Civilian Public Service Unit (El Paso County, Colorado, USA)
During World War II, labor intensive agricultural operations, such as dairies, were short of workers. Thus, conscientious objectors under the Civilian Public Service program were accepted to fill employment gaps on what were termed agricultural experiment stations under the auspices of US Department of Agriculture administration. Thirty-four CPS subunits were established in the United States under CPS Camp 97 to provide farm labor. Camp No. 97-02, authorized for 25 men, was established in El Paso County, Colorado, to provide labor on a dairy farm. Operated by the Mennonite Central Committee, the camp was opened in May 1943 and closed in October 1946. During the initial phase of the camp, CPS Camp No. 5 in nearby Colorado Springs provided oversight to the men.
Bibliography
"CPS Unit Number 097-02." The Civilian Public Service Story: Living Peace in a Time of War. 26 January 2012. http://civilianpublicservice.org/camps/97/2.
©1996-2013 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.
MLA style: Unrau, Harlan D. "Civilian Public Service Unit (El Paso County, Colorado, USA)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. February 2012. Web. 19 June 2013. http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/civilian_public_service_unit_el_paso_county_colorado_usa.
APA style: Unrau, Harlan D. (February 2012). Civilian Public Service Unit (El Paso County, Colorado, USA). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 19 June 2013, from http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/civilian_public_service_unit_el_paso_county_colorado_usa.
