Elmira barracks were built at the beginning of the war as a general recruiting depot, but in July, 1864, Division No. 3, of the barracks, called after wards Camp Chemung, was converted into a prison camp. Camp Chemung was forever to be known by the Confederate prisoners who were held there as simply "Helmira".  Camp Chemung was situated on the Chemung River bank a mile and a quarter west of the town. The site was believed to be healthy; it was level, and having a sandy soil resting on a layer of coarse gravel a few feet below the surface, affording good underground drainage. Good water was obtained by two wells , and any deficiency was supplied from the river. Latrines and baths were not at first provided. Drainage was by means of pits dug to the porous subsoil. The sinks (latrines) were covered pits, which were filled up when necessary.

The prison camp was there for only 369 days, (July 6, 1864- July 11, 1865), yet it had the highest death rate, per capita, of any prison camp, north or south, 24 percent. 12,123 Confederate prisoners of war were guests at the infamous camp. Unfortunately 3,000 of these POW's never made it out alive. The prison was located between the Chemung River and a one-acre lagoon of water, called Foster's Pond. The pond was a backwash from the river and served as a latrine as well as a garbage dump. Prison buildings were located on the higher northern bank of Foster's Pond. The lower southern level, known to flood easily, later became a hospital area for hundreds of smallpox and diarrhea victims.

The prison was conceived on May 15,1864, when Adjutant General E. D. Townsend reported several empty barracks could be used to house a large number of "Rebels" recently captured. Col William Hoffman, Commissary General of Prisoners wrote to the first commandant of the prison, Lt. Col. Seth Eastman on May 19th,1864 that he had heard the site would hold 10,000 prisoners. Eastman replied on May 23rd that the barracks could easily hold 4,000, with plenty of room for an additional 1,000. Hoffman, on June 22 tells Eastman, "to make the area, being enclosed by a fence, enough to accommodate, in barracks and tents, 10,000 prisoners." By the end of July  4,424 prisoners were packed into the compound with another 3,000 en-route. The total number leaped to 9,600 by mid-August.

Citizens and tourists to Elmira will find the city a beautiful one, full of many family-minded activities. Most of the cities citizens however are completely unaware of the camp and the Confederate prisoners that were held there 145 years ago. The camp is all gone now, except for a flagpole that stands as a lone reminder to the most important time in our nations history, the American Civil War.