The Thai-Burma Railway and Beyond (The Railway of Death) 1942-1945 (open access)

The Thai-Burma Railway and Beyond (The Railway of Death) 1942-1945

Transcript by M.F. Seiker. Seiker was born in Holland and joined the Dutch Merchant Navy. He became a POW in Java in 1942. He went on a hell ship to Singapore and then on a train to Kanchanaburi, Thailand. Next, he was put to work building the Kwai River Bridge. He describes that death was a daily occurrence. He was caught and threatened with execution for stealing Red Cross shipments of food. The camp then found out about Hiroshima three days after it happened, since the Japanese abandoned the camp. The POWs began marching and taking trains and met with a Red Cross train. Later, Seiker exhibited his paintings of the time he spent at camp.
Date: unknown
Creator: Seiker, M. F.
System: The Portal to Texas History