That Young Girl’s Name Was Anne Frank

The year was 1942, a young girl along with her family and friends were hiding in a secret place called an annex for two years. That Young Girl’s Name Was Anne Frank.

It was not her alone that made her famous but it was what she left behind in her diary. She wrote passages about what happened in her life, World War II, and what Hitler was doing to the jews. Hitler hated the Jews and started to separate them from the other citizens. Things continued to get worse and worse. The Germans made the Jews wear yellow stars on their clothes, and some were taken to concentration camps and killed. Then one day the word came that Margot, Anne’s sister, would have to go to a labor camp. Anne’s father Otto was not happy with his daughter being taken. Otto and his wife Edith had been preparing a place for their family to hide, so they decided that it would be a good time to flee. The girls were told to grab what they could, and wear all their clothes in layers because a suitcase would look too suspicious to the Germans. That is when they went into hiding.

While Otto went into hiding, he loaned his business to his non-jewish friends. The family had a secret hideout next to his business. The door was hidden behind some bookshelves. The first floor had a bathroom and a small kitchen. The second floor had two rooms, one for Anne and Margot and one for her parents. There was also an attic where they stored food and where Anne would sometimes go to be alone. Anne named her diary ‘Kitty’ after a friend of hers. Each entry into her diary began ‘Dear Kitty’. Anne wrote about all sorts of things. She never thought others would read it. She wrote about her feelings, books she read, and the people around her. From Anne’s diary we find out just what it must have been like to live in hiding for two years in a small space, fearing for one’s life.

The Franks had to be careful not be caught by the Germans. They covered all the windows with thick dark curtains. During the day they had to be extra quiet because that’s when people were most active. They whispered when they talked and walked barefoot so they could walk softly and not make sound. However at night, when the people working in the business below went home, they could relax a bit, but they still had to be very silent. Soon more people moved in with the Franks. They needed a place to hide, too. The Van Pels family joined just a week later. They had a 15 year old boy named Peter. Anne Frank had a small crush on Peter. Then Mr. Pfeffer moved in. He ended up rooming with Anne, and Margot moved to her parent’s room. Anne wrote that rooming with Pfeffer was a fun experience.

Anne and her family had been hiding for almost two years when they heard that the war was coming to an end. It looked like the Germans were going to lose the war. They were starting to have hope that they would soon be free. However, on August 4, 1944 the Germans stormed into the Frank’s hideout. They took everyone captive and sent them to concentration camps. The men and women were separated. Peter Van Daan died in Mauthaussen camp in 1945. Mrs. Van Daan died while being transported to Theresienstadt camp in 1945. Mr. Van Daan died in Auschwitz camp in 1944. Pfeffer died in Neuengamme camp in 1944. Margot and Anne both died in Bergen-Belsen camp in 1945. Mrs. Frank died in Auschwitz-Birkenau camp in 1945. Mr. Frank survived Auschwitz camp and died later in 1980. It was a true story that showed how horrific those events were and the effect it had on many innocent lives.

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