Two railway boxcars used to deport Jews from Thessaloniki to Auschwitz during WWII are being restored, under the initiative of 93-year-old Savvas Koen, a former director of Hellenic Railways (OSE).
According to kathimerini and amna, Koen, whose relatives were among those deported, took on the project after learning about the boxcars during a visit to the Thessaloniki Railway Museum.
“Last June we went on a trip to Thessaloniki with the Athens Friends of the Railway Association, of which I am a member. And, among other things, we visited the Railway Museum. There, I learned the story of the two wagons, with which the Germans transported the Jews from Thessaloniki’s old railway station to Auschwitz, and I was moved,” Koen said according to ekathimerini.gr
The restoration, overseen by retired OSE foremen and members of the Thessaloniki Friends of the Railway Association, is taking place at the museum in Kordelio. Apart from the wooden parts, which have been fully replaced, all original materials are being retained.
“The wagons were abandoned on the OSE network. They are very old German builds from 1890, which were used after the war as workshops, that is, they were used to carry tools for line repairs,” explained Konstantinos Pataras, chairman of the Thessaloniki Friends of the Railway Association. The team is using old photos and data to restore the boxcars, preserving their historical significance.
Beginning in March 1943, over 48,000 Jews from Thessaloniki were deported to Auschwitz, where most were killed in gas chambers. A smaller number were sent to Treblinka and Bergen Belsen. Only 1,950 survivors returned. Koen, born in Thessaloniki in 1931, narrowly escaped capture but lost many family members to the Holocaust. He later moved to Athens, studied civil engineering, and joined OSE.
Source: AMNA, kathimerini
