Overview
- Description
- The collection primarily documents the prewar experiences of Fred and Thea Klestadt, originally of Düsseldorf, Germany, prior to their emigration from Germany to the United States in 1937. Documents include Thea’s report cards, clothing pattern book, and a short play written after she arrived in the US; clippings; and the menu from Fred and Thea’s wedding. Correspondence includes letters from Fred to his family while on their honeymoon in Palestine in 1935 and letters exchanged between Fred and Thea after they arrived in the United States. There is also one brief letter from the Red Cross to Thea regarding news of family members in 1942. Photographs include prewar depictions of Fred, Thea, and various family members and friends. There are also two photograph albums documenting their honeymoon in Palestine in 1935.
- Date
-
inclusive:
circa 1900-2005
bulk: 1919-1942
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Julie Keefer
- Collection Creator
- Thea U. Klestadt
- Biography
-
Thea Löwenstein was born December 19, 1912 in Düsseldorf, Germany, to a Jewish couple, Emil and Erna Flechtheim Löwenstein. She had an older sister, Vera (1904-1948). Thea was an artist. On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was appointed chancellor of Germany by President Paul von Hindenburg. Under Hitler, authorities quickly began suppressing the rights and personal freedoms of Jews, and boycotting their businesses. Thea married Frederick (Fred) L. Klestadt in 1935, and they honeymooned in Palestine, then returned to Düsseldorf. Fred was born in Düsseldorf on March 15, 1909 to Moritz and Rahel Aenne Lilienfeld Klestadt. He had a younger sister, Hilda (1913-1914). Fred was a well-educated man with a PhD.
In September, the authorities instituted the Nuremberg Laws which made Jews second class citizens, revoking their political rights. These laws also defined a "Jew" as someone with three or four Jewish grandparents or who is practicing Jewish faith. The laws also banned marriage between Jews and non-Jews. Jews were also prohibited from working as lawyers, accountants, teachers and barred from civil service professions.
Thea and Fred secured US visas and in October 1937, they left Germany. They arrived in New York on November 12, 1937. They moved to Cleveland Ohio in 1939. Fred worked as a traveling salesman. In 1955 the Klestadts adopted 14 year old Jula (Julie) Weinstock, a Jewish Polish girl whose parents were murdered in the Holocaust while hiding in a forest bunker near Lvov Poland in April 1944. Julie’s grandfather, afraid the childrens’ cries would alert the Germans took Julie and her infant sister to hide with a Christian woman. Later Julie’s sister was sent to a Catholic children’s home to keep her safe. She was taken away from the orphanage they never saw her sister again. After the war Julie’s grandfather sent her to America because young orphans received preferential treatment for US entry visas. Julie and her husband Larry have two children and live in Washington DC. Fred, aged 86, died on November 30, 1995 in Cleveland. Thea, aged 92, died on September 25, 2005 in Cleveland.
Physical Details
- Genre/Form
- Letters. Photographs. Photograph albums.
- Extent
-
1 box
1 oversize folder
1 folder
- System of Arrangement
- The collection is arranged as three series.
Series 1. Biographical material, 1919-2003
Series 2. Correspondence, 1935-1942 and undated
Series 3. Photographs, circa 1900-2005
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
- Jews--Germany--Düsseldorf.
- Personal Name
- Klestadt, Fred, 1909-1995. Klestadt, Thea, 1912-2005.
Administrative Notes
- Holder of Originals
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- Donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2014 by Julie Keefer.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-02-24 13:44:54
- This page:
- http://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn169857
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-
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Contact Us
Also in Fritz and Thea Lowenstein Klestadt family collection
The collection consists of two drawings, correspondence, documents, and photographs relating to the experiences of Thea Löwenstein Klestadt and Fritz Fred Klestadt before the Holocaust in Dusseldorf, Germany, and the United States where the couple emigrated in October 1937.
Paper sheet with two drawings of a couple being separated and then reconciling
Object
Two pencil drawings side by side on white paper with colored pencil details created by Thea Kelstadt depicting the life of an adult couple in Cleveland Ohio. The left drawing shows the couple separating, while the right shows their reunion. In 1935 Thea married Fred Klestadt. In September, the Nazis announced the Nuremberg Laws which excluded Jews from citizenship and prohibited them from marrying or having sexual relations with persons of German blood. The laws defined a Jew as a person who had 3 or more grandparents that were Jews, regardless of their religious practice. In 1937, fleeing rising German anti-Semitism the couple obtained US visas and immigrated to America in 1937, settling in Cleveland in 1939. In 1955 Thea and Fred adopted Julia Weinstock, a 14 year old Jewish Polish girl whose parents were murdered in the Holocaust. She survived by hiding in a forest bunker near Lvov. When that became too dangerous her grandfather took her and they both hid in a Catholic woman’s house.
Beaded hat with a floral pattern brought by a Jewish German refugee
Object
A child sized, handmade stocking cap with a beaded floral design, given to Thea Löwenstein Klestadt by her mother, Erna, in Dusseldorf, Germany before 1938. Thea passed the hat down to her daughter Julie after her adoption in 1955. In 1935, Thea married Fred Klestadt in Düsseldorf. In September, the Nazis announced the Nuremberg Laws which excluded Jews from German citizenship. The laws defined a Jew as a person who had 3 or more grandparents that were Jews, regardless of their religious practice. Jews were also barred from holding civil service positions, practicing law, teaching and many other professions. In 1937, fleeing rising German anti-Semitism the couple obtained visas for the United States and immigrated. They settled in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1939. In 1955, Thea and Fred adopted Julia Weinstock, a 14 year old Jewish Polish girl whose parents were murdered in the Holocaust. She survived by hiding in a forest bunker near Lvov. When that became too dangerous, her grandfather took her and they both hid in a Christian woman’s house.
Embroidered table runner with a floral and insect design brought with German Jewish refugee
Object
Multi-layered, cloth table runner with an embroidered floral and insect design given to Thea Löwenstein Klestadt by her mother, Erna, in Dusseldorf, Germany before 1938. Thea then passed the runner down to her daughter Julie after her adoption in 1955. In 1935 Thea married Fred Klestadt in Düsseldorf. In September, the Nazis announced the Nuremberg Laws which excluded Jews from German citizenship. The laws defined a Jew as a person who had 3 or more grandparents that were Jews, regardless of their religious practice. Jews were also barred from holding civil service positions, practicing law, teaching and many other professions. In 1937, fleeing rising German anti-Semitism the couple obtained visas for the United States and immigrated. They settled in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1939. In 1955, Thea and Fred adopted Julia Weinstock, a 14 year old Jewish Polish girl whose parents were murdered in the Holocaust. She survived by hiding in a forest bunker near Lvov. When that became too dangerous, her grandfather took her and they both hid in a Christian woman’s house.
