Vladimir Karlovich MATTERN was born in the German Volga region (later called Marxstadt in the Autonomous Republic of the Volga-Germans) in 1912. After having finished school he attended and completed training courses in radio engineering in Saratov, worked in Sverdlovsk and from 1934 in Komsomolsk on the River Amur as well as in Khabarovsk.
From 1937 he was employed at a polar station in the Bay (or as it was called at that time: gulf) of KOZHEVNIKOV, on the Southern shore of the TAYMYR peninsula. This polar station was part of the UPC system (= Administration of Polar Stations) of the Main Administration of the Artic Ocean Traffic Route. It was situated in the Southern bay area , opposite Cape Kosisty. There was an airfield, where, later-on, during the war, planes from America used to make intermediate landings.
Besides, there was a geological expedition working in the Bay of Kozhevnikov - the Nordvik Research Group for the Exploration of Petrol from the Mountain-Geological Department of the Arctic Ocean Traffic Administration.
Nevertheless, they did not succeed in discovering any petrol before the beginning of the war.
The expedition consisted of about 1000 people. Among the workers of this expedition there were approximately 60 deported "kulaks" (= large farmers), who had been taken here from Archangelsk. They were supervised by commander BUSYGIN.
The head of the expedition was Boris Vassilyevich LAVROV (born around 1880), who had been decorated twice with the Lenin Medal. Earlier he had been working as head of a large construction project in Igarka. Approximately in 1939 the Communists called him to Moscow, arrested him and, as rumours said, he was shot. As far as Vladimir MATTERN knows, there were no further arrests within members of the expedition at that time.
Vladimir, by that time, had already become head of the polar station. In 1941 it was obvious that the superiors started to make tremendous efforts to dismiss him from his position. In the end, in autumn 1941, they appointed Semyonov to his post , so that Vladimir was forced to change his job and become the head of telecommunications at the Petrol Exploring Expedition. The Communists arrested him on 19th December.
Together with him they also seized the Chief geologist from the research group, Ivan Petrovich LUGINYETS (stressed on the last syllable, 1911-1966), a worker named BABAK (born around 1920) and the head of the technical department of the expedition ABIDEKOV (born 1907 or 1908). In order to be able to transport them, they had ordered a bomber expressly for that purpose and, accompanied by ALEXEYEV, the investigator, they were taken to Khatanga, where they had to spend 24 hours in a cell of the remand prison, then via Turukhansk to Krasnoyarsk.
They arrived in KRASNOYARSK on 28th December 1941, were sent to the inner prison and pushed into different cells. Vladimir found himself in a cell on the 2nd floor of the two-story prison building. The dimensions were 3 x 4 meters, there were tip-up beds and always one chair less than inmates. Behind the cell window, in the prison yard hung a loud-speaker in working order, but only during the first time - then it was removed. Vladimir spent 4 or 5 months in this cell. For the first couple of days he only had one single cellmate, but a few days after the new year had begun, they also put into this cell the head of the locomotive service of the Krasnoyarsk Railroad Administration, Victor Ivanovich KARPUKHIN (born around 1908). He spent about a month in the cell and reported, how he had been questioned and that the investigator turned out to be the former head of the cadre department of the locomotive service, IVANOV. He said to his former superior: "Let us make the following arrangement: if you sign, you will get 5 years, if you don't - 10".
End of January or early in February KARPUKHIN had to appear before the Railroad Court an was, in fact, given 5 years, evidently on section 58-10 (= propaganda or agitation against the Soviet Power). And then Vladimir MATTERN met him again in the BUMSTROY (part of the Krasnoyarsk Cellulose and Paper Works), where KARPUKHIN managed the grain storehouse. He probably served the whole term in this camp. After his release he lived in Kansk and died approximately in 1953 of tuberculosis, which he had already suffered from before his arrest.
The Soviets moved Vladimir MATTERN to Room No. 28, situated in the two-story NKVD (People's Commissariate of the Interior) building, to appear in front of first lieutenant KASHCHEYEV - and this happened to be at night: at 11 o'clock they had given the signal for the inmates to retire and at half past 11 they unlocked the cell door - "whose family name starts with an M? - Come out!" At 6 o'clock in the morning was rising time again, and it was strictly forbidden to sleep during the day. In the course of the questioning the interrogator showed him a paper with the following text: "The Transport Administration of the NKVD of the USSR has received an information that the son of the former large-scale factory owner Babak, in case of the Germans' successful attack , intends to organize an armed revolt in the Bay of Kozhenikov. Mattern, Luginyets and Adibekov are suspected to take part in this rising". While showing the paper, the interrogator covered the signature.
