My Militaria collection

[matthewsq]

Douglas- definitely a top notch collection. You have many wonderful pieces.
I will take after you, and hope that, with the right effort and time, in twenty years, my collection will model the high standards of yours.

Thanks!

Quinn

[herrzark]

Fantastic collection.and the most amazing is the age you start making it

[The woodpecker]

your collection douglas is impressive

[ww1and2collector]

Fantastic collection, Douglas. I, too, like how you photographed it. Please continue to share any new updates.

[douglas2496]

Some gasmasks, including a display of German WW2 anti gas equipment and a German babies anti gas suit.

[StefanM]

Some items from my collection of concentration camp letters and related items.

Hi Douglas, here is a puzzle:



The Ebensee card which has handwritten Auschwitz(?) prisoner no. 159444 cannot be for Jan Janiak as his number is given by the Auschwitz Museum prisoner data base as no. 196239 and that he died at KL Mauthausen 29 Novemebr 1944. So the photo cannot belong Jan Janiak if it was taken at liberation as he died in 1944—KL Mauthausen was liberated on 3 May 1945, and Ebensee on 5 1945.

There is no data available for Auschwitz prisoner no. 159444

The entry Aushwitz database entry is: Janiak, Jan b.1889-03-21 (Biała Rawska), camp serial number:196239, profession:robotnik (worker), remarks:zgin. (died). 29.11.1944 w KL Mauthausen

Or maybe I have misread the Auschwitz(?) prisoner no. 159444 on the Ebensee card dated 2 November 1945 ?

What is the inmate no. on the letter?

Great collection BTW

[douglas2496]

Interesting observations, thank you. The inmate no on the letter is 52238, the same as the card. Interestingly there is good evidence that Janiak did survive the war, as I have a picture of his displaced person Id card issued in 1945. I dont have the card itself, as the collection was sold on ebay and unfortunatley split up, (awful when that happens) and I was outbid on the card. However, the date of birth on this card matches the letter, so its clearly its the same person. The Jan Janiak you have found has a different date of birth.

[M18922]

Amazing display and I really like the ground dug ww1 items.

Cheers, Pat

[StefanM]

Interesting observations, thank you. The inmate no on the letter is 52238, the same as the card. Interestingly there is good evidence that Janiak did survive the war, as I have a picture of his displaced person Id card issued in 1945. I dont have the card itself, as the collection was sold on ebay and unfortunatley split up, (awful when that happens) and I was outbid on the card. However, the date of birth on this card matches the letter, so its clearly its the same person. The Jan Janiak you have found has a different date of birth.

It is interesting and Biała Rawska is not far from Lodz either.

Two Jan Janiak's both at KL Auschwitz (different dates of birth and inmate numbers) and both later at KL Mauthausen?

Quite a few Janiak's at Auschwitz were later transported to Mauthausen:

Z danych zawartych w tzw. Księgach Pamięci - Transporty Polaków z Warszawy do KL Auschwitz (Transport of Poles from Warsaw to Auschwitz)

Janiak, Bolesław
b.1914-09-05, camp serial number:196237, profession:mechanik, remarks:zgin. 20.3.1945 w KL Mauthausen

Janiak, Czesław
b.1924-09-16 (Warszawa), camp serial number:196238, profession:monter, remarks: zgin. 3.3.1945 w KL Mauthausen

ZJaniak, Franciszek
b.1910-10-23 (Siemianów), camp serial number:11768, profession:urzędnik, remarks: rzen. 1942 do KL Mauthausen, przez.

Janiak, Jan
b.1889-03-21 (Biała Rawska), camp serial number:196239, profession:robotnik, remarks: zgin. 29.11.1944 w KL Mauthausen

Transporty Polaków do KL Auschwitz z Radomia i innych miejscowości Kielecczyzny

Janiak, Karol
b.1910-11-04 (Łódź), camp serial number:38055, profession:stolarz, remarks: rzen. 1942 do KL Mauthausen, przez.

Karol Janiak might be related to your Jan Janiak as both born in Lodz about the same time.

I don't know if the Auschwitz Museum is collecting data such as on the documents in your collection to add to its database of knowledge?

I am collecting KL Ravensbrück prisoner names and no.s from camp letters I find to add to a database on Ravensbrück inmates that is incomplete as only 60% of the camp records survived attempts by the SS to destroy them before the liberation of the camp. I have found many "new" names and numbers since I started. My grandmother was a prisoner at Ravensbrück and later a sub-camp of KL Sachsenhausen, hence my interest.

[Srdj]

Beautiful! What wonderful and interesting displays. Many bravos to you, sah!