From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Visa for El Salvador, issued for the Gotheil family of Poland, May 1943

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Visa for El Salvador, issued for the Gotheil family of Poland at the Salvadoran consulate in Geneva, Switzerland, on 21 May 1943. 1 page, typewritten original, in French Source file: 27100 The family members are Matitjahu - [Matek] Mateusz Gotheil (b. 1898 in Lodz), [Rachel] Roza – Alexandra Gotheil (b. 1905 in Zdunska Wola), Arie - [Jurek] Jerzy – Wladyslaw Gotheil (b. 1928 in Lodz). Mateusz and Roza were residents of Lodz, where their son Jerzy was born. In the 1930s, they moved to Slawkow, Bedzin County. Schwarzbaum helped them obtain visas for El Salvador. During the war, the family managed to move to Romania in hope of reaching Mandate Palestine. They boarded the immigrant ship Mefkure at the Port of Constanta and sailed for Palestine. The ship was sunk by a submarine on 5 August 1944. 310 out of 315 passengers were killed, inlcuding the Gotheils. The family members, as specified in the document: (Matitjahu - Matek) Mateusz, b. 1898 in Lodz; (Rachel) Roza – Alexandra, b. 1905 in Zdunska Wola; (Arie - Jurek) Jerzy – Wladyslaw, b. 1928 in Lodz Mateusz and Roza lived in Lodz, where their son Jerzy was born, before moving to Slawkow, Bedzin district, in the 1930s. Schwarzbaum helped them obtain a visa for El Salvador. During the war, the family managed to reach Romania, hoping to immigrate to Mandate Palestine. At the Port of Constanta, the family boarded the immigrant ship "Mefkure", headed for Palestine. On 5 August 1944, the ship was sunk by a submarine. 310 of its 315 passengers drowned, including the Gothejls. Note: Mateusz's brother, Menek, was in the Warsaw ghetto. See file 3195 in the Collections Section. 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.