SS-Totenkopf-Artillerie - Regiment - August Gerstacker
Article about: Thought I would post my album, belt / buckle & SA badge and details on August Gerstacker we were able to find. One picture shows his belt which has a small letter "A" faintly w
SS-Totenkopf-Artillerie - Regiment - August Gerstacker
Thought I would post my album, ausweis, some papers, belt / buckle & SA badge and details on August Gerstacker we were able to find. One picture shows his belt which has a small letter "A" faintly written on leather in pictures. I have had him researched by a historian and this is what we could find.
Gerstacker’s album has 223 photos in a wood covered album made in Krakau in 1940. The complete Gerstacker grouping includes his photo album, Auweis papers, SS Pay & travel documents. We have researched Gerstacker further and found 6 other documents from his SS Service as well.
August was an SS Unterscharfuehrer who served on the staff in SS-Totenkopf-Artillerie-Regiment. Many fantastic images of him throughout with photos of, early SS men, SS Kaserne Stuttgart and its living quarters, SS men in offices, series of portrait photos of the men in his company, inspections, train convoys, field kitchens, horse drawn columns, SS troops in the field, SS vehicles columns driving through French towns as well as many images of vehicles with the deaths head vehicle marking. Also photos of SS Kradmelders, destroyed bridges, field bivouacs, SS officers in the field, SS halftracks with towed 10,5cm artillery cannons, destroyed French tanks and vehicles, Beutepanzer Prime movers, black colonial French POWs, camo SS artillery position, Artillery night firing, bomb craters, destroyed buildings and towns and troops resting in the field. There are also images of Officers going over battle plans and maps with the unit, filed life, troops setting up artillery cannons removing cradles, burning Totenkopf marked halftrack, SS Funkers, troops grooming in the field, visiting various points of interest in France, RARE image of German propaganda poster telling the French to welcome the German soldier.
Gerstacker is seen many times in cars with the skull on the fenders, sleeping in the backseat, in group settings and with a beetle on the side of his head in one infamous picture. The personal documents consist of his SS Ausweis with photo issued to him in May of 1936 as well as a document releasing August to travel and to pay entitled to him dated 1940.
- Dr. August Gerstacker
- Nazi Division: SS- Totenkopf – I.SS-T.Artillerie.Ers.Abt
- Birth Date: 3.4.1899
- Death Date: Possibly 1979-1980 at 80-81 years old – Munich but not certain. See below
- Birth Location: Hard, Austria – Hard is a town in westernmost Austria and shares border with Vorarlberg and August was born there. Post war August lived and passed away in Munich not far from my Grandmother’s home town in which her and my Grandfather visited every couple of years and where much of our collection came from near Neuotting, Germany.
- Ausweis Card #: 103576
- Board Member on Ausweis Card#: 358056
- 1924 - 1st Document Listing Found: August’s name appeared on a list where he was listed as a board member in 1924. He was deemed as part of the Supervisory Board for factory owners. Not sure if he owned a factory or was part of the management as an employee.
- 1925-1926 - 2nd Document Listing Found: He studied chemistry and was in the chemistry field or listed as a doctor for certain. Records show in 1925-1926 he was living possibly in Karlsrube in southwest Germany. He was shown as a board member on a chemistry document. He was listed living at address Baden, Kaiserstr. 20 at that time.
- 1935 - 3rd Document Listing Found: In 1935 his name appeared again and he was serving as a part of the Board Member Society of the Gas Industry.
- 1935 - 4th Document 1935 Munich Address and Phone Number: His address in Munich in 1935 was listed as a Chemist (Chemiker) M 27 Donaustr. 26 and also a phone number of 48 12 89. He was listed as Gerstacker, August, Dr. Ing., in the German Phone Directory. This matches the form we obtained above for travel and pay.
- 1936 - Ausweis Card Data: Shows his card dated in May 15th and 18th of 1936 as a member of the SS.
- 1936 – 1945 - Photos from Photo Album: He served as a member of SS – Totenkopf Artillerie Regiment. The form states he was paid for services in Dachau in 1940. His photo album is wood burned Krakau 1940. Great shots of his uniform and his life as an SS member with his unit, travel & other war time situations.
- 1940 - Pay Document & Travel Authorization: Along with Album and Ausweis Card was a travel document along with some pay information as an SS member. This was in 1940 during the month of August. There are pictures in the album of buildings and locations that look like time away or on vacation. His address in Munich in 1935 was listed as a Chemist (Chemiker) M 27 Donaustr. 26 and also number of 48 12 89. Same matching address and info exists on this form.
- 1970 – 1971 - 5th Document Munich Address and Phone Number: His address stayed consistent in Munich until the 1970-71 German phone directory showed him as Gerstacker, August Dr. with the same phone number of 48 12 89 but a different street address of 80 Donaustr. 26.
- 1979 -1980 - 6th Document Munich Address and Phone Number: This address remained in place in German Phone Directories until 1979-1980. After this date he was no longer listed in the phone directory. Assuming at this time he passed away at age of 80-81 years old and died in Munich.
- Other documents: We have 6 other documents that show denial of travel pass requests during the war and also pay records as an SS Totenkopf Member in which we have dug into over the years.
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