Plaszow
(pla-shof)
Concentration Camp
1942-1943
Jack was taken to this camp when he was thirteen on the outskirts of the Krakow Ghetto. He was taken and brought to a ghetto and clean it out of all valuables, furniture, and clothing left by the people during the day and they returned at night for roll call. One day while he was working he was assigned to clean out his old apartment. He found his clothes and felt something strange under the shoulder pads, his mother put money there and when no one was looking Jack took it. After returning to the camp Jack found is uncle and told him to help him hide the money. His uncle agreed but was soon assigned to digging ditches inside the camp grounds. One day in the camp Jack was told that his uncle was shot by the commandant of the camp and not only was he devastated but he also had no idea where the money was kept and it was now lost. The commandant of the camp, Amon Goth, was in charge of making sure all prisoners followed the rules. Prisoners were worked so hard that some would turn into what the prisoners called a Muselman (Someone who has given up and no longer fights to stay alive) Jack refused to be one of them and was determined to stay alive.
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Trzebinia
(tre-bina)
Concentration Camp
1944
While in Trzebinia Jack was forced to play the sick games of the Nazis, him and about forty other men were brought to a field with two posts one with a huge pile of rocks around it. They were to pick a rock and bring it to the second post, after the whole pile was around the other post, they were forced to move it back. Players were shot throughout the game for dropping their rock, going to slow, or falling down. The game continued until the numbers of players dropped to almost none. Usually the remaining "players" were shot, but because Jack was so strong they decided to keep him and continue putting him to work.
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Sachsenhausen
(zac-sen-howsen) Concentration camp
1945
Here Jack stumbled through the gates after the dreadful death march and was given one piece of bread and some soup. Soon after all prisoners had finished eating they were led to their barracks and were all stuffed in five to a bunk. Although no one was able to lay on their backs none of them seemed to care and they all fell asleep within ten minutes. The next morning they went to their routine roll call and then were brought to the labor section to break rocks into gravel and they did this everyday until they were deported to another camp.
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Bergen-Belsen
(byur-gen-belsen) concentration camp
1945
Again they were led into cattle cars and shipped here from Sachsenhausen. When they arrived the commandant looked at them and started choosing prisoners and because they were weak they were gunned down and killed. Jack along with the others were led to their barracks and were ordered not to work for a week which was extremely different compared to any of his past camps but it wasn't a trick. A week later they were put back to work chopping wood, breaking rocks, and building new camp buildings. Soon after Jack was transferred yet again to work in a new camp because he was healthier than the others .
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Buchenwald
(bu-ken-weld)
Concentration camp
1945
Jack was taken to Buchenwald and was assigned to the stone quarry where you carried rocks up a large hill instead of breaking them. If you got a rock that was to big and you dropped it you would be shot and if you got one too small you would be shot for being lazy. Jack continued to work everyday and do the same routine everyday until the prisoners were told they were being moved again because other camps needed workers and that they would be moved as each camp needed new workers.
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Gross-rosen
(goos-hosen)
Concentration camp
1945
Jack was loaded into the cattle cars once again but he says by that point he wasn't surprised by anything that happened anymore. He went to work but then one of the kapos came over and asked where his button was and it was missing. Prisoners got punished for the littlest things and one of those "little things" was missing a button. Jack ended up getting punished with twenty lashes. Soon enough after that they were deported to yet another camp.
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dachau
(da-khow)
Concentration Camp
1945
Jack and the other prisoners were forced to leave Gross-Rosen because the allies were too close so they were sent to Dachau. They didn't work here because it was all chaos, all the prisoners, and soldiers all in this area. The last night was all explosions and screams, Jack woke up to what he thought was roll call but went outside to see soldiers in green. One approached him and asked what his name was and for the first time in six years he said his name...Jack.
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