| Stutthof |
| Established: September 2, 1939 Evacuated: January 25, 1945 Liberated: May 10, 1945 by Soviets Total Inmates: 115,000 - 120,000 Inmates at one time: 3,000 - 52,000 Total Deaths: 65,000 - 85,000 Subcamps: 22 |
| Source: Edelheit, Feig Go to Previous Camp - Sobibor Go to Next Camp - Treblinka Return to Fast Links Return to Home Page Go to Concentration Camps |
|
| Stutthof was established in Poland as a civilian internment camp under SS jurisdiction in September 1939. The first prisoners arrived on 2 September 1939. Stutthof was the most strict and the most primitive of the official concentration camps. Stutthof was no secret to area residents or to vacationers, prisoners marched to their labor destinations along the main highways. The camp played a major role in the extermination and encarceration of the Polish people. The site for Stutthof was chosen because of its isolation, easy access by highways and railroads, the unfavorable situation for ecape and its unhealthy weather. Stutthof was in a constant process of enlargement. Stutthof received concentration camp status in February 1942. Prisoners in Stutthof included Polish activists, priests, and after July 1944 a large number of Jews that made up 70% of the population in the camp. Women were held in seperate barrack from the men. Jews were held in seperate barracks from all other prisoners. Most Jews lived in severe conditions and were between 13 and 22 years old. The hospital in Stutthof had a 50% mortality rate. There are claims of experimenation in Stutthof to make soap from human remains. The death march resulting from the evacuation of Stutthof lasted for ten days. |