Affidavit in lieu of passport issued to Ernest Guenther Heppner for the American Vice Consul in Shanghai.
Overview
- Caption
- Affidavit in lieu of passport issued to Ernest Guenther Heppner for the American Vice Consul in Shanghai.
- Date
-
1947 June 16
- Locale
- Shanghai, [Kiangsu] China
- Photo Credit
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, courtesy of Ernest G. Heppner
Rights & Restrictions
- Photo Source
-
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Copyright: United States Holocaust Memorial MuseumProvenance: Ernest G. HeppnerSource Record ID: Collections: 1989.243.103
Keywords & Subjects
Administrative Notes
- Biography
- Ernest G. Heppner was the son of Isidor and Hilda Heppner. He was born on August 4, 1921 in Breslau, Germany where his father owned a matzah factory and a resort hotel. His parents were separated and eventually divorced. Ernest was the youngest of three children. Ernest had an older brother Heinz and sister Else. The family considered themselves to be German patriots, and his father was a World War I veteran. After Hitler took power in 1933, German children frequently taunted Ernest and accused his father of killing Christian babies for his matzoth. Ernest fought back and as a result often got into trouble. When Ernest was 14, he was expelled from school for being Jewish and instead became an apprentice welder and locksmith. In 1935 the family was forced to sell the hotel. On the night of Kristallnacht (November 11, 1938) Ernest hid in the factory where he worked. His brother was less fortunate. He was arrested but eventually let out after his wife produced documentation promising they would immigrate to Uruguay. Ernest's brother and sister-in-law eventually immigrated to England on domestic visas. After these events, Ernest and his parents also realized that they needed to flee Germany and decided to go to Shanghai. Though visas were not required to enter the colony, there was a long waiting list for tickets. Ernest's mother bribed the German shipping line agent with some impressionist paintings and in exchange obtained two tickets. She and Ernest decided to leave first since Ernest's sister didn't want to leave her boyfriend, and his father wanted to wind up business. In March 1939 Ernest and his mother took a train to Italy and then boarded a ship to Shanghai. There, his mother worked as a caseworker for the CFA (Committee for Assistance for European Refugees in Shanghai). She later met Laura Margolis of the American Joint Distribution Committee and worked for her until the Joint curtailed its operations. Ernest worked in the toy store of a family friend. He later got a job in a bookstore, and in that capacity helped Polish yeshiva students reprint religious texts. He also worked as a volunteer driving a truck for the British army's Shanghai Volunteer Force. He received meals from them and was better off than many other refugees. After Pearl Harbor, in December 1941, American relief funds could no longer reach Shanghai, and conditions for the the refugees worsened. Since Shanghai fell under Japanese rule, Ernest could no longer work outwardly for the British. However, he provided them with information and was later given a medal by British Boy Scout Association for services rendered during occupation. In April 1941, Ernest met his future wife, Ilse-Lore Koratkowski who had arrived in Shanghai from Berlin. They married on April 8, 1945. After the war, both he and Ilse-Lore worked for the U.S. army. In 1947, they, his mother and father-in-law immigrated to the United States on the SS General Gordon, which was being used as a troop carrier. His brother Heinz and his wife succeeded in leaving Germany and immigrating to England. Neither his father nor his sister survived.
- Record last modified:
- 2007-07-25 00:00:00
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/pa1164365
