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Waltraud Hoh, 1937
© Archiv Evangelische Stiftung Alsterdorf

Waltraud Hoh * 1928

Stieglitzstraße 6-8 (Hamburg-Nord, Barmbek-Süd)

HIER WOHNTE
WALTRAUD HOH
JG. 1928
EINGEWIESEN 1930
ALSTERDORFER ANSTALTEN
"VERLEGT" 1943
HEILANSTALT
AM STEINHOF WIEN
ERMORDET 30.10.1944

Waltraud Julia Carla Hoh, born on 22 Feb. 1928 in Hamburg, admitted on 21 Jan. 1936 to what was then the Alsterdorf Asylum (Alsterdorfer Anstalten), "transferred” on 16 Aug. 1943 to the "Vienna Municipal Wagner von Jauregg-Heil- und Pflegeanstalt,” a "sanatorium and nursing home,” died on 30 Oct. 1944

Stolpmünder Strasse 4 (formerly Stieglitzstrasse 4), Rahlstedt

Waltraud Hoh was the second child of the "machine setter” (= typesetter) Alfred Hermann Heinrich Hoh, born on 4 Dec. 1899, and Anna/Anni, née Birch, born in Altona on 18 Oct. 1892. Her brother Harry, born on 21 Oct. 1924, was three years her senior. When Waltraud was born, the family lived at Quickbornstrasse 13 in Eimsbüttel.

Waltraud was born on 22 Feb. 1928 by "forceps delivery.” Because of "milk poisoning” (probably meaning a lactose intolerance) at the age of three months, Waltraud suffered from a "severe nutritional disorder.” She was admitted to what was then known as the "Hamburg Infants’ Home,” a clinic for infants and toddlers at Hochallee 1 in Harvestehude. Infectious diseases such as furunculosis, chickenpox, and bronchial catarrh affected her further development.

The family moved to what was then Jean Pauls-Weg 34 in the Winterhude quarter in 1929.

In early Jan. 1930, Waltraud was admitted to Barmbek General Hospital with fever due to cold as well as severe seizures. The doctors diagnosed catarrh of the respiratory tract, "imbecility” (an archaic term for mental disability), and a considerable rachitic change in her skeleton. After an observation period of one week, which passed without seizures, Waltraud was discharged home as improved.

On 21 Jan. 1936, shortly before her seventh birthday, Waltraud was admitted to what was then the Alsterdorf Asylum (Alsterdorfer Anstalten; today Evangelische Stiftung Alsterdorf). At that time, the family lived at Stieglitzstrasse 4 (today Stolpmünder Strasse) in Rahlstedt, a municipality that was still Prussian at the time and became part of Hamburg as a result of the Greater Hamburg Act of 1937.

Waltraud’s medical referral had already been issued in the spring of 1935 and it justified her placement on the grounds of "idiocy,” an outdated term for a severe form of intelligence impairment. (The reason why the referral slip for Waltraud provided the address "currently with A. Mahle, Hornerlandstrasse 137” could not be clarified).

Waltraud Hoh was characterized by her father as "sociable,” "cheerful,” and "laughing a lot” on the so-called "questionnaire form” ("Abhörbogen”) created when she was admitted. The nursing staff in Alsterdorf, however, perceived Waltraud quite differently. According to them, she was very restless and cried a lot. Since she could not eat on her own, did not announce her needs, and had to be bathed daily, she was considered work-intensive. At night, according to the patient file, a "protective jacket” (a euphemistic term for "straitjacket”) was put on her to keep her from throwing the bedding out of bed.

Most reports about Waltraud during her seven-year stay in the Alsterdorf Asylum are negative. Waltraud was described as an awkward, lumbering child who was insatiable at mealtimes. Reportedly, she ran around aimlessly and did not know what to do with toys. Since Waltraud suffered from furunculosis, she had to be transferred to the infirmary several times.

Waltraud’s parents kept in touch with their child and also submitted requests for leave, which were sometimes, but not always, approved as requested.

