James Bauer |
26-03-2014 |
Alfred Kahn, my great-uncle, Trude (Bauer) Kahn, my great aunt and their 13 year old daughter, Annemarie Kahn, all died in Auschwitz. I am related to both of the parents as they were from my father's and mother's family. My great grandmother, Bertha (Scheuer) Kahn, also was deported from Amsterdam and killed in the camps. The family left Germany and moved to Amsterdam around 1940 and in 1943 was sent to Westerbork, Theresienstadt and finally to Auschwitz. In 2010, we had Stolpersteine (small brass plaques in the sidewalk) dedicated in their memory in front of the house where they lived in Stuttgart.
Many members of my family lived in or passed through Holland on their way to other countries, including the US, Palestine, Canada, Brazil and Uruguay. Somehow, we had many documents and photos about the Kahn family, including their last letter from Amsterdam before going to Theresienstadt. We also have their honeymoon photo album, Annemarie's baby photos and other documents. Several years ago, I visited the places where they lived in Holland, including the house in Amsterdam and summer house in Elden.
Annemarie Kahn at the left
On a visit to the Hollandsche Schouwburg, I found the family's name on the data base. On that same visit, I found the apartment where they lived in Amsterdam and at that time there was an exhibit in the Stadsarchief of all of the 19000 children that were deported from Holland. Annemarie's name and photo were in the exhibit. As a result of the exhibit, I contacted a former friend of hers in Holland who recalled getting toys and pictures that Annemarie threw out of the window of the house as they were being picked up by the Nazis. These are the photos that she threw out of the window before being deported.
James Bauer
New York
Read more about the Kahn familie in German: Gegen das vergessen: Stolpersteine für Stuttgart
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