Ringer-Vandormael family. Collection

Salomon Ringer was born on 7 October 1917 in Antwerp. His parents - Chaskel Ringer (born on 15 August 1886 in Krakow, Poland) and Zipora Kalfuss (born on 30 May 1883 in Bochnia, Poland) - were married religiously in Krakow. Salomon’s three eldest siblings were all born in Podgorze, Poland: Israel on 23 December 1907, Chana on 24 April 1909, and Sara on 19 Augustus 1910. In December 1910, Salomon’s father Chaskel Ringer arrived in Belgium. He settled in Antwerp where he worked as a diamond trader. The rest of the family followed in June 1911. In Belgium, Salomon’s mother Zipora gave birth to four more children: Leon (born on 5 May 1912), Macha (born on 24 March 1914), Rosa (born on 20 June 1916) and Salomon. In November 1918 the family relocated to the Netherlands where Salomon’s two youngest siblings were born: Abraham (on 31 January 1922) and Regina (on 25 February 1925). In October 1929 the Ringer-Kalfuss family returned to Belgium and settled in Antwerp at 22 Hoveniersstraat. Salomon’s parents opened a restaurant in the same street at number 18. The family was religious: Salomon celebrated his Bar Mitzvah in the Portuguese synagogue in Antwerp and was a member of the Betar youth movement. By profession he became a gold smith. Salomon’s eldest siblings found partners and left the Ringer family home: Israel Ringer married Bina Katz recta Klausner, Chana Ringer married Emanuel Hollander, Leon Ringer married Sara Frank and Macha Ringer left for British mandate Palestine in 1935 where she married Mr. Tannenbaum. At a thé dansant in 1936 Salomon met Alice Vandormael (born on 14 February 1919 in Antwerp), who had a catholic background and with whom he fell in love. In 1939 Salomon, who by then had obtained Belgian nationality, was called up for military service at the Beverloo training camp. When Nazi Germany invaded Belgium on 10 May 1940, Salomon, his parents and three of his siblings (Sara, Abraham and Regina) still lived at 22 Hoveniersstraat. They were all forced to comply with the anti-Jewish decrees introduced as of the end of 1940. The family members were registered in the municipal Jewish register In December 1940, had their ID cards stamped with the words “Jood-Juif” in the summer of 1941, became members of the Association of Jews in Belgium in March 1942 and wore the yellow star of David as of May 1942. On 14 August 1942 Salomon and his eldest brother, Israel, were deported from Antwerp to Northern France. They were two of the 2252 Jewish men from Belgium claimed as slave labourers by the German construction company Organisation Todt. Israel’s youngest son was two months old at the time of Israel’s departure. In France, the men were held in labour camps and forced to build roads, bunkers and other fortifications as part of the Atlantic Wall. Salomon and Israel were able to stay together in the labour camps in Boulogne-sur-Mer and Isques but were split up when Salomon was sent to the Dannes camp. Israel was deported from northern France to Auschwitz-Birkenau via Transport XVII on 31 October 1942 and was murdered. His wife and both sons would survive the war. Salomon Ringer held Belgian nationality and was thus not deported from northern France but kept at the labour camps Dannes and Condette until he was able to escape mid-November 1942. Salomon returned to Antwerp, but his parents and youngest siblings were no longer there. Chaskel, Zipora, Abraham and Regina had received an Arbeitseinsatzbefehl, a work order, and were summoned to present themselves at the SS-Sammellager Mecheln (Dossin barracks) to be sent off to work. Salomon’s parents and the two youngest siblings reported at the barracks on 22 August 1942 and were deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau via transport VI on 29 August 1942. All four were murdered. Around the time of the deportation of his parents and youngest siblings, Salomon’s brother Leon made an attempt to reach neutral Switzerland. Leon was arrested in the autumn of 1942 and was incarcerated in Belfort, a few kilometers from the Suisse border. He was sent to the Pithiviers camp on 9 September and then to the Drancy assembly camp from where he was deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau via Transport 32 on 14 September 1942. He was also murdered. Leon’s wife Sara Frank had been able to flee to England with their child and both survived. Salomon Ringer survived the war by going into hiding at three different locations: Jozef Liesstraat 1 in Antwerp, an unknown address in Schaerbeek, and Chaussée de Wavre 1133 in Auderghem. Salomon’s sisters Macha, Chana, Sara and Rosa also survived the war. Although Sara – like their parents and youngest siblings – had been summoned to present herself at the Dossin barracks for forced labour, the Association of Jews in Belgium intervened on her behalf as Sara was working as a gymnastics teacher at one of their Jewish schools, which exempted her “temporarily” from deportation. On 7 October 1944, five weeks after the liberation of Belgium, Salomon Ringer and Alice Vandormael were married at the municipality of Auderghem. On 15 March 1946, they celebrated their religious wedding in the synagogue at Rue de la Régence in Brussels, by which time Alice had converted to Judaism. They would have two daughters, born in 1946 and 1949 respectively, and spent several years in the United States before returning to Belgium in May 1955. Salomon Ringer passed away in Antwerp on 8 November 1978.

On 8 February 2024 Ruth Ringer, daughter of Salomon Ringer, donated all documents and four photos in this collection to Kazerne Dossin. She also kindly permitted the research staff to digitise two additional photos from her family album (KD_01011_000013 and KD_01011_000014). The envelope and documents pertaining to Chana Ringer were originally part of the collection of documents taken from Dossin barracks detainees by the camp administration in 1943-1944 (KD_00005, relics collection). In 1994 the Belgian Ministry of Reconstruction returned these documents to Ruth Ringer’s brother-in-law, mistakenly identifying this woman (born on 9 October 1888), deported to Auschwitz-Birkenau via transport XXIIB, as Ruth’s paternal aunt Chana Ringer (born on 23 April 1909), who was not deported. Leopold and Augusta Ringer are also not related to Ruth Ringer.

Ruth Ringer, daughter of Salomon Ringer and Alice Vandormael, 2024