Overview
- Description
- The Ruth Olesker Geary papers include photographs, family research, identification papers, correspondence, immigration records, remittances, and tracing records documenting the Olesker family of Vienna, Austria. Photographs depict the Oldesker family. Family research includes family stories, copies of records from various archives, and printed material describing Ruth Olesker Geary. Identification papers include birth and employment certificates and travel papers. Correspondence consists of letters from Osias and Seril Olesker in Vienna to their daughters Ruth and Martha in America and one postcard to their son William in Vienna. Immigration records document Henry Turkel’s sponsorship of his cousins Ruth and Martha. Remittances document financial support the children sent to their parents in Opole, Poland. Tracing records document the children’s efforts to discover what happened to their parents after deportation to Opole.
- Date
-
inclusive:
1917-2017
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum collection, gift of Joan Geary
- Collection Creator
- Ruth O. Geary
- Biography
-
Ruth Olesker Geary (1917-2017) was born January 13, 1917 in Vienna, Austria to Osias Gerson Olesker (b. 1880) from Brody, Poland and Seril Segal Olesker (b. 1886) from Podwołoczyska, Poland (now Pidvolochysk, Ukraine). Ruth had an older sister named Martha (later Hoffmann, b. 1908) and an older brother named William (b. 1913). Ruth and Martha secured American visas through the sponsorship of their cousin, Dr. Henry Turkel, and arrived in New York via Cherbourg in June 1939 aboard the Queen Mary. Their brother and his wife Rosa had immigrated to the United States in November 1938. Osias and Seril Olesker were deported from Vienna to Opole in February 1941 and did not survive the Holocaust.
Physical Details
- Genre/Form
- Correspondence. Photographs.
- Extent
-
6 folders
1 oversize folder
- System of Arrangement
- The Ruth Olesker Geary.papers are arranged in five files: 1) Photographs and family research, 1941, 1994-2017, 2) Identification papers, 1919-1939, 1962, 3) Correspondence, 1934-1941, 4) Immigration sponsorship, 1939-1940, 1988, 5) Requisitions and tracing, 1941, 1946, 1953, 1972
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- There are no known restrictions on access to this material. Museum staff are currently unable to copy, digitize, and/or photograph collection materials on behalf of researchers. Researchers are encouraged to plan a research visit to consult collection materials themselves.
- Conditions on Use
- The donor, source institution, or a third party has asserted copyright over some or all of the material(s) in this collection. You do not require further permission from the Museum to use this material. The user is solely responsible for making a determination as to if and how the material may be used.
- Copyright Holder
- Ms. Joan Geary
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Jewish families--Austria--Vienna. Holocaust victims.
Administrative Notes
- Holder of Originals
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- Joan Geary donated the Ruth Olesker Geary papers to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2019. Joan Geary is the daughter of Ruth Olesker Geary.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-06-09 08:39:37
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn710809
Download & Licensing
- In Copyright - Use Permitted
- Terms of Use
- This record is not digitized and cannot be downloaded online.
In-Person Research
- Not Available for Research: Out for Digitization
- Plan a Research Visit
-
Request in Shapell Center Reading Room
Bowie, MD
Contact Us
Also in Ruth Olesker Geary collection
Documents, correspondence, photographs, passports and tea set illustrating the experiences Osias and Seril Olesker in Vienna, Austria, and their children, Ruth and Martha, and their efforts to flee Nazi-occupied Vienna, Austria. The collection shows efforts to secure visas for all family members. Ruth and Martha were able to flee May 31, 1939, with the support of Henry Turkel, a cousin, and documents show he then tried to secure visas for Osias and Seril, who never left. They were deported to Opole, Poland in February 1941, where they were likely killed. Letters within collection indicate efforts to send packages to them, money for their possible immigration, and efforts through other means to secure any escape possible. Their son and daughter-in-law, Wilhelm and Rosa, came separately. The tea set was entrusted to Ruth by her mother and brought to the States when Ruth immigrated.
Teapot with lid
Object
Teapot, part of a tea service illustrating the experiences Osias and Seril Olesker in Vienna, Austria, and their children, Ruth and Martha, and their efforts to flee Nazi-occupied Vienna, Austria. Ruth and Martha were able to flee May 31, 1939, with the support of Henry Turkel, a cousin, and documents show he then tried to secure visas for Osias and Seril, who never left. They were deported to Opole, Poland, in February 1941, where they were likely killed. The tea set was entrusted to Ruth by her mother and brought to the United States when Ruth immigrated.
Creamer
Object
Creamer, part of a tea service illustrating the experiences Osias and Seril Olesker in Vienna, Austria, and their children, Ruth and Martha, and their efforts to flee Nazi-occupied Vienna, Austria. Ruth and Martha were able to flee May 31, 1939, with the support of Henry Turkel, a cousin, and documents show he then tried to secure visas for Osias and Seril, who never left. They were deported to Opole, Poland, in February 1941, where they were likely killed. The tea set was entrusted to Ruth by her mother and brought to the United States when Ruth immigrated.
Sugar bowl
Object
Sugar bowl, part of a tea service illustrating the experiences Osias and Seril Olesker in Vienna, Austria, and their children, Ruth and Martha, and their efforts to flee Nazi-occupied Vienna, Austria. Ruth and Martha were able to flee May 31, 1939, with the support of Henry Turkel, a cousin, and documents show he then tried to secure visas for Osias and Seril, who never left. They were deported to Opole, Poland, in February 1941, where they were likely killed. The tea set was entrusted to Ruth by her mother and brought to the United States when Ruth immigrated.
