1945 WW2 German Army Ammunition Female War Service Munitions Worker Certificate Document

Original late-war German Beschäftigungs-Zeugnis (Employment Certificate) issued by the Vorstand der Heeres-Munitionsanstalt Herfa at Heringen on 19 February 1945.

This is an especially interesting piece of wartime home-front history because it documents a young German woman employed directly at the Army Munitions Facility Herfa (Heeres-Munitionsanstalt Herfa) during the final months of WWII.

The recipient is:

Rita Schell
Born 29 August 1927
Düsseldorf

She is specifically identified as a “Kriegshilfsdienstmaid” — a young woman performing wartime auxiliary/service duty.

The certificate records that she worked at the Heeres-Munitionsanstalt Herfa from 6 November 1944 until 20 February 1945, primarily in the production/manufacture of ammunition.

English Translation

Board of the Army Munitions Facility Herfa

Employment Certificate

“The war auxiliary service girl Rita Schell, born on 29 August 1927 in Düsseldorf, was employed at the Army Munitions Facility Herfa from 6 November 1944 to 20 February 1945.

She was employed predominantly in the manufacture of ammunition and carried out the work assigned to her to our satisfaction.

Her conduct while on duty was good, and her conduct outside of duty was irreproachable.

Her release takes place because of the expiration of her service obligation.

For her future well-being I wish her all the best.”

Heringen, 19 February 1945

The document bears an original official Heeres-Munitionsanstalt Herfa eagle stamp, handwritten evaluation entries, and the signature of a Hauptmann (W) / Captain.

Historical Background

The identification of Herfa is significant. The Herfa-Neurode facility near Heringen was developed by the German Army as a major ammunition storage and processing complex beginning in the 1930s. The City of Heringen’s historical study dates establishment of the Heeresmunitionsanstalt at the Herfa-Neurode mine complex to 1935.

Detailed research on the installation shows that Herfa stored shells, cartridge ammunition, propellant charges, fuzes, explosives and powder. During the later war years, part of its ammunition production was moved underground, with underground ammunition workrooms operating in the complex. The facility also had dedicated ammunition-processing buildings where ammunition was prepared for use and dispatched toward the front.

Women formed a substantial part of the facility’s workforce even before the war: surviving employment figures for July 1939 record 321 women among 887 workers. As wartime manpower shortages intensified, the facility sought additional female workers.

This certificate is therefore particularly interesting because it identifies a named female worker and explicitly states that she was engaged primarily in ammunition production at Herfa in late 1944 and early 1945.

Her employment ended only weeks before American forces reached the Herfa complex in April 1945. Research on the installation records that both shafts remained operational and stocked with ammunition until the American occupation.

Condition

Original wartime document showing considerable period use and age. It has multiple folds, edge wear and losses, punched filing holes, staining, old tape repairs/reinforcement and general handling wear. The official stamp and most of the text remain clearly visible. Please examine all photographs carefully for exact condition.

Despite the condition, this is an unusually descriptive piece of female German wartime labor documentation, since the certificate actually identifies her as a Kriegshilfsdienstmaid and states that her principal work involved ammunition manufacture.

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