Overview
- Brief Narrative
- Forced labor badge, yellow with a purple P, issued to 18 year old Joseph Wardzala in 1941 to identify him as a Polish forced laborer in the Watenstedt-Salzgitter labor camp in northwest Germany. German regulations required the workers to wear the badge with the purple band visible around the P on the right chest to keep them separate from the German populace. During the German occupation of Poland, 1939-1945, many non-Jewish Polish people were sent to Germany as conscript labor for civilian labor details on farms and factories. Workers sometimes volunteered for the forced labor service, but the majority were forcibly recruited and conditions worsened as the war continued. In April 1941, Joseph, who was Roman Catholic, was kidnapped on the streets of Tarnow, Poland, and deported to the labor camp in Germany, where he was forced to work in construction for the German Army. He was liberated by American troops in April 1945. Joseph was taken to a United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Agency (UNRRA) refugee camp. After five years, he acquired an American visa and, in 1950, emigrated to the US.
- Date
-
use:
approximately 1941-1945
- Geography
-
issue:
Watenstedt-Salzgitter (Forced labor camp);
Salzgitter (Germany)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Joseph Wardzala
- Markings
- front, purple dye : P
- Contributor
-
Subject:
Joseph S. Wardzala
- Biography
-
Joseph Wardzala was born on October 11, 1923, in Smigno, Poland. He was the youngest of five sons in a Roman Catholic family. After Germany invaded Poland in September 1939, Joseph was no longer able to attend school. One of his brothers joined a partisan group and provided food for Polish Jews in hiding. Joseph began to help his brother with these activities and was arrested three times from 1939 to 1941. In April 1941, Joseph was kidnapped from the street in Tarnow and taken to a labor camp in Watenstedt-Salzgitter in northwest Germany, where he was forced to work in construction for the German Army. In April 1945, the camp was liberated and Joseph was taken to a United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Agency camp. He remained there for five years while attempting to acquire a visa to the United States. In 1950, he was able to emigrate to the US where he settled in Connecticut. He married Dorothy Gutrick in 1946 and they had two sons. Joseph dedicated himself to church and commnuity charity work and received many awards for his service. Joseph, age 91, died on November 1, 2014.
Physical Details
- Classification
-
Identifying Artifacts
- Category
-
Badges
- Object Type
-
Forced labor badges (ushmm)
- Physical Description
- Laminated, square, yellow cotton badge with a dyed purple border and purple P in the center, that is worn in a diamond orientation.
- Dimensions
- overall: Height: 2.500 inches (6.35 cm) | Width: 2.500 inches (6.35 cm)
- Materials
- overall : cotton, plastic laminate, dye
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
- Conditions on Use
- No restrictions on use
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The badge was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990 by Joseph Wardzala.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-08-18 14:10:54
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn3350
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Also in Joseph Wardzala collection
The collection consists of a forced labor badge, documents, and photographs relating to the experiences of Joseph Wardzala, a Roman Catholic who was deported from Poland to a forced labor camp in Germany during World War II. Some of these materials may be combined into a single collection in the future.
Date: 1941-1949
Joseph Wardzala papers
Document
The papers consists of documents and photographs relating to the experiences of Joseph Wardzala, a Roman Catholic who was deported from Poland to a forced labor camp in Germany during World War II.
Food ration coupon issued to a Polish forced laborer
Object
Food ration coupon issued to Joseph Wardzala for Lebenstedt Firmenlager, a work camp near Braunschweig, Germany. The coupon has separate sections for warm and cold food and for sugar rations. Poland was occupied by Nazi Germany in September 1939. In April 1941, Joseph, age 18, a Roman Catholic, was kidnapped by the Germans from the streets of Tarnow and deported to Watenstedt-Salzgitter labor camp in northwest Germany. He was forced to work in construction for the German Army. Joseph was liberated by American troops in April 1945. He was taken to a United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Agency (UNRRA) displaced persons camp. After five years, he finally acquired a visa to the United States and, in 1950, emigrated to the US where he settled in Connecticut.
Marianna Wardzala identification card
Document
The identification card ("Kennkarte") was issued to Marianna Wardzala in 1943 in Tarnów, Poland.