Some other time Vladimir MATTERN was forced to tell him about when he had been to Japan and met with the emperor. Later-on, he was willing to content himself with the confession of "how they had spread sand into the tractor engine".
The interrogator yet tried to cling to a stamp on the operating instructions for a wave measuring instrument: due to someone's carelessness this stamp had been impressed slightly below the inscription "strictly confidential", but finally he changed his mind to "agitation". He lead Vladimir to the major, the head of the investigations department, and had him sign a paper, in which was stated that he had infringed on section 206 (= crimes against public security and order), and thus the investigation procedure was brought to an end.
Then they sent Vladimir MATTERN to prison for a period of 3 months. He was put into a cell on the 1st floor, probably cell no. 48. It was a completely overcrowded common cell with approximately 150 inmates. In the middle of the room there stood a big latrine bucket and close beside, as well as under the continuous plank-beds, the prisoners slept on the bare concrete floor. On the plank-beds they had arranged place for the thieves. The cell elder was the bearded GRINBERG from the "utility refuse" office. And there was PAVEL DEGERMENDZHI (born about 1915, died approximately in 1985), student of the Sibirian Institute of Forest Technology in his fourth year. And both of them had been arrested in KRASNOYARSK in 1942.
Roughly in 1942 the Soviets sent Vladimir MATTERN to the BUMSTROY (a large construction project of the Krasnoyarsk Cellulose and Paper Works). To this place had been evacuated the Leningrad affiliate of the Research Institute "for the Production of Spirits from Wood-flour". In this office Vladimir worked as a draftsman.
In December 1942 he was given the sentence of the USSR NKVD Special Board (OSO): anti-Soviet agitation, 10 years ITL (corrective labour camp) - and he was immediately taken back into prison, where they kept him in a transit cell for 3 days, and this place was the former prison church. Here BABAK came across him, who - after all the tortures in the inner prison - was now seriously ill. LUGINYETS and ADIBEKOV, who had been arrested together with him, were not sentenced, but it is not precisely known, when they were set free.
The Soviets took Vladimir MATTERN and BABAK to KANSK, to the 7th separate camp sub-sector, where you will find today an office for the rafting of timber. It was a small procession of convicts, which was transported on an ordinary wagon under escort. Having arrived at the 7th separate camp sub-sector the prisoners were kept there in quarantine for 20 days; then, about 40 of them, were brought to ILANSK on train freight cars. At that time BABKA was already absent. He probably died during the quarantine. In ILANSK 15-20 prisoners of the transport were kept in the remand prison cell (= a holding cell for detainees awaiting transfer to another place), P.O.Box 235, and afterwards Vladimir MATTERN was put on another transport of about 20 prisoners, who the Soviets chased on foot over a distance of 75 km to the forced labour camp sub-sector in AKSHA (stressed on the last syllable). The transport took three days.
The camp branch in AKSHA was reckoned among the structure of the INGASHSK separate camp sub-sector, which belonged to the KRASLag (mailing address of this penitentiary institution: P.O.Box 235), and was transferred to the group of ITK institutions (= corrective labour colonies) under mailing adress P.O.Box 288. AKSHA was situated near the village of YUZHNO-ALEXANDROVKA in the district of ILANSK. Till the disbandment of the ILANSK separate camp sub-sector of the KRASLag this forced labour camp sub-sector, as well as others, belonged to the territory of the district of ILANSK.
Within the camp zone stood about 7 dwelling barracks, a canteen and a bakery. There were about 500 prisoners in the zone, 60-70 in each barrack. They were forced to fell trees in MEDVEZHIY, 8 km away from the camp. The timber had to be loaded on sledges and was transported away on a path built from wooden beams. The prisoners in this camp sub-sector had been sentenced on different sections, most of them, however, on section 58. Dietrich ABRAMS (son of Dietrich), German, was in charge of the distribution of the food rations and worked in the "kaptyorka" (store-room) in AKSHA.
He had formerly been deputy of the director of the EPRON (Expedition for Special Sub-marine Research) and approximately in 1937 the Sovietes had arrested him for having infringed section 58. After his rehabilitation he worked in Kansk, in the 4th unit of the municipal military registration and enlistment office.
