Lotte Seligmann family papers
Extent and Medium
folders
book enclosure
9
1
Creator(s)
- Lotte Seligmann
Biographical History
Lotte Seligmann (1912-1994) was born on 1 January 1912 in Marsberg, Germany to Adolf (b. 1878) and Emma (née Weitzenkorn, b. 1883). She had one brother, Siegbert (1909-1965). Her father worked as a cattle dealer in Marsberg. Lotte studied to become a nurse, and worked in Frankfurt am Main from 1931-1937. On 16 November 1938 she and her parents immigrated to the United States via Hamburg. Lotte married Henry Barak in August 1946. Henry (born Heinrich, 1913-1986) was the son of Marcus (1882-1935?) and Ida Eva Barak (née Fuchs, b. 1882). He had one brother, Joseph (1906-1995) and one sister, Klara (b. 1910). His parents met in England, but later moved to Vienna, Austria. Joseph emigrated from Austria to the United States in 1927 and Henry followed him in 1933. He trained as a furrier and served in the United States Army during World War II. They had one daughter, Eve. Both Henry’s mother and sister perished during the Holocaust, likely at the Auschwitz concentration camp. Lotte’s brother Siegbert immigrated to the U.S. in the 1930s and opened a factory in New York. He married Kay Reiss and they had one daughter, Carol Lynn.
Archival History
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Eve Ida Barak
Donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2019 by Eve Ida Barak, daughter of Lotte and Henry Barak.
Scope and Content
The collection consists of biographical material and photographs primarily documenting the pre-war life of Lotte Seligmann of Marsberg, Germany, including her studies and career as a nurse in Frankfurt am Main, prior to her immigration to the United States in 1938. Also documented in the collection are relatives in the Seligmann and Weitzenkorn families, and Lotte’s husband Henry Barak and his family. Biographical material includes Lotte’s birth certificate, German passport, employment papers, report cards, and her and Henry’s naturalization certificates. Photographs consist of pre-war depictions of Lotte’s family, her mother’s family the Weitzenkorns, her husband Henry and his family, and Lotte in her nurse’s uniform in Germany. Included is a photograph of Lotte right after she arrived in the United States in 1938. There is also a photograph album with Lotte’s family and friends primarily in the late 1920s.
System of Arrangement
The collection is arranged as two series. Series 1. Biographical material, 1918-1995 Series 2. Photographs, circa 1916-1940
People
- Seligmann, Adolf.
- Barak, Henry, 1913-1986.
- Seligmann, Lotte, 1912-1994.
- Seligmann, Emma.
Subjects
- Jewish nurses.
- Marsberg (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany)
- United States--Emigration and immigration.
Genre
- Photographs.
- Document
- Passports.
- Negatives.
- Photograph albums.
- Letters.