| Displaying results 2251-2300 of 6769 for "" |

  • Ruth Moser Borsos describes roll call (Appell) in Bergen-Belsen

    Oral History

    Ruth moved to the Netherlands after Kristallnacht (the "Night of Broken Glass") in 1938. She and her father had permits to sail to the United States, but Germany invaded the Netherlands in May 1940 and they could not leave. Ruth was deported to the Westerbork camp in 1943 and to the Bergen-Belsen camp in Germany in 1944. After an exchange agreement with the Allies broke down, Ruth was interned near the Swiss border until liberation by French forces in 1945.

    Ruth Moser Borsos describes roll call (Appell) in Bergen-Belsen
  • Fela Warschau describes liberation by British forces at Bergen-Belsen

    Oral History

    Fela was liberated at Bergen-Belsen by the British army in 1945. She went to a displaced persons (DP) camp administered by the Americans in Feldafing, near Munich. She married in the DP camp in 1946, and eventually immigrated to the United States.

    Tags: liberation
    Fela Warschau describes liberation by British forces at Bergen-Belsen
  • Bella Jakubowicz Tovey describes a British soldier's visit while she was hospitalized in Bergen-Belsen after liberation

    Oral History

    Bella was the oldest of four children born to a Jewish family in Sosnowiec. Her father owned a knitting factory. After the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, they took over the factory. The family's furniture was given to a German woman. Bella was forced to work in a factory in the Sosnowiec ghetto in 1941. At the end of 1942 the family was deported to the Bedzin ghetto. Bella was deported to the Graeben subcamp of Gross-Rosen in 1943 and to Bergen-Belsen in 1944. She was liberated in April 1945.

    Bella Jakubowicz Tovey describes a British soldier's visit while she was hospitalized in Bergen-Belsen after liberation
  • Norbert Wollheim describes working for the Kindertransport (Children's Transport) program, arranging for Jewish children to leave Germany
  • Norbert Wollheim describes departure of Kindertransporte (Childrens' Transports) from Berlin, and the separation of children from their parents

    Oral History

    Norbert studied law and was a social worker in Berlin. He worked on the Kindertransport (Children's Transport) program, arranging to send Jewish children from Europe to Great Britain. His parents, who also lived in Berlin, were deported in December 1942. Norbert, his wife, and their child were deported to Auschwitz in March 1943. He was separated from his wife and child, and sent to the Buna works near Auschwitz III (Monowitz) for forced labor. Norbert survived the Auschwitz camp, and was liberated by US…

    Norbert Wollheim describes departure of Kindertransporte (Childrens' Transports) from Berlin, and the separation of children from their parents
  • Alice (Eberstarkova) Masters describes leaving Czechoslovakia on a Kindertransport (Children's Transport)

    Oral History

    Alice grew up in a small village in Czechoslovakia. She was the middle of three daughters in a well-to-do, close-knit family. Her parents were religious and active in the Jewish community. After the German annexation of parts of Czechoslovakia in March 1939, antisemitism became more pronounced. Alice's uncle, a businessman who had moved to Great Britain, helped her parents arrange to send Alice and her two sisters on a Kindertransport (Children's Transport) to Britain. The sisters lived in a children's…

    Alice (Eberstarkova) Masters describes leaving Czechoslovakia on a Kindertransport (Children's Transport)
  • Alice (Eberstarkova) Masters describes going to a home for refugee children in England after arriving on a Kindertransport

    Oral History

    Alice grew up in a small village in Czechoslovakia. She was the middle of three daughters in a well-to-do, close-knit family. Her parents were religious and active in the Jewish community. After the German annexation of parts of Czechoslovakia in March 1939, antisemitism became more pronounced. Alice's uncle, a businessman who had moved to Great Britain, helped her parents arrange to send Alice and her two sisters on a Kindertransport (Children's Transport) to Britain. The sisters lived in a children's…

    Alice (Eberstarkova) Masters describes going to a home for refugee children in England after arriving on a Kindertransport
  • Edward Adler describes deportation to and arrival at the Sachsenhausen camp

    Oral History

    Edward was born to a Jewish family in Hamburg. In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws prohibited marriage or sexual relations between German non-Jews and Jews. Edward was then in his mid-twenties. Edward was arrested for dating a non-Jewish woman. Classified as a habitual offender, he was later deported to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, near Berlin. He was forced to perform hard labor in construction projects. Edward had married shortly before his imprisonment, and his wife made arrangements for their…