In a report dated 8 Apr. 1937 to the Hamburg welfare authority, the Alsterdorf senior physician Gerhard Kreyenberg provided the following diagnosis: "Idiocy with obesity and endocrine disorders.” Waltraud was "in need of complete care. [...] She plays little, hardly recognizes her surroundings, and walks aimlessly around the room. [...] She cannot speak and only babbles incomprehensible sounds, merely screams. She throws objects a lot, also tearing up stuff. Physically, [she] is very fragile. Further institutionalization is required.”

Bomb damage due to the Allied air raids on Hamburg had also affected the Alsterdorf Asylum in 1943. For a few days, the institution also had to take in hundreds of homeless people and about two hundred people injured by bombing. Against this background, the director of the asylum, Pastor Friedrich Lensch, with the approval of the public health administration, took the opportunity to transfer to other asylums several hundred patients who were considered "weak in labor performance, in need of care, or particularly difficult.”

On 16 Aug. 1943, Waltraud Hoh and another 227 women and girls were transported to the "Vienna Municipal Wagner von Jauregg-Heil- und Pflegeanstalt,” a "sanatorium and nursing home.” The selection of the women and girls was mostly determined by negative assessments in the medical records, such as special need for care or inability to work.

When Waltraud was admitted in Vienna, she was initially said to be calm. Two weeks later, by contrast, an entry read, "Completely stupefied, gnashes her teeth [...] in need of care, unclean.” Several times, she was transferred to other wards within the institution.

Waltraud’s father, meanwhile drafted into the German Wehrmacht, was serving as a sergeant. From the Lüner Barracks (Lüner-Kaserne) in Lüneburg, he inquired about his daughter in Vienna in early Sept. 1943. The terse reply was that her condition was generally satisfactory, but since she was a high-grade imbecile, no significant change was to be expected.

In Sept. 1944, Waltraud’s mother wrote to the directorate in Vienna, "Some time ago, I received a message from you, in which I was assured that my daughter Waltraud was still well. However, will you please give me the reasons why the little girl always has to lie in bed? After all, she has been walking since she was two years old and I was outside with her every day, in all types of weather. Even in the Alsterdorf Asylum, she was always considered to be craving for fresh air. It hurts me very much to know that she is always in the room. Please give me an answer as soon as possible about the condition of my daughter; in these difficult times, one is so worried about one’s loved ones. Thank you in advance.”

In the reply letter, an institutional physician by the name of Wunderer explained that Waltraud was unclean and therefore could not be kept in the "observation rooms” ("Wachsäle”) featuring hardwood floors, and that her slight weight loss was due to the persistent furunculosis.

Just one month later, Waltraud Hoh was dead. She died on 30 Oct. 1944, at the age of 16, allegedly, as noted in the post-mortem report, of "bronchopneumonia” (pneumonia).

In the "Wagner von Jauregg – Heil- und Pflegeanstalt der Stadt Wien” ("Wagner von Jauregg – Vienna Municipal Sanatorium and Nursing Home”), patients were systematically murdered by overdosing on medication, by not treating illnesses, and above all, by depriving them of food. Of the 228 girls and women from Alsterdorf, 196 had perished by the end of 1945.

The Stolperstein was mistakenly placed in Stieglitzstrasse, relocation to Stolpmünder Strasse is being planned.

Translator: Erwin Fink
Kindly supported by the Hermann Reemtsma Stiftung, Hamburg.

Stand: May 2021
© Susanne Rosendahl

Quellen: Archiv Evangelische Stiftung Alsterdorf, Sonderakte 197, Hoh, Waltraud; StaH 332-5 Standesämter 6277 Nr. 3465/1892; Michael Wunder, Ingrid Genkel, Harald Jenner, Auf dieser schiefen Ebene gibt es kein Halten mehr. Die Alsterdorfer Anstalten im Nationalsozialismus, 2. Aufl. Stuttgart 2016, S. 283 ff.; Div. Adressbücher Hamburg.