- Artifact Photographer
- Max Reid
- Biography
- Liesel Joseph is the only child of Josef (b. 1882) and Lilly Salomon Joseph (b. 1901). She was born in Rheydt, Germany on June 17, 1928 where her father was a successful lawyer and a member of the SPD (Social Democratic Party). After the Nazi rise to power, Josef was blacklisted for his membership in the SPD and barely escaped arrest. On the night of Kristallnacht, the Joseph family home was one of only two houses vandalized in Rheydt. The damage was so extensive, that the Josephs were compelled to leave Rheydt for Bonn where they lived with relatives until the sailing of the St. Louis in May, 1939. The Josephs were very involved with life on board the ship and after the passengers were denied permission to debark in Havana, Josef, by virtue of his abilities as a lawyer and negotiator, was asked to chair the four-member self-appointed passenger committee. He served in this capacity through the end of the voyage. Later, other individuals joined the committee. Josef spent a great deal of time talking to passengers, trying to allay their concerns and consulting with Captain Schroeder. As chairman, Josef gave speeches to the other passengers to inform them of negotiations and boost their morale. He served as a public spokesman for the passengers and sent telegrams to the press and the Joint Distribution Committee. Once the passengers received permission to disembark in Europe, a gala party was planned for the passengers. After disembarking in Antwerp, the Josephs joined the Tropers (the head of the Joint Distribution Committee) and came to England on board the Rhakotis. The family rented a one-room apartment in London, but once the blitz began, Liesel was evacuated to the town of Clifton where she attended a Jewish secondary school and boarded with a family by the name of Whittington. In August 1940, Josef was sent to the Isle of Man where he was interned as an enemy alien. Liesel came back to England to live with her mother until the family succeeded in obtaining US visas. They traveled to North America, third class, on board the Camaronia and settled in Philadelphia with Kurt and Jane Blum, relatives of Lilly.
Morris Carlton Troper (1892-1962), American Jewish lawyer and communal leader, who from 1938 to 1942 served as chief of European operations for the American Joint Distribution Committee. During his tenure he focused his efforts on promoting Jewish emigration from Nazi Europe, organizing relief efforts and channeling funds to Jewish communities and welfare organizations. During the St. Louis affair Troper was instrumental in convincing the governments of the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Great Britain to offer safe haven to the stranded Jewish refugees. He also organized the "Camp Commission" to aid Jewish refugees imprisoned in French internment camps and unofficially supported efforts by the Jewish Agency to organize the illegal immigration of Jews to Palestine. After the fall of France and the transfer of JDC headquarters to Lisbon, Troper spent most of his time in the US gathering support for European relief efforts. In 1942 soon after the entry of the US into World War II, Troper resigned from the JDC to enlist in the US Army. From 1942 to 1946 he headed the Office of Fiscal Direction, attaining the rank of Brigadier General. After leaving the army in 1946, Troper returned to Jewish communal work, lending his efforts to the resettlement of Jewish displaced persons and projects related to the founding of the State of Israel. He retired in 1949.