    Edward Adler describes deportation to and arrival at the Sachsenhausen camp
  • Edward Adler describes forced labor and conditions in the Sachsenhausen camp

    Oral History

    Edward was born to a Jewish family in Hamburg. In 1935, the Nuremberg Laws prohibited marriage or sexual relations between German non-Jews and Jews. Edward was then in his mid-twenties. Edward was arrested for dating a non-Jewish woman. Classified as a habitual offender, he was later deported to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp, near Berlin. He was forced to perform hard labor in construction projects. Edward had married shortly before his imprisonment, and his wife made arrangements for their…

    Edward Adler describes forced labor and conditions in the Sachsenhausen camp
  • Tomasz (Toivi) Blatt describes the Izbica Jewish council (Judenrat) and German attacks (Aktionen) there

    Oral History

    After war began in September 1939, the Germans established a ghetto and Jewish council in Izbica. Tomasz's work in a garage initially protected him from roundups in the ghetto. In 1942 he tried to escape to Hungary, using false papers. He was caught but managed to return to Izbica. In April 1943 he and his family were deported to the Sobibor killing center. Tomasz escaped during the Sobibor uprising. He went into hiding, and worked as a courier in the Polish underground.

    Tomasz (Toivi) Blatt describes the Izbica Jewish council (Judenrat) and German attacks (Aktionen) there
  • Bella Jakubowicz Tovey describes a meeting between her father and the Jewish council leader in Sosnowiec

    Oral History

    Bella was the oldest of four children born to a Jewish family in Sosnowiec. Her father owned a knitting factory. After the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, they took over the factory. The family's furniture was given to a German woman. Bella was forced to work in a factory in the Sosnowiec ghetto in 1941. At the end of 1942 the family was deported to the Bedzin ghetto. Bella was deported to the Graeben subcamp of Gross-Rosen in 1943 and to Bergen-Belsen in 1944. She was liberated in April 1945.

    Tags: ghettos police
    Bella Jakubowicz Tovey describes a meeting between her father and the Jewish council leader in Sosnowiec
  • Max Karl Liebmann describes arrival at and conditions in the Gurs camp

    Oral History

    Because he was Jewish, Max could not join the army when World War II began. Instead, he had to perform labor service. In October 1940, Max and his mother were deported to the Gurs camp in France. In Gurs, Max met his future wife, Hanne. In 1941, with the help of the Children's Aid Society (Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants; OSE), Hanne left the camp. Max followed in July 1942. He escaped to Switzerland through the French Alps and was in internment and refugee camps throughout the war. Hanne reached Switzerland…

    Tags: Gurs France
    Max Karl Liebmann describes arrival at and conditions in the Gurs camp
  • Beatrice Stern Pappenheimer describes struggle among prisoners for meager food rations in Gurs camp

    Oral History

    Beatrice's family lost their textile business and home when the Nazis barred Jews from owning property. The family was deported to camps. Beatrice, her sister, and their mother were sent to Gurs. The Children's Aid Society (OSE) later placed the girls in homes and convents, where they feared Allied bomb attacks, but escaped the horrors of camp life. Their parents perished.

    Tags: Gurs France
    Beatrice Stern Pappenheimer describes struggle among prisoners for meager food rations in Gurs camp
  • Hanne Hirsch Liebmann describes conditions in the Gurs camp

    Oral History

    Hanne's family owned a photographic studio. In October 1940, she and other family members were deported to the Gurs camp in southern France. In September 1941, the Children's Aid Society (OSE) rescued Hanne and she hid in a children's home in Le Chambon-sur-Lignon. Her mother perished in Auschwitz. In 1943, Hanne obtained false papers and crossed into Switzerland. She married in Geneva in 1945 and had a daughter in 1946. In 1948, she arrived in the United States..

    Tags: Gurs France
    Hanne Hirsch Liebmann describes conditions in the Gurs camp
  • David (Dudi) Bergman recalls the importance of work for survival in the Plaszow labor camp

    Oral History

    The Germans occupied David's town, previously annexed by Hungary, in 1944. David was deported to Auschwitz and, with his father, transported to Plaszow. David was sent to the Gross-Rosen camp and to Reichenbach. He was then among three of 150 in a cattle car who survived transportation to Dachau. He was liberated after a death march from Innsbruck toward the front line of combat between US and German troops.

