Andersonville, officially called Camp Sumter, was the most infamous Confederate prison during the Civil War (Davis 350; Reeder 140). The camp first opened in February 1864 near the village of Andersonville in Sumter County, Georgia. Due to food shortages at the Richmond, Virginia compound caused by an excess of POWs, Confederate officers decided to build a new prison in southwest Georgia (Turner 161, 162). The first prisoners arrived at an open area of ​​sixteen acres, later increased to twenty-six acres, surrounded by a fifteen-foot high fence (Davis 351). The conditions of this prison were truly horrendous because the prisoners were not provided with any form of soap, clothing, or shelter (Reeder 141). Andersonville was known for its mistreatment, lack of nutrition and protection, and harsh security along with its cruel guardians (Turner 161). Andersonville Prison was occupied by countless soldiers, many more than the camp was designed for, and because of this many men had inadequate shelter. The prison was built to only house ten thousand people, but ended up holding more than three times that amount (Turner 162). Nonetheless, four hundred new prisoners arrived each day, and by the end of the summer the camp held thirty-three thousand citizens, making Andersonville the fifth largest city in the Confederacy (Davis 351; Savage 43). Forty-nine thousand five hundred Union soldiers had passed through the camp gates when the war ended (Hyde 131). At any given time, anyone could find around fifteen thousand men without any kind of shelter (Davis 352). Because the Confederate government did not prepare housing for the prisoners, the prisoners had to learn to do ... middle of paper ... Despite this, more than one hundred men died per day from lack of nutrition, health care, and even suicide by intentionally exceeding the expire, causing a mortality rate of twenty-nine percent (Davis 352; Savage 45; Turner 162). Works Cited Davis, Kenneth C. I don't know much about the Civil War. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.Print.Futch, Ovid. “Prison Life in Andersonville.” Prisoners of the Civil War. Ed. William B. Hesseltine. Kent:Kent State UP, 1962. Print.Hyde, Solon. “Andersonville.” The civil war. Evanston: Nextext, 2000. Print.Reeder, Red. The history of the Civil War. New York: Meredith, 1968. Print.Rees, Bob. The civil war. Chicago: Heinemann, 2012. FolletShelf. Network. November 18, 2013.Savage, Douglas J. Prison Camps in the Civil War. Philadelphia: Chelsea, 2000. Print.Turner, Thomas R. 101 Things You Didn't Know About the Civil War. Avon: Adams, 2007.Print.