Overview
- Description
- Documents regarding the experience of Fritz Wiesenthal, who fled Nazi German with his family to the United States.
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Nellie Fink
Physical Details
- Extent
-
2 folders
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
- Geographic Name
- United States--Emigration and immigration.
Administrative Notes
- Holder of Originals
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The documents were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2012 by Nellie Fink, Fritz Wiesenthal's daughter.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-02-24 14:26:08
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn531148
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Also in Nellie Wiesenthal Fink family collection
The collection consists of artifacts, correspondence, documents, and photographs relating to the experiences of Ernestine Wiesenthal, her son, Fritz, his wife, Gertrude, and their daughters, Illa and Nellie, in Germany, England, and the United States before and during the Holocaust.
Date: 1891-1939
Henckels table knife with a scalloped edge brought with German Jewish prewar refugee
Object
J.A. Henckels table knife taken with Ernestine Wiesenthal when she emigrated from Berlin, Germany, to London, England in 1939. A partially worn maker’s mark bearing twins with arched legs and interlocking arms is engraved on the blade. This iteration of the Henckels mark was utilized from 1900 until well into the middle of the Twentieth century. The knife matches another knife in the same collection (.3), and the handle is likely silver, though it does not bear any marks to confirm that. On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. Following the passage of the Nuremberg laws in 1935, Ernestine’s son, Fritz, began looking for places where the family could immigrate as life became increasingly difficult for German Jews. Later that year, Fritz, a doctor, and his wife, Gertrude, sent their daughter, Illa, to boarding school in England. When their daughter, Nellie, was no longer allowed to attend public school, she moved into Ernestine’s home and attended a local Jewish school. Eventually, Jews were no longer able to practice medicine, and the family needed to emigrate. In 1938, Fritz left for the US in order to begin studying for the medical boards he needed to pass in order to practice medicine. He sent for Illa in August 1938. Nellie arrived in January 1939, and Gertrude arrived in March. Once in London, Ernestine spent her time knitting for the Red Cross. In the fall of 1942, she traveled to the US aboard a freighter in a Greek convoy.
Henckels table knife with a scalloped edge brought with German Jewish prewar refugee
Object
J.A. Henckels table knife taken with Ernestine Wiesenthal when she emigrated from Berlin, Germany, to London, England in 1939. A partial maker’s mark is visible, but is missing the twin mark that identifies when a Henckels piece was manufactured. The knife matches another in the same collection (.2), which does have the twin mark with arched legs, which was utilized from 1900 until the middle of the Twentieth century. The knife handle is likely made of silver, though it does not bear any silver marks. On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. Following the passage of the Nuremberg laws in 1935, Ernestine’s son, Fritz, began looking for places where the family could immigrate as life became increasingly difficult for German Jews. Later that year, Fritz, a doctor, and his wife, Gertrude, sent their daughter, Illa, to boarding school in England. When their daughter, Nellie, was no longer allowed to attend public school, she moved into Ernestine’s home and attended a local Jewish school. Eventually, Jews were no longer able to practice medicine, and the family needed to emigrate. In 1938, Fritz left for the US in order to begin studying for the medical boards he needed to pass in order to practice medicine. He sent for Illa in August 1938. Nellie arrived in January 1939, and Gertrude arrived in March. Once in London, Ernestine spent her time knitting for the Red Cross. In the fall of 1942, she traveled to the US aboard a freighter in a Greek convoy.
Monogrammed dinner knife brought with a German Jewish prewar refugee
Object
Dinner knife engraved with Ernestine Unger Wiesenthal’s initials and taken with her when she emigrated from Berlin, Germany, to London, England in 1939. The threaded design and script used for the initials match another knife from the same donor (2008.204.5), in addition to a ladle (.4) in that collection as well. The knife handle is likely made of silver, though it does not bear any marks to verify that. On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. Following the passage of the Nuremberg laws in 1935, Ernestine’s son, Fritz, began looking for places where the family could immigrate as life became increasingly difficult for German Jews. Later that year, Fritz, a doctor, and his wife, Gertrude, sent their daughter, Illa, to boarding school in England. When their daughter, Nellie, was no longer allowed to attend public school, she moved into Ernestine’s home and attended a local Jewish school. Eventually, Jews were no longer able to practice medicine, and the family needed to emigrate. In 1938, Fritz left for the US in order to begin studying for the medical boards he needed to pass in order to practice medicine. He sent for Illa in August 1938. Nellie arrived in January 1939, and Gertrude arrived in March. Once in London, Ernestine spent her time knitting for the Red Cross. In the fall of 1942, she traveled to the US aboard a freighter in a Greek convoy.
Henckels dinner knife brought with a German Jewish prewar refugee
Object
J.A. Henckels table knife taken with Ernestine Wiesenthal when she emigrated from Berlin, Germany, to London, England in 1939. A partial maker’s mark is visible, but is missing the twin mark that identifies when a Henckels piece was manufactured. The knife handle is likely made of silver, though it does not bear any marks to confirm that. On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. Following the passage of the Nuremberg laws in 1935, Ernestine’s son, Fritz, began looking for places where the family could immigrate as life became increasingly difficult for German Jews. Later that year, Fritz, a doctor, and his wife, Gertrude, sent their daughter, Illa, to boarding school in England. When their daughter, Nellie, was no longer allowed to attend public school, she moved into Ernestine’s home and attended a local Jewish school. Eventually, Jews were no longer able to practice medicine, and the family needed to emigrate. In 1938, Fritz left for the US in order to begin studying for the medical boards he needed to pass in order to practice medicine. He sent for Illa in August 1938. Nellie arrived in January 1939, and Gertrude arrived in March. Once in London, Ernestine spent her time knitting for the Red Cross. In the fall of 1942, she traveled to the US aboard a freighter in a Greek convoy.
Children’s songbook brought with a German Jewish prewar refugee
Object
Small, illustrated children’s songbook taken with Nellie Wiesenthal when she immigrated to the United States in January 1939, from Berlin, Germany, via Switzerland and France. The booklet was published in Berlin, on February 15, 1891, and printed by Julius Sittenfeld. On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. Following the passage of the Nuremberg laws in 1935, Nellie’s father, Fritz, began looking for places where the family could immigrate as life became increasingly difficult. Later that year, Fritz, a doctor, and Nellie’s mother, Gertrude, sent her older sister, Illa, to boarding school in England. When Nellie was no longer allowed to attend public school, she moved into her paternal grandmother Ernestine’s home and attended a local Jewish school. In 1938, Fritz left for the US in order to begin studying for the medical boards he needed to pass in order to practice medicine there. He sent for Illa in August, and in September, Nellie, went to Switzerland with her paternal aunt Helene and three cousins. When her aunt’s family left to wait for their American visas in Cuba, Nellie was taken to a children’s home in Lucerne, until a family friend could escort her to France. Once in Cherbourg, Nellie boarded the SS Deutschland, and arrived in New York City in January 1939. Gertrude arrived in March. Later that year, Ernestine traveled to London, England, to wait for her American visa. In the fall of 1942, Ernestine traveled to the US in a Greek convoy.
