Andersonville

The Andersonville prison, used during the civil war is located in central Georgia. It served as one of the Confederates main prison bases designed for 10,000 but it held 30,000 inmates during the war. The site was chosen for the two reasons that it was a safe distance from coastal raids and because of its inland remoteness. It was one of the dirtiest prisons and the highest mortality rate of any civil war prison. The prisoners suffered from swarms of insects, filth, and disease caused by contaminated water. Additionally, 13,000 out of 45,000 men died of malnutrition. Some prisoners would substitute sand for soap to try to stay clean. Moreover, the prisoners only made the conditions more miserable. They would attack each other, bathe in their drinking water, dump trash into a marsh that would lead to the water stream, and they kept trying to escape out of water pipes so the pipes were destroyed. Without pipes they would have dirty and not fresh water. Also, they would live in "shebangs" that were crude dwellings made from various items. One of the main reasons the prison was poorly run was because the director, Henry Wirz was disliked by guards and prisoners. In 1864 the prison population declined because Sherman's March advanced closer. Once the infantry left the Georgia Militia took over and attempted to maintain control by a dead line. If the prisoners crossed this line they would be shot down by the militia men. Under these conditions it was very unlikely to escape. The prison lasted 14 months and today it is preserved as National Park. Henry Wirz was charged for war crimes and sentenced to death being the only person killed for war crimes during the entire Civil war.

Pictures:
1.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andersonville_National_Historic_Site
2.http://spotsylvaniacw.blogspot.com/2010/10/related-lands-andersonville-prison.html