Camp Kilmer and the Hungarians (1956 to 1957)

The New Jersey Army camp that welcomed refugees from the Hungarian revolution.

A Cold War welcome

After Soviet forces crushed the Hungarian revolution in November 1956, about 200,000 Hungarians fled, most to Austria. The United States took in tens of thousands. Many flew or sailed to Camp Kilmer, an Army post in New Jersey, which became their reception center.

A new tool

To admit them quickly, the administration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower used the attorney general's parole authority, a tool that would be used again for Cubans and Indochinese.

Connected stories

Tibor Nagy came to the United States from Hungary as a political refugee in 1957. See also Hungary.