Persoon

Wehrs, Gustav, 1915

Gustav Wehrs was born December 29, 1915, in Nendorf, Germany. He had 5 brothers and 2 sisters, and was the 5th child born to his parents. His father was a farmer, and worked on a farm which had been in the family line for generations. He went to school in Nienberg, Germany, becoming a teacher after he graduated. He then taught school in Nienburg. In April of 1937, when Wehrs was 21 years old, he joined the Germany Army, because he could not avoid the compulsory signup any longer on the grounds of his profession. He was promoted to NCO in 1939, and promoted again to sergeant in 1942.

In 1943, he participated in the Battle of the Aegean, fighting in the battles for Kos and Leros before being captured by British soldiers. He spent the rest of the war in Egypt as a prisoner of war. He returned to Germany in 1947 or 1948, via ship. Four of his brothers had died in Russia during the war. Wehrs took over running the family farm after his father died on April 6, 1948, and also married in July of that year to his wife, Annemarie. They had two children, a son and daughter, and continued to live on the farm in Nendorf until 1958, when it was sold. The Wehrs then moved to Bremen, where Gustav got a job, and then later on to Hamburg, where he worked with electronics manufacturers.