From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letters from Artur and Gretl Neumann, Prague and Canada, 1941 - 1955

From the Alfred – Alf Schwarzbaum collection: Letters sent by Artur and Gretl (nee Reich) Neumann from Prague during and after the war, and later from Canada. 42 letters, typewritten original, in German Source file: 27245 Gretl was the daughter of Ernst - Arnost and Emma (nee Wunsch) Reich. Ernst and Emma were deported from their home city, Prague, to the Lodz ghetto on 21 October 1941. Ernst was killed in the ghetto on 25 February 1943, while Emma was sent to Auschwitz, where she was killed. Gretl and Artur, a dentist, were sent to the Terezin ghetto. They returned to their home in Prague after the war, and a few years later, they immigrated to Canada, where they had two daughters. Inventory 1. Two letters sent on 19 March 1941 and on 22 March 1942 from Prague to Schwarzbaum in Switzerland, before they were sent to Theresienstadt. 4 pages, typewritten and handwritten original, in German 2. Letters sent from Prague after their return from the ghetto, where they had lived for three years. The first letter was sent by Gretl on 29 May 1945, informing Schwarzbaum that they are back home and that her father was killed in the ghetto, to which he had been sent with his wife and his son Charles. She is aware that her mother was killed in Auschwitz, but hopes that her brother is still alive, and thanks Schwarzbaum for his support. The other letters were also sent from Prague, except the one dated 8 September 1948, which was sent from Lesna, Poland, on the Czechoslovak border. Her 27 February 1949 letter mentions Henri Jelinek of Paris. She writes that they are planning to immigrate to Canada. 13 pages. typewritten and handwritten original, in German and English 3. Letters sent in the years 1949 - 1955 from Canada. The file also contains a postcard sent to Schwarzbaum in Zurich from the ship "Queen Mary", on which they sailed to Canada, while it was anchored in New York on 2 March 1949. Most of their letters were sent from their new hometown, saskatoon. One letter was sent from Toronto on 16 April 1949, and another was sent from the Ponacka camp in Ontario. The letters sent on 1954 and 1955 are signed by Gretl on behalf of her husband (nicknamed "Bobek") and her childre, Kaja and Eva. 25 pages, typewritten and handwritten original, in German 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.