It was founded in June 1933 as an addition to the Breitenau Labor and Welfare House, less than six months after the Nazis by a democratic election in Germany became the majority party in the German parliament.
[1][2] It closed in March 1934 and reopened in 1940 where it remained in operation until the end of World War II.
[4] It was converted into a prison labor camp for beggars, vagabonds, and so-called "lewd women" in 1874.
Three years later, an institution for the rural poor was established alongside the prison camp.
Treatment at the prison was considered cruel with lengthy sentences and hard labor for minor criminal offenses, including poverty.