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The color white indicates the number of Jews in that country prior to World War II.
The color blue indicates the number of Jews who managed to survive the war.
The color red indicates the number of Shoah victims for that country.
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[Page 8]
Nazi Germany decimated the Jewish population wherever it reached. Jewish libraries, institutions, learning centers were destroyed or burned. The few Jews who managed to escape destruction returned home at the end of the war. Their neighbors, especially in Eastern Europe, received them with bitter hostility. Some Jews were threatened or even killed for demanding the return of their homes. Pogroms aimed at Jews began to spread throughout Eastern Europe. The Jew began to feel as though the war against him continued. He who had hoped that Hitler's policy ended with his death began to feel uncertain. The Jews' safety was threatened. They had to move to the big cities where there were larger concentrations of Jews. This did not give them great comfort or peace of mind. Furthemore, they were lonely shadows of themselves, sole survivors of families with no hope. Many became Zionists and saw their hope in Palestine, while others wanted to leave Eastern Europe and find a safe haven. But the gates were closed to the Jews. Along came a small, illegal organization that told the Jew to leave his place and head west. They organized transports and led, smuggled and transported the Jews out of Eastern Europe. They came from all over, Poland Ukraine, Slovakia, Hungary, Lithuania, and Estonia. They all headed to the D.P. camps of Germany, Austria and Italy. About 250,000 D.P.'s lived in these camps by 1947. Most of them eventually left the camps and headed to Israel, the Americas and Australia.
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The color white indicates the number of Jews in that country prior to World War II. The color blue indicates the number of Jews who managed to survive the war. The color red indicates the number of Shoah victims for that country. |
Jewish D.P. camps in the American zone of occupied Germany
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With the end of World War Two, there were millions of slave laborers, camp laborers and concentration camp survivors that Germany and, to a certain extent, Italy had transported them to provide cheap labor. The Allies anticipated the problem and formed an organization, UNRRA to solve the problem. The United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) was founded in 1943 as an international relief agency. Later it became part of the United Nations. Its main task was to plan and execute the return of refugees from Germany.
Some others decided to return to Poland. Namely Alexander Bialywlos who later altered his name to White.He was born in Krosno., Poland and survived the war. He was liberated at the Gruennitz-Bruessau camp, Czechoslovakia, better known as the Schindler's camp, on May 8, 1945 by the Soviet armies. He was issued an identity paper stating that he was liberated from the camp Gruennitz-Bruessau camp. The document was written in Czech and German. “With a bottle of water, a bread and a piece of cloth, he was freed.[1] ” Bialywlos remembered, “I set out to the
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Liberated from Gruennitz-Bruessau camp |
nearby railway station.[2] I had no money. A train arrived and I boarded it. I took several trains since many of the bridges were damaged. Finally, I reached Prague, the capital of Czechoslovakia.At the Prague station, there was a stand of the American Red Cross that distributed hot soup. I rushed over and received some soup. The station was mobbed with refugees. A train arrived heading for Poland. I boarded it and finally reached Krakow where I found the Jewish community center that assisted me with some money, food and information. I was told not to return to Krosno since some Jews were killed there by Polish opponents of the present government, but I continued my trip and finally reached Krosno. I recognized the city but not the people. No Jew in sight. The city contained about 25% Jews in 1939. I recognised some non-Jewish residents of the city who informed me that there was a Jewish woman in town by the name of Mania Kalb. She survived the war with her little daughter. Her tiny apartment became the reception center for the few Jewish survivors that came to Krosno.
“There was no reception office in the city for returning Jewish or non-Jewish survivors. No information, no financial aid, no assistance with locating a job. Anti-Semitic hatred directed at the Jew was everywhere. To earn a few zlotys, I began to sell cigarettes on the black market. I was disgusted with my situation and a bit hopeless when a cousin of mine arrived from the Landsberg D.P. camp in the American zone in Germany. While talking about the perished families, he unpacked his suitcase loaded with goodies and cigarettes, a real fortune in Poland of the day. We sat and talked. I described to him the Jewish the situation in Krosno. He told me not to waste my time in Poland where there was nothing for me and to return with him to the Landsberg D.P. camp in Germany. I still had my liberation identity paper indicating that I was liberated from at the Gruennitz-Bruessau camp, Czechoslovaka. I settled my papers, packed the few things and headed to Czechoslovakia and then to the American zone in Germany.
