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DP-2 Card of Janaszewicz Paulina that was on July 24, 1945, transported by ambulance train from Bergen-Belsen Hospital to Lübeck. The DP-2 card was issued on the day of arrival at Swedish Transit Hospital where all former inmates were registered and hospitalised until the day of departure. In the left upper corner, there is DP-1 number from the very first registration in Bergen-Belsen. Another number, L-number 7827 in the upper right corner is the number from the Swedish Entry card (Inreseuppgift-kortet), see below, that was also filled in Lübeck. In the lower part DP-2 card, in red is the name of the White Boat "Kastelholm" and the day of departure, here July 25, 1945.
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| In Sweden, the authorities were not prepared for the reception of this so special group of Holocaust survivors. Grouping and regrouping of children took place for several months which was not the best for. The first regrouping took place upon the arrival to Malmö on July 26, 1945 (green stamp on the bottom of the card). On the right side of the Entry card of the girl Paulina Janaszewicz, 7 years old when WWII started there is a chronological list of 5 different camps and schools the little girl from Piotrków Trybunalski was. She was the only survivor of her family. |
"Holocaust Children in Sweden" survived in many cases several years in ghettos and more than one concentration camp. Most of them were liberated and brought to Sweden mainly by UNRRA mission White Boats.
Only a small fraction, one-fourth approximately 110+ were boys. Three-fourths were girls. Most probably the number of children at age 0-16 was approximately 500. Children below 16 (that were excluded as children) were often 2-3 years younger. That was due to the fact that certain age was a well-known survivor factor. Therefore, up to four variants of age might be found among the documents of the children survivors.
Most of the children were actually grouped at the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen and thereafter in the hospital that was organized by the Allies close to the concentration camp.
To start with there was a Kinderheim in the concentration camp in barrack number 211 that had two sections. In one section of it, there were "full orphans" and in the second section, there were children with mothers or other female family members. It is known that this particular structure of Kinderheim existed since children and children with mothers were brought to Bergen-Belsen from Ravensbrück and also, several boys, the youngest 2 1/2-year-old boy, Jidele, came from Buchenwald. Kinderheim group was increasing as several single children were found in the concentration camp area after the liberation and also due to the fact that numerous mothers placed at the other barracks died shortly after the liberation leaving their children alone. Researchers were until this is written never discussed this special situation.
I mentioned earlier, two medical doctors, one British and one Swedish were responsible for this group of children. They decided to send most of the children (and mothers) to Sweden at the same time in one group. To start with, the children went on a special, very last ambulance train from Bergen-Belsen to Lübeck Transit Hospital. Thereafter they went on the very last UNRRA boat S/S Kastelholmen that has been waiting for them in Lübeck harbor for a few days. Two days after arrival to Lübeck they boarded the last boat that left Lübeck on July 25, 1945.
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| After the registration, disinfection, and health check at the Lübeck Transit Hospitalchildren were transported to the very last UNRRA boat S/S Kastelholmen that has been waiting for them in Lübeck harbor for a few days. Two days after arrival to Lübeck they boarded the last boat that left Lübeck on July 25, 1945. Above are two pages from the passenger list of UNRRA White Boat S/S Kastelholm. Each passenger had a personal L-number, the number from the Swedish Entry card (Inreseuppgift-kortet). The same number was also filled in the top right corner of the DP-2 cards. Most of the listed perons on these two pages are children with Polish citizenship and numerous of them came from the Piotrków Trybunalski ghetto or Dandówka close to Sosnowiec. |
In Sweden, the authorities were not prepared for the reception of this so special group of Holocaust survivors. Grouping and regrouping took place for several months which was not the best for this so special group. The first regrouping took place upon the arrival to Malmö on July 26, 1945.
When the White Boat S/S Kastelholm arrived in Malmö on July 26, 1945, after one night at sea, all the passengers have to be registered and disinfected, and checked for lice. All these procedures were done on the day of arrival. The sick children were transferred directly to Nya Lungkliniken i Malmö. Thereafter, 20 older girls and mothers with small children were sent together with Hermina Kranzova, Annie Bonsel, and Ms Fernandes to Sundsgården, close to Helsingborg. Luba Tryszynska and the older girls were transferred to Bjärred (north of Malmö and the older boys from the group to a house in Gåsebäck also close to Helsingborg. Here Doctor's cards of mother and daughter Rubinowicz Mindla and Dora (Dorota) that were examined on July 27. 1945 at Sundsgården in Rååa.
