Blog von zippo zetterlink

The still unknown story of this typewriter starts in the early 1940ies, in the german labour camp Neuengamme. These camps where extreme bueraucratic, force and exploitation by armed SS, a German term for "Schutzstaffel". In their office they use modern typewriters, like this CONTINENTAL SCHREIBMASCHINE. One special typearm had the typical "SS Rune", on top of the Nr.3 -... These camps had their KAPO, they are imprisoned, but served as camp police. They printed the orders and lists, and when they had to mention the SS, they used the "SS Rune". You know, a Rune is archaic writing, meaning is "Sieg". This was when they used to greet their Idol, the Führer, and mostly raising their arm with open hand. The communists rising their fists, that makes a difference. After Germans lost Great War two, the allies ordered not to show any NAZI Sign, not the Swastica, not raising the arm with open hand, and not using the "SS Rune". Here my story begins.

Foto: ©W.O.T. These signs of history are well visible. The machine still clicks and a bell rings. Over the “3” one “M” appears. Hidden sign or not, the “SS Rune” found places on different machines, even on the Remington. A miracle, how governments everywhere press down population and destroy their memories.

After bombing Hamburg to the ground by air raids, the population got homeless. So from the Neuengamme camp a labour company (look "Geschichte") must build a village for them, watched by armed SS men. These companys were mostly women, and they worked in Neugraben, that was where my great grand parents build a nice big family house in 1927. The Neuengamme camp was not existing in that time by the way. Nazi party came to power six years later, in 1933.

The Neuengamme labour company worked in Neugraben from 1944 on. The private construction employers can rent the Neuengamme camp labour company for low wages too, and they let them build a huge garage for their trucks.

These poor labour women sectretly got bread hidden in the trash cans, because it was not allowed to give them something or to talk with them. And the SS had to look away, so the SS got free drinks and did not see something. One of these women bear a child, and this child was hidden by the employer of the cartage service. Name was Wolfgang Höhnle. After 1945 the Neuengamme labour camp dissolved, the SS where hiding as "normal people", and this camp Kapo from the camp’s writing bureau packed the typewriter to pay the employer from the cartage service to let him stay for a while.

Everything disappeared, and before the British seached for NAZI signs, someone broke the typearm with the "SS Rune". The hidden jewish child went to Chicago and opened a glove store.

After years the carrier service bought more trucks for a prosperous cleaning business, and the employer needed new typewriters.

In a kind of stinginess they don’t gave away things free. Wolfgang the 2nd, that is me, got skills in a design school and had to invent a logo for the employer. As payment he got this his second typewriter, the CONTINENTAL SCHREIBMASCHINE Nr.1 from Wanderer Werke, with this broken typearm.

Too heavy to carry, with a very unfortunate past.

©W.O.T.