Lowestoft Station is set to host the critically acclaimed exhibition, A Thousand Kisses, telling the story of the Kindertransport through the experiences of eight children and the loved ones they left behind.
Between December 1938 and May 1940, almost 10,000 unaccompanied and mostly Jewish children were brought to Britain from Nazi Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia and Poland in what became known as the Kindertransport.
Hosted by the Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership (CRP) and the Lowestoft Central Project, the free exhibition was developed as part of the Harwich Haven Surrender & Sanctuary project and draws on the Weiner Library collections.
A Thousand Kisses will be staged in the Parcels Office at Lowestoft Station as part of the national Railway 200 celebrations, opening at 1pm on Monday 27 January, Holocaust Memorial Day, and running on selected dates until 8 February.
For many years, Lowestoft Station has hosted the annual Civic Service of Remembrance for Holocaust Memorial Day. Lowestoft welcomed a Kindertransport to the town in December 1938 with over 500 children escaping Nazi persecution in Vienna. In 2023, a permanent interpretation panel retelling the events leading up to and arrival of the Kindertransport in Lowestoft was unveiled on the station concourse.
Martin Halliday, development officer at Community Rail Norfolk, said: “It is an honour to have secured this exhibition for Lowestoft, itself an arrival point of the Kindertransport. It will provide the public with a fascinating insight into this incredible initiative.”
Yasmin Gledhill, digital engagement and community outreach officer at the Weiner Library, said: “We’re delighted to provide Lowestoft Station with our A Thousand Kisses exhibition. Now more than ever, the story of persecution, migration and refuge must be shared.”
Keep up to date with future news, projects and events from the Wherry Lines CRP via their website.
Exhibition opening times:
- Monday 27 January, 1pm-4pm
- Tuesday 28-Friday 31January, 10.30am-4pm daily
- Saturday 1 February, 2pm-4pm
- Monday 3 February, 10.30am-3pm
- Wednesday 5-Saturday 8 February, 10.30am-3pm daily
