Samuel W. Holocaust testimony (HVT-3173) [videorecording] / interviewed by Michel Sobelman, May 12, 1995.

Kraków, Poland : Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, 1995.

1 videorecording (1 hr., 23 min.) : col.

Polish

This testimony is in Polish.

Videotape testimony of Samuel W., who was born in Kraków, Poland in 1913. He recalls attending a Polish school; cordial relations with non-Jews; picketing of Jewish stores; German invasion; being arrested with Poles and Jews in early September 1939; detention at Gestapo headquarters, then Montelupich prison; release of the non-Jewish prisoners; transfer to Troppau; encountering Gustaw Morcinek, a prominent Polish writer; transfer to Sachsenhausen some two years later; separation of Jews; a sadistic barrack commander; loss of toes due to severe cold; relations between prisoner groups; slave labor in a quarry; transfer to Gross-Rosen; frequent deaths and beatings; transfer to Auschwitz in 1942; working in Buna/Monowitz; selections; being tattooed; meeting and helping two friends from Kraków; becoming head of a kommando; a severe beating; transfer to Janina as punishment for smuggling food; return to Auschwitz; the death march in January 1945; escape; receiving help from a farmer; liberation by Soviet troops; returning to Kraków; unsuccessfully seeking relatives; help from Polish friends; and marriage. Mr. W. discusses many details of camp life and his state of mind; sharing his experiences with his children; reluctance to be videotaped; participation in ceremonies at Auschwitz; and membership in the Association of the Former Political Prisoners.

June 01, 2002

Samuel W. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-3173). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.

Samuel W. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-3173). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.

Oral histories (document genres)