Embroidered blue tefillin bag carried by a Lithuanian Jewish man in hiding

Aharon (Aron) Katz was born in September 1888 in Rietavas, Lithuania, to an Orthodox Jewish couple, Leib and Batsheva Saks Katz. In about 1911, Aron married Rachel Averbuch, who was born circa 1894 in Rietavas, to Eliahu Dov and Sara Bluma Averbuch. Both families had lived in Rietavas for generations. Aron served as an officer in the Russian Army in World War I (1914-1918). He was a translator and spoke Yiddish, Russian, Polish, and German. Aron was a tanner and owned a leather goods business. Aron and Rachel had four children: Hadasa, born 1915, Leib, born 1917, Nachman, born November 22, 1919, and Tamar, born ca. 1926. In 1934, for business reasons, Aron moved the family to Klaipeda, Lithuania, a port city on the German border. In 1935, Hadasa emigrated to Palestine. On March 23, 1939, Germany annexed Klaipeda, reclaiming territory separated by the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I. Nachman went to the theater near their house and saw Adolf Hitler on the balcony, giving a speech about liberating the German people. The family fled that day to Rietavas, then to Shavel (Siauliai). In June 1940, the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania. They nationalized businesses and outlawed religious organizations. Aron’s daughter Tamar, 14, an ardent Zionist, went to Palestine. Her mother Rachel was questioned about her, but she told them she did not know where Tamar went. Aron struggled to get work and eventually found a job as a night watchman. Nachman worked as a butcher in a meat factory. Nachman began dating Sima Blaufarb, who was born on September 26, 1923, in Eydtkuhnen (now Chemyshevskoye, Russia), to Rafael and Mery Mogiluker Blaufarb. In June 1941, Germany attacked the Soviet Union, including Lithuania. Aron, Rachel, their sons, and Nachman’s girlfriend Sima fled east on foot, following the retreating Soviet Army. Leib rode ahead on his bicycle and was separated from the family. Aron, Rachel, Nachman, and Sima were overrun by the German Army in Minsk. They were arrested and forced to clean apartments for the Germans. They escaped and went back to Shavel. During the invasion, Lithuanians carried out violent attacks against Jews throughout the country. German mobile units, with Lithuanian auxiliaries, massacred thousands of Jews. Nachman went to see his uncle and was severely beaten by a group of German soldiers because he did not take off his cap when he walked by them. A day later, he was assigned as forced labor for the German Army. In July, Jews were required to wear Star of David patches and register at the administration office. Later that month, the family was moved to the Traku ghetto in Shavel. Selections were held immediately, and children and those unable to work were sent away to be killed. Jews were not allowed to leave the ghetto unless they had a work permit. Aron worked in the Frenkel leather factory. Nachman, an electrician for the German authorities, had a special work permit that said he could go anywhere in Shavel without supervision. He often worked for other Germans, including SS officers. After the Jewish holidays in September/October, Aron’s wife Rachel was taken away and killed while Nachman and Aron were at work. Nachman was assigned to sort the clothing of murdered Jews and found his mother’s dress. Nachman joined the underground and smuggled stolen medicine into the ghetto. Nachman once tried to smuggle in sacks of potatoes, but was caught and arrested by the police. They decided to execute him but an SS officer, for whom Nachman had worked, stopped them. Some of the German girls who worked in the Reichskommissariat felt sorry for Nachman and smuggled him food, soap, and cigarettes. In August, Nachman and Sima married. In September 1943, the SS took direct control of the ghetto. By October, most Jews were transferred to labor camps and some to killing centers. On November 5, almost 600 children and 200 elderly people were taken away and killed. A week later, Nachman, Sima, and Aron decided to escape. When Aron went to work in the factory, Nachman and Sima went with him. They hid all day and when the civilians left work in the evening, they took off their Star of David patches and left with them. They walked to the home of an acquaintance on the outskirts of town. She hid them in her attic for a week and contacted their relatives. Aron’s sister Rochel, her husband Yitak Remin, their son Peretz, and Peretz’s wife Riva had escaped the ghetto earlier. They sent someone to bring Aron, Nachman, and Sima to the farm where they were hiding. They were given very little food and asked to go somewhere else. They went to the farm of Jonas and Ona Zilevicius in Gudaiciai. They dug an underground bunker, but it filled with water so they could not use it. They lived in the chicken shed and built a false wall in case the farm was searched. The Germans searched the chicken shed and knocked on 2 walls to see if they were hollow, but did not knock on the false wall. Ona asked them to leave, and Aron and his family went to the forest. Rochel wanted them all to commit