    David (Dudi) Bergman recalls the importance of work for survival in the Plaszow labor camp
  • Alan Zimm describes a hanging in the Dora-Mittelbau camp

    Oral History

    The Germans occupied Kolo in 1939. In 1942 Alan was deported to the Lodz ghetto where he worked in food distribution. He took food each day to Mordechai Chaim Rumkowski, chairman of the Jewish council. In 1944 Alan was forced to unload trainloads of coal and munitions in Czestochowa. In 1945 he was sent to the Dora-Mittelbau camp. As the Soviet army advanced, the inmates were transferred to Bergen-Belsen, where British forces liberated them in April.

    Alan Zimm describes a hanging in the Dora-Mittelbau camp
  • Robert Wagemann describes secret Jehovah's Witness prayer meetings in Nazi Germany

    Oral History

    Robert and his family were Jehovah's Witnesses. The Nazis regarded Jehovah's Witnesses as enemies of the state for their refusal to take an oath of loyalty to Adolf Hitler, or to serve in the German army. Robert's family continued its religious activities despite Nazi persecution. Shortly before Robert's birth, his mother was imprisoned briefly for distributing religious materials. Robert's hip was injured during delivery, leaving him with a disability. When Robert was five years, he was ordered to report…

    Robert Wagemann describes secret Jehovah's Witness prayer meetings in Nazi Germany
  • David Stoliar describes engine troubles experienced by the Struma upon leaving Constanta, Romania

    Oral History

    In 1936, David moved to Bucharest to live with his father. As Romania came under German influence, Romanian authorities introduced increasingly harsh measures against Jews. Antisemitic agitation increased and Jews came under attack in the streets of Bucharest and in other public places. David's father decided David should leave the country and arranged passage for him to Palestine. In December 1941, David left Romania from Constanta, a port city on the Black Sea, on the Struma, an old cattle boat. The…

    David Stoliar describes engine troubles experienced by the Struma upon leaving Constanta, Romania
  • David Stoliar describes conditions on board the Struma during the journey to Istanbul

    Oral History

    In 1936, David moved to Bucharest to live with his father. As Romania came under German influence, Romanian authorities introduced increasingly harsh measures against Jews. Antisemitic agitation increased and Jews came under attack in the streets of Bucharest and in other public places. David's father decided David should leave the country and arranged passage for him to Palestine. In December 1941, David left Romania from Constanta, a port city on the Black Sea, on the Struma, an old cattle boat. The…

    David Stoliar describes conditions on board the Struma during the journey to Istanbul
  • David Stoliar describes holding onto a piece of wreckage from the deck of the torpedoed Struma

    Oral History

    In 1936, David moved to Bucharest to live with his father. As Romania came under German influence, Romanian authorities introduced increasingly harsh measures against Jews. Antisemitic agitation increased and Jews came under attack in the streets of Bucharest and in other public places. David's father decided David should leave the country and arranged passage for him to Palestine. In December 1941, David left Romania from Constanta, a port city on the Black Sea, on the Struma, an old cattle boat. The…

    David Stoliar describes holding onto a piece of wreckage from the deck of the torpedoed Struma
  • David Stoliar describes how he survived the sinking of the Struma

    Oral History

    In 1936, David moved to Bucharest to live with his father. As Romania came under German influence, Romanian authorities introduced increasingly harsh measures against Jews. Antisemitic agitation increased and Jews came under attack in the streets of Bucharest and in other public places. David's father decided David should leave the country and arranged passage for him to Palestine. In December 1941, David left Romania from Constanta, a port city on the Black Sea, on the Struma, an old cattle boat. The…

    David Stoliar describes how he survived the sinking of the Struma
  • David Stoliar describes being the only witness to the fate of the "Struma"

    Oral History

    In 1936, David moved to Bucharest to live with his father. As Romania came under German influence, Romanian authorities introduced increasingly harsh measures against Jews. Antisemitic agitation increased and Jews came under attack in the streets of Bucharest and in other public places. David's father decided David should leave the country and arranged passage for him to Palestine. In December 1941, David left Romania from Constanta, a port city on the Black Sea, on the "Struma," an old cattle boat. The…

    David Stoliar describes being the only witness to the fate of the "Struma"
  • Flory (Floritza) Jagoda describes seeking refuge in Italy

