From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: correspondence with Lejb - Leon Feldstein, Zurich, regarding assistance to Jews in Poland, 1940 - 1947

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letters and postcards sent by Lejb - Leon Feldstein from Zurich, regarding assistance to Jews in Poland, 1940 - 1947. 136 pages, print and handwritten original, in German, Frenh and Yiddish Inventory: 1. Correspondence between Schwarzbaum, Feldstein and M. Adout - Lausanne, Zurich, Tehran and Istanbul - regarding the delivery of food, clothing and footwear to Poland, 1940 - 1941. Print and handwritten original, in German, Yiddish and French 2. Correspondence with Mr. Weichert in Krakow, regarding the delivery of food, clothing and footwear to Poland, and confirmation for their reception, 1943 - 1944. The file also contains a list of shipments from Portugal and from Zurich to Warsaw and letters to the Communate Israelite (Jewish community) in Lausanne, and Weichert's requests for help from the Hafip organization. Print and handwritten original, in German and French 3. Letters sent by Feldstein from Zurich and Vienna, regarding debt payment and other subjects, February - August 1944, 1945 and 1947. Print and handwritten original, in German and Yiddish 4. Letter sent from Hart, Austria, to Feldstein, 9 June 1945. 5. Letter sent by Kowola and Nina, two orphan girls from Terein, writing that their mother Hela, daughter of Riwka, from Krakow, was sent to the Belzec extermination camp, where she was killed. They address the letter to their cousin, asking for his help, 5 July 1945. 1 page, handwritten original, in Polish The file also contains: 1. Requests for help from the Hilfsaktion fuer notleidende Juden in Polen (Assistance for Needy Jews in Poland), Zurich, 1941 and 1943. 2. Letter sent from Hart to Feldstein, 9 Juen 1945. 3. Report from the department for assistance to the Jews in the General Government in Krakow, August - September 1943, and other financial reports dated 1941 and 1943. About Alfred Schwarzbaum: Alfred (Alf) Schwarzbaum was a Jewish merchant from Bedzin, Poland, who fled to Switzerland after the occupation. In Switzerland, he set up a relief enterprise, and supported hundreds of Jews. 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 1945, 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.