From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letters from the Gothajl family, Bedzin, 1940 - 1943

From the Alfred - Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letters sent by the Gothajl family from Bedzin, Poland, to Schwarzbaum in Lusanne, Switzerland, 14 August 1940 - 9 March 1943. 15 pages, handwritten original and copy, in Polish and German Israel Gothajl and his wife Fania (nee Melamed), born in 1891 and 1893, respectively, had three children: Rachel - Irene (b. c. 1928), Meir - Marek (b. c. 1934) and Hanna - Hesia (b. c. 1938). The family lived in the ghetto in distress. On 14 August 1940, Israel wrote that he is working, but that his wife is unemployed and the children are homeschooled. He has no news from many of his relatives. He collects stamps and asks Schwarzbaum for interesting ones. The last two letters were written by Irene, asking for urgent help, having realzied that her father's letters do not fully describe their poor condition. The entire family perished. The dates of the letters: Israel - 14/8/1940 (original), 3/10/1941, 16/10/1941, 19/11/1941, 25/11/1941; Irene - 23/2/1943 (original), 9/3/1943. Notes: 1. The postcard dated 14 August 1940 is from file 3195 in the Collections Section; 2. The postcards dated 3 October, 16 October and 25 November 1941 are from file 27040; 3. The letter dated 23 February 1943 is from file 28240; 4. The letter dated 9 March 1943 is from filr 28241. Additional letters from Israel - Ignac Gothajl can be found in file no. 28240, Holdings Registry 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.