Hirsch family papers

Martin B. Hirsch (1895-1961) was a businessman, who was born in Grottkau, Upper Silesia (modern day Grodków, Poland) on 16 June 1895, the son of Berthold and Hulda (née Wendriner) Hirsch. After service in the German army during World War I, Hirsch ran his family’s department store in Grottkau, along with his brother Fritz, until the latter’s immigration to the United States in 1926. Hirsch married Herta Schwenk (1902-1958), the daughter of Max and Hedwig (née Hirsch) Schwenk. Martin and Herta had two daughters, Dorothea (1926-2014) and Stephanie (1931-1997). Following the rise of the Nazis in 1933, the Hirsch family faced increasing anti-Semitic persecution in Grottkau, including Nazi-organized boycotts of their department store. As a result, they planned to emigrate as soon as possible, and in November 1938, Martin had already made plans to leave for the United States, with the intention of making arrangements so that his family could join him.

During the Kristallnacht pogrom, a sympathetic local policeman advised the family to come stay at the local jail for their own protection, which they did for several days. Following that, Martin left for the United States, arriving shortly thereafter in Philadelphia, while Herta and the two daughters went to live with Herta’s extended family in Habelschwerdt (modern-day Bystrzyca Kłodzka, Poland). Martin’s initial efforts to find affidavits and other support needed to bring his wife and daughters to the United States was unsuccessful, with various Jewish aid groups unable to help. An acquaintance recommended that he contact local businessman Ben Buchsbaum, and thanks to Buchsbaum’s efforts, Herta Hirsch and her two daughters, along with her sister, Erna Schwenk, were able to immigrate the following year, sailing on the SS Veendam and arriving in Hoboken, New Jersey on 10 November 1939. The family subsequently settled in the Philadelphia area, and it appears that Martin’s mother, Hulda, was also able to join them there.