Erna Petermann

Erna Petermann (born 1912) was a high-ranking female overseer at two Nazi concentration camps during the closing of World War II.

Little is known about Erna Petermann, other than that she trained at the men's camp at Mittelbau-Dora sometime in 1944. The SS promoted Petermann to the rank of Lagerführerin (Female Camp Commandant) under a male commandant. Later, Petermann was transferred as Female Camp Commandant to the Gross Werther subcamp in the Harz Mountains. When Gross Werther was liberated by the Allies, Petermann fled the camp and went into hiding. Her whereabouts were not located and therefore it was not possible to question her regarding possible involvement with war crimes. Her subsequent history and post-war activities remain unknown as of 2011.

References

• Daniel Patrick Brown, The Camp Women: The Female Auxiliaries Who Assisted the SS in Running the Nazi Concentration Camp System, Schiffer Publishing, 2002, ISBN 0-7643-1444-0