Vogel and Baer family correspondence

The Vogel and Baer family consists of Berta (Bertha) Baer Vogel, her ex-husband Albert Vogel, their children, Inga and Ellen, and Berta’s extended family. Born in Untergrombach, Germany to Berthold and Karoline Baer, Berta was the middle of three children. Her grandfather, Machol Baer, an ironmonger, founded an iron and metal wholesale company called Gebrüder Baer, which provided the family a great source of wealth. In 1920, Berta married Albert Vogel, a World War I veteran of Mainz, Germany at the registry office in Karlsruhe. A year later, the couple had their first daughter, Inga. Albert worked in the iron and metal sales business, at one point working closely with Berta’s younger brother, Sigmund as a partner at Gebrüder Baer. In 1926, Berta and Albert had a second daughter, Ellen, and four years later in 1930, the couple separated quoting an “irreparable break in the marriage.” In 1933 Berta immigrated to Basel, Switzerland with her parents and daughters. Inga went on to immigrate to the United States to study at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) in 1937. During this time, Berthold had become ill, which prevented the rest of the family from immigrating. Berthold died in 1937 and the family remained in Switzerland until 1941 when Sigmund, who was working in the iron industry in France under an alias, paid their immigration fees, allowing them to leave Switzerland for the United States. Albert, meanwhile, remained in Germany and could not find work after 1935 due to the increasing anti-Sematic practices at the time. Shortly after Kristallnacht, in 1938, Albert was deported to Dachau. In October 1940, he was deported to Gurs and in 1942, transfer to Drancy for a period of four days before being sent to Auschwitz, where he is presumed to have perished.

The Vogel and Baer family consists of Berta (Bertha) Baer Vogel, her ex-husband Albert Vogel, their children, Inga and Ellen, and Berta’s extended family. Born in Untergrombach, Germany to Berthold and Karoline Baer, Berta was the middle of three children. Her grandfather, Machol Baer, an ironmonger, founded an iron and metal wholesale company called Gebrüder Baer, which provided the family a great source of wealth. In 1920, Berta married Albert Vogel, a World War I veteran of Mainz, Germany at the registry office in Karlsruhe. A year later, the couple had their first daughter, Inga. Albert worked in the iron and metal sales business, at one point working closely with Berta’s younger brother, Sigmund as a partner at Gebrüder Baer. In 1926, Berta and Albert had a second daughter, Ellen, and four years later in 1930, the couple separated quoting an “irreparable break in the marriage.” In 1933 Berta immigrated to Basel, Switzerland with her parents and daughters. Inga went on to immigrate to the United States to study at the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon University) in 1937. During this time, Berthold had become ill, which prevented the rest of the family from immigrating. Berthold died in 1937 and the family remained in Switzerland until 1941 when Sigmund, who was working in the iron industry in France under an alias, paid their immigration fees, allowing them to escape. Albert, meanwhile, remained in Germany and could not find work after 1935 due to the increasing anti-Sematic practices at the time. Shortly after Kristallnacht, Albert was deported to Dachau. In October 1940, he was deported to Gurs and in 1942, transfer to Drancy for a period of four days before being sent to Auschwitz, where he is presumed to have perished.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the Lutzer family

Funding Note: The cataloging of this collection has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.

The collection was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2011 by David and Steven Lutzer.