In autumn 1944, prisoners were taken to the camp right from the front which was just a few hundred kilo- metres away from Brest, near Warsaw.
About 5 000 prisoners were kept in all branches of the Brest camp No. 284. It was a significant workforce for a depopulated city. Every morning, columns of prisoners went out of the camp gate to work at the sites agreed through orders of the City Executive Committee. At first, they dismounted destroyed houses, carried out different loading-unloading works near railway tracks and high- ways. Later, they were used at the construction works, which eventually became their main task. Money earned by prisoners was transferred to the camp cash desk.
The German POW Сamp on Minskaya Street (now Pushkinskaya Street) was arranged on the territory of the former Jewish Warburg Colony. The morning prisoners’ working shifts. The blind area in front of the camp management house is paved with matzevahs, the tombstones which were wrenched and brought from the Jewish cemetery. The German POWs by order of the camp commander Major Larin removed the tombstones from the Jewish cemetery in the autumn of 1945. The work was supervised by his deputy Major Kravchenko, responsible for administrative and housekeeping department. The paving with matzevahs was carried out in order to improve the sanitary and hygienic situation in the camp. (Due to poor conditions, there was a high mortality of POWs). Later on, the authorities accused the local population in theft of matzevahs from the Jewish cemetery.
The winter of 1945–1946. Pushkinskaya Street, a quarter between the present Kosmonavtov Boulevard and Karbysheva Street. German POWs are removing the debris, specifically the debris of the house of Dr. London, who died in the ghetto. This house was destroyed by a Soviet bomb in July 1944.
German POWs were occupied in various works in the city: building and rebuilding, loading and unloading, repairing of auto vehicles, bicycles, radio sets, etc., since majority of household appliances were captured. Different economic units submitted applications for POWs and their earnings were paid to the camp fund. The POWs also worked in personal and repair service workshops. Two shoemakers worked in a small shoe shop located in the basement of the distillery building. One of them was a fairly young German camp prisoner. During the summer of 1946 he repaired shoes diligently and at high quality, so their workshop didn’t lack customers.
The summer of 1947, the POW camp. The picture depicts the orderly of the camp’s deputy head, the Sudeten German named Gerhard. He moved freely in and out of the camp. Being a good football player, Gerhard used to show us the techniques of ball handling, dribbling and holding, and various kicks. Several times we took him to Kirkuty, to our football field. His friend was a POW named Franz, a personal driver of the deputy head of the camp. Gerhard played for the camp’s football team, which was hosting football teams of other camps. The games took place on a small camp stadium and were very emotional and loud. The football team also played away games against football teams of other camps. During one of such trips to Grodno Gerhard escaped. His fate is unknown. Most likely, he died.
Pushkinskaya Street, 1948–1949. The Jewish Warburg Colony during the war was converted by the invaders into the camp for Soviet POWs and in the post-war years maintained its status of a detention place for German POWs. The picture shows a camp orchestra concert. The houses on the left have been demolished and nowadays the area of the former Colony is called the 1st Minsky Lane.