suicide, but Nachman refused. They returned to the Zilevicius family, who found another farm where they could stay. It was also searched and they hid in the barn under hay. The farmer’s wife asked them to leave, so they returned to their first hiding place. The woman dug a tunnel for them to hide in and let them out once every day. She began demanding money, so they left and returned to the Zilevicius family. Jonas and Ona’s daughter Stase had a boyfriend, Yurgis, who managed a large farm. He hid them in the barn and stole carrots from the garden for them to eat. The region was liberated by Soviet forces in October 1944. Nachman, Sima, and Aron returned to Shavel. The ghetto had been liquidated in July 1944 and most of the residents had been sent to concentration camps and killing centers. Of the 5500 original residents of the ghetto, only 300-500 people survived; all but ten percent of Lithuanian Jews were killed during the occupation. Aron learned that his son Leib was killed in 1943 while serving in the Soviet Army. They did not like Soviet rule and decided to leave Lithuania. In 1946, they got false papers as a father, son, and daughter with the last name Krupsky and went to Warsaw, then Łódź. They eventually reached Berlin and lived in Schlachtensee displaced persons camp. They later went to Munich and lived in Feldafing DP camp. Aron illegally immigrated to Palestine to join his daughters Hadasa and Tamar. Nachman, Sima, and their three year old daughter Esther Miriam went to the United States in 1951. Nachman Americanized his name to Nathan. In 1967, Aron, ~80 years, became ill and died while visiting Nathan in New York. The Zilevicius family was named Righteaous Among the Nations in 1995 by Yad Vashem.

Nachman Katz was born on November 22, 1919, in Konigsberg, Germany (Kaliningrad, Russia), to Aron and Rachel Averbuch Katz. They lived in Rietavas, Lithuania. Nachman had three siblings: Hadasa, born in 1915, Leib, born in 1917, and Tamar, born circa 1926. Aron was born in September 1888 in Rietavas, to Leib and Batsheva Saks Katz. Aron served as an officer in the Russian Army in World War I (1914-1918). He was a translator and spoke Yiddish, Russian, Polish, and German. Rachel was born circa 1894 in Rietavas, to Eliahu Dov and Sara Bluma Averbuch. Their families had lived in Rietavas for generations. Aron was a tanner and owned a leather goods business. They were observant Orthodox Jews and Zionists. Nachman attended a Jewish day school. He spoke Yiddish at home and Lithuanian, Hebrew, and German in school. In 1934, for business reasons, Aron moved his family to Klaipeda, Lithuania, a port city on the German border. In 1935, Nachman’s sister Hadasa emigrated to Palestine. On March 23, 1939, Germany annexed Klaipeda, reclaiming territory taken away by the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I (1914-1918.) Nachman went to the theater near their house and saw Adolf Hitler on the balcony, giving a speech about liberating the German people. He fled with his family that day to Rietavas, and later went to Shavel (Siauliai). In June 1940, the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania. They nationalized businesses and outlawed religious organizations. Nachman’s sister Tamar, 14, an ardent Zionist, left for Palestine. The Soviets questioned her mother Rachel about Tamar’s whereabouts, and Rachel told them she did not know. Aron struggled to get work and eventually found a job as a night watchman. Nachman worked as a butcher in a meat factory. Nachman began dating Sima Blaufarb, born September 26, 1923, in Eydtkuhnen (now Chemyshevskoye, Russia), to Rafael and Mery Mogiluker Blaufarb. Sima had a younger sister, Rachel. In June 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union, including Lithuania. During the invasion, Lithuanians carried out violent attacks against Jews throughout the country. German mobile units, with Lithuanian auxiliaries, massacred thousands of Jews. Nachman, his parents, his brother Leib, and his girlfriend Sima fled east on foot, following the retreating Soviet Army. Leib rode ahead on his bicycle and was separated from the family. Nachman, Sima, Aron, and Rachel were overrun by the German Army in Minsk. They were arrested and forced to clean apartments for the Germans. They escaped and went back to Shavel. Nachman went to see his uncle and was severely beaten by a group of German soldiers because he did not take off his cap when he walked by them. A day later, he was assigned as forced labor for the German Army. In July, Jews were required to wear Star of David patches and register at the administration office. Nachman registered as an electrician. The family was moved to the Traku ghetto in Shavel. Selections were held immediately, and children and those unable to work were sent away to be killed. Jews were not allowed to leave the ghetto unless they had a work permit. Nachman had a special work permit that said he could go anywhere in Shavel without supervision. He was an electrician for the German administration. He often worked for other Germans, including SS officers. Aron worked in the Frenkel leather factory. After