Mexican American POW

By Karina Irvine

Robert S. Bacca

June 20, 1920 - October 9, 2008

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The early twentieth century was a time of turmoil and uncertainty for many Americans, especially in the wake of the Great Depression. The economic downturn left millions of Americans jobless and homeless. [1] The U.S. government, looking for ways to stabilize the economy and provide jobs for its citizens, created federal programs that employed thousands in building projects and wildlife protection.[2] Entering into the Second World War also provided new job opportunities, from weapons manufacturing to military service. One American who took advantage of these chances was Robert S. Bacca, who, along with taking part in New Deal projects, also served in World War II as an Air Corps pilot.

Robert S. Baca was born on June 20, 1920 in Globe, Arizona to Mexican parents Louis and Sarah Sanchez Baca.[3] He came from a very large, very poor family that often went hungry. After his mother divorced and remarried, she, her new husband, and their combined 9 children moved to Calexico, California when Robert was 5 years old.[4]

Times were tough and wages weren’t easy to come by. In order to support his family, Bacca dropped out of high school after two years and, at age 15, joined the Civilian Conservation Corps, a New Deal program established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933.[5] Bacca had to lie about his age in order to join; the program was intended for single men aged 18-25, and the youngest anyone could be and still join was 16. He spent his time with the CCC putting out forest fires, building homes, and helping with various construction projects. Along with providing food and lodging, Bacca made $30 a month. Most of the money he made from his work was sent home to his family. “I only kept five dollars for myself,” he said, “enough to afford toothpaste, a toothbrush, and soap.”[6]

After a year with the CCC, Bacca returned to his hometown of Globe, AZ to work in an asbestos mine, where he quickly realized he wanted more from life. Motivated by the hard times he was living through and a desire to see the world, Bacca enlisted on September 5, 1941, and joined the war effort as a member of the US Army Air Corps. “I was looking for some action,” Bacca recalled in an interview. “I was looking forward to war.” He got his wish; over the span of three years, his service took him to England, Algeria, Morocco, Sicily, France, Tunisia, Italy, and Germany.[7]

Although his service took him all over the world, Bacca’s first real taste of battle wasn’t until 1944, when he was stationed in Germany, operating the guns on his Lockheed P-38 fighter plane. He most regularly assisted in bombing raids, although he never actually manned the bombs himself.[8]

Bacca flew a Lockheed Martin P-38, a single-seater fighter aircraft equipped with two supercharged engines and a potent mix of four 50-caliber machine guns and a 20-mm cannon.  (https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/news/features/history/p-38.html)

Bacca was shot down on one of these missions sometime between November of 1944 and February of 1945. He miraculously did not sustain any injuries from the crash, which landed him approximately 10 miles away from the Alps.[9] He was captured in a small village, and then put on a train to Frankfurt, where he was interrogated by German forces. His time in the interrogation center was brief; he spent only a few short days being questioned by German officials before he was put on yet another train and sent to Stalag VII-A Prison. Located south of Bavaria, Stalag VII-A was the largest POW camp in Nazi Germany. Bacca relied on his fellow prisoners to endure the experience. He recalled passing his time by “joking” with his countrymen, playing cards, or learning enough German to communicate with the guards. There was not much else to do; prisoners were not allowed reading or writing materials, and the closest thing they had to a radio was the loudspeaker system the guards used to communicate.[10]

Stalag VII-A was liberated on April 29, 1945. Bacca recalled the liberation, and the days that followed, as complete chaos. “People just went crazy,” he said. “We headed for the town in search of food...or anything we could steal.” This period of anarchy lasted a month, as the liberated prisoners waited to be brought back to the States.[11]

Robert S. Bacca, being interviewed for the Veterans History Project, Robert S. Bacca Collection (AFC/2001/001/27483), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

After the war, Bacca moved back home to Globe, where he lived with his sister while he worked in an asbestos mine. Bitter, angry, and mistrusting, Bacca found himself unable to process his trauma. Bacca knew something had to change soon after settling into his life as a civilian. He decided to get back into the service, where he “knew what to do and what was going on.” He re-enlisted in January 1946, after just a few short months at home. During this second phase of his enlistment, he rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant before being honorably discharged in 1949.[12]

Bacca retired and settled in Colorado, with his wife Trinidad, whom he married in between his periods of service. He remained in Colorado until his death on October 9, 2008. He was buried on the 16th of the same month at Fort Logan National Cemetery.[13]

Footnotes ↓

[1] “Great Depression,” Britannica, accessed September 14, 2021, https://www.britannica.com/event/Great-Depression.

[2] “New Deal,” History.com (A&E Television Networks, October 29, 2009), https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/new-deal.

[3] Robert’s birth certificate spells his name “Baca”; his World War II draft card lists his last name with the spelling of “Bacca.” See entry for Robert S. Baca, Ancestry.com, Arizona, U.S., Birth Certificates, 1880-1935 [database on-line], Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

[4] Robert S. Bacca Collection (AFC/2001/001/27483), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

[5] “The Civilian Conservation Corps (U.S. National PARK SERVICE),” National Parks Service (U.S. Department of the Interior), accessed September 1, 2021, https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-civilian-conservation-corps.htm.

[6] Robert S. Bacca Collection.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Ibid.

[12] Ibid.

[13] Ancestry.com, Arizona, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1865-1972 [database on-line], Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016; “Robert S. Bacca Obituary (2008) Denver Post,” Legacy.com, accessed August 26, 2021, https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/denverpost/name/robert-bacca-obituary?pid=118831983.

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