Silver dinner fork smuggled into France by a German Jewish refugee
- Date
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emigration:
1933
- Geography
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use:
Bordeaux (France : Generalite)
- Classification
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Household Utensils
- Category
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Flatware
- Object Type
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Forks (lcsh)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Ludwig Wertheim
Silver fork smuggled by Ludwig Wertheim out of Nazi Germany and into France in the 1930s. When Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933, 24 year old Ludwig was in France on business for the family wine import firm. They were observant Jews and it was decided that Ludwig should remain in France. He made a few trips home to Wurzburg during which he retrieved many family valuables. He last saw his parents in April 1936. His German passport was revoked, but he was issued refugee papers by the French government. After the German invasion of France in May 1940, Ludwig joined the French Foreign Legion and served until his demobilization on November 10, 1945. This fork and spoon (2005.4.3) are the only family possessions that he was able to recover.
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Record last modified: 2021-02-10 09:18:09
This page: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn516328
Also in This Collection
Silver dinner spoon smuggled into France by a German Jewish refugee
Object
Silver spoon smuggled by Ludwig Wertheim out of Nazi Germany and into France in the 1930s. When Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933, 24 year old Ludwig was in France on business for the family wine import firm. They were observant Jews and it was decided that Ludwig should remain in France. He made a few trips home to Wurzberg during which he retrieved many family valuables. He last saw his parents in April 1936. His German passport was revoked, but he was issued refugee papers by the French government. After the German invasion of France in May 1940, Ludwig joined the French Foreign Legion and served until his demobilization on November 10, 1945. This spoon and fork (2005.4.2) are the only family possessions that he was able to recover.
Ludwig Wertheim papers
Document
The papers consist of documents, photographs, family books, and a photograph album relating to the experiences of Ludwig Wertheim and his family in Würzburg, Germany, and France during the Holocaust. Also included in the collection are documents relating to Ruth Chotzen and her work with the Jewish Agency for Palestine organizing illegal immigration of refugees to Palestine.
Bayerisches jahrbuch 1940
Object
1940 Bavarian almanac listing the names of all the federal employees and party officials of the NSDAP [Nazi Party] in Bavaria.