Gates into the Dachau complex The photo above, taken on April 29, 1945, the day that Dachau was liberated, shows the main entrance into the Dachau complex, located on the south side of the 20-acre Dachau site; this building has since been torn down. The prison enclosure was located a short distance to the east of the main entrance, along a road with factories on each side. The photo below shows the entrance to the concentration camp which was inside the Dachau complex. This is the gate with a sign that reads "Arbeit Macht Frei".   The photo above shows the Würm river canal which separated the SS garrison from the concentration camp. On the right is the Dachau gate house; in the background is Tower B. The photo below shows the place where SS 2nd Lt. Heinrich Wicker surrendered the concentration camp to Brig. Gen. Henning Linden of the 42nd Division of the U.S. Seventh Army. This spot was near the gate into the SS garrison which is shown in the second photo below.   The photo above shows the gate on the south side of the Dachau complex, near where SS 2nd Lt. Heinrich Wicker surrendered the camp to the 42nd Division of the U.S. Seventh Army. The photograph below shows Brig. Gen. Henning Linden standing on top of one of the barriers of the stone bridge over the Würm river canal, while the liberated prisoners are looking out of the windows of the concentration camp gate house. 2nd Lt. Heinrich Wicker is the tall German soldier shown on the far left in the photo below. The man with a white arm band is Red Cross representative Victor Maurer.  The Dachau gate was designed to open from top to bottom to allow vehicles or a group of prisoners to enter. It was secured by a bar, which had to be removed to open the gate. It also has a pedestrian gate with a lock that could only be released by remote control from inside the building. Today the pedestrian gate is always left unlocked for visitors. Note the bar over the top of the pedestrian gate in the photograph above.  The photograph above was taken by Lt. William J. Cowling III on the day that Dachau was liberated, April 29, 1945. This view is looking east towards the inside of the concentration camp where the prisoners are attempting to get out while American soldiers are standing outside the gatehouse trying to keep them inside. The photograph below shows another gate into the SS garrison on the southwest side of the Dachau complex. This gate has since been torn down.  Back to Dachau LiberationHome |