 (Fig 1-7-34 is undated) and is from Haki Lal Thapa 2/2 Gurkha Rifles. It is addressed to Palpa in Western Nepal and has two Indian censor marks, the straight-line DHP/139 and the octagonal PASSED DHP/5 applied in Bombay. It travelled from Bombay to Kathmandu, Nepal, where it received an identifiable date stamp, but with an illegible date, and from there to Palpa.

Both sides of a card from H L Thapa, Gurkha Rifles, to Palpa, Nepal.

The date stamp at the top left is from Nuwakot (referred to as Nuwakot West No 4 in the postmark, West No 4 being the district), which is not far from Palpa. The date on this date stamp is "8th day of the 8th month, Bikram Sambat year 2000". This translates to 21st November 1943, amazingly the same date of the Kilpauk, India, arrival handstamp on Fig 1-7-34. It rather suggests that these two cards were written at the same time and travelled in the same batch to Bombay. The censor seal on 3-11-1 is not fully legible but the appears to read Hayashi or Bayashi.

The second card is very similar to Fig 1-7-33 except that it is undated and has the censor seal of Shimogahara, who also censored the second British and Australian cards in February 1943. The card itself is identical to the third card sent by the British and Australians in December 1943. This card is addressed to South India and has two Bombay censor marks, the straight-line DHP/134 and the octagonal PASSED DHP/6. The arrival stamp is dated July 1944, so it was certainly sent before Fig 1-7-33 (which is dated August 1944), possibly in December 1943, the same time as the British and Australian third card. The writer wrote in block capitals and used 21 words, again very similar in style and layout to Fig 1-7-33.

From this tiny sample of four cards it appears that the Indian POWs were permitted to send cards on at least three occasions, in June 1943 with preprinted sentences, late 1943 or early 1944, and in August 1944 – the latter two occasions with the message blank. It is likely that cards were sent at other times and hopefully one day further evidence will come to light.

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