Original German Historical Document Lot 1935–1958 – DAF, Reichsbahn, Karlsruhe Banking & DDR

Description

This German historical document lot brings together original paperwork from several corners of German everyday life, from the mid-1930s to the post-war decades. There are letters and certificates from the Deutsche Arbeitsfront, three consecutive Deutsche Reichsbahn wall calendars, savings books from two Karlsruhe banks, women’s training certificates from the Deutsches Frauenwerk, a 1958 international motor-vehicle document and a passport of the Deutsche Demokratische Republik. It is the kind of group I enjoy most as a collector, because it shows how ordinary Germans dealt with employers, banks, railways and the state across very different political periods.

What Does This German Historical Document Lot Contain?

The following pieces can be clearly identified in the photographs:

• Deutsche Arbeitsfront letter, Gauwaltung Weser-Ems, Oldenburg, 21 June 1936.
• Deutsche Arbeitsfront training certificate (Zeugnis), Schule des Berufsgruppenamtes, Köln, 24 January 1936.
• Three Deutsche Reichsbahn calendars for 1936, 1937 and 1938.
• Deutsches Frauenwerk, Abteilung Mütterdienst certificate, dated 1939.
• Vollbescheinigung of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Mütterschulung im Deutschen Frauenwerk, Duisburg.
• Städtische Sparkasse Karlsruhe Reichsmarkkonto savings book.
• Deutsche Bank und Disconto-Gesellschaft Banksparbuch, Filiale Karlsruhe, Depositenkasse Mühlburg.
• Internationaler Zulassungsschein, Karlsruhe, 22 August 1958.
• Reisepass of the Deutsche Demokratische Republik.
• Gesellen-Prüfungs-Zeugnis (journeyman’s examination certificate) in green covers.
• Deutsche Beamten-Feuerversicherung advertising calendar for 1936, Munich.

Further booklets and papers are partly visible in the group photograph. The lot is sold as the complete group shown, without a guaranteed piece count.

What Is the 1936 Deutsche Arbeitsfront Letter About?

The typed letter is headed Die Deutsche Arbeitsfront, Gauwaltung Weser-Ems, from the office of the Arbeitskammer, and is dated Oldenburg, 21 June 1936. It is addressed to the brickworks owner (Ziegeleibesitzer) Günther Lauw of Bockhorn. The writer informs him that he has been chosen as a member of the Arbeitskammer Weser/Ems, which was then being formed, and that he has been proposed to the DAF’s national leader, Robert Ley. He is asked to return an enclosed questionnaire with a photograph so that a membership card can be issued. The letter bears an official stamp and signature.

„Für die neu zu bildende Arbeitskammer Weser/Ems habe ich Sie als Kammermitglied ausersehen …“

(“For the Arbeitskammer Weser/Ems now to be formed, I have selected you as a chamber member …”)

What Does the Cologne Training Certificate Record?

The Zeugnis of the Schule des Berufsgruppenamtes der Deutschen Arbeitsfront, Köln was issued to Albert Amedick. It records that he attended the Kraftfahrtechnik (motor-vehicle engineering) course in the winter half-year 1935 with good results and regular attendance. It is dated Köln, 24 January 1936, and signed by the teacher, the educational director and the head of the school. The red DAF emblem is printed at the upper right.

Why Are the Reichsbahn Calendars Interesting?

Three large calendar sheets survive for consecutive years. The 1936 sheet is headed Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft, the name used by the state railway company until the law of 10 February 1937 brought it under direct Reich control and restored the name Deutsche Reichsbahn. The 1937 and 1938 sheets read simply Deutsche Reichsbahn and promote the Reichsbahn-Sterbekasse, the railway workers’ insurance fund. This change in the heading is a small but genuine piece of railway administrative history that you can see on the paper itself. Each sheet shows January to June, and some carry handwritten period notes.

What Are the Frauenwerk Certificates?

The illustrated certificate of the Deutsches Frauenwerk, Abteilung Mütterdienst confirms that the named participant attended a mothers’ training course (Mütterschulungs-Lehrgang) from 23 January to 9 February 1939, totalling 20 hours. It is decorated with a Madonna and Child image bearing Albrecht Dürer’s monogram and carries the Frauenwerk stamp.

The second document, a Vollbescheinigung issued in Duisburg within Gau Essen, records courses taken by Frau Käthe Bürvenich: cooking and housekeeping (30 hours), infant care (20 hours) and child activities (20 hours). Together these papers show how the regime’s women’s organisations promoted domestic and maternal training during the 1930s.

What Post-War Material Is Included?

The green Internationaler Zulassungsschein for international motor traffic, under the agreement of 24 April 1926, was issued by the Stadt Karlsruhe Polizeipräsidium on 22 August 1958. The blue Reisepass of the Deutsche Demokratische Republik dates from after 1949. Its issue date and holder are not shown in the photographs, so I make no claim about them. These pieces take the lot well beyond the Third Reich period and make an interesting chronological contrast.

Collector’s Note

A German historical document lot like this should be read as a cross-section, not a single family archive. Some pieces point to Karlsruhe (both savings books and the 1958 document), others to Oldenburg, Cologne and Duisburg. I do not claim a common provenance for the whole group. What it does offer is a broad, affordable introduction to German civil paperwork: employment, railways, banking, women’s organisations and post-war travel, all in one lot. If you are building a reference collection, my guide to WW2 German documents will help you place each piece.

Condition

• General age toning, foxing and spotting throughout.
• The DAF letter has folds, punch holes and some edge wear.
• The Reichsbahn calendars show foxing, period handwriting and handling marks.
• The Gesellen-Prüfungs-Zeugnis has marked wear to its covers.
• The savings books and passports show normal signs of use.

Condition varies from piece to piece. Please study all thirteen photographs, which form an essential part of this condition description. The German historical document lot is sold exactly as shown.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this a WWII lot?

Not entirely. The dated pieces run from 1935–1936 to 1958, and the DDR passport is post-1949.

Are the documents from one family?

That cannot be shown. Several pieces relate to Karlsruhe, but others come from different towns and different named people.

How many pieces are included?

At least eleven pieces can be clearly identified, with further items partly visible. The whole group shown in the photographs is included.

Historical Responsibility Notice

This German historical document lot is offered as a historical artefact for collecting, preservation, education and research. Some documents bear emblems of National Socialist organisations, which are retained because they are an original part of the documents. Autographs & Militaria does not endorse or glorify National Socialist ideology. For our approach to this material, see collecting Third Reich material responsibly.

References & Further Reading

• Original documents in this lot, as transcribed above.
• Mosler, Die Änderungen im Statut der Deutschen Reichsbahn und Reichsbank, Zeitschrift für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht, vol. 7, 1937 (Max Planck Institute).
• Autographs & Militaria, WW2 German documents.