Ceremonial Masonic blue and white ribbon collar owned by a Hungarian Jewish emigre

Armin Roth was born on September 22, 1876, in Magyargyeromonostor, (Manastireni), Romania, into a religious Jewish family. His father, Samuel, was born in 1832, and his mother, Fani, was born 1843. Armin left for Budapest when he was between 13 and 14 years old. He finished school, went to university, and became a lawyer. He married Sarolta (Sari) Hajossy on June 7, 1903, and had 2 children, George, born on September 7, 1906, and Agi, born in 1908, in Budapest. They did not keep a religious household, observe holidays, or attend synagogue. Armin changed his last name to Veres on September 25, 1906. He was a member of the socialist party and the Freemasons, an illegal, secret fraternal society. On March 19, 1944, German forces occupied Hungary and anti-Jewish decrees were put in place; Jews had to wear Star of David armbands, move into ghettos, and deportations to concentration camps began. On May 3, apartments and houses belonging to Jews had to be registered and were labeled with a yellow star. Immediate and extended family members moved in with Armin and Sari. By June 23, all Jews were forced to move into yellow star buildings, one family per room. The Veres apartment was not in a yellow star building; a family friend who lived in one allowed the family to move in. Armin and Sari were forced into the ghetto in November and were liberated by the Russian army on January 14, 1945. They were reunited with George and his family and moved back into their apartment. The building had no windows or heat, and there was no food; Armin and George stole what they could. Armin died on April 1, 1945, at age 69. Sari went to live with her sister in Pest and died in 1953, at 72. George and his family emigrated to the United States on March 29, 1949, and he died on February 1, 1974, at age 67. Agi died in 1974 at age 66.

George Stephen Veres was born on September 7, 1906, in Budapest, Hungary, to Armin Veres, a lawyer, born on September 22, 1876, in Magyargyeromonostor, (Manastireni), Romania, and Sarolta (Sari), born in 1881. His sister Agi was born in 1908 in Budapest. The family was Jewish but not observant. He worked for Arthur Hahn and Company, a distributor of American and British imports, including Goodyear tires. George, who spoke English, worked in the main office alongside representatives from Goodyear. In 1929, they invited him to the United States and he spent 2-3 months in Akron, Ohio, learning about the tire manufacturing trade. Goodyear offered him the opportunity to open a tire store in Budapest and he became a dealer. He married Kati Deutsch on December 12, 1937. On March 13, 1938, Nazi Germany annexed Austria and news of Jewish persecution filtered into Hungary. Kati was pregnant at the time and George decided that the baby would be born in England so he would have a British passport and not be identified as a Hungarian Jew. Kati was invited to England by a relative and arrived on August 28. George used his contacts at Goodyear to obtain a visa and arrived in October. Their son, Peter, was born on October 23. So as not to have him registered as Jewish, an Anglican priest baptized the family. They returned to Budapest on November 11. In 1939, the Hungarian government did not permit Jews to serve in the armed forces and a forced labor service was established. George spent 3 months in a labor camp in Budapest in 1940. From October to December 1941, he spent 2 months in a work group cleaning the grounds of St. John’s Hospital where his son, Paul, was born on June 21; George was permitted to visit him and Kati. Starting on June 3, 1942, George spent the next 29 months in and out of camps. On March 19, 1944, German forces occupied Hungary and George was stationed at a former orphanage in Budapest. The camp commandant, Dr. Attila Juhasz, was a family acquaintance and George worked as his office aide. This arrangement allowed him to leave the camp and send food and messages to his family. Through the camp office, he contacted the Swiss consulate and arranged for his son Peter to live with two Swiss Catholic women. As a British national, Peter was entitled to protection by the Swiss. On November 3, 1944, Kati, her mother Lenke, and Peter went into hiding. On December 12, 1944, George escaped the camp, but was caught, beaten, and sentenced to death. A friend helped him escape again and he found refuge at a Swedish emergency hospital. The Russians liberated Pest on January 14, 1945. George was reunited with his family, parents, and mother-in- law. On January 23, they returned to his parent’s bomb damaged apartment. The building had no windows or heat, and there was no food; Armin and George stole what they could. In early May, George, Kati, Lenke, and the children moved into Lenke’s pre-occupation family home in Buda. George reopened his tire store with money he got from selling jewelry that he had buried before the war. Armin died on April 1, 1945, in Budapest, and Sari went to live with her sister. The Veres family and Lenke decided to leave for the United States. It was becoming increasingly difficult to immigrate and they procured visas to Costa Rica via Italy. Peter was the only one with a passport. George bribed a contact with money and two cars in exchange for passports for the rest of the family. In January 1949, they boarded a train for Milan, Italy. When they got to the Costa Rican consulate, they were told that their visas were fake but were issued new ones. George ran into a contact from the American embassy in Budapest whom he knew from his work with Goodyear, and he helped George get transit visas through the U.S. to Costa Rica. Lenke stayed in Italy, awaiting a preferred visa that could be obtained for her once her son, Gabor, who lived in the US, became a citizen. The Veres family sailed on the M/S Sobiesky from Genoa, Italy, and arrived in New York City on March 29, 1949. They did not have the $500 transit deposit needed to enter the country and spent the night at Ellis Island. Gabor, Kati’s brother, paid the fee, and the family officially entered the country on March 30. Due to the Displaced Persons Act passed on June 25, 1948, the family was able to obtain Permanent Residency Cards and remain in the U.S. Lenke arrived on September 21, 1949. George got a part time office job with Goodyear and became a member of the Hungarian chapter of Freemasons. He bought a partnership in a stamp shop and sold stamps until his retirement in 1971. George died on February 1, 1967, at age 67, in Manhattan. His mother, Sari, died on January 28, 1953 at 72, in Budapest. Lenke died on December 2, 1968, at 81 and Kati on February 20, 1994, both in Manhattan.

