The experiences of a Jewish woman from Latvia in the camps in Riga, Stutthof and Toruń

Ela Wowsi, born in 1898 in Subala in Latvia, lived in Dyneburg, pharmacist.

The Germans entered Dyneburg on June 26, 1941. On June 29, they already announced that all men were to be taken. (The Jewish population in Dyneburg was from 10,000-14,000.) Those who were assembled were arrested and liquidated over the course of 2 weeks. This is how the Germans began their Schreckensherrschaft 1Note 1: Schreckensherrschaft (German) – reign of terror. Only doctors and pharmacists were released. The rest, about 6,000, were moved on July 26 to the ghetto outside of town. They lived in former artillery barracks in stables in terribly sanitary conditions. After a while, Jews were concentrated there from the entire area. The total number was 7,200. They were caught and shot in groups of 5,000 and 1,000 from the ghetto. The approximately 1,200 who remained were put in prison. On November 9, 1941, most of the working families were taken, who up to that time had been protected, and on May 1, 1942, the final liquidation of the ghetto began by means of shooting people on the spot. Those who were working for the Germans that day remained alive, about 380-400 people. They worked at various German Einheits 1Note 1: Einheit (German) – unit (military) in Dyneburg until October 1943. I was not faring badly. The Jews cooked for themselves, received 120 g of bread, from time to time butter, or sugar, salt etc. In October, they were taken to Riga to the electrotechnical factory, [where] parts [were made] for cables, radios, etc. at the AEG Allgemeine Elektrotechnische Genossenschaft. They were divided into sections, they worked on 3 shifts. Others worked for 11 hours from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. without any breaks (only ½ hour for lunch).

The SS Oberscharführer and Blitzmädel 1Note 1: Blitzmädel (German) – girl with the lightning emblem, female Wehrmacht auxiliary (Wehrmachthelferin), in concentration camps the SS auxiliary (SS‑Helferin). did not treat them badly. Jewish women of all nationalities were concentrated in the Riga camp, from the Czech lands, Hungary, Poland, Lithuania, Germany, etc. Only one German woman was in charge of all of them. They got 250 g of bread, some marmalade or alternately a piece of fat, a little sugar, margarine, sausage, or horse meat. Once a day there was a some soup, and coffee twice a day. The Jewish kitchen stole from them, taking their food for their own needs, exchanging it with Aryans for other things, etc. The work site was across from their room. The sanitary conditions were very good, warm shower, often Entlausung 1Note 1: Entlausung - delousing, light, warm, in their free time they read, played cards. A couple times they had evenings of poetry readings, singing in Yiddish. The Blitzerki 1Note 1: Blitzerki - Blitzmädel also attended them.

In October 1944, they were suddenly transported to Stutthof (Durchgangslager).6Note 6: Stutthof – at present Sztutowo. Durchgangslager (German) – transit camp. For a week, they traveled by truck in conditions that were lamentable. Near Gdańsk, the Gestapos beat them when they were getting out of the trucks. They were kept at Stutthof for 1 month. The Jewish women from Poland and Hungary - Blockälteste 6Note 6: Blockälteste – block elder. beat them, and the Jewish women from the Innendienst 6Note 6: Innendienst – internal service in the blocks beat them as well. In the narrow bunk beds, four women would sleep together, there was filth everywhere. The harassment got to the point where they were not allowed to leave the barracks to take care of their physiological needs. They were kept for hours at roll calls for no reason. They did not work at all. The camp had a crematorium as well. Their food consisted of coffee twice a day, one liter of soup, 300 g of bread (some margarine or marmalade occasionally). There were Jews here from all over the world. There were also Aryans there. The whole camp had about 40,000 prisoners. There were 600 people to a barracks. Leaving the barracks was forbidden. Contact with the Aryan world was banned.

After a month, they took 300 people to Toruń to work in the electrotechnical factory. There were already about 200 camp inmates there. In Toruń they had very bad conditions. The Oberscharführer beat them for no reason, they were starving. A beating with club (25 blows) was an everyday occurrence. People’s hair was cut off for the smallest offence. Work in the AEG in Toruń was supervised by Latvians. They treated Jews very badly. They reported the most minor infractions against camp law to the Oberscharführer.

Camp authorities: SS OberscharführerSS Unterscharführer (administrator) normal SS soldiers as camp guards

Blitzmädel supervised during work a Jewish Lagerältester 9Note 9: Lagerältester – camp elder Jewish Blockälteste Jewish "Polizei" - 2-3 women 12 people were employed in the kitchen.

The camp consisted of an enormous square surrounded by barbed wire which was made up of 5 blocks, and one that was not yet finished. Women lived in 4 barracks, over 100 to a barrack. The kitchen and supply room was in the fifth. A Waschraum10Note 10: Waschraum - washroom, shoemakers’ workshop and laundry were set up in the sixth. The Häftlinge 10Note 10: Häftlinge - prisoners wore gray prison clothing and underwear, numbers that were assigned back in Stutthof. The barracks were built of boards, one store high. Triple bunk beds were put in them in rows, without any bed linens. One blanket and straw mattress were assigned to 4 women. They worked for 8 hours a day with the cables, and then they shoveled snow and helped in the kitchen.

There were 2 work halls. The first was in the camp, the second was in the Stadthalle 12Note 12: Stadthalle – hall in the town in town. People worked for 12 hours a day in the second hall. Those who worked 8 hours a day

also had to work on Sundays. Part of the first barracks was used for the hospital. The doctor was a Jewish woman. The SS had 3 Jewish cooks for their needs. They treated them better than the others. In the morning, they were woken up with a shout of: Aufstehen! Apell! 12Note 12: Aufstehen, Apell – stand up, roll call They were counted, and if the Oberscharführer was in a good mood, they were sent to work. If he was in a bad mood, he kept them for hours in the field. It was the same with those who were returning from the Nachtschicht.12Note 12: Nachtschicht – night shift In the evening, 100 women would return from the Stadthalle and 300 from the camp. It was always terribly crowded in the barracks. At nine, the lights were turned off.

When the Soviets were approaching, the Oberscharführer assembled them. They were given bread for the journey, sausage and half a package of margarine and they left on foot. They walked for 50 kilometers to Bromberg, on the way many escaped, and the Oberscharführer no longer paid any attention. They marched to Germany half-dead through the January snows. The Germans and Blitzerki also escaped on foot. The sick were moved on sleds, which Jews pulled. In Bromberg, almost everyone ran away, taking advantage of the confusion was prevailing among the Germans.

Lewinówna taking the record (Lublin)