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Sol U. Holocaust testimony (HVT-1538) interviewed by Bernard Weinstein and Marcia Weissberg,

Oral History | Fortunoff Collection ID: HVT-1538

Videotape testimony of Sol U., who was born in Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, Poland in 1926, one of six children. He recounts his family's poverty; their moving to Romania in 1928, then to Borek Fałęck in 1933; attending cheder in Podgórze; antisemitic harassment; German invasion in 1939; anti-Jewish restrictions; forced factory labor; ghettoization in Kraków; working in Oskar Schindler's factory in 1942; Schindler protecting his Jewish workers when the ghetto was liquidated in March 1943; deportation of Mr. U.'s family (he never saw them again); transfer to Płaszów; public hangings; living in Schindler's factory; transfer back to Płaszów, then to Gross-Rosen in September 1944; transfer to Schindler's factory in Brünnlitz seven days later; working as a carpenter in Schindler's villa; smuggling food to fellow prisoners; Schindler's departure; liberation by Soviet troops; returning to Kraków; antisemitism; traveling to Czechoslovakia with a friend, then to Germany in September 1945; living in Bamberg displaced persons camp; working for UNRRA; meeting his future wife; emigration to the United States; marriage in 1950; and the births of three children. Mr. U. discusses his profound sadness returning home after liberation; his successful business; the humane atmosphere at Schindler's factory; and visiting Płaszów, Auschwitz, Oświęcim (his father's hometown) and Nowy Sącz (his wife's hometown) with his family in 1971.

Author/Creator
U., Sol, 1926-
Published
Union, N.J. : Kean College Oral Testimonies Project, 1989
Interview Date
February 22, 1989.
Locale
Poland
Kraków
Kalwaria Zebrzydowska (Poland)
Romania
Borek Fałęcki (Poland)
Podgórze (Kraków, Poland)
Czechoslovakia
Nowy Sącz (Poland)
Oświęcim (Poland)
Language
English
Copies
2 copies: 3/4 in. dub; and 1/2 in. VHS with time coding.
Cite As
Sol U. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-1538). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.