John W. Walber Papers

Collection — Box: SC149-WALB-001

Identifier: SC149-WALB

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection contains papers related to Walber’s service as an Intelligence Officer in the US Army. Notably, it includes cartoons drawn by an official illustrator of the S.S. Magazine ‘Das Schwartzer Korps' while the cartoonist was in prison camp. These cartoons give the cartoonist’s impressions of life at the camp from the prisoner’s point of view. The cartoons are in German but the collection also contains photocopies with English translations. Additionally, there is an English translation of a report by a Lt. Colonel of the SS in charge of Berchtesgaden-Obersalzberg, describing the events at the closing of the war and a pamphlet “Education and Rehabilitation” written by Walber in German. This pamphlet was used at the prisoner camp where he was stationed.

Dates

1945-1962

Creator

John W., Walber (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

No restrictions

Conditions Governing Use

Materials believed to be under copyright or other restrictions are available for limited noncommercial, educational and personal use only, or for fair use as defined by United States copyright law and with proper citation. Please note that the College of the Holy Cross may not hold the rights to all items in this collection. Users assume responsibility for identifying all copyright holders and for determining whether permission is needed to make any use of the content. For permission under rights held by the College, please contact archives@holycross.edu.

Biographical Note

John W. Walber was born in Hamm, Westphalia, Germany in 1923 to a Jewish father and a German mother. The family lived in Dortmund from 1926 to 1933, where his father was active in the Reichsbanner, a paramilitary organization of the Social Democrats Party. Later, the family moved to Saarbrucken but fled to Geneva, Switzerland when citizens of the region voted to become part of Germany in 1935. The Walberg family stayed in Switzerland until they immigrated to the United States in 1938. Shortly after, John Walberg enrolled at Holy Cross in 1940 but was drafted into the Army in 1943.

While serving in the US Army, Walber was an intelligence officer and was in charge of a war prisoner camp in Kornwestheim, Germany. He ran the camp and questioned the prisoners. Additionally, he organized an education and rehabilitation program for the camp. Walbert also started a newspaper and a school for the prisoners.

After the war, Walber continued his education at Holy Cross and graduated in 1947. He went to law school and practiced law in the New York City area.