IN MEMRORIUM
This is a difficult blog for me to write for today 11/15/15 as for the first time ever I saw photos of a few of my ancestors. Unfortunately three of the four people in the photos were of those lost during the Holocaust. To see their photos and know what happened to them was heartbreaking and brought tears to my eyes. I also found out one that survived passed away only seven years ago…if I had only researched my paternal side earlier I may have been able to meet her.
The black/white photos of the people in this blog were either from Yad Vashem or from the private collection of Anita Herze Jorg.
Eleven members of my family (that I know of as of this date) were taken from their homes, seven were killed in the Holocaust and four survived.
Through the above book I was able to find exactly what happened to those that died, two that survived. I found information on two others that survived by visiting a web site from Kaiserslautern, Germany web site pages dedicated to each family member with Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) dedicated on July 10, 2014 at the last address where they were free at Rudolph-Breitscheid-Str. 71, Kaiserslautern. Two currently have testimonials for them in Yad Veshem and I will be submitting them for the remainder over the next few weeks.
Rudolph-Breitscheid-Str, 71 pinpointed on the city map
Here are their stories and photos for those I have today. The daughter of one who survived still is living and I have written to the resource I found to see if I will be able to contact her as well as see the interview done with her father Erich Herze back in 1994 before he passed. Yes, I have hope to see more photos especially of ancestors that go back before the generations on this blog.
Geissmann, Hedwig: born Hedwig Jakob, sister of Johanna Jakob Herze, 1st cousin twice removed
Born: January 24, 1882 in Essweiler/Kusel/Bayern/Pfalz, resident of Kaiserlautern
Married: on 10/02/1912 to Silvan Geissman in Essweiler, he died in service in during WWl
Deportation from: Baden/Pfalz/Saarland
10/20/1940 Gurs internment camp
02/21/1941 Recebedou internment camp
08/03/1942 Drancy collecting detention camp
Murdered: 08/12/1942 Auschwitz extermination camp
Herze, Johanna: born Johanna Jakob, sister of Hedwig Jakob Geissman, 1st cousin twice removed….daughter of Lazarus Jakob/Barbara Franck…my 2x great aunt/uncle
Born: February 15, 1874 in Essweiler/Kusel/Bayern/Pfalz, resident of Kaiserlautern
Married: on 10/24/1894 in Essweiler moved to Kaisrslautern in 1902
Deportation from: Baden/Pfalz/Saarland
10//20/1940 Gurs internment camp
02/21/1941 Noe internment camp
Murdered: 03/05/1943 Noe internment camp
Herze, Hugo: husband of Johanna Jakob Herze my 1st cousin twice removed
Born: 07/29/1870 in Randerath / Geilenkirchen / Rheinprovinz
Married: 10/24/1894 in Essweiler & moved to Kaiserslautern in 1902
Deportation from: Badem/Pfalz/Saarland
10/20/1940 Gurs internment camp
02/21/1941 Noe interment camp
Murdered: 02/07/1943 Noe internment camp
Johanna & Hugo Herze-1935 Kaiserlautern
The marker at Camp Gurs of entrance memorializes those who entered on 10/22/1940 and were murdered, including 5 members of my family
Hugo & Johanna appear on the 2nd column…whoever visits will have to remember them!
Franck, Auguste:
Born 07/08/1878 in Essweiler/Kusel/Bayern/Pfalz resident of Koln son of Herman Franck/Ester Moses…Herman brother of Joseph Franck my 3x great grandfather 3rd great uncle
Deportation: 06/12/1942 Theresienstadt, ghetto
Murdered: 07/05/1942 Theresienstadt, ghetto
Herze, Adolph: son of Hugo/Johanna Herze, 2nd cousin two times removed
Born: 12/13/1896 Essweiler/Kusel/Bayern/Pfalz
Married: Rosa Lazar…date not as yet verified
Escape: Adolph & Rosa escaped to Brussels, Belgium
Deported: to Dusseldorf
Deported: 12/11/1941 to Riga
Murdered: 03/06/1943 Riga Jungfernof Aussbenlager ghetto
Herze, Rosa: born Rosa Lazar wife of Adolph Herze
Born: 08/01/1902 Kaiserslautern/Bayern.Pfalz
Escaped: to Brussels, Belgium with husband
Deported to Dusseldorf
Deported: 12/11/1941 to Riga
SURVIVED:…went to Hamburg, Germany after liberation, immigrated to the United States in December 1946
Rosa Lazar Herze immigration papers into United States
Herze, Hannilore: daughter of Jacob/Lydia Horn Herze….Jacob is son of Hugo/Johanna Herze…Hannilore, 3rd cousin once removed
Born:07/13/1933 Kaiserslautern/Bayern/Plafz and lived there
Deported: 10/22/1940 from Baden/Plafz/Saarland to Gurs interment camp
Murdered: 08/1/1940 Gurs internment camp
Herze, Hedwig: daughter of Jacob/Lydia, sister of Hannalore Herze 3rd cousin once removed
Born: on 01/23/1931 Kaiserslautern before the marriage of her parents, though her mother was Catholic she was officially listed as Jewish
Deported: 10/22/1940 from Baden/Plafz/Saarland to Gurs internment camp
Moved: 02/26/1941 to Aspet (Haute Garonne) with 49 other children from the OSE (Oeuvre de Secours aux Enfants) of Gurs in the children’s home Maison des Pupilles
SURVIVED: On 28 January 1948 she returned to Kaiserslautern, where on 08/27/1949 she married Oskar LF Ebling, they had two children. She died in Kaiserslautern 1974.