the Jewish holidays in September or October, Nachman’s mother Rachel was taken away and killed while Nachman and Aron were at work. Nachman was assigned to sort the clothing of murdered Jews and found his mother’s dress. Nachman joined the underground and smuggled stolen medicine into the ghetto. He did not know the name of his superior in the resistance, in case he was caught. Nachman once tried to smuggle in sacks of potatoes, but was caught and arrested by the police. They decided to execute him but an SS officer, for whom Nachman had worked, stopped them. Some of the German girls who worked in the Reichskommissariat felt sorry for Nachman and smuggled him food, soap, and cigarettes. They gave Nachman ration cards for a German store, which Jews were not allowed to have. Nachman gave the cards to a Lithuanian acquaintance from Rietavas. The man took bread and bags of sugar and coffee to Nachman’s workplace and told the guards that Nachman had given him ration cards. Nachman was questioned and threatened with execution about how he got the cards, but refused to name the girls. Nachman occasionally worked for an SS officer, Schwanz, a cruel man who beat Nachman many times. In 1943, he took Nachman to the basement of the German government building to pack a room full of stolen gold and gold teeth for shipment to Germany. In August, Nachman and Sima married. In September 1943, the SS took direct control of the ghetto. By October, most Jews were transferred to labor camps and some to killing centers. On November 5, almost 600 children and 200 elderly people were taken away and killed. A week later, Nachman, Sima, and Aron decided to escape. When Aron went to work in the factory, Nachman and Sima went with him. They hid all day and when the civilians left work in the evening, they took off their Star of David patches and left with them. They walked to the home of an acquaintance on the outskirts of town. She hid them in her attic for a week and contacted Nachman’s relatives. Aron’s sister Rochel, her husband Yitzhak Remin, their son Peretz, and his wife Riva had escaped the ghetto earlier. They sent someone to bring Nachman, Sima, and Aron to the farm where they were hiding. They were given very little food and asked to go somewhere else. They went to the farm of Jonas and Ona Zilevicius in Gudaiciai. They dug an underground bunker, but it filled with water so they could not use it. They lived in the chicken shed and built a false wall in case the farm was searched. The Germans searched the chicken shed and knocked on 2 walls to see if they were hollow, but did not knock on the false wall. Ona asked them to leave, so the family went to the forest. Rochel wanted them all to commit suicide, but Nachman refused. They returned to the Zilevicius family, who found another farm where they could stay. It was also searched and they hid in the barn under hay. The farmer’s wife asked them to leave, so they returned to their first hiding place. The woman dug a tunnel for them to hide in and let them out once a day. She began demanding money, so they left and returned to the Zilevicius family. Jonas and Ona’s daughter Stase had a boyfriend, Yurgis, who managed a large farm. He hid them in the barn and stole carrots from the garden for them. The region was liberated by Soviet forces in October 1944. Nachman, Sima, and Aron returned to Shavel. The ghetto had been liquidated in July 1944. Of the 5500 original ghetto residents, only 300-500 survived. Ninety percent of the Jewish population of Lithuania had been killed. Lithuania was again part of the Soviet Union. Nachman worked for the Soviets. They learned that Nachman’s brother Leib was killed in 1943 while serving in the Soviet Army. They did not like the Soviets and decided to leave. In 1946, they got false papers as a father, son, and daughter with the last name Krupsky and went to Warsaw, then Łódź. They eventually reached Berlin and lived in Schlachtensee displaced persons camp. They later went to Munich and lived in Feldafing DP camp. Aron illegally immigrated to Palestine to join his daughters. In 1947, Nachman and Sima had a daughter, Esther Miriam. They planned to go to Palestine but decided to go to the United States. On March 3, 1951, Nachman, Sima, and Miriam sailed from Bremerhaven on the USNS General CH Muir, arriving in New York on March 13. Nachman Americanized his name to Nathan. They moved to St. Louis and had another daughter. After nine years, they settled in New York, where Nathan opened a real estate business. In 1967, Aron visited them in New York. He became ill and died there in 1967. Nathan’s sister Tamar died in 1988. In the 1990s, Nathan and Sima contacted the Zilevicius family, which was named Righteous Among the Nations in 1995 by Yad Vashem. Nathan, 85, died on April 2, 2005, in Roslyn, New York.

The tefillin bag was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990 by Nathan Katz, the son of Aharon Ben-Zion Katz.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Nathan Katz, in memory of his father Aharon Ben-Zion Katz, for his great love of life and freedom

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