Washington, Illinois POW Camp Mystery Cache
Washington, Illinois POW Camp
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Note: This cache is NOT at the posted coordinates. Read on to solve the puzzle...
This is the second in a series of caches designed to show you historical sights in northern Tazewell county, Illinois.
See (visit link)
for the first cache in this series.
If you are at the posted coordinates, you should be outside the entrance to the "old canning factory", as it is known in local legend.
Currently the site is owned by a private company that refinishes railroad car wheels (please stay outside the fence; the cache isn't in there!)
Back in 1943, the canning factory (which after the war was run by the Libby's company) had a shortage of workers, and the government needed K rations and canned goods to feed the troops.
The solution was to bring in 50 captured German soldiers from the POW camp known as Camp Ellis in Fulton County (see (visit link) ). The Washington sub-camp was first commanded by Colonel John S. Sullivan, and later by Captain T. A. Cox.
Captain Cox at one point in the war commanded the 1613th Service Command Unit, detachment 5 guarding German POW's at the Mayo hospital in Galesburg. (see (visit link) ).
The POWs were brought in on the old rail line that ran down Wood Street (the foundation of a sentry tower can be seen just northeast of the intersection of Wood and Jefferson near the entrance to the bike trail; no, the cache isn't in the foundation!).
They were trucked from the camp to various local farms to help with the pumpkin harvest. Once a POW jumped from a truck going down South Main Street and was almost shot before the guard realized he was just trying to retrieve his hat which had blown off.
The prisoners were allowed no visitors, nor could residents speak to the prisoners. An exception was made for local ministers, such as Pastor Kammeyer from St. Mark's Lutheran who spoke fluent German and ministered to the POWs spiritual needs.
Years later when the Libby plant burned, they found a U.S. Army rifle issued to a soldier who was a guard. It was reported missing, and suspected hidden by a prisoner.
What other hidden treasures might be left over from the POW camp? My own research has uncovered an old handwritten document, on which was scratched:
nildzurhincudvuueeoelvwnetwuhnzineuirrgiekideltgweknnjdnreitarslnrertfzevuarpdcetaeaipfnwn
I was able to decode this message using the number on the sign near the given coordinates with the word "Danger" on it, and found a hidden treasure. Can you do the same?
More history about the Washington POW camp can be found at the Washington Historical Society at 105 Zinser Place off Main Street (N 40 deg 42.264 W 089 deg 24.451)
(see (visit link) )
For more information on German POW's in the US, see (visit link)
Thanks to the powers that be for permission to place this cache where it is!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Gur pnpur pbagnvare vf n gra vapu ol gra vapu ol guerr vapu ghccrejner obk jvgu gur jbeq "TRBPNPUR" jevggra ba vgf yvq va oynpx znexre.
Vs lbh’er fghzcrq, gnxr n qrrc oerngu naq pbhag gb gra: rva, mjrv, qerv, ivre, shras, frpuf, fvrora, npug, arha, mrua
Vs lbh'er ernyyl fghzcrq, qb n jro frnepu ba "fvzcyr pbyhzane genafcbfvgvba".
Treasures
You'll collect a digital Treasure from one of these collections when you find and log this geocache:
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