Peter Jaos Veres was born on October 23, 1938, in London. His father George, a businessman, was born on September 7, 1906, and his mother, Kati, was born on April 16, 1911, both in Budapest, Hungary. On March 13, 1938, Nazi Germany annexed Austria and news of Jewish persecution filtered into Hungary. Kati was pregnant at the time. George decided the baby would be born in England so he would have a British passport and not be identified as a Hungarian Jew. On August 24, Kati left for London; George arrived in October. After the child, Peter, was born, he was baptized as an Anglican and the family returned to Budapest on November 11. On March 19, 1944, German forces occupied Hungary and anti-Jewish decrees were put in place; Jews had to wear Star of David armbands, move into designated buildings, and deportations to concentration camps began. Since 1939, George had been in and out of forced labor camps and after the German invasion he was interred at a camp in Budapest. On May 3, 1944, apartments and houses belonging to Jews were registered and labeled with a yellow star. Peter, his mother, and grandmother Lenke moved in with his paternal grandparents on May 11. During bombing raids, the family would hide in the basement. His brother, Paul, was born on June 21, 1944, in Budapest. By June 23, all Jews had to move into yellow star buildings, one family per room. The Veres apartment was not in a yellow star building, and they had to move in with a family friend. Peter, being under six years old, was not required to wear a yellow star. Every morning he walked to the corner to buy milk for his baby brother, and his mother watched him from their apartment balcony to make sure he was safe. Peter, as a British national, was under the protection of the Swiss consulate. George arranged for Peter to live with two Swiss Catholic women, Elizabeth Baeriswyl and her niece, Mimi. Peter left his mother on October 16, 1944, and stayed with them for three months. During that time he posed as a relative, went to church, and attended Sunday school. His father would periodically escape from his labor camp and arrange to see Peter in a public place. They would not speak, just have visual contact. On November 3, 1944, Kati, Lenke, and Peter went into hiding; George escaped from the camp on December 12, 1944, and hid in a Swiss emergency hospital. On January 14, 1945, Pest was liberated by the Soviet army and Peter was reunited with his family. After liberation, the Veres family and Lenke decided to leave Hungary. In January 1949, they left Budapest for Milan, Italy. They sailed on the M/S Sobieski from Genoa, Italy, for the United States. Lenke stayed in Italy and sailed on a later date. On ship, Peter played shuffleboard and watched American movies. They arrived in New York City on March 29, 1949. They spent the night on Ellis Island and officially entered the U.S. on March 30. Due to the Displaced Persons Act passed on June 25, 1948, the family was able to obtain Permanent Residency Cards and remain in the U.S. Peter, as a British national, was considered an alien and did not fall under the protection of the Act. He had to go to Canada and reenter the U.S. under a different visa. On June 8, 1959, he became a U.S. citizen. He moved to California, married, and had 2 children. George died on February 1, 1967, at age 67, Lenke on December 2, 1968, at 81, and Kati on February 20, 1994, at 82, all in Manhattan.

The Masonic collar was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2010 by Peter Veres.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Peter Veres

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