The returning Jewish Shoah survivors from the labor and concentration camps did not receive a warm welcome. Most of their homes were occupied by other people. In many instances, the homes were destroyed and the businesses shattered. The local population was suspicious, cold and hostile. Jewish refugees who had hidden during the war found themselves knocking at the doors to their old homes only to be met, many times, with a punch in the face. Many Polish citizens occupied Jewish homes, often using illegal Nazi documents, and refused to acknowledge any Jewish claim to the properties. Finding nothing left for them, the survivors milled around the city looking for shelter, food, even a bit of bread. During this period attacks against these Jewish survivors were a daily occurrence. It is estimated that between 1944 and 1946, 650 to 1,200 Jews were murdered in Poland. These anti-Jewish activities forced the decision to leave Poland and return to the camps. The returnees had to smuggle their way out of Poland since many returnees had a paper issued at the liberation camp that was presented to the Polish authorities on entering Poland. Now they had regular Polish papers but no ability to leave Poland. Some returnees kept the old identification cards and were able to leave Poland with ease. Those that had merely Polish identities and wanted to leave the country contacted the the Brichah organisation or private smugglers to take them out of Poland and then to the D.P. camps in Austria or Germany. Only the arrivals that had camp discharge papers were granted food ration cards and lodgings. Many could not prove where they were during the war and were refused food. This affected most Jewish refugees who survived the war in the Soviet Union. The local Jewish D.P. officials, the JDC officials and other social Jewish organizations helped these new arrivals to exist.
The UNRRA organization was soon embroiled in a big fight with the D.P. inmates. Official identity cards were issued listing the nationality of the inmate. The Ukrainians resented being listed as Poles in spite of the fact that they lived in Poland until the war. Now they wanted to be listed as Ukrainians. The Polish government in London applied pressure to retain their Polish nationality. Fights erupted between the Polish and Ukrainian inmates. The Slovaks of the Eastern part of Slovakia refused to be listed as Russians although the area in question was seized by Russia after the war and declared part of the Soviet Union. The Jewish inmates refused to accept Polish, Hungarian, Czechoslovak nationality. They insisted on being listed as Jews. Britain seriously objected to this definition since Jewish nationality meant Palestine and Britain was determined to maintain the “White Paper” policies regarding Palestine, namely no Jewish migration to Palestine. Of course, Britain did not state the reason for the denial of Jewish nationality, but this was obvious. The ethnic or national conflicts between the various D.P. populations led to serious clashes and fights. UNRRA decided to create. where possible, D.P camps consisting of similar ethnic groups namely Polish D.P. camps. Inmates were slowly transferred between the various camps. The first Jewish D.P. camp was Feldafing D.P. camp. Others camps soon followed. The number of Jewish refugees in Germany and Austria kept increasing by the day, especially after the Kielce pogrom in Poland. Thousands of Polish Jews left Poland under the guidance of the Brichah organization. Jews from other East European countries also left their homes and headed to the D.P camps. By 1947, there were about 250,000 Jewish D.P.s in Germany, Austria and about 50,000 in Italy.[3]
As mentioned earlier, UNRRA refused to accept the new Jewish arrivals claiming that they were not in Germany or Austria during the war. There was another reason for the UNRRA position, namely British interests determined to stop the flow of Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe. Britain considered every Jewish arrival a potential immigrant to Palestine. She tried to stop all help to the new arivals in order to discourage Jews from leaving their homes
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in Eastern Europe. Furthemore, the Jews insisted on being identified as Jews meaning Jewish nationality. Britain objected to this definition and did everything in its power to discourage Jewish refugees namely refusing to grant food rations to the new arrivals.[5] This policy was sternly applied in the British zones of occupation.
Occupied Germany was divided into sectors; the American, the British, the Russian and the French. The capital city of Germany-Berlin located in the Soviet sector was also divided into four sections.
