Willy Katzenstein collection

Willy Katzenstein studied law and received his doctorate in 1897. He then worked as a lawyer and notary in Bielefeld. Here he was also politically active for the liberal German Democratic Party in the magistrate's office. He was provincial chairman of the DDP. In 1920 he was elected to the provincial parliament of the province of Westphalia for the constituency of the city of Bielefeld. After the death of his uncle, the banker and long-time chairman of the Jewish community Moritz Katzenstein, he was elected in 1908 to succeed him on the steering committee of the Association of Synagogue Communities of Westphalia and on January 17, 1933, as head of the Jewish community of Bielefeld. Because of his Jewish faith, he was persecuted after the National Socialists seized power. In May 1939, he was able to bring his two daughters Marianne and Eva to safety in a Kindertransport to England. The Katzenstein couple followed their children into exile in London about three weeks later.

Donated 29.9.2022

Donor: Susan Hamlyn