Imprisoned at Fort Henry

This view looks across Navy Bay towards the Royal Military College. Today, and in the late 19th century when this photo was taken, the three towers of the Mackenzie Building make it an easily recognizable landmark. This notable structure was built in 1876-1878 and was originally used to train military and civil engineers. The Mackenzie Building and Fort Henry where we currently stand are both designated as National Historic sites.

A soldier stands guard at the outer gate of Fort Henry during the First World War. The fort had previously been used as a garrison for British and Canadian soldiers, but during the FIrst World War it was repurposed into an internment camp for so-called 'enemy aliens.' The first internment facility to be established was a receiving station in Montreal, but Kingston followed only days later as the nation's first permanent internment camp on August 18, 1914. It remained in use for most of the war, finally ending internment operations on May 3, 1917. While World War I ended in 1918, some internment camps remained in operation until 1920.

The local Kingston Regiment, the Princess of Wales' Own, march into Fort Henry for garrison duty. Less than a month after opening as an internment camp, Fort Henry held as many as 200 internees. While some of the internees were German and Austrian Prisoners of War, the majority were Austro-Hungarian enemy aliens from Ukraine, Poland, and other constituent nationalities of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. One man, recalling his time as an internee, estimated that out of his friends in camp, as many as 80% were Ukrainian.¹

Two women and a uniformed guard stand at the gate of Fort Henry. One woman poses close to the guard as the other woman prepares to take their photograph. Between the world wars, the fort opened as a museum and historic site, but the museum was temporarily closed during World War II when it was again used to hold Prisoners of War. This photo was likely captured after 1948, when the museum reopened to the public. Since 1948, Fort Henry has been in continuous operation as a museum and interpretive center.

On the anniversary of their internment, the enemy merchant seamen perform a ceremony on the Fort's parade ground. An internee band plays instruments while a crowd gathers to watch a symbolic burning.

This photo, taken from the fort ramparts offers a view of the grounds. Several internees are milling about, likely playing a game of soccer. A net is visible in the foreground of the photo.

This postcard looks northeast from the fort ramparts towards Cedar Island and Cathcart Tower. This two storey Martello tower represents Canadian defensive structures during a period of anxiety over American expansionism. Fort Henry was meant to be the lynchpin of an impregnable line of defense fortifications that would protect three of Upper Canada's most important waterways and transportation routes: the Rideau Canal, St. Lawrence River, and Lake Ontario. However, only Fort Henry and four Martello towers, including Cathcart, were built.

This photo was taken from the northern ramparts of the fort and looks south across the parade grounds, with more fort buildings visible behind. Two cannons are visible to the left of the photo, and guards patrol the ramparts above the internees.
Compared to many internment camps across Canada, Fort Henry was one of the few that housed internees in a permanent, pre-existing structure. The majority of internees found themselves in what can be described as remote forced labour camps, where they were forced to build roads, clear land, and do whatever was asked of them at gun and bayonet-point. Such camps were usually built partially by the internees themselves and resemble a compound of several rudimentary buildings surrounded by barbed wire fences.

A large group of internees crowds inside a makeshift outdoor theatre for a show. The internees made up both the performing troupe and the audience. While the stage is out of view, actors in the foreground peek through the ramshackle theatre walls at the audience. Theatre was one activity that helped pass the time, and helped keep up camp morale. The authorities encouraged this as low prisoner morale would often lead to increased acts of resistance and more trouble for the guards.

This view looks southeast from the fort ramparts towards the Royal Military College and beyond, capturing some of the Kingston skyline. The date of this photo is unknown, but the fort appears to be in a state of disrepair or possibly under construction. Internees at Kingston were put to work repairing the fort for 25 cents a day, then were eventually sent to other sites across Canada, where they were paroled to work in the mines, railroads, and lumber camps.¹

This photo captures a long line of Internees queuing up for a meal. The bucket every man holds likely held his meals for the day. In order to align with international standards for treatment of POWs, internees were fed meals of the same quality and quantity as those given to Canadian troops. However, shortly after Fort Henry ceased internment operations in May 1917, foot shortages in Canada lead to a tightening of the internees rations. The food restrictions and other mistreatments stirred up anger in some camps, even leading to riots in some cases.

Nine internees pose for a photo inside Fort Henry. Behind them, bars are visible on the fort windows. Early on in the war, an American consul in Kingston reported on conditions in the camp, finding that their treatment was good overall and that the conditions of the camp were adequate. According to the consul, "In point of daily conduct and disposition, the officers in charge at Fort Henry have no complaint against their wards, who are described as a happy, contented and clean-living lot of men."¹

Internee bunks are dragged out into the parade grounds to be disinfected in the open air. With so many internees living in close contact, pests such as bed bugs and lice, as well as diseases, were a constant concern. Keeping their quarters' clean helped to improve the overall health of the camp.

In this photo, a group of internees pose with a trophy: a collection of rats and mice hanging from a line. Internees were allowed to keep pets such as the two terriers pictured here. Such pets were useful for catching vermin, which could spoil food and spread disease. Note the man on the bottom left with a cigarette, and the third man on the left smoking a pipe.

Internees celebrate the birthday of Emperor Franz Josef of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. While these celebrations were allowed by the camp guards, celebrating the leader of an enemy nation likely also offered internees an opportunity to express their resistance against their circumstances and gain agency in the restrictive environment of the camps.