Strauss family papers

Document | Digitized | Accession Number: 2016.565.1

Overview

Description: The collection primarily documents the wartime and post-war experiences of the Strauss family as they fled Nazi persecution in Marburg, Germany to Amsterdam, the Netherlands; their internment at Westerbork concentration camp; and their deportations to Theresienstadt and Auschwitz concentration camps. Included are biographical papers, correspondence, immigration documents, restitution claims paperwork, photographs, and printed materials.

The biographical material includes identification papers such birth, marriage, and death certificates; genealogy research; documents regarding Siegfried and Marion Strauss’s displaced persons status; and Karl Walter Strauss’s United States Army papers. There are also some biographical papers related to Marguerite Strauss’s father Carl Wolff.

The correspondence includes letters exchanged with extended family members while the Strausses were in Amsterdam and Westerbork; correspondence with John Kok who taught Marion while in the family was in Amsterdam; prewar correspondence of Siegfried’s father, Hermann Strauss, and his grandfather, Koppel Strauss; prewar correspondence of Marguerite’s parents Adele and Carl Wolff; and postwar letters sent to Marion from her aunt Julie Rosenau.

The immigration papers contain affidavits, letters supporting visa requests, travel documents, and naturalization certificates.

The restitution claims of Marion Strauss include correspondence, personal narratives, financial documents, and paperwork regarding stolen artwork. There is also a small amount of restitution paperwork for Ernst Strauss.

The photographs contain prewar and postwar photos of the Strauss family in Germany and the United States. Included are candid, portrait, and travel photographs.

The printed material includes clippings; copies of poems, a copy of Indrukken in Westerbork, a collected book of poems about Westerbork; a French assignat, and two medical textbooks belong to Marion Strauss with homemade book covers and ex libris plates.
Date: inclusive: 1792-2003
bulk: 1844-1966
Credit Line: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Daniel Sapir
Collection Creator: Strauss family
Biography: Siegfried Strauss (later Fred Strauss, 1898-1956) was born in Marburg, Germany to Hermann (1856-1934) and Johanna (née Wertheim, 1859-1942) Strauss. He had three brothers, Bruno (b. 1887), Ernst (b.1889), and Julius (b. 1890). Siegfried served in World War I and operated a leather importer and exporter business in Frankfurt, Germany that was likely started by his grandfather Koppel Strauss (1831-1917). He married Marguerite Wolff (1902-1944) and had two children, Marion Carola (later Marion Sapir, b. 1926) and Karl Heinz (1929-1945).

Due to increasing Nazi persecution, Siegfried moved his family to Amsterdam, the Netherlands by 1938. His brother Ernst and his wife Hedwig (later Hedy Strauss, neé Liebenberg) immigrated to the United States and Bruno moved to England around the same time. In August 1942 the family was arrested and sent to the Westerbork concentration camp. In April 1943 they were deported to Theresienstadt concentration camp. In early 1944 Siegfried was sent to Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. He was then sent as a metalworker to a weapons factory in the Gleiwitz subcamp. In January 1945 Siegfried was sent to the Blechhammer subcamp and was liberated by the Red Army on January 22.

Several months after Siegfried was sent to Auschwitz, Karl was selected to go there. Marguerite and Marion worked in factory and were exempt, but decided to accompany him. Upon arrival, Marguerite was separated from her children and was sent to the gas chamber. Marion was sent to the Oederan sub camp of the Flossenburg concentration camp, where she worked construction of a weapons factory. In April 1945, she, along with other prisoners was sent on a forced-march to Theresienstadt where they were liberated by the Red Army on May 9. Her brother Karl survived the war, but perished shortly after being liberated.

Marion reunited with her father in Amsterdam, and they immigrated to the United States in 1947 with help from Siegfried’s brother Ernst. They settled in Chicago, Illinois where Siegfried worked with his brother at a leather company. Marion became a physical therapist. She married Albert Sapir (born Avram Sapir, d. 2005) in 1950, and they had six children.

Physical Details

Language: German English Dutch Hebrew
Genre/Form: Photographs.
Extent: 2 boxes
2 oversize boxes
2 oversize folders
System of Arrangement: The Strauss family papers are arranged alphabetically as six series: Series 1: Biographical material, 1844-2001; Series 2: Correspondence, 1874-1999; Series 3: Immigration papers, 1938-1955; Series 4: Restitution claims, 1954-2003; Series 5: Photographs, circa 1920-circa 1982; Series 6: Printed material, 1792-1958

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

Topical Term: Jewish families--Germany. Jewish children in the Holocaust--Germany. Holocaust survivors--Germany. Forced labor--Czech Republic--Terezín (Ústecký kraj) Emigration & immigration--United States--1940-1950. Restitution and indemnification claims (1933-)--Germany. World War, 1939-1945--Deportations from the Netherlands.
Geographic Name: Marburg (Germany) Amsterdam (Netherlands) Frankfurt am Main (Germany)
Personal Name: Strauss, Siegfried, 1898-1956. Strauss, Marguerite, 1902-1944. Strauss, Karl Heinz, 1929-1945. Strauss, Marion, 1926- Strauss, Ernst, 1889-
Corporate Name: Theresienstadt (Concentration camp) Auschwitz (Concentration camp) Westerbork (Concentration camp)

Administrative Notes

Holder of Originals: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Legal Status: Permanent Collection
Provenance: Donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2016 by Daniel Sapir.

Record last modified:: 2023-02-24 14:26:17
This page:: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn531622

Additional Resources

Finding Aid (English)

Download & Licensing

In-Person Research

Available for Research
Plan a Research Visit
Request in Shapell Center Reading Room
Bowie, MD

Contact Us

Give Feedback

Also in Marion Strauss Sapir collection

Documents, correspondence, books and artifacts illustrating the experiences of Siegfried Strauss (b. 1898) and spouse Margarit Wolff Strauss (b. 1902) both from Marburg, Germany and their children Marion (b. 1925) and Karl-Heinz (b. 1929) in Frankfurt, Germany. Letters between extended family who fled Nazi occupation and Strauss family who fled Germany for the Netherlands where they were arrested and interned in Westerbork. From there, they were deported to Theresienstadt and then Auschwitz. Margarit and Karl-Heinz did not survive. Siegfried and Marion survived and immigrated to the United States after the war.

Metal Box

Object

Metal box, part of a collection illustrating the experiences of Siegfried Strauss (b. 1898) and spouse Margarit Wolff Strauss (b. 1902) both from Marburg, Germany and their children Marion (b. 1925) and Karl-Heinz (b. 1929) in Frankfurt, Germany. The Strauss family fled Germany for the Netherlands where they were arrested and interned in Westerbork. From there, they were deported to Theresienstadt and then Auschwitz. Margarit and Karl-Heinz did not survive. Siegfried and Marion survived and immigrated to the United States after the war.