Hedwig with younger sister Hannalore-1935 Kaiserslautern
Hedwig in orphanage (far right)
Hedwig in orphanage (front 6th in from right)
Hedwig: Hannalore has been murdered and Ruth moved…she is alone:note the star of David having to be worn
Herze, Jacob: son of Hugo/Johana Herze, 2nd cousin twice removed
Born: 02/13/1901 Neukirchen/Daun/Rheinprovinz lived in Kaiserslautern
Married: Lydia Horn
Imprisoned: 11/12/1938-12/10/1938 Dachau concentration camp for protection (?)
Deported: 10//22/1940 Baden/Plaz/Saarland Gurs internment camp
Murdered 04/27/1941 Gurs internment camp
Camp Gurs Cemetery for the 1017 murdered here: Hugu & Hannalore Herze, both of whom died here in 1941, rest here and as people walk through the markers each will be remembered as will the other 1015
Herze, Lydia: born Lydia Horn
Born: March 29, 1912 in Kusel, daughter of Michael and Katharina Horn, family was Roman Catholic
Married: 06/06/1931 to Jacob Herze in Kaiserslautern and lived there
Deported: 10.22.1940 Baden/Plafz/Saarland….this after repeated request on the part of official bodies to renounce her Jewish husband, Lydia refused. She was sent back from Gurs to Kaiserslautern, where she was obliged to do forced labor and lived on February 5, 1943 to October 7, 1944 in the basement Straße 9, with her mother. Between October 1944 and July 1945, after escaping Kaiserslautern, she lived in Hamburg.
SURVIVED: She remarried on 03/29/1960 to Kurt Nagel, Lydia died on 08/16/1992 in Kaiserslautern.
Herze, Ruth, Renee: daughter of Jacob/Lydia Herze, 3rd cousin once removed
Born: 06/30/1939 Kaiserslautern/Bayern/Plafz and lived there
Deported: 10/22/1940 Baden/Plafz/Saarland to Gurs inernment camp, The 16-month-old girl Ruth was the youngest ever transported to Gurs
Moved: The one and a half year old Ruth was brought by Blanche Raphael, pediatric nurse and Max Teichert to a children’s home to Limoges, France. They became her foster parents.
SURVIVED: Ruth knew a long time nothing about their origins and about the fact that both her mother and her sister were still alive. Erich Herze, the youngest brother of Jacob their father, finally found her and contacted her.. Mediated by Erich Herze her mother Lydia traveled to Limoges in 1950 to bring her youngest daughter home with her. This, however, was thwarted by the foster parents.
The relationship between Ruth Herze and her birth mother remained difficult, however, she had good contact with her older sister Hedwig and her uncle Erich, she visited him often in Malmö, Sweden, where he had fled in 1939. Around 1960 Ruth moved to Nimes and learned the profession of pediatric nurse. She then moved to Boulogne near Paris and later by Cagnes-sur-Mer near Nice, where she died of 2008.
Two children Erich Herze and Wilhelm Herze fled Kaiserslautern in 1939. Erich fled to Malmo, Sweden where he married had at least one child, a daughter. He died during a visit to Kaiserslautern with his daughter in 1999 and was returned to Malmo, Sweden for burial. Wilhelm immigrated to the United States, to Argentina. to Paraguay where he died in 1986.
This is the Synagogue the Herze family attended in Kaiserslautern from 1902 until 1938 when it was destroyed to make a parade ground for the Nazis:
Replica of Synagogue entrance memorial built in Kaiserslautern by the Jewish community
Plaque at the memorial entrance showing before and after destruction
A human being is forgotten until his name is not forgotten!
Filed under: Herze Family, Holocaust, Jewish, Search & Reunion | Tagged: Camp Gurs, Camp Noe, Essweiler, Herze, Kaiserslautern | 1 Comment »
