Transport, Train Da 84 from Darmstadt, Darmstadt (Darmstadt), Hesse, Germany to Treblinka, Extermination Camp, Poland on 30/09/1942

The special train (“Sonderzug”) “Da 84”, ordered by the RSHA from the Reichsbahn, was initially designated “Da 15”. It was scheduled to leave Darmstadt on June 30 for Izbica in the Lublin district (General Government). However, on June 11, the Gestapo and the German National Train Directorate (Reichsbahndirektion) were informed that the transport to the General Government was to be postponed. The tracks between Lublin and Chelm had broken down and were undergoing repairs. This led to a temporary halt of all deportations to Sobibór between late July and September. According to documents from the Reichsbahn General Management East (Generalbetriebsleitung Ost), the planned transport from Darmstadt was relabeled “Da 84” and rescheduled for August 21, 1942. Its destination was also changed to Parczew, a town in the Lublin district that served as a transit ghetto. For unknown reasons, the transport was delayed again and it only left Darmstadt on September 30. Instead of going to Parczew, it seems that the train went directly to the Treblinka extermination camp. Treblinka, operating since July 1942, was reopened for incoming deportations as the series of large transports from the Warsaw ghetto Treblinka had nearly been completed.

All deporting agencies received a set of instructions from the RSHA, which included guidelines regarding Jews who were exempt. Among these were the “Mischlinge”, the Nazi definition for the offspring of mixed marriages, Jews married to a non-Jewish spouse, forced labourers in the munitions industry, and holders of a foreign passport (except for Soviet citizens). The elderly, Veterans of the First World War, and “Prominente” (well-known Jewish personalities) were deported to Theresienstadt near Prague. Both groups were deported from Darmstadt: The transport to Theresienstadt left Darmstadt on September 27, 1942. The transport to the General Government left shortly after, on September 30. However, this time regulations stated that able-bodied spouses between the age of 65 - 67 were to be deported to the General Government as well....