New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum

05/27/2026

We hope you're all having a great spring and enjoying the rain this week!

Just a heads up to anyone planning to visit the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum tomorrow, May 28th: we will be closing at 2:30pm rather than 5:00pm. Hours will continue as normal in the days to follow:

Monday-Friday: 10am-5:00pm
Saturday-Sunday: 12pm-5pm

Sorry for any inconvenience!

We hope to see you here this museum season!

05/23/2026

Over the past several months, we've looked at many people who had connections to the New Brunswick Internment Camp. This week, however, we're looking at an artefact from the camp.

This carved wooden shark doesn't have much of a story. We don't really know the inspiration behind it or who specifically made it. We can still appreciate the hard work and dedication that went into it, though! Typically, the internees didn't have fancy tools at their disposal, so even simpler designs were more difficult to make than they might seem.

It must've taken several hours; carving each individual tooth, the tail, the fins, and even adding the little gills on the sides would've been impressive work! On top of that, it's also sanded smooth.

Don't forget to come check out the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum in Minto, New Brunswick, as we are now open for the summer season! We'd love to see you and to help share the stories associated with this often-forgotten part of New Brunswick's history. Also, follow us here on Facebook to keep up with our weekly posts!

05/18/2026

It's that time of year! The New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum is officially opening for the summer season tomorrow, May 19th!

Our hours are 10am to 5pm Monday through Friday, and 12pm to 5pm Saturday and Sunday.

There are many fascinating stories to hear and artefacts to see, and we can't wait to share this part of New Brunswick's history with you. We hope to see you here this summer!

05/16/2026

This weekend's post is about an internee from the first phase of the New Brunswick Internment Camp. His name was Alfred Stenger. Stenger was born and raised in Berlin and attended university there in 1924.

In February of 1935, he sent his elderly parents to London because of tensions in Germany. Stenger followed them to London in March of the same year, but went back to Germany several times to visit friends. In his back and forth, Stenger was caught and imprisoned in October of 1936. He was released in February of 1939, but then interned in England, and later Canada, in May of 1940.

After his time of internment, Stenger moved to Ottawa. He was interviewed for volume 1 of Ted Jones' 𝘉𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘚𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘪𝘳𝘦 while living in Ottawa. At the time of the interview, he was a retired Doctor of Economics.

We don't have a picture of Alfred Stenger, but if you have one or know of one, please let us know!

We hope to see you here at the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum in Minto, New Brunswick, this summer! Also, if you want to stay up to date on these posts, please follow us here on Facebook. There are many incredible stories associated with this camp!

05/14/2026

This week's post is about a man named Kaspar Naegele. He was born in Stuttgart, Germany. After his time interned in Canada, he attended McGill University. Later, he earned his Master's degree at Columbia University in New York in 1947 and a Doctorate from Harvard in 1952.

Naegele went on to teach at Harvard, the University of New Brunswick, and the University of Oslo in Norway. He also joined the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at the University of British Columbia in 1954, eventually becoming a professor there in 1963.

His work in sociology became well known in many countries, and he was a highly respected teacher, especially at the University of British Columbia.

If you want to hear more stories about internees and artefacts from the New Brunswick Internment Camp, follow us here on Facebook and come visit the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum in Minto, New Brunswick. There is much to be learned about this often-forgotten piece of New Brunswick's history.

05/07/2026

Today's post is a little bit of a change of pace. We're not talking about an internee today, but instead someone who had a different kind of connection to the camp. Donald Macleod was originally from Glengarry County, Ontario, but lived in Fredericton for many years. He earned his Bachelor's and Master's from Queen's, and his Ph.D. in plant pathology from Cambridge. Macleod was on the research staff at Queen's for a few years before he worked as Senior Plant Pathologist with the Dominion Field Laboratory of Plant Pathology of the federal Department of Agriculture.

In addition to his agriculture-related careers, he became a benefactor of the Archives, taking photographs and collecting documents. From 1930 to 1950, many people were cleaning out their attics in Fredericton, so Macleod made arrangements with the dump keeper to collect any interesting old papers, and over the years, accumulated many papers for the Provincial Archive.

His connection to the New Brunswick Internment Camp came in the 1940s. Macleod would visit the camp regularly to show the internees movies. After the camp was closed, he came back to film the site.

Unfortunately, we don't have a picture of Donald Macleod, but if you have one or know of one, please let us know!

If you want to keep up on these posts, follow us here on Facebook! We'd also recommend coming to visit the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum this summer, as we have many artefacts to see and stories to tell. We hope to see you here!

04/28/2026

This week's post is about an internee named Siegmund Spieler. Spieler was born on November 20th, 1907, in Leipzig, Germany.

Before emigrating to Great Britain in February of 1938, Spieler was part of many communist parties and organizations in various places, such as Germany, Switzerland, and what is now Czechia.

Considered an enemy alien in Britain, he was sent to be interned in Canada from 1940 to 1942. During this time, he worked in welding.

Spieler later returned to Germany in 1946 and got back into politics. From 1952 to 1953, he served as deputy department head in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Spieler eventually passed on December 25th, 1985, in East Berlin.

We unfortunately don't have a picture of Siegmund Spieler, but if you have one or know of one, please let us know!

If you want to keep up with these posts, follow us here on Facebook! We also recommend coming to check out the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum in Minto, New Brunswick, this summer. There is lots to learn and many interesting artefacts to see, so we hope to see you here!