The American Occupation sector in Germany[6]
The American zone had the largest number of Jewish D.P. camps. At first it started with the Jewish Shoah survivors and gradually grew with the arrival of thousands of East European Jews, mainly Polish, who had survived the war in the Soviet Union. They fled their new homes for fear for their lives. Anti-Semitic acts and pogroms destroyed their confidence and they decided to head west. They were greatly assisted by the Brichah organization whose aim was to move all Jews to Palestine. This organization was well organized and coordinated the transports of Jews out of Poland, the Baltic areas, Slovakia and Ukraine. The transports were directed to Czechoslovakia and then to the D.P. camps in Germany and Austria. There was also a Polish-German route that reached Berlin, Germany.
President Truman was favorably disposed to the Jewish refugees in Germany and Austria. Besides, the same policy was also applied to Polish, Yugoslav and Ukrainian refugees. The United States Army followed these polices and permitted thousands of Jewish refugees to enter the American zone. General Patton was the only commander who tried to send Jewish refugees back to Poland. The issue received wide publicity in the New York press. Patton was highly reprimanded by his military commanders. The US army cooperated with the UNRRA organisation to maintain living conditions in the D.P. camps.
List of Jewish D.P. Camps in the American zone of Germany
Ainring
Amberg
Ansbach
Augsburg
Babenhausen
Bad Aibling
Bad Hersfeld
Bad Mergenheim
Bad Reichehall
Bad Wörihofen
Bamberg
Bayreuth
Bensheim
Berlin-Düppel
Berlin-Mariendorf
Cornberg
Dachau
Deggendorf
Dieburg
Dinkelsbühl
Eschenstruth
Eschwege
Feldafing
Föhrenwald
Frankfurt
Fritzlar
Fürth
Gabersee
Gauting
Heidenheim
Hersbruck
Hof
Hoggsmar
Kassel
K. Indersdorf
Lampertheim
Landsberg
Leipheim
Lindenfels
München Neu Freimann
Mittenwald
Passau
Pocking
Regensburg
Schauenstein
Straubling
Stuttgart
Trutzhain
Ulm
Wetzlar
Wildflecken
Ziegenhain
Below are more detailed descriptions of the camps, for some we found extensive records while others were limited to a few lines and some camps lacked all information. Most of the information was found in the Yivo Archives and the JDC files.[7]
Ainring Jewish D.P. Camp
Address: Ainring Flugplatz/AirfieldLeaders: Cwi Rosenwein, Chaim Lewin
Population:
300 (permanent), 250 (transit) Dezember/December 1945
316 (permanent), 1,028 (transit) März/March 1946
331 (permanent), 2,000 (transit) August 1946
2,965 (total) Dezember/December 1946
3,166 (total) Februar/February 1947
363 (permanent), 2,875 (transit) Juli/July 1947
371 (total) September 1947Opened:Winter 1945
Closed:Autumn 1947
Sports Clubs/Soccer Clubs:Bar Kochba Ainring, Hapoel Ainring
Cultural Institutions:Kindergarden, Elementary School and Vocational School
Religious Institutions:Kosher Kitchen
Camp Police:Yes
Sonstiges | Miscellaneous: Ainring was mainly a transit camp. Only around 300 people lived there for a longer period.
Amberg Jewish D.P. camp
Amberg, Bavaria, was liberated by the American forces. A D.P camp was established for Jewish refugees and Shoah survivors.
Amberg had an old Jewish community that was destroyed by the Nazis. Following the war, a Jewish displaced camp was established. With the establishment of the State of Israel, most Jewish inmates headed to Israel. The camp was closed.
Babenhausen- Jewish D.P. Camp
Babenhausen was a medium-sized Jewish displaced persons (D.P.) camp in the Frankfurt district of the American zone of occupation in Germany. During World War II, it had been a camp for Soviet prisoners of war. The dismal conditions of the camp were reported in a December 13, 1946, issue of the Eschwege D.P. camp newspaper, Undzer Hofenung [Our Hope]: This is the article:
“Housing conditions here [in Babenhausen] are horrible. They used to be stalls for the horses of the Third Reich; now they are homes for the surviving Jews. Jews did not want to leave the trains so as to have to move in here”.
The camp opened to Jews in September 29, 1946, when a train bearing 1,000 Jewish refugees from the Soviet Union arrived. When 1,200 more arrived two days later, the new residents lobbied the Army's Office on Jewish Affairs to protest the camp's conditions. Nevertheless, the camp remained open, and quickly reached a population of 3,026. It became a substantial community that earned a visit from Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion in late 1946. The residents of Babenhausen D.P. camp founded a Talmud Torah (religious elementary school) as well as a secular school. Babenhausen D.P. camp closed on September 6, 1949.
