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Oertelt and Fromm families papers

Document | Digitized | Accession Number: 2016.412.1

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    Oertelt and Fromm families papers
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    Overview

    Description
    The collection documents the Holocaust experiences of Henry Oertelt of Berlin, Germany. Included are presentation scripts of his story authored by Henry and his daughter Stephanie Oertelt Samuels, pre-war photographs of his wife Inge Fromm’s family, an identification card of Inge’s mother Erma Fromm, copy prints of liberation camp photographs of the Buchenwald concentration camp, and video recordings of presentations done by Henry.
    Date
    inclusive:  1924-2008
    Credit Line
    United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the family of Henry and Inge Oertelt
    Collection Creator
    Henry A. Oertelt
    Biography
    Henry Oertelt (born Arthur Karl Heinz Oertelt, 1921-2011) was born on 13 January 1921 in Berlin, Germany to Arthur and Else Oertelt. He had one brother, Kurt (later Kurt Messerschmidt). Henry’s father died when he was two years old, and his mother worked as a seamstress. As Jewish persecution increased in Germany, Else lost her job and Henry was no longer able to attend school. In May 1943, Henry, Kurt, and their mother Else were sent to the Theresienstadt concentration camp. In October 1944, Henry and Kurt were sent to the Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration camp. Several weeks later, they were sent to the Golleschau sub-camp of Auschwitz where Henry was a forced-laborer in furniture and cement factories. In January 1945, as the Soviet army approached the camp, Henry and the other prisoners were sent on a death march to the Sachsenhausen and Oranienburg concentration camps, and then to the Flossenbürg concentration camp where Henry and Kurt were separated. Henry was liberated on the death march from Flossenbürg in April 1945. He was reunited with his brother in Berlin, and soon met Inge Fromm. Inge was the daughter of Erma Fromm (1892-), who was imprisoned in Theresienstadt and survived the war. Henry and Inge married in 1946. Their daughter, Stephanie, was born in 1948. In 1949, they immigrated to the United States on the U.S.S. General C. C. Ballou. The family settled in St. Paul, Minnesota where Henry worked as a furniture designer. He also became active in education about the Holocaust, travelling around the area to speak to groups about his experiences.

    Physical Details

    Language
    English German
    Extent
    1 box
    System of Arrangement
    The collection is arranged as one series.

    Rights & Restrictions

    Conditions on Access
    There are no known restrictions on access to this material.
    Conditions on Use
    The donor, source institution, or a third party has asserted copyright over some or all of these material(s). The Museum does not own the copyright for the material and does not have authority to authorize use. For permission, please contact the rights holder(s).

    Keywords & Subjects

    Geographic Name
    Berlin (Germany)

    Administrative Notes

    Provenance
    The collection was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by Corey L. Samuels in 2016. Corey is the granddaughter of Henry Oertelt.
    Record last modified:
    2024-01-25 11:41:31
    This page:
    https:​/​/collections.ushmm.org​/search​/catalog​/irn548070

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