Millions of people had to perform forced labor for Nazi Germany during World War II. In the region of Osnabrück alone, there were tens of thousands of forced laborers from all over Europe. Those who tried to evade forced labor were sentenced to the Ohrbeck labor education camp (AEL). The conditions in this camp, run by the Osnabrück Secret State Police (Gestapo), were perilous. The exhibition shows how the cruel treatment of prisoners was designed to make them compliant. Accounts of former prisoners testify to the difficulty of surviving in the AEL Ohrbeck. Survivors, the families of prisoners, and the bereaved continued to be affected by the experience of camp imprisonment for a long time. Nonetheless, within German society today the labor education camps remain little known.
A media guide, which can be used at the site free of charge, forms an integral part of the exhibition at the Augustaschacht Memorial. The media guide presents the recollections of former prisoners, mostly as excerpts from video interviews. These memories are accompanied by short biographical texts. The memories of former prisoners testify to the difficulty of surviving in the Ohrbeck labor education camp (AEL). Germans who as children witnessed the AEL and its prisoners are also given the opportunity to speak.
The media guide presents 180-degree images that have been enhanced on the basis of historical building research with hand-drawn sketches of structures that existed during the time of the camp. This makes it possible to show supporting images of a site that has been strongly altered since the war without making additional structural changes to the site.
The exhibition continues on the outdoor area of the Augustaschacht Memorial. Information is presented on panels and in-depth content is provided in the media guide, which is designed for use on the outdoor grounds as well. A barrier-free path on the former camp grounds leads visitors to the excavations and exhibition on the outdoor grounds. The former path leading from the camp gate to the entrance of the shaft building is marked. The brief stretch of camp wall, which created a visual barrier between the Ohrbeck labor education camp and the house where worker families lived, is also shown.
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