The US Army used the camp immediately after the war to hold prisoners of war. Thus, the camp did not open to Jews until September 29, 1946, when a train bearing 1,000 Jewish refugees from the Soviet Union arrived. When 1,200 more arrived two days later, the new residents lobbied the Army's Office on Jewish Affairs to protest the camp's conditions. Nevertheless, the camp remained open, and quickly reached a population of 3,026. It became a substantial community that earned a visit from Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion in late 1946. The residents of Babenhausen D.P. camp founded a Talmud Torah (religious elementary school) as well as a secular school.
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Bad Nauheim -Jewish orthodox Children's Center
No information available
Bad Reinhall Jewish D.P. Camp
Bad Reichenhall (D.P.camp was located near Salzburg in the American zone of occupation of Germany. The camp served as a large center for Jewish D.P.s between 1945 and its closing on July 31, 1951. In October, 1946, the camp population numbered roughly 6,000 Jews. Within the camp, life centered around the camp's daily newspaper, Der Morgn (The Morning), and the camp's schools, which included a Talmud Torah (religious elementary school) and a Yavneh (religious Zionists) school.
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In 1946, Bad Reichenhall functioned as an important station along the Brihah emigration routes. Groups of Jewish refugees traveling between Germany and Austria secretly made their way through Bad Reichenhall en route to ports in Italy, where they hoped to board ships that would transport them to Palestine or the United States.
Bad Reichenhall played an important role in the history of the Sh'erit ha-Pletah when it hosted the second and third Congresses of Liberated Jews in the American zone of Germany. From February 25 to 27, 1947, and again from March 30 to April 1, 1948, representatives of all the Jewish D.P. camps of American-occupied Germany gathered in Bad Reichenhall to discuss issues of political, cultural, and social significance.
Bad Wohnshofen Jewish D.P Camp
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The camp was in the American zone in Germany. The camp closed in 1948. Life concentrated around the schools. political activities and local sports.`
Bamberg Jewish D.P. Camp
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A Jewish D.P. camp was established in Bamberg by the American army. Thousands of Jewish refugees assembled in this camp. A large ORT training school was established to provide the survivors with skills. The older survivors were provided with working tools and materials while the younger were taught trades. The JDC was active in the camp and provided supplementary assistance to those in need. The camp was closed with the establishment of the State of Israel.
Benshein Jewish D.P. Camp
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Bensheim is located near Frankfurt. It was first used as a D.P camp for non-Jewish refugees mainly Poles. In August, 1946 it was converted into a Jewish D.P. Camp.
The camp supported a thriving religious educational system that included a cheder (traditional religious school for young children) and a yeshiva (religious academy), which were operated by the Klausenberger chasidim. Bensheim also maintained a Talmud Torah (religious elementary school), a synagogue, a 30-bed hospital, a sports club, a theater group, and, beginning in April, 1947, a kindergarten. In October 1946, the Jewish population totaled 1,196.
Bensheim D.P. camp closed on April 6, 1949.
Berlin -Jewish D.P. Camps
The city of Berlin had three D.P. Camps
Berlin was the end of the Brichah road that started in Poland and crossed the port city of Szczecin into the Russian occupied zone of Germany. This was a short road but dangerous. Russian patrols frequently sent the Jewish refuges back to Poland or worse handed them over to the Polish security foces. Sometimes bribes worked and at other times, the refugees had to cross the border again. At first it was a trickle of Jewish refugees who decided to leave Poland. Then it became a massive exit involving thousands of Jewish refugees. Once they arrived in Berlin, the Brichah led them to the American zone, The British and French sectors in Berlin directed the new Jewish arrivals to the American sector. Then they were moved to the D.P. camps in the American zone in Germany. During the Berlin Airlift when the Russians closed all roads leading to Berlin, all Jewish D.P.s were evacuated to Frankfurt and and then to various camps in Germany.
