Henry F. Kahn collection of Holocaust-era mail
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Overview
- Description
- The Henry F. Kahn collection of Holocaust-era mail primarily consists of envelopes, letters, postcards,
and philatelic materials Kahn collected between approximately 1945 and 1985. The materials document
mail systems in and around Holocaust-era ghettos and concentration camps and, by extension, the
survivors and victims who passed through them or perished in them. Kahn arranged the materials in
three annotated scrapbooks, providing context and history for the ghettos, camps, and mail systems.
Most of the materials date from the 1930s and 1940s while the reproductions and commentary date
from Kahn’s collecting period.
The “Concentration camp mail” scrapbook consists primarily of correspondence and envelopes documenting mail systems and prisoners at Buchenwald, Dachau, Oranienburg, and Sachsenhausen from 1934 to 1945. This series also includes a postcard sent from the donor's uncle, Ferdinand Kahn, at Dachau to the donor's grandmother, Hedwig Kahn; a Gestapo summons issued to Ferdinand Kahn; and a post-period picture postcard of Auschwitz. Additional Buchenwald, Oranienburg, and Sachsenhausen materials can be found in Series 2.
The “Ghetto and camp mail” scrapbook consists primarily of correspondence and envelopes documenting mail systems and prisoners in ghettos and camps in Germany, Poland, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Czechoslovakia. This series also includes scrip from the Łódź ghetto and the camps at Buchenwald, Theresienstadt, and Westerbork; postal notes and postage stamps from the Warsaw ghetto; and a ration ticket, lunch ticket, and two medicine bottle labels from the Łódź ghetto. This series further includes a portion of an original letter signed by Otto Frank, two facsimiles of Anne Frank diary entries, and an Anne Frank memorial postage stamp. Additional Buchenwald, Oranienburg, and Sachsenhausen materials can be found in Series 1. Additional Warsaw ghetto and Theresienstadt materials can be found in Series 3.
The “Warsaw ghetto and Theresienstadt materials” scrapbook primarily consists of correspondence and envelopes documenting mail systems and prisoners in the Warsaw ghetto and Theresienstadt. This series also includes a photograph of Hedwig Kahn; copy prints and photocopied images of the Warsaw ghetto and its residents; a copy of a map of the Theresienstadt ghetto; identification cards, ration cards, and certificates documenting Emil Cohn's internment in Theresienstadt; tickets for recreational activities in Theresienstadt; and photocopies of Theresienstadt cremation lists. The donor dedicated these materials to the memory of his grandmother, Hedwig Kahn, who perished at Theresienstadt. Additional
Warsaw ghetto and Theresienstadt materials can be found in Series 2.
The fourth series consists of a single 1939 document of exclusion that was not included in the scrapbooks. This document was issued to Emil Cohn and barred him from German military participation. Additional Emil Cohn materials can be found in all three series above.
Printed materials include the November 8, 1938 copy of the Münchner Neuste Nachrichten and two1961-1962 clippings about the Eichmann trial.
The Red Cross letter is dated December 9, 1965 and addressed to Henry Kahn. - Date
-
inclusive:
circa 1932-1985
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Henry Kahn, in memory of his grandmother Hedwig Kahn, who like millions of others, had no memorial for her death during the Holocaust
- Collection Creator
- Henry F. Kahn
- Biography
-
Henry F. Kahn (1925-2013) lived in Munich with his parents, Paul and Mimi Kahn. The morning following Kristallnacht, the family drove to Stuttgart to obtain visas from the American Consulate. They left for America in January 1939. Kahn served in the United States Army near the end of World War II. His paternal grandmother, Hedwig Kahn (1862-1943), remained in Germany and perished at Theresienstadt.
Physical Details
- Genre/Form
- Photographs. Stamped envelopes. Letters. Envelopes.
- Extent
-
2 boxes
1 oversize folder
- System of Arrangement
- The Henry F. Kahn collection of Holocaust-era mail is arranged as five series: I. Concentration camp mail, approximately 1934-1985 (bulk 1934-1945), II. Ghetto and camp mail, approximately 1938-1985 (bulk 1938-1945), III. Warsaw ghetto and Theresienstadt materials, approximately 1932-1985 (bulk 1940-1945), IV. Document of exclusion, 1939, V. Printed materials, 1938-1962
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- There are no known restrictions on access to this material.
- Conditions on Use
- The Anne Frank Fonds has asserted copyright over all materials created by Otto Frank until 60 years after his death. Any requests to republish these materials should be directed to the Anne Frank Fonds.
Other material in this collection may be protected by copyright and/or related rights. 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.
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- World War, 1939-1945--Europe--Postal service. Postmarks--Europe--20th century. Postage stamps--Europe--20th century. Concentration camps--Europe. Jewish ghettos--Europe. Jewish ghettos--Czech Republic--Terezín (Ústecký kraj) Jewish ghettos--Poland--Warsaw. Jewish ghettos--Poland--Będzin. Jewish ghettos--Poland--Łódź. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)
- Geographic Name
- Austria. Czechoslovakia. France. Germany. Hungary. Italy. Latvia. Luxembourg. Netherlands. Poland. Switzerland.
Administrative Notes
- Holder of Originals
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- Henry F. Kahn donated the Henry F. Kahn collection to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990, 1991, and 1992. Accessions previously cataloged as 1990.183.1 through 1990.183.63, 1991.127.2 through 1991.127.21, 1991.225.1 through 1991.225.191, and 1992.48 have been incorporated into this collection.
- Funding Note
- The cataloging of this collection has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
- Primary Number
- 1990.183.64
- Record last modified:
- 2023-06-02 08:46:26
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn77424
Additional Resources
Download & Licensing
In-Person Research
- Available for Research
- Plan a Research Visit
-
Request in Shapell Center Reading Room
Bowie, MD
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Also in Henry F. Kahn collection
The collection consists of an MS St Louis demitasse spoon, envelopes, letters, postcards, and philatelic materials collected between approximately 1945 and 1985 by Henry F. Kahn, who fled Nazi Germany in January 1939 for the United States.
Date: 1935-1985
Gilt-plated demitasse spoon embossed with the MS St Louis
Object
Gilded demitasse spoon with an engraved ship image and enamel company logo used prewar on the MS St. Louis. This German ocean liner has become a symbol of the world's, and especially the United States, indifference to the fate of Jews in a Europe dominated by Nazi Germany. On May 13, 1939, the ship left Hamburg, Germany, for Havana, Cuba, with 937 passengers, nearly all Jews fleeing Germany. In Havana, only 28 people were allowed to disembark. For a week, the ship remained in port, amid desperate negotiations with Cuban and US authorities. On June 2, it was forced to leave. It drifted for 5 days near the Florida coast until all pleas to the US were rejected, due to strict quota limits and isolationist sentiment. It docked in Antwerp, Belgium, on June 17. Jewish aid organizations had negotiated with European governments to admit the passengers rather than return them to Germany. All those admitted to the United Kingdom, 288, survived; nearly half of those admitted to Belgium, France, and the Netherlands, 278, survived; the rest perished.
