Many of the refugees and displaced persons, if not unemployed, initially worked outside their profession. Only very few succeeded in returning to their pre-war status. This affected above all farmers who had been active before 1945, among them many East Prussians, as there was a lack of farm vacancies. Anyone who had to change from self-employment to an employment relationship or was hired out as a wage earner particularly suffered from the loss of status. Not rooted in their "new home", they were mobile and filled the gaps in the emerging service society. Their flexibility, mobility and high motivation were a decisive contribution to the German economic miracle.
In addition to the prosperity gap, there were also cultural, social and religious differences between long-established residents and newcomers, which often led to tensions. It took years before it became a matter of course to celebrate together, to get married and to work together on the reconstruction.
Illustrations:
1.) Bakery and confectionery Sackheim No. 39 in Königsberg (today’s Kaliningrad)
Photo: Private Archive
2.) Bakery and confectionery of Herbert Zimmermann 1957 in Scharnhorststrasse in Luneburg
Photo: Private Archive
The master confectioner and marzipan specialist Herbert Zimmermann from Königsberg built up a new existence for himself in Luneburg. In 1950 he first leased a bakery in Salzstrasse before opening his own confectionery in a new building in Scharnhorststrasse in 1954. His daughter Helga and her husband Günther Kamphaus then ran the Turm Bäckerei, which offered East Prussian marzipan specialities for many years to come.