Mia Kaufman (right) poses sitting on a wall with a friend.
Overview
- Caption
- Mia Kaufman (right) poses sitting on a wall with a friend.
- Date
-
1940
- Locale
- Milan, [Lombardy] Italy
- Variant Locale
- Milano
- Photo Credit
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Elizabeth Kaufman Weiss
Rights & Restrictions
- Photo Source
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Copyright: United States Holocaust Memorial MuseumProvenance: Elizabeth Kaufman Weiss
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Biography
- Elizabet Weiss (born Elizabet Kaufman) is the daughter of Josef (b. 1891) and Rosa Bernfeld Kaufman (b. 1892). She was born in Vienna on February 6, 1923 where Josef worked as a sales agent. Elizabet had an older brother, David and four younger siblings, Annie, Leo, Mia and Kurt, all of whom survived the war. In addition to attending public school, Elizabet also worked for a raincoat manufacturer. Germany annexed Austria in March 1938, and the following year the family left Vienna for Milan, Italy on June 26, 1939 in the hope of going from there to the United States. They had affidavits for America, which were arranged by an aunt, as well as permits for Mexico. However, once the war broke out they could no longer emigrate, and Elizabet's father, Josef, was sent to an internment camp near Salerno. He remained there until October 1945. Although mildly observant before the war, Josef became religious during his internment. Elizabet and her mother and siblings fled Milan during its bombardment in 1941. They found work in Cantu and lived nearby in the town of Laveno. After the Germans arrived in Italy on September 15, 1941, the family escaped to Switzerland, but upon arrival Swiss guards sent them back after telling them that it was not dangerous to remain in Italy. The family did not give up, however, and on September 26th after walking for fifteen hours, they crossed the border illegally. Near the border, Elizabet fainted from fear. A doctor who attended her instructed her to pretend she was sick. The border guards then had sympathy and let the family through. In Switzerland they were sent to Bellinzona, a camp run by the Swiss military. Elizabet and Annie were then transferred to a girl's camp, David was transferred to a work camp, while Rosa and the two smaller children first remained in Bellinzona and later were sent on to La Chasot (Fribourg). Elizabet eventually joined them, and they all stayed in La Chasot until 1944. Elizabet worked in an office, her mother did sewing, and her sisters worked in the kitchen. The family left Switzerland on August 31, 1945 and reunited with Josef three months later.
- Record last modified:
- 2017-03-30 00:00:00
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/pa1139907
