Emergency Rescue Committee collection
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Overview
- Description
- The Emergency Rescue Committee collection documents the efforts of Varian Fry in assisting three of the more than 1,500 refugees he helped escape while living in France from 1940-1941. As a member of the Emergency Rescue Committee, Fry was sent to Marseille, France, to assist in the escape of prominent intellectuals and artists who were living in recently German-occupied France. The correspondence and cables concern Max Ernst, Elena Frank, and Wilhelm Herzog, in addition to a list of clients for the Emergency Rescue Committee that were living in various countries in 1943.
The Emergency Rescue Committee papers consists mainly of correspondence and cables concerning three refugees, and document the efforts taken in trying to assist in their escape from France. Wilhelm Herzog, whose papers are the most prominent in this collection, was a German historian of literature and culture. He wrote for several magazines and journals and wrote an encyclopedia of great figures in history. Elena Frank was the wife of Leonhard Frank, a German expressionist writer. Max Ernst was a popular surrealist painter. Also included in this collection is a list of Emergency Rescue Committee clients and their location. - Date
-
inclusive:
1940-1945
- Collection Creator
- Emergency Rescue Committee
- Biography
-
The Emergency Rescue Committee was formed in 1940, shortly after the German occupation of France. Created by several political advocates, the committee raised money to help bring refugees over to the United States from France. The committee later merged with the International Relief Association, to form the International Rescue Committee in 1942.
Physical Details
- Genre/Form
- Correspondence.
- Extent
-
9 folders
- System of Arrangement
- The Emergency Rescue Committee collection is arranged into one series alphabetically by client, with correspondence arranged chronologically. The list of clients is at the end of the collection.
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- There are no known restrictions on access to this material.
- Conditions on Use
- Material(s) in this collection may be protected by copyright and/or related rights. You do not require further permission from the Museum to use this material. The user is solely responsible for making a determination as to if and how the material may be used.
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Holder of Originals
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The files were created by the International Rescue Committee which, in turn, donated the materials to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Dec. 1991.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-08-25 09:53:22
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn515774
Additional Resources
Download & Licensing
In-Person Research
- Available for Research
- Plan a Research Visit
-
Request in Shapell Center Reading Room
Bowie, MD
