Gelb and Heiser family collection

Overview

Collection Summary

Consists of identity papers, correspondence, photographs, genealogical material related to the pre-war lives, emigration, and families of Charlotte Kuhlfas (also Hochheiser, Heiser) and Martin Gelb. Charlotte emigrated from Czechoslovakia in 1937 and Martin in 1940; they married soon after his arrival. Includes letters he wrote to her in March 1940 as he was preparing to emigrate; family photographs, the machzor Martin purchased and inscribed after arriving in the United States; their identity cards and naturalization papers; family tree information for the Gelb and Heiser families; Charlotte's 1925 autograph (poesie) book; a copy of property ownership documents; and copies of passenger manifests. The collection also includes numerous examples of needlework, wood templates and a pattern book for making lace patterns, a cloth purse, a rattan box and brass candlesticks. Some of these materials may be combined into a single collection in the future.

Provenance

The collection was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2015 and 2016 by Dr. Marilyn Greenwald.