Oral history interview with Murray Berger

Oral History | Accession Number: 2017.262.4 | RG Number: RG-50.997.0001

Some video files begin with 10-60 seconds of color bars.

Interviewee: Murray Berger
Date: interview: 1999
Language: English
Extent: 1 videocassette (VHS) : sound, color ; 1/2 in..
Extent: 1 box
Credit Line: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Albert S. Berger and Ralph S. Berger

Special Collection: The Jeff and Toby Herr Oral History Archive
Topical Term: Guerillas--Belarus.
Hiding places--Belarus.
Holocaust survivors.
Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Belarus--Personal narratives.
Jewish families--Belarus--Navahrudak.
Jewish ghettos--Belarus--Navahrudak.
Jews--Belarus--Usali︠u︡b.
Refugee camps--Italy.
Refugee camps--Romania.
Sabotage--Belarus.
World War, 1939-1945--Jewish resistance--Personal narratives.
World War, 1939-1945--Participation, Jewish.
World War, 1939-1945--Underground movements--Belarus.
Geographic Name: Belarus--History--German occupation, 1941-1944.
Korelichi (Belarus)
Navahrudak (Belarus)
Romania.
Rome (Italy)
United States--Emigration and immigration.
Usali︠u︡b (Belarus)
Personal Name: Berger, Murray, 1912-1999.
Corporate Name: Bielski partisans (Resistance group)
Legal Status: Permanent Collection
Provenance: Ralph S. Berger and Albert S. Berger donated the oral history interview with Murray Berger to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in May 2017.
Conditions on Access: No restrictions on access
Conditions on Use: No restrictions on use
: Record last modified: 2023-01-18 14:29:07
This page: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn563403

Also in Fruma Gulkowitz Berger collection

The collection consists of a fork, spoon, originals and photocopies of poems and prose writings, a composition book of poetry, newspaper clippings, photocopies of articles, and photographs relating to the experiences of Frances (Fruma) Gulkowitz Berger, Murray Berger (originally Mordechai Shmulewicz), and Elliot Berger (originally Elia Shmulewicz) during the Holocaust in Poland where they were interned in ghettos and then escaped and joined the Bielski partisan brigade, as well as their experiences in the postwar period.

Date: 1930-1990

Fork

Object

Fork saved by Frances (Fruma) Gulkowitz from her home in Korelitz, Poland (Belarus). Fruma and her family where interned by the Germans in the Korelitz ghetto in July 1941. Her mother was killed by the police. In May 1942, Fruma and her family were sent to Novogrudek (now Navahrudak, Belarus). Around August 1942, Fruma's brother Ben-Zion escaped with Murray Berger and others and joined the Bielski partisans. He later returned to the ghetto and rescued Fruma and Judes who also joined the partisans. After liberation by the Red Army, Fruma and Murray went to the Kibbutz Turda displaced persons camp in Romania and eventually to Kibbutz Anzio DP camp in Italy. Fruma and Murray married and emigrated to the United States in 1947. Fruma’s father, sisters, and niece perished in Nowogródek ghetto.

Spoon

Object

Spoon saved by Frances (Fruma) Gulkowitz from her home in Korelitz, Poland (Belarus). Fruma and her family where interned by the Germans in the Korelitz ghetto in July 1941. Her mother was killed by the police. In May 1942, Fruma and her family were sent to Novogrudek (now Navahrudak, Belarus). Around August 1942, Fruma's brother Ben-Zion escaped with Murray Berger and others and joined the Bielski partisans. He later returned to the ghetto and rescued Fruma and Judes who also joined the partisans. After liberation by the Red Army, Fruma and Murray went to the Kibbutz Turda displaced persons camp in Romania and eventually to Kibbutz Anzio DP camp in Italy. Fruma and Murray married and emigrated to the United States in 1947. Fruma’s father, sisters, and niece perished in Nowogródek ghetto.

Fruma Gulkowitz-Berger papers

Document

The collection documents the Holocaust-era experiences of Fruma Gulkowitz-Berger (pen name of Frances Berger) and Murray Berger, both of whom joined the Bielski partisans in Western Belorussia (Belarus). The collection includes identification papers and immigration documents of Fruma, Murray, and Murray’s brother Elliot; manuscripts of essays and poems by Fruma Gulkowitz-Berger along with clippings of her articles; and pre-war and post-war photographs. Biographical materials include identification cards issued by the Red Cross, DP identification cards, and Italian identification documents. The immigration documents include a small amount of immigration paperwork and naturalization certificates. Also included are lists of family members who perished in the Holocaust. Writings include handwritten and photocopies of typed manuscripts of Fruma Gulkowitz-Berger. Her writings include essays and poems about the Holocaust, both in English and Yiddish. Also included are clippings of her writings from newspapers and other sources. Folder 2.9 contains writings of Murray Berger, and folder 2.15 contains writings of Y. Shmulevitsh. Photographs include pre-war depictions of the Gulkowitz and Shmulewicz families, the Kibbutz Turda displaced persons camp in Romania, displaced persons camps in Italy, and memorials to the Jews of Korelitz (Korelichi, Belarus) and Nowogródek (Navahrudak, Belarus), Poland.