Emil Neu postcards from Gurs concentration camp

Emil Neu (1874-1944) was born in Kindenheim, Germany. He and his first wife, Anna Neu (née Rosenbaum, d. 1916) lived in Strasbourg and had three children: Erwin (1908-2002), Alice (b. 1909), and Erich (b. 1912). In 1919 the Neu family relocated to Offenburg, where Emil became the head of the Jewish community and married Clementine Wolf. Erwin left Germany in June 1933 for Algeria and then France. Alice immigrated to the United States in July 1937. Emil and Erich were arrested on November 10, 1938 and imprisoned at Dachau concentration camp. They were released a few weeks later, Erich immigrated to the United States in February 1939, and he changed his name to Eric New. On October 22, 1940, Emil and Clementine were deported to Gurs. Erwin was able to obtain their release in March 1942, and they lived in Mirepeix and Eaux-Bonnes (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) before fleeing to Switzerland in late 1942 or early 1943. Emil died of cancer in Switzerland on December 24, 1944. Erwin married Sofie Katz (d. 1968) and had two children: Edith (1942-1971) and Georges (d. 1964). He survived internment at La Braconne, Saint Antoine d’Alibi, and Stade de Buffalo, and he participated in the Resistance. After the war Erwin led La Solidarité des Refugiés Israélites in Paris, which advocated Christian-Jewish and German-French understanding.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Dr. Neu

Funding Note: The cataloging of this collection has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.

Dr. Erwin Neu donated the Emil Neu postcards to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in July 1990.