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Josef Gustav Krawczyk
Polish Farmer in Normandy
Josef Gustav Krawczyk - ("Gus")
Josef Gustav Krawczyk
On his farm in Normandy

Josef Gustav Krawczyk known as "Gus" to all in Normandy was the son of a farming family from Darwe near the Polish-Russian border, he was born in about 1915. He joined the Polish Army Cadet force and was also a student at Leipzig (Germany). In 1935 he returned to Poland and worked as an official in the Polish Consulate.

In 1939 he was engaged in organising the transport to Warsaw of contract workers, on the invasion of Poland and after the fall of Warsaw he was taken to a prisoner of war camp, and for some years went from camp to camp, in 1941 he ended up at Auschwitz for the rest of the war.

In 1946 he arrived by ship at Liverpool and from here he started work as a dairy worker at Windsor, it was at this time he met his English wife, later he worked as a cowman in Surrey and after some years found himself on his own small-holding in Normandy.

The small-holding was Normandy Lodge Farm, he later also rented the field further up Pirbright Road, most residents of Normandy in the 1950s to 70s will remember his tractor chugging along the Aldershot - Guildford Road with his old black and white dog in the trailer.

In 1976 he published a book Living in Hell: An account of three years in Auschwitz
(This Book can be seen in the Members Library)

Wikipedia links
Auschwitz Concentration Camp


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