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Showing posts with the label Stalag 20A Thorn

Tracing History: How a Small Skating Detail Unraveled a Mystery

The journey of two sisters from Scotland to Toruń had an extraordinary goal: to find the places where their father stayed during World War II. They knew only a few details about his auxiliary service in a hospital, but their determination and desire to discover their family history led them through the fascinating corners of the city. Upon arriving in Toruń, we began with conversations and analyzing the scant information they had. They knew their father worked in a hospital, but the exact location remained a mystery. After a lengthy discussion, we managed to determine that he was most likely assigned to the medical facility on Jęczmienna Street. However, this was not the only clue. Family stories indicated that their father used to skate on handmade skates on the moat around one of the forts in winter. This led us to Fort XIV, the only fort in Toruń with a moat, which served as a hospital for Stalag XXA prisoners during World War II. The discovery of these places evoked a wave of ...