1907 Otto Wolff is born in Kiel.
1920 The Wolff family moves to Hamburg. Otto joins FC St. Pauli in the same year.
1925 Wolff begins to play in the 1st men’s football team.
1928 After his Abitur (A-levels), Wolff works for the Reichsbahn (German Railways) where he gains multiple promotions. At the same time, he is a student of economics at the University of Hamburg.
1930 On 1 December, Wolff joins the NSDAP.
1930 The 1st men’s team, with Wolff as forward, wins the Bezirksliga (district league) and promotes to the Oberliga Hamburg (the highest football division of that time).
1934: After his graduation in economics, Wolff gains his doctorate title. His thesis paper: “Nature and meaning of exceptional tariffs for sea ports given by German Railways”.
1936 Wolff leaves the Reichsbahn and becomes main clerk of the economic advisor to the “Gau” Hamburg, Carlo Otte. In this function, he is, among others, substantially involved in the “aryanisation” and “de-Jewishment” of private bank house M. M. Warburg & Co and numerous other companies. When an NSDAP-functionary doubts the classification of a company owner as Jew, Wolff suggests him to have a closer look at his ears as to “see that he is really a Jew.”
1938: The Hamburg authority for the building sector, for which Wolff works for, begins to systematically expropriate the left 2,043 real properties owned by Jewish citizens.
1939: Wolff purchases a building in Harvestehude that used to be in Jewish property.
1940 After the detachment of his supervisor Otte to Oslo, Wolff is appointed as acting Gau economic advisor to the NSDAP. A position he will keep until the end of the war. With this appointment, he becomes a member of the SS where he is given the rank of an “Obersturmbannführer” (corresponding to a lieutenant colonel).
1942 Wolff gets himself a second “aryanised” real property formerly owned by a Jewish citizen, a building at the Elbchaussee, and becomes member of the Hamburger Ratsherrnversammlung (councilmen’s assembly, a sort of “pseudo-Parliament”). Other offices held by him: jead of the executive staff for economics in military disctrict X, member of the board of Hamburg-America Line (HAPAG), chairman of the armaments committee in military district X and military district commissioner of the Reich ministry for armament and ammunition.
1943 (August) As member of the SS, Wolff is given the rank as “Standartenführer” (corresponding to a colonel). Furthermore, he is appointed as general commissioner for the entire economy in the Gau (region). As “dictator of the economy”, he is in charge for the armaments industry and the food and supply companies in Hamburg. He is also substantially involved in the organisation of forced labour and collaborates closely with the commander of KZ Neuengamme.
1945 After the surrender of Germany, Wolff is taken into internment.