    Oral History

    Flory was born into a Sephardic Jewish family. When Flory was a young girl, her mother moved to Zagreb with Flory's stepfather; Flory joined them after living with her grandmother for two years. In Zagreb, Flory took music lessons and learned how to play the accordion. Germany and its allies invaded Yugoslavia in April 1941, partitioning the country and establishing a fascist regime under the Ustase (pro-German Croatian nationalists) in Croatia. The Ustasa regime soon imposed anti-Jewish regulations in…

    Tags: Italy
    Flory (Floritza) Jagoda describes seeking refuge in Italy
  • Hans Heimann describes Italian aid to Jews

    Oral History

    The Germans annexed Austria in March 1938. In 1939, Hans fled first to Hungary and then to Italy. He and his parents were interned in various towns. Hans's father became ill and died in 1940. In 1943, Hans and his mother were warned of German plans to deport Jews from Italy to Poland. They moved to smaller towns until liberation by the British in August 1943. Hans worked as an interpreter for the Allies until 1945, when he worked for the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee and helped resettle…

    Tags: Italy
    Hans Heimann describes Italian aid to Jews
  • Ivo Herzer describes assistance from Italian soldiers during his family's escape from Croatia

    Oral History

    Ivo grew up in a middle-class Jewish family in Zagreb. He experienced little overt antisemitism until the Germans and their allies invaded Yugoslavia in April 1941 and installed a fascist Ustasa government in Croatia. The Ustasa regime began killing Jews, Serbs, and Roma (Gypsies). Ivo's family escaped to Italian-occupied territory, where the Italians tried to protect Jewish refugees. Ivo lived in Italian internment camps, including the Rab island camp, before moving to mainland Italy in 1944. He worked…

    Tags: Croatia Italy
    Ivo Herzer describes assistance from Italian soldiers during his family's escape from Croatia
  • Johanna Gerechter Neumann describes her family's arrival in Bologna and aid received from Italian students before emigrating to Albania

    Oral History

    Amid intensifying anti-Jewish measures and the 1938 Kristallnacht ("Night of Broken Glass") pogrom, Johanna's family decided to leave Germany. They obtained visas for Albania, crossed into Italy, and sailed in 1939. They remained in Albania under the Italian occupation and, after Italy surrendered in 1943, under German occupation. The family was liberated after a battle between the Germans and Albanian partisans in December 1944.

    Johanna Gerechter Neumann describes her family's arrival in Bologna and aid received from Italian students before emigrating to Albania
  • Vladka (Fagele) Peltel Meed describes clandestine cultural activities in the Warsaw ghetto

    Oral History

    Vladka belonged to the Zukunft youth movement of the Bund (the Jewish Socialist party). She was active in the Warsaw ghetto underground as a member of the Jewish Fighting Organization (ZOB). In December 1942, she was smuggled out to the Aryan, Polish side of Warsaw to try to obtain arms and to find hiding places for children and adults. She became an active courier for the Jewish underground and for Jews in camps, forests, and other ghettos.

    Vladka (Fagele) Peltel Meed describes clandestine cultural activities in the Warsaw ghetto
  • Renee Schwalb Fritz describes her experience as a Jewish child hiding in a Catholic convent

    Oral History

    Renee's father left for the United States in 1939. Before Renee and her mother could join him, they had to flee to Belgium to escape the repression of Jews in Austria. The Germans occupied Belgium in 1940. Renee was hidden in a convent for two years, until the Germans became suspicious. The underground took Renee to a Protestant family's farm, and then to an orphanage. After the war she was reunited with her mother, who had survived Auschwitz. Five years later they joined her father in the United States.

    Renee Schwalb Fritz describes her experience as a Jewish child hiding in a Catholic convent
  • Barbara Ledermann Rodbell describes her reaction to Nazi-mandated schools for Jewish children in Amsterdam

    Oral History

    In 1933 Barbara's family moved to Amsterdam, in the Netherlands. They became friends of Anne Frank and her family. The Germans invaded the Netherlands in 1940. Barbara's boyfriend, Manfred, had underground contacts and she got false papers. Her mother, sister, and father were deported to Westerbork and then to Auschwitz. Barbara survived using her false papers and worked for the resistance. She helped take Jews to hiding places and also hid Jews in an apartment held in her false name.

