Remembered by people who were there · 1944
Paul Laan remembers his family's escape from Haapsalu to Sweden in 1944
Paul Laan, born in Narva in 1928, became a keeper of the Estonian language and culture in Sweden. He spent his childhood in Paldiski and Haapsalu, where his father was head of customs and of the harbour. At the end of the summer of 1944 his father organised the family's escape across the sea to Sweden, and followed them himself in September, after the Red Army had taken Tallinn. Paul Laan has many memories of the refugee camps the family lived in after arriving in Sweden.
Open it on the map See the spot on the old maps and as it is today
Eesti keeles
Paul Laan (sünd 1928 Narvas) on Rootsi eesti keelemees ja kultuuri hoidja. Tema lapsepõlv möödus Paldiskis ja Haapsalus, kus isa oli tolli- ja sadamaülem. 1944. aasta suve lõpul korraldas isa pere põgenemise üle mere Rootsi ning järgnes neile ise septembris, kui Punaarmee oli Tallinna vallutanud. Paul Laanel on rohkesti mälestusi põgenikelaagritest, kus pere pärast Rootsi jõudmist elas.
Source: Eesti Mälu Instituut, Kogu Me Lugu (YouTube), video jvfRwGQAEkU ↗