To get to Berlin one had to cross the Russian zone of occupation in Germany. Berlin had two Jewish D.P. camps namely the Duppel Center D.P. camp and the Mariendorf D.P. camp. Both camps constantly received new Jewish refugees from the East namely Poland. The Brichah organized transports that assembled in Szczecin, Poland on the German-Polish border and crossed the Russian zone of Germany to reach Berlin where they crossed to the American sector of the city.
Düppel (Berlin) Jewish D.P. camp
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Düppel was located in the American sector of Berlin. In January, 1946, the US Army established a large displaced persons (D.P.) camp to accommodate the Jewish refugees fleeing from Poland in the wake of anti-Jewish violence, many of whom subsequently made their way to the American Zone in Germany. At its
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peak, in September 1946, the camp, which was known as Düppel Center, housed 5,130 Jewish displaced persons. It eventually had its own elementary and religious schools, a sports club, a theater group, and a Yiddish-language newspaper. In July, 1948, during the Berlin Blockade, Düppel Center was hastily evacuated and closed, with most of the residents being flown out to Frankfurt am Main. Mariendorf was a mid-size camp, with a population of about 3,000. The Camp had a large vocational training center where the refugees were taught skills and trades namely in dressmaking, metal trades and auto mechanics .The ORT school expanded in the camp and reached 100 students, training in dressmaking, men garment cutting, underwear making, women's dresses cutting, metal trades, radio technology and dental technology. The two Berlin D.P. camps were the first stop for all those who illegally crossed the eastern border of Germany. From Berlin they would be illegally transported to American zone camps in the south of Germany and later to Palestine. The camp had a school with 400 students, a yeshiva with 20 students and a kidergarten with 170 children. The camp had a kosher kitchen that could feed 900 people.The camp was opened in July, 1946 and closed in 1948. The average population of the camp was about 3,250 people.
ORT ran vocational training in two D.P. camps located in the Berlin district- Schlachtensee (also known as the Duppel Center) and Mariendorf, both in the American occupation zone in cutting, underwear making, women's dresses cutting, metal trades, radio technology and dental technology.
Cham Jewish D.P. Camp
Leaders: Ernst Nebel, Abraham ZendelA temporary transit camp (tent city) for up to 5,000 persons existed from August until October, 1946 in Michelsdorf (district of Cham). Most of the adult camp inhabitants were transferred to Wetzlar, the children to Rosenheim or Dornstadt.Population:
250 November, 1945
263 March, 1946
255 July, 1946
256 November, 1946
258 February, 1947
262 April, 1947
266 September, 1947
198 May, 1948
87 February, 1949Opened: 1945
Closed: 1949
Sports Clubs/Soccer Clubs: Makabi Cham, Hapoel Cham
Religious Institutions: Prayer Room, Talmud Torah School, Kosher Kitchen
Sonstiges | Miscellaneous: UNRRA/Jewish Hospital
Dachau D.P. Camp
The concentration camp of Dachau was liberated by the American Army. t the time, there were 5,800 inmates. Soon confrontations erupted between the Jewish and non-Jewish D.P.s mainly Poles. The Poles insisted that the Polish Jews register as Polish citizens. The Jews refused. The synagogue in the camp was destroyed. The camp had about 800 Jewish Shoah survivors. Most of them were transferred to the Feldafing D.P. camp. Brenn Lieutenant Smith commander of the Dachau D.P., and Chaplain Awraham Klausner and Max Braude helped with the transfer.
Deggendorf- Jewish D.P. Camp[8]
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Deggendorf is a town in Bavaria. It is located on the left bank of the Danube, approximately in the middle between the cities of Regensburg and Passau. It was located in the American Zone of Germany.
Deggendorf was the site of a displaced persons camp for Jewish Refugees after World War II. Of the 500 inmates of the concentration
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camp established in Deggendorf on February 20, 1945, 400 were Jews. In 1946, 700 Jewish refugees were temporarily accommodated in a transit camp at Deggendorf. Eventually, it housed approximately 2,000 who created a cultural center that included two newspapers, the Deggendorf Center Review and Cum Ojfboj, a theater group, synagogue, mikvah, kosher kitchen, and more. The camp even issued its own currency known as the Deggendorf Dollar. Many of the camp's residents were survivors of the concentration camp at Theresienstadt. The D.P. camp had a soccer team named “Hakoah” The camp closed in June, 1949.