04/19/2026

This weekend's post is about a man who was interned at the New Brunswick Internment Camp named Peter Fuld. Fuld was born in 1921 in Germany to a Jewish father and a German mother. His father, Harry Fuld, was the founder of Germany’s first telecommunications service provider, H. Fuld & Co. Fuld was only 11 years old when his father passed away.

He was then sent by his mother, Ida Fuld, to London for school. She was afraid that, being the son of a Jewish man, Fuld would have troubles in Germany under the N**i regime. Unfortunately, England considered him an enemy alien, since he'd come from Germany, and he was sent to be interned in Canada. Upon release (he was assisted by a family from England, the Birks), Fuld attended the University of Toronto. On his first day of law school, he met Ivy Lawrence, the first Black Canadian woman to graduate from the University of Toronto’s then law school, and the two quickly became close.

Fuld and Lawrence moved to London after they earned their law degrees. Though he wanted to marry her, Fuld and Lawrence never married and eventually parted ways. They remained good friends.

Fuld eventually passed away at 41 years old due to brain cancer.

Please follow us here on Facebook to keep up with these posts, and add the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum to your summer 2026 bucket list! There is lots to see and learn here at the museum, and we'd love to have you!

04/19/2026

The NB Internment Camp Museum is seeking a new board member

420 Pleasant Drive, Minto, NB
https://www.nbinternmentcampmuseum.ca/

Our vision is to ensure that future generations have the opportunity to learn about the NB Internment Camp through conservation and
education.

We are looking for someone who:

* Can bring fresh ideas and a collaborative spirit to the board.

*Is interested in history, education, and the community.

* Has experience in any of: non-profit governance, museum work, education, or community engagement. (While this would be great, it isn't necessary.)

What you can expect:

*The board meets about 6 times/ year (sometimes virtually, sometimes in person)

*Collaborative decision-making alongside a dedicated and passionate team.

*Opportunities to influence the direction of the museum

Commitment:
*The role requires attendance at regular board meetings, participation in committees, and support of museum initiatives.

If you are interested, please reach out to the President of our Board of Directors, Derrick Bishop, at [email protected] to discuss.

We look forward to hearing from you.

The New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum is one of only two museums of its type in Canada, the museum tells the often-forgotten story of the Maritimes' only WWII internment camp. This Museum has been open to the public since 1997. We are located at 420 Pleasant Drive, Unit 1 in Minto, NB.

04/11/2026

This weekend's post is about a man named Walter Hitschfeld, who was interned at the New Brunswick Internment Camp between Minto and Fredericton. Hitschfeld was born in 1922 in Vienna, Austria. He moved to England shortly before the war to finish school, being considered a "refugee from N**i oppression." Despite this, Hitschfeld was sent to Canada in 1940 and interned, both in New Brunswick and near Farnham, Quebec. He was sponsored for an early release from internment for his performance in university courses within the camp.

After release, Hitschfeld attended the University of Toronto. He became a Canadian citizen and earned his Bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics in 1946. Then, he entered the graduate physics program at McGill University, specializing in atmospheric physics, and earned his PhD in 1950. While he was a student, Hitschfeld joined the Storay Weather Group. In 1951, he started lecturing in physics at McGill University, and he also served as Chairman of Meteorology from 1963 to 1967.

Over the years, Hitschfeld contributed to scientific papers, meteorology research, and even served on national and international committees. He was also President of the International Commission on Cloud Physics of the International Association of Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics from 1975 to 1984 and President of the Canadian Meteorological Society from 1973 to 1974. He was elected Fellow of the American Meteorological Society in 1968 and Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 1978.

In 1980, he briefly resigned from McGill University to catch up on the latest information in cloud physics and weather modification. Hitschfeld resumed his work at McGill University in 1981.

Hitschfeld eventually passed away on May 28th, 1986, after battling cancer for about a year.

Unfortunately, we don't have a picture of Walter Hitschfeld, but if you have one, know of one, or know of where one can be found, please let us know!

As always, if you want to hear more about this part of New Brunswick's history, follow us here on Facebook to keep up with our posts and come visit this summer for a tour of the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum in Minto, New Brunswick. We hope to see you here!

04/09/2026

Today's post is about another internee from the New Brunswick Internment Camp. His name was Frederick David Hoeniger, and he was born in Goerlitz, Germany, in 1921. Hoeniger attended school in Holland and, in 1938, received an Oxford School Certificate.

After his time in internment, he moved to Toronto, Ontario, and attended the University of Toronto. Hoeniger graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English in 1946. From 1946 to 1947, he lectured at the University of Saskatchewan, then at the University of Toronto from 1948 to 1955. While he was lecturing in Toronto, he also got his Master's and Ph.D. from the University of London.

Following this, at the University of Toronto, Hoeniger became an assistant professor in 1955, an associate professor in 1961, and a professor in 1963, and eventually, Chairman of the English Department from 1969 to 1972.

Outside of his teaching life, he became an associate editor of the seventh edition of 𝘙𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘗𝘰𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘺 in 1960. From 1971 to 1985, he was General Editor of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘴 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘴. Hoeniger also published many books.

In the 1990s, Hoeniger retired in Toronto and later passed away in September 2016.

If you're enjoying these posts and want to see more, make sure to follow us here on Facebook so you don't miss any! We hope you also consider dropping by the New Brunswick Internment Camp Museum in Minto, New Brunswick, this summer to hear not only more internee stories, but also to see artefacts from the camp. We hope to see you here!