Can you imagine this school, the Gustav Wiederkehr School, as a place of immense suffering? This is the KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen. It is a memorial site with a dark past. From September 1944 to March 1945, this was a subcamp of the Natzweiler concentration camp.
Over one thousand prisoners were housed here. Almost all were Polish men and boys. They were arrested during the Warsaw Uprising in August 1944. The German occupiers deported them to Dachau and then to Mannheim. Here at the KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen, they were forced to work for Daimler-Benz. They faced terrible conditions.
After the war, the camp’s history faded from public memory. It was almost forgotten. But in 1979, the Stadtjugendring brought attention to the camp’s existence. They advocated for a memorial at this authentic site.
The KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen officially opened on November 12, 1990. It became only the second memorial for a Natzweiler subcamp. It was also one of the first memorials in Baden-Württemberg.
The KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen documents the subcamp’s history. It explains the Nazi concentration camp system. The memorial offers information about the Warsaw Uprising. It remembers the victims of the Sandhofen concentration camp.
A permanent exhibition exists in the school’s basement. It opened in November 1990. You can visit every third Sunday of the month except August. Groups and school classes can visit by appointment. Admission and guided tours are free.
The KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen is supported by several organizations. These include KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen e.V., MARCHIVUM, and Stadtjugendring Mannheim e.V.. MARCHIVUM oversees the memorial’s organization and research.
The memorial focuses on historical and political education. It emphasizes encounters with survivors and German-Polish relations. Since 1989, former prisoners from Warsaw have been invited to Mannheim. The organization arranges excursions to Warsaw.
The KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen also collaborates with other memorial sites. It is a founding member of the Landesarbeitsgemeinschaft der Gedenkstätten. The memorial is also part of the Verbund der Gedenkstätten.
Each year, around 1,400 people visit the KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen. Many are students on class trips. The Netzwerk für Demokratie und Courage also conducts project days here. A history club for elementary students is offered at the school.
The KZ-Gedenkstätte Sandhofen stands as a reminder of a dark chapter. It promotes understanding. It fosters remembrance. The memorial ensures that these atrocities will never be forgotten.