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Dieburg - Jewish D.P. Camp
Address: Schloss Fechenbach/Fechenbach Castle, Bischöfliches Konvikt/Episcopalian Seminary, SA-Siedlung/SA housing areaLeader: Klotz
Population:
866 November, 1946
917 January, 1947
843 May, 1947
832 September, 1947
918 January, 1948
815 May, 1948
641 Oktober/October, 1948
421 März/March, 1949Eröffnet/Opened: Oktober/October, 1946
Closed: Mai/May, 1949
Sports Clubs/Soccer Clubs: Hapoel Dieburg
Cultural Institutions: Kindergarten, Elementary School, Berufsschule/Vocational School
Religious Institutions: Synagogue, Talmud Torah School, Yeshiva
Eschenstruth - Jewish D.P. Camp
Address: Eschenstruth
Population:
478 February, 1947
1,633 May, 1947
1,652 July, 1947
1,631 September, 1947
1,621 January, 1948
1,453 May, 1948
1,285 October, 1948Opened: February, 1947
Closed: March, 1949
Sports Clubs/Soccer Clubs: Stern Rochelle
Cultural Institutions: Elementary School
Religious Institutions: Prayer Room, Talmud Torah School, Yeshiva
Eschwege Jewish D.P. Camp
The D.P. camp of Eschwege, a former German air force base in the Frankfurt district of the American-occupied zone, became a displaced persons (D.P.) camp in January, 1946. The camp housed approximately 1,770 Jews at the time of its opening and its young population quickly developed a revitalized community, evidenced by the opening of a kindergarten with 50 children by April, 1947. In contrast, the elementary school had only 30 students at that time. It also had a Talmud Torah, a cheder, and a yeshiva, as well as a “Bet Ya'akov” religious high school for girls.
Religious life was also celebrated in the camp's several synagogues and a mikvah. It had a sports club with 100 players, a movie theater, a 500-seat auditorium, and a theater group. The camp published the newspaper “Undzer Hofenung” (Our Hope).
At its peak, on October 19, 1946, the camp housed roughly 3,355 Jews. It closed on April 26, 1949.
Eggenfelden Jewish D.P. Camp
Eggenfelden D.P. camp was established in late 1945. The camp's inhabitants lived in requisitioned houses located in the town of Eggenfelden, fifty-five kilometers southwest of Passau in Bavaria in the American zone of Germany. The camp was overcrowded with one or two families in a room, which often, at the same time, served as a kitchen. One house was often shared by up to fifty people. In mid 1947, the camp had 727 inhabitants, three quarters of whom were between the ages of seventeen and forty-five. It maintained a kindergarten, a primary school for fifty children and evening classes in English and Hebrew.
ORT school in the camp was attended by 105 students, both teenagers and adults. The courses offered included electrical engineering, machine knitting, auto mechanics, dressmaking. Classes were initially taught mainly by professional German teachers who were later replaced by Jewish instructors. The director of the school was William Tannenzapf.
Feldafing Jewish D.P. Camp
Feldafing displaced persons camp in Bavaria was the first D.P. camp exclusively for liberated Jewish concentration camp prisoners. It was later used by Jewish refugees from East European countries. The camp was located in Feldafing's Höhenberg.The camp was opened by the United States Army on May 1, 1945 as an emergency measure to house mostly Hungarian Jews trapped on a transport near Feldafing. The transport was heading to the Tyrolean areas where they were to be killed by awaiting S.S. soldiers. The war was near its end. The Wermacht commander of the train started delaying until the United States military forces arrived on the scene. They immediately began to administer help and sent serious cases to be hospitalized. The rest to the Hitler Youth school in Feldafing . The German Train Commander and two female guards, recognized as having helped the prisoners' survival, were given freedom and living quarters along with the liberated prisoners. In charge of the camp was First Lieutenant Irving J. Smith, a Jewish soldier and peacetime attorney.
The Feldafing D.P. camp was a large camp with many buildings and facilities for the Hitler Youth.The population of the camp were all Jews, most from Hungary. The large camp buildings were set up as a hospital complex ready to receive German wounded. A large red cross was painted on each of their roof. One of the barracks was put immediately use as a hospital for a large number of German sick and wounded. Other buildings were also had treatment facilities for lesser cases. The wounded came from the massacre at Pocking and a mistaken allied aircraft strafing.