    Barbara Ledermann Rodbell describes her reaction to Nazi-mandated schools for Jewish children in Amsterdam
  • Jerry von Halle describes restrictions on Jews in Amsterdam

    Oral History

    In 1933 Jerry's family moved from Hamburg to Amsterdam. The Germans invaded the Netherlands in 1940. In 1941, Jerry's brother perished in Mauthausen. Jerry and his parents went into hiding first in Amsterdam and then in a farmhouse in the south. The Gestapo (German Secret State Police) arrested Jerry's father in 1942, but Jerry and his mother managed to return to their first hiding place. They were liberated in Amsterdam by Canadian and Jewish Brigade troops.

    Jerry von Halle describes restrictions on Jews in Amsterdam
  • Jerry von Halle describes hiding in Amsterdam

    Oral History

    In 1933 Jerry's family moved from Hamburg to Amsterdam. The Germans invaded the Netherlands in 1940. In 1941, Jerry's brother perished in Mauthausen. Jerry and his parents went into hiding first in Amsterdam and then in a farmhouse in the south. The Gestapo (German Secret State Police) arrested Jerry's father in 1942, but Jerry and his mother managed to return to their first hiding place. They were liberated in Amsterdam by Canadian and Jewish Brigade troops.

    Jerry von Halle describes hiding in Amsterdam
  • Jerry von Halle describes hunger while in hiding in Amsterdam

    Oral History

    In 1933 Jerry's family moved from Hamburg to Amsterdam. The Germans invaded the Netherlands in 1940. In 1941, Jerry's brother perished in Mauthausen. Jerry and his parents went into hiding first in Amsterdam and then in a farmhouse in the south. The Gestapo (German Secret State Police) arrested Jerry's father in 1942, but Jerry and his mother managed to return to their first hiding place. They were liberated in Amsterdam by Canadian and Jewish Brigade troops.

    Jerry von Halle describes hunger while in hiding in Amsterdam
  • Anita Magnus Frank describes hiding in the Netherlands

    Oral History

    When the war began, Anita and her family lived in Breda, the Netherlands. With the 1940 German occupation, they went into hiding and took on new names that shielded their Jewish identity. Anita and her brother first were hidden in a non-Jewish neighbor's home, and later by a Quaker family near Utrecht. Anita, her parents, brother, and two sisters survived the war.

    Anita Magnus Frank describes hiding in the Netherlands
  • Carla Heijmans Lessing describes the fear her family felt while in hiding

    Oral History

    After invading the Netherlands in 1940, the Germans imposed anti-Jewish measures. With the aid of a Catholic priest who helped Jews find hiding places, Carla, her mother, and her brother went into hiding in August 1942 to avoid deportation to work camps. They had to leave the hiding place after three months and with the priest's help found shelter in Delft with a Catholic family which had seven children. They remained in hiding there for 30 months, until liberation in May 1945.

    Carla Heijmans Lessing describes the fear her family felt while in hiding
  • Helen (Helene Katz Wohlfarth) Waterford describes giving up her daughter to be sheltered

    Oral History

    Although originally from Germany, Helen was living in the Netherlands with her husband and young daughter when the Germans invaded in May 1940. Helen and her husband sent their daughter to non-Jewish friends, and went into hiding themselves. They stayed in a variety of places arranged by a friend who was active in the underground. On August 25, 1944, Helen and her husband were arrested. They were sent first to Westerbork and then to Auschwitz, where they were separated. Helen worked in the I. G. Farben…

    Helen (Helene Katz Wohlfarth) Waterford describes giving up her daughter to be sheltered
  • Blanka Rothschild describes the beginning of the German invasion of Poland when she and her family were in Lodz

    Oral History

    Blanka was an only child in a close-knit family in Lodz, Poland. Her father died in 1937. After the German invasion of Poland, Blanka and her mother remained in Lodz with Blanka's grandmother, who was unable to travel. Along with other relatives, they were forced into the Lodz ghetto in 1940. There, Blanka worked in a bakery. She and her mother later worked in a hospital in the Lodz ghetto, where they remained until late 1944 when they were deported to the Ravensbrueck camp in Germany. From Ravensbrueck,…

    Blanka Rothschild describes the beginning of the German invasion of Poland when she and her family were in Lodz
  • Miriam Farcus Ingber describes witnessing a suicide attempt in the Stutthof camp

