From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: letters from Henni Gross (Lausanne), Lola and Ida (London), Mr. Fischer and Dora (Poland), 1940s

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Requests for help sent to Schwarzbaum during the war from Henni Gross and his sister Esther in Switzerland, Lola and Ida in London, Mr. Fischer and Dora, possibly in Sosnowiec, Poland. 6 pages, handwritten original, in Polish and German Inventory: 1. A letter sent by Henni and Esther from Lausanne, Switzerland, to Schwarzbaum in Baden, Austria, asking for his help in immigrating to Mandate Palestine. 23 August 1944. Henni (b. 1927) and Esther (b. 1928), the children of Charlotte (nee Bachman) and Elias Gross, were born in Leipzig. They travelled to Switzerland in January 1939. Their father was near Jaroslaw in 1941 but was not heard from since. Their mother, grandmother and great – grandmother were killed in an air raid on Leipzig on 4 December 1943. Henni, who was active in aid to refugees, and Esther, a high school student, ask for Schwarzbaum's help in immigrating to Palestine. They speak, German, French, a little English and some Hebrew, and have studied stenography to find jobs in Palestine. They say they have an uncle names Leib Gross in Mandate Palestine but do not know how to find him. 2 pages, handwritten original, in German Note: Elias was born in Poland in 1898 and Charlotte – Johanna – Katherina (nee Gross) was born in Leipzig, Germany, in 1903. For another letter concerning the Gross sisters, see file 26408. 2. A letter from Lola and Ida from London to Schwarzbaum in Switzerland, 6 November 1941, asking for information on relatives. 2 pages, handwritten original, in Polish 3. A letter sent to Schwarzbaum from Fischer and Schwarzbaum's relative, Dora. Fischer writes about his family, his work (next to Eda and Dr. Graune), his meetings with Schwarzbaum's relatives in Palestine and his efforts to help them (they hope to live with Anka). Dora writes that Fischer is looking for an apartment nearby and helps them a lot, and asks Schwarzbaum to have Irka write to him. They both discuss their relatives and ask for help. Note: The diagonal line crossing the letter shows it was inspected by the German censorship. 2 pages, handwritten original, in German About Alfred Schwarzbaum: Alfred (Alf) Schwarzbaum was born in 1896 in Sosnowiec, Poland. He later moved to Bedzin, became a businessman and started a family. In late September 1939, following the German occupation of Poland, he sent his daughter to England. In November 1939, he was jailed for several weeks in Myslowice and was interrogated by the Gestapo. After his release, he turned down an offer from Mosheh Merin, head of the Sosnowiec Jewish council, to be his deputy. Using his connections and his fortune, he was able to obtain visas for Switzerland. In April 1940 he left Poland and settled in Lausanne. Schwarzbaum soon started sending out food, clothing, money and papers to Poland. He managed to navigate between the often uncoordinated Jewish and Zionist organizations based in Switzerland, to transfer financial help to Jews in Poland. He sent hundreds of parcels to German occupied localities, via Lisbon, Sweden and Turkey. He visited refugee camps in Switzerland, and corresponded with persons living under the Nazi rule. He also produced passports, which led him into trouble with the Swiss police, who feared for violation of the country's neutrality policy. In 1946 he immigrated to Mandate Palestine. In Israel, he supported funds and provided stipends for students in need, in several Israeli institutes for higher education. He died in 1990.