Kolka: Coast guard post

Border guard came to check peoples’ homes. We have an old “Book of the House” where these inspections are registered – when, at what times. They checked if there were strangers in the house. My elder brother was taken to serve in German military. After war he went to live in Canada, therefore our family was regarded as suspicious. One night, an elderly man arrived to our place. He spoke Latvian and asked if he can stay overnight. It was not allowed to accommodate strangers; we had to report them to the <i>zastav</i>. I do not remember how we reported, but the border guard arrived and took him. The next morning, their officer said “Thank you, Alexander!” to my father. Since then they started to regard us as less suspicious.

To get it white, I used the silicate glue, which was available in 0.5 l bottles. A friend from Siberia taught me. I had a big caldron, 16 litres, and I used to put one bottle of that glue in it so that the clothes got very white. Every day I laundered one caldron. I tried to arrange my Sundays free. In the beginning I also used to buy washing soda, it was cheap. <br> After some time they brought a posh washing machine, but it was not for a countryside place, as it had to be connected to water pipes and sewage. We still do not have such installations in this house. Then they brought another washing machine, “Rīga-8”, but this was to wash handkerchiefs, not army clothing.

There were not enough men to carry the heavy boxes. The factory called to <i>zastava</i> and asked them to send soldiers to help. For that, they got provision: oil, fish, whatever, because it was not possible to pay in money.

During the mid-1950s, soldiers from the Soviet army’s punitive battalion were in Košrags while building the road between Ventspils and Kolka. There were plans to add side-roads to all of the Liv villages, including Košrags, but older residents objected, because they feared further deportations and oppression.

During Soviet times, border guards used the tower to watch the Irbe narrows, and it was said that even a duck could not pass through the narrows without the Border Guard’s knowledge.