Overview
- Description
- The Ilse Loewenberg papers primarily contain identification papers, imprisonment documents, correspondence, and clippings related to Ilse Loewenberg’s experiences as a member of an underground resistance group and her imprisonment in Berlin, Germany from 1943-1945. Included are a photograph and identification card for her husband Gerhard Grün, government documents related to Ilse’s imprisonment in Berlin, a list of the names of those who helped her hide in Berlin, post-war correspondence, and clippings related to Elisabeth Bornstein receiving the Medal of the Righteous for helping hide Ilse in her house during the war.
- Date
-
inclusive:
1938-1993
- Collection Creator
- Ilse Loewenberg
- Biography
-
Ilse Loewenberg (1908-2001) was born to shop owners Simon Berghausen (1870-1943) and Hannchen (Goldschmidt) Berghausen (b. 1880) in Büren, Germany. She had three sisters, Margarete (1906-1943) Carla (b. 1911), and Lieselotte (1921-1943). Ilse lived in Büren until 1938 when her parents were forced to sell their store due to persecution by the Nazis. Ilse and her family moved to Berlin, Germany shortly after. She tried to immigrate to England, but was not successful. In the early years of the war, she was a forced labor worker at a Siemens factory. During this time, she met and married her second husband, Gerhard Grün (1906-1943). They joined the underground resistance group Gemeinschaft für Frieden und Aufbau (Association for Peace and Development), and survived with the help of Germans who helped them hide and procure false identification papers. Ilse was arrested and sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp in February 1943. While on the train, she escaped by jumping out of the car near Ruda, Poland. She went back to Berlin and continued to hide. Gerhard was arrested and sent to the Sachenhausen concentration camp near Berlin, where he was shot on March 16, 1943. She was arrested again on October 19th, 1944 and remained in prisons in Berlin until 1945 when she was liberated by Russian troops. She immigrated to the United States in 1948 and settled in Forest Hills, New York. She later married Ludwig Loewenberg (d. 1971). Simon Berghausen was transported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp on June 17, 1942 and he was killed on July 27, 1943. Lieselotte, Margarete, and her mother were all transported to Auschwitz in 1943 where they perished. Her other sister, Carla, immigrated to England prior to the war, and later immigrated to the United States.
Physical Details
- Extent
-
4 folders
- System of Arrangement
- The Ilse Loewenberg papers are arranged in chronological order.
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
- Ilse Loewenberg donated the Ilse Loewenberg papers to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1995.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-02-24 13:49:26
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn500746
Additional Resources
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In-Person Research
- Available for Research
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-
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