Fort Breendonk Exterior

A sign posted by the bridge notes: "Remnants of a wooden bridge, built by order of the SS in 1942. This bridge was used until 1944 to help the prisoners remove the earth (about 250,000 tons) that covered the Fort. With great difficulty they had to break up the earth with shovels and pickaxes and load into dumpers. As a result of this extremely hard and dangerous work the prisoners were exhausted and often suffered injuries."
Photo credit: Florida Center for Instructional Technology

A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust
Produced by the Florida Center for Instructional Technology,
College of Education, University of South Florida © 1997-2013.