    Oral History

    Miriam was one of ten children born to a poor, religious Jewish family in Terava, Czechoslovakia. When Hungary took over the area in 1939, almost half the town's Jewish population was deported and sent to labor camps. Later, Miriam and her mother were forced into a ghetto. They were deported to the Auschwitz camp in 1944. After about three months, they were sent to the Stutthof camp. Toward the end of the war, Miriam and her mother were forced on a death march. They and others on the death march were…

    Tags: Stutthof
    Miriam Farcus Ingber describes witnessing a suicide attempt in the Stutthof camp
  • Alisa (Lisa) Nussbaum Derman describes joining the Nekama (Revenge) Jewish partisan unit led by Josef Glazman in the Naroch Forest

    Oral History

    Lisa was one of three children born to a religious Jewish family. Following the German occupation of her hometown in 1939, Lisa and her family moved first to Augustow and then to Slonim (in Soviet-occupied eastern Poland). German troops captured Slonim in June 1941, during the invasion of the Soviet Union. In Slonim, the Germans established a ghetto which existed from 1941 to 1942. Lisa eventually escaped from Slonim, and went first to Grodno and then to Vilna, where she joined the resistance movement. She…

    Alisa (Lisa) Nussbaum Derman describes joining the Nekama (Revenge) Jewish partisan unit led by Josef Glazman in the Naroch Forest
  • Alisa (Lisa) Nussbaum Derman describes partisan activities

    Oral History

    Lisa was one of three children born to a religious Jewish family. Following the German occupation of her hometown in 1939, Lisa and her family moved first to Augustow and then to Slonim (in Soviet-occupied eastern Poland). German troops captured Slonim in June 1941, during the invasion of the Soviet Union. In Slonim, the Germans established a ghetto which existed from 1941 to 1942. Lisa eventually escaped from Slonim, and went first to Grodno and then to Vilna, where she joined the resistance movement. She…

    Alisa (Lisa) Nussbaum Derman describes partisan activities
  • Dorotka (Dora) Goldstein Roth describes conditions in the Vilna ghetto

    Oral History

    After the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, Dora's family fled to Vilna, Lithuania. When the Germans occupied Vilna, Dora's father was shot and the rest of the family was confined in the Vilna ghetto. Dora, her sister, and her mother were deported to the Kaiserwald camp in Latvia and then to the Stutthof concentration camp near Danzig. Her mother and sister perished in Stutthof. Dora herself was shot immediately before liberation, but she survived.

    Dorotka (Dora) Goldstein Roth describes conditions in the Vilna ghetto
  • Nesse Galperin Godin describes the formation of the Siauliai ghetto

    Oral History

    Nesse's family had a dairy business. The Germans occupied Lithuania in 1941 and established a ghetto in Siauliai. Nesse lived in the ghetto until 1943 when she was old enough to work. In 1944 Nesse, her mother, and a brother were deported to the Stutthof camp near Danzig. Nesse worked in several Stutthof subcamps until January 1945, when the inmates were put on a death march. She was liberated by the Soviets in March. Nesse, her mother, and two brothers survived, and she arrived in the United States in…

    Nesse Galperin Godin describes the formation of the Siauliai ghetto
  • Fritzie Weiss Fritzshall describes deportation in cattle car to Auschwitz

    Oral History

    Fritzie's father immigrated to the United States, but by the time he could bring his family over, war had begun and Fritzie's mother feared attacks on transatlantic shipping. Fritzie, her mother, and two brothers were eventually sent to Auschwitz. Her mother and brothers died. Fritzie survived by pretending to be older than her age and thus a stronger worker. On a death march from Auschwitz, Fritzie ran into a forest, where she was later liberated.

    Tags: deportations
    Fritzie Weiss Fritzshall describes deportation in cattle car to Auschwitz
  • Leo Schneiderman describes conditions on a freight car during deportation from Lodz to Auschwitz

    Oral History

    The Germans invaded Poland in September 1939. Leo and his family were confined to a ghetto in Lodz. Leo was forced to work as a tailor in a uniform factory. The Lodz ghetto was liquidated in 1944, and Leo was deported to Auschwitz. He was then sent to the Gross-Rosen camp system for forced labor. As the Soviet army advanced, the prisoners were transferred to the Ebensee camp in Austria. The Ebensee camp was liberated in 1945.

