Yellow Star of David badge with a letter J. found by an American soldier
- Date
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acquired:
approximately 1944 June-1945 October
- Geography
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found:
Belgium
- Classification
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Identifying Artifacts
- Category
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Badges
- Object Type
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Star of David badges (lcsh)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of David Ebert
Belgian Star of David badge acquired by Carl Ebert, a Jewish American World War II soldier while he was serving as a teletype maintenance technician in Europe from March 1944 - October 1945. The German authorities required the badge to be worn by all Jews over six in order to humiliate them and make them easier to identify and separate from the general population. The badges were used in Nazi occupied Belgium from spring 1942 until liberation in September 1944. Carl, a jeweler whose family emigrated from Austria-Hungary to New York in 1920, enlisted in the army in 1942. In early 1944, Carl’s unit, Company B, 3111th Signal Corps, shipped out from Monmouth, New Jersey to England. As part of the Signal Corps, Carl coordinated and maintained communication between his unit and the rest of the allied forces. Carl’s unit was deployed to France in June, landing on Omaha and Utah beaches a few days after the Normandy invasion. They quickly moved east into northeastern France, Belgium and Germany. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945. On October 14, Carl was released from the military and returned to the US.
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Record last modified: 2022-04-11 12:43:48
This page: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn88461
Also in This Collection
Satirical French Anti-Nazi flier found by an American soldier
Object
Satirical, French language flier acquired by Carl Ebert, a Jewish American World War II soldier while he was serving as a teletype maintenance technician in Europe from March 1944 - October 1945. Several pockets of French resistance developed in the face of German occupation. Among the activities that these groups carried out was the circulation of anti-German leaflets. Carl, a jeweler whose family emigrated from Austria-Hungary to New York in 1920, enlisted in the army in 1942. In early 1944, Carl’s unit, Company B, 3111th Signal Corps, shipped out from Monmouth, New Jersey to England. As part of the Signal Corps, Carl coordinated and maintained communication between his unit and the rest of the allied forces. Carl’s unit was deployed to France in June, landing on Omaha and Utah beaches a few days after the Normandy invasion. They quickly moved east into northeastern France, Belgium and Germany. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945. On October 14, Carl was released from the military and returned to the US.