Cycling route Death Valley de Peel - Hiding camp (Heusden) (#9)

Hiding camp

In 1942, the Astense bicycle maker Harrie Peeters came into contact with Wim Gebhard from Gouda and Koos Stolk from Hagen through an Eindhoven connection. They are in Brabant looking for suitable places for people in hiding who wanted to escape the Arbeitseinsatz.
The contact led to a hiding camp being built in the summer of 1943 in the woods of Hoogenbergen in Heusden - on the spot where an island now lies in the De Witte Bergen fishing pond. Twelve young people from the Randstad stayed there for months. The camp, run with military discipline, was supplied by the Peelland underground, mainly with the help of local residents Willem and Mina van Meel. There were still a few outsiders aware, but their numbers were growing and with it the chance of discovery by the Germans stationed nearby.
After five months, the group moved preventively to a safer location at Moorsel in Lierop, where 'Kamp Dennenlust' grew into an extensive hiding place. There were 42 people present at the liberation; people in hiding, resistance fighters and pilots.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar
• Photos: Martin Damen