    Leo Schneiderman describes conditions on a freight car during deportation from Lodz to Auschwitz
  • Leo Schneiderman describes routine at the Ebensee camp

    Oral History

    The Germans invaded Poland in September 1939. Leo and his family were confined to a ghetto in Lodz. Leo was forced to work as a tailor in a uniform factory. The Lodz ghetto was liquidated in 1944, and Leo was deported to Auschwitz. He was then sent to the Gross-Rosen camp system for forced labor. As the Soviet army advanced, the prisoners were transferred to the Ebensee camp in Austria. The Ebensee camp was liberated in 1945.

    Tags: Ebensee
    Leo Schneiderman describes routine at the Ebensee camp
  • Saul Ingber describes forced labor and brutality in the Gusen subcamp of the Mauthausen concentration camp

    Oral History

    Saul grew up in a religious Jewish family. He was trained as a tailor. In 1939 he was sent to forced labor along with most of the young men of his town. He worked in many different labor camps before being deported to the Mauthausen concentration camp system in 1944. While working there, Saul's hand was broken by an SS guard. He eventually ended up in the hospital in the Dachau camp. He was liberated by US troops in May 1945. After the war he returned to his hometown and was reunited with his sister. They…

    Saul Ingber describes forced labor and brutality in the Gusen subcamp of the Mauthausen concentration camp
  • Norbert Wollheim describes a roundup of Jews in Berlin

    Oral History

    Norbert studied law and was a social worker in Berlin. He worked on the Kindertransport (Children's Transport) program, arranging to send Jewish children from Europe to Great Britain. His parents, who also lived in Berlin, were deported in December 1942. Norbert, his wife, and their child were deported to Auschwitz in March 1943. He was separated from his wife and child, and sent to the Buna works near Auschwitz III (Monowitz) for forced labor. Norbert survived the Auschwitz camp, and was liberated by US…

    Norbert Wollheim describes a roundup of Jews in Berlin
  • Norbert Wollheim describes deportation from Berlin

    Oral History

    Norbert studied law and was a social worker in Berlin. He worked on the Kindertransport (Children's Transport) program, arranging to send Jewish children from Europe to Great Britain. His parents, who also lived in Berlin, were deported in December 1942. Norbert, his wife, and their child were deported to Auschwitz in March 1943. He was separated from his wife and child, and sent to the Buna works near Auschwitz III (Monowitz) for forced labor. Norbert survived the Auschwitz camp, and was liberated by US…

    Norbert Wollheim describes deportation from Berlin
  • Norbert J. Yasharoff describes the trial and sentencing of a Jewish man falsely charged with economic crimes

    Oral History

    Anti-Jewish measures took effect in Bulgaria after the beginning of World War II. In March 1941, Bulgaria joined the Axis alliance and German troops passed through Sofia. In May 1943, Norbert and his family were expelled to Plevin in northern Bulgaria, where they stayed with relatives. After the advance of the Soviet army in 1944, Norbert and his family returned to Sofia.

    Norbert J. Yasharoff describes the trial and sentencing of a Jewish man falsely charged with economic crimes
  • Norbert J. Yasharoff describes the change in living conditions for Jews in Bulgaria

    Oral History

    Anti-Jewish measures took effect in Bulgaria after the beginning of World War II. In March 1941, Bulgaria joined the Axis alliance and German troops passed through Sofia. In May 1943, Norbert and his family were expelled to Plevin in northern Bulgaria, where they stayed with relatives. After the advance of the Soviet army in 1944, Norbert and his family returned to Sofia.

    Norbert J. Yasharoff describes the change in living conditions for Jews in Bulgaria
  • Siegfried Halbreich describes arrival at and brutality in the Gross-Rosen camp

    Oral History

    After Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, Siegfried fled with a friend. They attempted to get papers allowing them to go to France, but were turned over to the Germans. Siegfried was jailed, taken to Berlin, and then transported to the Sachsenhausen camp near Berlin in October 1939. He was among the first Polish Jews imprisoned in Sachsenhausen. Inmates were mistreated and made to carry out forced labor. After two years, Siegfried was deported to the Gross-Rosen concentration camp, where he was…

    Tags: Gross-Rosen
    Siegfried Halbreich describes arrival at and brutality in the Gross-Rosen camp

Thank you for supporting our work

We would like to thank Crown Family Philanthropies, Abe and Ida Cooper Foundation, the Claims Conference, EVZ, and BMF for supporting the ongoing work to create content and resources for the Holocaust Encyclopedia. View the list of donor acknowledgement.