Educational and religious life flourished in Feldafing. In addition to Feldafing's secular elementary and high school systems, the camp's religious community founded several schools, including a Talmud Torah (religious elementary school), a yeshiva (religious academy), and several seminaries including Bet Medrash Lita (Lithuania) and Bet Medrash Ungarn (Hungary). Feldafing also had a rabbinical council that supported its religious office, an agency that held considerable influence within the camp. The camp's extensive library also had a noteworthy religious book collection. Secular instruction was available for adults at an evening school, an ORT vocational training school, and a nursing school.
Housed in a separate kinderblock of 450 children and adolescents, many of Feldafing's youngsters organized into “kibbutzim” groups interested in aliyah to Eretz Israel. These included secular kibbutzim like “Shayeret Zvi” and “Zerubavel,” and religious kibbutzim such as “Chafetz Chaim” and “Ohel Sarah.” Several newspapers were published in Feldafing, including Dos Fraje Wort (The Free Word) and Dos Jiddishe Wort (The Jewish Word). Theater troupes such as the “Partisans” and “Habima” entertained the camp population. Camp residents also organized an orchestra. The theatre troupe, “Amchu” [Yiddish: your people], was sponsored by the camp's Jewish Workers Committee. General Dwight D. Eisenhower personally inspected the living conditions of Feldafing in September, 1945. David Ben-Gurion visited the camp. Ben-Gurion's initial visit to the camp was in October, 1945. The camp also had a judicial court that handled cases of Jews who cooperated with the Germans. In 1946, about 4,000 Jews lived at Feldafing and by Passover, 1951, 1,585 Jewish D.P.s remained in the camp. Feldafing Jewish D.P. Camp issued money bearing the inscription “Series of 1946.” Notes were circulated in denominations of 25 and 50 cents, $1, $5 and $10. Feldafing cemetery: A fence divided the Christian part from the Jewish cemetery with a memorial plus many tombstones, some of them decorated according to East European tradition. The camp closed in 1951.
Fohrenwald Jewish D.P. Camp
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Föhrenwald is located in the section now known as Aldram in Bavaria, Germany. Following the war, it was in the American zone of occupation. It was one of the largest displaced persons camps in post-World War II, Europe and the last to close, in 1957. The camp facilities were originally built in 1939 by IG Farben Industrial Company as housing for its employees at the several munitions factories that it operated in the vicinity.[2] During the war it was used to house slave laborers. In June 1945, the camp was appropriated by the US Army administration of postwar Germany's American sector, for the purpose of housing international refugees. The camp's initial population comprised of refugees of Jewish, Yugoslavian, Hungarian, and Baltic origin. On 3 October, 1945, General Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered that Föhrenwald be made an exclusively Jewish D.P. camp, after he had found living conditions at the Feldafing D.P. camp unacceptable.
From 1946 to 1948, Föhrenwald grew to become the third largest D.P. camp in the American sector, after Feldafing and Landsberg. By January, 1946, its population had reached 5,600. Many couples got married there. The birth rate in 1946 stood at 70-80 births per thousand, about double that of countries in the developing world. The camp's director, Henry Cohen, an army officer, went to great lengths to provide for the residents' welfare. Assisting Cohen in the camp's administration and operation was a Camp Committee whose members were elected from among candidates representing a range of political parties.
Cohen encouraged adult education and vocational training. A school was established for youngsters. A newspaper was printed, anda yeshiva was opened. One of the better known residents of the camp was Rabbi Yekusiel Yehudah Halberstam, a scion of the Sandzer Hasidut. He attracted many Sandzer Hassidim and Fohrenwald became the center for Hasidic Jewry in the American sector of Germany.
During the early years of the camp's operation, residents mounted several protest campaigns against Allied policy, particularly regarding the restrictions on Jewish immigration to Mandatory Palestine. The Zionist youth movements organized communal groups called kibbutzim for training young pioneers.
A tuberculosis epidemic swept through the camp in the summer of 1946, and prompted the establishment of a “Committee of Jewish Tubercular Patients”. The committee became an advocate for those residents who were unwilling or unable to
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leave Germany. In 1951, the West German government took over administration of the camp, while the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee maintained a presence there until 1954. By that time, the remaining residents of other camps that were closed were transferred to Föhrenwald which continued in operation until 1957.
