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Herbert Guenzburger Collection

 Collection
Identifier: AR 5947

Scope and Content Note

The collection contains a substantial amount of documents and correspondence pertaining to the emigration of members the Günzburger family of Lörrach, Baden, first to Switzerland in 1939 and then to the United States in 1941.

Correspondence with Swiss, British, German, American, and Portugese officials and documents regarding the emigration comprise the overwhelming bulk of the collection. These documents include affidavits, various forms and applications, inventories of property (for shipping purposes and the Reichsfluchtsteuer), and letters of recommendation. Intermixed with some of the applications and forms are various vital records documents and personal papers. Of particular note is some of the paperwork from the German authorities, which shows the taxes the family had to pay to leave Germany and gives evidence that the authorities seized a number of their valuables. In addition, some of the Swiss paperwork shows that Herbert Guenzburger spent time interned in a Swiss work camp for refugees.

The collection also has a number of personal and vital papers, not just for the Guenzburgers but also for members of some related families, notably the Heilbronners and the Weils. These materials include identification cards, professional documents, and marriage and birth certificates. The folder on the Weil family indicates that Herbert Guenzburger attempted to contact the family while serving in the American army during the Second World War. A small folder on Judith Geismar offers insight into the experience of displaced refugees in France and Germany during the period immediately after the war.

Finally, a number of photographs round out the collection. Some of these photos show scenes of family and city life before the war, but most consist of Herbert Guenzbacher's photographs of Germany at the end of the war, including images of destroyed cityscapes and of the Buchenwald and Nordhausen concentration camps upon their liberation.

Dates

  • Creation: 1877-1965

Creator

Language of Materials

This collection is in German, French, English and Hebrew.

Access Restrictions

Open to researchers.

Access Information

Collection is digitized. Follow the links in the Container List to access the digitized materials.

Use Restrictions

There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact:

Leo Baeck Institute, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011

email: lbaeck@lbi.cjh.org

Biographical Note

Herbert Guenzburger was born in 1905 in Lörrach, Baden, the son of Siegmund Guenzburger, a salesman, and Lina née Weil. Documents from his time in Switzerland indicate that he had culinary training.

Extent

10 Folders

Abstract

The collection contains a substantial amount of documents and correspondence pertaining to the emigration of members the Günzburger family of Lörrach, Baden, first to Switzerland in 1939 and then to the United States in 1941.

Separated Material

Photographs have been removed to the LBI Photograph Collection. To see photographs click here.

Title
Guide to the Herbert Guenzburger Collection, 1877-1965  AR 5947
Status
Completed
Author
Processed by Timothy Ryan Mendenhall
Date
© 2012
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Revision Statements

  • February 11, 2015 : Links to digital objects added in Container List.

Repository Details

Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository

Contact:
15 West 16th Street
New York NY 10011 United States