Wave of Deportation from Lodz(Gypsy Camp), Ghetto, Poland to Chelmno, Extermination Camp, Poland on 07/01/1942

Research by Yad Vashem shows that deportations of Roma from the Łódź ghetto to the Chełmno death camp took place from December 4-31, 1941,^[1] followed by additional transports the following month.^[2] The second phase of these transports, January 7-12, 1942, is the subject of this account.

January 6 was a pivotal date in the effort to expedite the liquidation of the “Gypsy camp” in the Łódź ghetto. As of that date, the medical staff in the Roma camp was sent back to the Jewish ghetto and the Germans closed the warehouse where supplies were stored and clamped a total lockdown on the camp. Only policemen, vaccinated and wearing protective gear, were allowed to enter.

Evidence for the period of January 7-12 indicates that the Germans stepped up their annihilation of the remaining Roma in the ghetto ahead of liquidating the camp in which they were incarcerated. Truck rental invoices and several testimonies confirm that there was a higher frequency of transports, notably during January 7-9....