Not far from the AKSHA camp sub-sector there was another sub-sector of the INGASHSK separate camp sub-sector - VERKH-TUGUSHA (stressed on the last syllable), 20 km away from the village of TUGUSHA, also situated in the district of ILANSK. At those times there was a "Trud-Army" zone, where deported Germans were kept to work in the woods and fell trees. There were rumours about a high mortality among the "Trud-Armists".
Vladimir MATTERN was kept in AKSHA for several months. In summer 1943 the INGASHSK separate camp sub-sector was in need of someone who knew about telecommunications and Vladimir was detached there for this special tasks.
This separate camp sub-sector was about 4 km away from the county administrative center of NIZHNIY INGASH. In the zone there were about 12 camp barracks, in which they had stuffed between 800 and 1000 prisoners. Some of the inmates were forced to fell trees, others had to work in a timber combine near NISZHNIY INGASH. In this timber combine worked Germans from the "Trud-Army" zone, also under the supervision of guards. Then, in 1944 they were sent away to some unknown place. At the same time the administration of the KRASLag issued an ordinance to send all those Germans away, who had been sentenced on any sections of the RSFSR Criminal code.
This did not concern Vladimir MATTERN, because he had been detached to the separate camp sub-section on duty and was occupied with the installation of telephone wires. He worked under the supervision of armed guards.
A certain Georgiy Dmitriyevich YOSSIFIDI (born 1905 or 1906), Greek, who had been arrested in KISLOVODSK in1937 and sentenced on section 58, worked in the infirmary as assistant medical director. In 1944 or 1945 he was set free and started to work as medical director in the hospital in Reshoty. After his rehabilitation he worked as medical director of the sanatorium for tuberculous patients in Kansk. As a pensioner he lived in Kaluga, where he later died.
The head of the INGASHSK separate camp sub-sector was Ivan Fyodorovich MAKAROV, but in the middle of the 40s he was replaced by TOKMATCHOV. Head of the URTCh
(Registration Distribution Unit) was Angelina Nikolajevna GAWRILCHENKO.
After 1945 she held this position in the 1st separate camp sub-sector of the KRASLag (see below).
The zone of the INGASHSK separate camp sub-sector still exist today, in the very same place, and belongs to the УП-288 (administrative board 288).
In the summer of 1945 the Soviets sent about 30 prisoners from the INGASHSK separate camp sub-sector to the 1st separate camp sub-sector od the KRASLag in Beryozovka, 2 km away from the settlement of KANIFOLNY, 18 km north of RESHOTY. In the zone there were about 10 barracks with approximately 800 prisoners. Some of them worked in the machine shop, among them Pavel DEGERMENDZHI (see above). His term ended in this camp. However, they would not permit him to depart home to Krasnoyarsk, but sent him to some unknown place into exile.
Head of the 1st separate camp sub-sector was SURNIN, later-on GRISHKOV.
Here Vladimir MATTERN continued to work as a telecommunications engineer. In October
1948 he was sent to RESHOTY on special duty; at that time - the complete KRASLag administration had been transferred from KANSK to RESHOTY, where it still exists today in the very same building.
In RESCHOTY Vladimir MATTERN installed telephone lines in the new administration building the construction of which had just been finished. Soon the guards did not escort him anymore and he lived on the 3rd floor of the building that was used for the storage of various materials destined for the construction of telephone lines. A certain Boris NAZARCHUK (born around 1915), a radio engineeer from LENINGRAD worked there together with him; he was not kept under guard anymore, either. Till that time he had been imprisoned in KANSK. After his release he worked in the Cellulose and Paper Works in TAISHET as head of the electric workshop.
Late in the 40s or early in the 50s GALKIN was the head of the KRASLag special branch, his deputy for the general course of operations - FILATOV.
Vladimir MATTERN was released on Nov. 4, 1950. They deducted from his regular term 1 year and half a month. There still remains a certificate on his release No. 5-BB-4231 (2-AA) dated 04.11.50. Upon his release Vladimir would not confirm having any relatives; he feared that in accordance with some existing procedure (Germans who had been released from camp prison were usually sent under escort to where their deported relatives lived, that is to far-away villages) they would also send him away, while he preferred to continue working according to his vocational qualifications; he found a place in Kansk, where he lived under military command - not as a former political prisoner, but because he was a German.
The commandant's office was closed down in 1956.
Vladimir MATTERN was rehabilitated upon the decision of the Presidium of the Krasnoyarsk District Court on May 25,1957. Certificate Nr. 44-U-126s of 31.05.57.
Dec. 12, 1990, recorded by V.S. Birger, Krasnoyarsk, "Memorial" Society