Steiff teddy bear used to smuggle valuables out of Vienna

Hans Butzke was born on March 28, 1929, in Vienna, Austria, the only child of Julius and Bronislawa (Netty) Freiberger Butzke. Julius was born on April 14, 1899, in Vienna, to Franz and Josefa Johanna Zohner Butzke. Julius, an accountant, was born to a Catholic family, but did not practice any faith. Netty was born on November 14, 1899, in Lemberg, Austro-Hungary (now Lviv, Ukraine) to a Jewish woman, Frida Freiberger. Netty was a nurse and served during the First World War (1914 – 1918). In March 1921, Netty began working at the Jewish Community of Vienna’s hospital. She and Julius married on June 15, 1923. Netty later became a senior nurse at the hospital and Julius was promoted at his accounting firm, Rosenzweig and Finkler. One of his clients was the composer Franz Lehar. On March 13, 1938, Germany annexed Austria, an act that was welcomed by much of the Austrian population. Anti-Jewish policies that stripped Austrian Jews of their rights were enacted. Hans’ parents, Julius and Netty, decided to leave the country. They began the extensive process of gathering the necessary paperwork. Although she was Jewish, Netty received a baptismal certificate from St. Stephan’s. In 1939, Netty stopped working at the hospital. In September, following Germany’s invasion of Poland, France and England declared war. In early 1940, Hans’ family secured travel visas. They were not allowed to take anything valuable out of the country. Netty sewed some jewels inside ten year old Hans' teddy bear, without telling him, and told him never to let it go. The left by train for Amsterdam, Netherlands. From there, they sailed to Panama. In mid-May, Hans and his father Julius sailed to New York City aboard the Aconcagua. In June, Netty arrived aboard the Imperial. The family settled in Brooklyn. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered. Later, Hans Americanized his name to John. In 1952, John graduated from the City University of New York. He married Rhoda (1931 – 2013.) Julius, 53, died later that year. During the Korean War, John served in the US Marine Corps. He and Rhoda had three children. Netty, 85, died in May 1985. John, 81, passed away on June 14, 2010.

The teddy bear was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2014 by Richard Butzke and Eva Butzke Wein, the son and granddaughter of John Butzke.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Richard Butzke, Eva Butzke Wien, and the Butzke family

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