Everything Possible: JDC and the Children of the DP Camps

Children arriving on their own from Eastern Europe, some in chaperoned groups, some alone, sought refuge in the U.S. Zone of Salzburg. At Mulln camp, in the U.S. Zone of Salzburg, children on their own received special attention from JDC. Clothing was in short supply as cold weather approached; many wore altered army uniforms. Austria, c. 1946.

Separate units for children were established in a number of camps, such as this children's home in Riedenburg. The camp initially housed around 400 Jewish displaced persons and was closed by winter 1945. It reopened the following summer (1946) to accommodate more than four times that number, mostly refugees from Poland who entered the occupied zone through Salzburg. Austria, c. 1946.

A few peaceful moments were valuable to this 17-year old Polish girl. Her parents were killed by the Nazis after years of near starvation in the woods. After the war, she and her sister spent four months recuperating in a JDC convalescent center, and then ended up at DP camps in separate countries. Germany, c. 1947.

On Their Own But Not Alone

Children also began arriving on their own from Eastern Europe, some in chaperoned groups, some unaccompanied, and sought refuge in the U.S. Zones.

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