Sefton Internment Camp



Sefton Camp was one of many World War II internment camps on Isle of Man where Italian, German and Finnish residents of Britain were held. The Sefton Camp in Douglas held prisoners from October 1940 to March 2041.

The camp was located in the Sefton Buildings built during the 1890s next to the Gaiety Theatre on Douglas promenade. It was one of the smallest of the ten internment camps on the island during World War II, with only 307 residents. Of these, 42 of the internees were invalids.

The camp had a newspaper, the Sefton Review, published fortnightly from November 1940 to 3 February 1941. Notable editorial pieces concern its letters sent to notable politicians and public figures in an attempt to find a sympathetic ear for their plight. It also wrote to the Mayor of Coventry offering toys as gifts to families stricken by the bombings. The letter received a kindly reply.

The camp closed on 3 April 1941 due to the relatively large numbers of internees that had been released since the start of the internment camps on the island. The internees at who were not due for release were transferred to other camps on the Island. The Home Office then informed the Sefton Hotel Company and tenants of the Church Road houses, that they could have their property back on 4 May 1941.