Frankfurth-Zeilisheim Jewish D.P. Camp
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The Frankfurth-Zelisheim was a Jewish D.P near the city of Frankfurt. It was located in the American zone of occupation. The camp consisted of small homes that were requisitioned by the American Army and settled with Jewish refugees. The camp was also known as Zeilsheim. The camp was very active politically and held many protest marches and rallies against British policies in Palestine. The camp was visited by American army officials to see that the D.P.s get fair treatment. David Ben Gurion, head of the Jewish Agency in Palestine visited the camp. The camp maintained a theatrical group, a jazz orchestra, a synagogue and two soccer teams namely the “ Hashmonaim club” that was one of the better soccer clubs amongst the Jewish D.P. camps. The Hapoel soccer club was also very active. The camp also had a library. The camp published two Yiddish newspapers; “ Unterwegs” or in transit and “ Unzer Mut” or our courage. In October, 1946, its population reached about 3,570 residents. The camp was closed November 15, 1948.
Fritzlar - Jewish D.P. Camp
Adresse | Address: Watter-KaserneVorsitzende | Leader:
Bewohner | Population:
1,200 November, 1946
1,057 Januar/January, 1947
1,001 April, 1947
988 Juli/July, 1947
938 Januar/January, 1948
867 Mai/May, 1948
833 Oktober/October, 1948Eröffnet | Opened: 1946
Geschlossen | Closed: 1949
Sport-/Fußballvereine | Sports Clubs/Soccer Clubs: Hapoel Fritzlar, Elizur Fritzlar
Kultureinrichtungen | Cultural Institutions: Volksschule/Elementary School, Berufsschule/Vocational School
Religiöse Einrichtungen | Religious Institutions: Betstube/Prayer Room, Religionsschule (Cheder)/Talmud Torah School, Ritualbad (Mikwe)/Ritual Bath
Lagerpolizei | Camp Police:ja/yes
Sonstiges | Miscellaneous: Lagerkrankenhaus/Camp Hospital
Fuerth Jewish D.P. Camp
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The American Army established a D.P. camp for Jewish survivors in 1945.
Fuerth had several small D.P. camps that were lumped together. Some basic facts about the camp:
Address: Hardhöhe (1945), Finkenschlag (1946)Leaders: Mojsze Birowicz (Hardhöhe), Emil Kroo (Finkenschlag)
Population:
850 Dezember/December, 1945 (Hardhöhe)
1,350 March (Hardhöhe + Finkenschlag)
790 July, 1946
750 December, 1946
724 July, 1947
717 September, 1947
563 January, 1948
665October, 1948
521 March, 1949Eröffnet | Opened: Hardhöhe /October, 1945, Finkenschlag /January, 1946
Closed: Hardhöhe /March, 1946, Finkenschlag Summer, 1949
Sports Clubs/Soccer Clubs: Makabi Fürth, Hapoel Fürth
Cultural Institutions: Kindergarten, Elementary School, Vocational School, Library
Religious Institutions: Prayer Room, (Cheder)/Talmud Torah School, Kosher Kitchen
Gauting-Jewish D.P. Camp
Gauting was a TB sanatorium for D.P. patients in the first stage of their treatment, situated near Munich. During the war it served as a German Air Force hospital. Most of the original patients in Gauting were Dachau Shoah survivors. The camp housed on average 500 patients, the vast majority of them Jewish. As part of the rehabilitation process, Gauting D.P. patients often attended ORT courses. The work was divided into two groups 'occupational therapy' and 'vocational training'. Occupational therapy was applied to students who were still in bed. They spent one or two hours a day doing handicraft work. Vocational training was aimed at students at a later stage of therapy. Those students attended classes similar to those in a regular ORT school. The most popular subject taught at Gauting was radio technology, with thirty-eight students. Patients who attended this course and were moved for the final stage of the therapy to other sanatoriums which provided ORT training were expected to continue their course work there.
Giebelstadt Jewish D.P. camp
Following 1945, a Jewish D.P. camp was established. It reached a population of 1,700 Jews including 500 children. The camp was closed in 1948.Most of the Jewish D.P.'s went to Israel. A Jewish community existed in the city following the war that consisted of German Jewish survivors.
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