Third Party Press

Letter from Sachsenhausen concentration camp

BigShell

Senior Member
I recently came into a small collection of military documents and propaganda. This letter intrigued me as it appears to have come from Sachsenhausen. I am looking for translation help. I would use translation software, but the script is making it difficult to decipher the letters. If anyone wants to take a stab at it it would be much appreciated!

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I recently came into a small collection of military documents and propaganda. This letter intrigued me as it appears to have come from Sachsenhausen. I am looking for translation help. I would use translation software, but the script is making it difficult to decipher the letters. If anyone wants to take a stab at it it would be much appreciated!

View attachment 243635View attachment 243636
A guy named Jozef Bielawski wrote to his darling/wife in Zagorzyce because he did not receive news from her. He says he is fine and hopes he will be freed.
 
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Hello BS,

Just like all other concentration camp and prison letters/postcards they are heavily censored and basically all of them have the same text on them and in big script like ordered, there was a maximum of words that could be used: I'am in good condition, I haven't received your letter(s), in this case he also received 15RM from Janka two weeks earlier, please keep writing, I hope everything at home is fine.
Bielawska was one of the many Polish inmates in KL Sachsenhausen; I have googled is name in connection with Sachsenhausen but it gave no matching hits; I think the research projects ends here.

Cheers,
Peter
 
Thank you gents for your input. This is the first letter I’ve seen of this kind, I never would’ve guessed that the camps allowed outgoing letters from prisoners. However, what you mention about the censorship make perfect sense. What does something like this usually sell for?
 
Thank you gents for your input. This is the first letter I’ve seen of this kind, I never would’ve guessed that the camps allowed outgoing letters from prisoners. However, what you mention about the censorship make perfect sense. What does something like this usually sell for?

I believe Peter has posted several? and a few others too? Anyway it makes perfect sense in trying to hide/keep the scheme going. They seem to be very standard stock as Peter mentioned above. All is fine. How are things back home? Very controlled obviously.
 
"Ich hoffe auch dass ich nicht entlassen werde
und dann für euch verdienen werde."


I hope I wont get released and earn you some money?
 
"Ich hoffe auch dass ich nicht entlassen werde
und dann für euch verdienen werde."


I hope I wont get released and earn you some money?

A grammer mistake, he hopes to be released soon; rather normal, these letters had to be written in German and most inmates couldn't build up a sentence correct in German, this is also the reason why these are rather difficult to correctly translate literaly.
 
Thank you gents for your input. This is the first letter I’ve seen of this kind, I never would’ve guessed that the camps allowed outgoing letters from prisoners. However, what you mention about the censorship make perfect sense. What does something like this usually sell for?

The standard ones like this one are far from rare, the financial value is rather low if they aren't from a small prison camp or from special inmates like those that escaped for example.
They are collected by philatelist who look for examples of different (censor)stamps.
Just do a google search and you'll come across very similar examples for sale on various websites.
 

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