Rozenblum family. Collection

Israel David (André) Rosenblum, a furrier was born on 5 July 1926 in Charleroi to Jacob Rozenblum, a grocer born on 4 January 1892 in Tomaszów, and Ruchla Kiersz, a housewife born on 5 November 1892 in Tomaszów. The Rosenblum family arrived in Belgium on Christmas Day 1925 after leaving Oberhausen, Germany, where they had lived as immigrants. Jacob, Ruchla, and their children Maria (born 17 August 1922), Meyer alias Elias Max (born 25 August 1925), Bella (born 3 November 1910), and Bina (born 12 December 1920) initially settled in Charleroi. There, Israel David and his younger sister Anna (born 11 August 1927) were born. Shortly after Anna’s birth, the family relocated to Antwerp, where Jacob opened a grocery store. Maria worked as a leatherworker, while her elder sisters, Bella and Bina, married and moved out, with Bina settling in Brussels with her husband and child. By May 1940, the family was living in Antwerp at Leeuwerikstraat 33 when Nazi Germany invaded Belgium. The family complied with anti-Jewish regulations, registering in the Antwerp Jewish Register in late 1940 and later in the mandatory Jewish Association of Belgium in 1942. They also wore the yellow star beginning in June 1942. At the end of June 1942, the family moved to Brussels, residing near Bina and Bella on Rue Haute 49. On 23 March 1944, Maria, her parents Jacob and Ruchla, her brothers Israel David and Meyer alias Elias Max, and her sister Anna were arrested, possibly while in hiding. Their names were recorded at the Dossin barracks on 25 March 1944, and they were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau on 4 April 1944 aboard Transport XXIV. Upon arrival on 6 April 1944, Jacob and Ruchla were likely murdered in the gas chambers. Anna and Meyer alias Elias Max also did not survive, though their exact fate remains unknown. Maria and Israel David were selected for forced labor. Maria was tattooed with prisoner number 76706 and survived labor at Auschwitz and later at Georgenthal. She was repatriated to Belgium on 25 May 1945 and reunited with her brother Israel David and her elder sisters Bella and Bina, who had survived the war. Maria sought recognition as a resistance fighter, citing her work during the war at a post office where she intercepted denunciation letters and warned Jews in hiding. However, conflicting testimony led to the rejection of her application. Maria married Joseph Gurfinkiel, a fellow Auschwitz survivor, in a religious ceremony shortly after the war. They had a daughter, Raymonde, born in 1947, and legally married on 14 November 1951 in Anderlecht. The family obtained Belgian citizenship in 1956. Israel David Rosenblum, the youngest brother, was the sole other member of the deported Rosenblum family to survive. He was repatriated to Belgium and later had a daughter, Linda Rozenblum.

On 1 December 2022, Nicole Gold permitted Kazerne Dossin to digitally archive 5 pictures in this collection

Nicole Gold, niece of Israel David (André) Rosenblum