Doldersum, Vledder, Diever

We write 1944, an appeal falls on the mat of a large group of eighteen-year-old Dutch boys to report to Werkkamp Vledder of the Nederlandsche Arbeidsdienst . At least one of them does not want to join the enemy just like that and would rather go into hiding. His father decides to consult the parish priest, who in turn contacts the parish priest in Vledder. The boy is advised to just go. If there is an opportunity to go into hiding, they will contact him there.

The camp had room for about 180 labourers. They were trained in six months and soon had to work in the field. The semi-military training included marching. In this case, not with a rifle but with a shovel. While marching, the shiny spade had to be presented. This meant much and long polishing of the tool. In groups of four, the young men had baton guard. That meant they had to keep watch at night and report any escapes immediately. The latter, of course, did not happen; the escaped workmen were mostly only missed at roll call the next morning.

In early September 1944, a group of boys from shift eight were returning from the farmer where they had worked all day in the fields. On the way, they met a resistance man who asked if they wanted to go into hiding. He showed them a hiding place and agreed to pick the boys up from the camp in the evening. They were allowed to gather a group of 12 boys who, after being checked at the dormitory, would get dressed again and gather outside. The advice was to put on as many clothes over each other as possible and bring blankets. Things turned out slightly differently. On the night of Thursday 7 September, around 11.30am, the underground resistance from the region, raided the camp. The camp commander was detained , the telephone lines were cut and 21 boys were taken away, including the four boys on baton guard.

So they walked through Wasperveld to Doldersumseveld and were divided into smaller groups across four hiding holes on the way. Such a den was a hole in the ground, with some straw in it, where a group of 3-9 boys could sit. Standing or lying down was not possible. The hole was covered with beams and grass. Some had a small view of what was happening outside, but they were absolutely not allowed to go outside. Once a day, food was brought by someone from the resistance. Usually no more than a piece of bread. For three nights and two days they sat like that in silence in their dens, at least the boys in hole 1, 2 and 3.

What happened there and how it ended for the escaped teenagers you will discover in the dismounted War Memorial Doldersum. You will also learn more about the history of labour camps in the region on this route. Like the former camp Vledder where the men in this story were situated and camp Diever, which was for a long time a satellite camp of the nearby transit camp Westerbork. You can learn more about the regional resistance at the hiding place in Diever.

Climbing the watchtower in the Doldersummerveld at the end of the route and looking out over the region where so many young men were hiding in fear in holes in the ground, you can't help but pause and be impressed.


Old photos: Harvesting potatoes; Drents Archive, Giessen collection.
Levelling Wasperveen; National Archives, collection Heidemaatschappij.
Photo marking hiding hole: Doldersum Monument Foundation

This Premium cycle route came about partly with information from Stichting Monument Doldersum and was compiled by our editor: Désirée van Uffelen.