Aenni and Eric Kaufman papers
Extent and Medium
boxes
3
Creator(s)
- Aenni K. Kaufman
- Eric Kaufman
Biographical History
Aenni Karoline Ehrlich (later Aenni Kaufman, 1894-1952) was born on 24 August 1894 in Berlin, Germany to Paula (née Kaufmann, 1868-1942) and Emanuel Ehrlich (1855-1933). She had one sister, Lotte (later Lotte Strohmberg, b. 1892). Aenni married Erich Kaufmann in Berlin, and had two children, Emil George (b. 1933) and Ruth Mirjam (later Ruth Bernstein, b. 1934). By 1936, Erich was spending time in England and Amsterdam for work, and by 1938, his family had moved to Amsterdam. Erich immigrated to the United States in 1939, settling in New York. His family came in 1940 aboard the SS Volendam. Paula was deported from the Westerbork concentration camp to the Auschwitz concentration camp on 10 November 1942. She perished at Auschwitz on 13 November.
Erich Kaufmann (later Eric Kaufman, 1895-1987) was born on 2 August 1895 in Berlin to Martha (née Lehmann) and Georg Kaufmann. He worked as a banker in Berlin.
Archival History
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Ruth Bernstein
Donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2013 by Ruth Bernstein, daughter of Erich and Anni Kaufman. An accretion of additional materials was added to the collection in 2017.
Scope and Content
The collection primarily documents the post-war lawsuits brought forth by Aenni and Eric Kaufman, originally of Berlin, Germany, to recover ownership of shares of I.G. Chemie (later known as Interhandel and Societe Internationale) owned by Aenni’s mother Paula Ehrlich who was killed at Auschwitz in 1942. Included are legal documents and correspondence covering several lawsuits from as early as 1943, through 1966. There are also legal documents regarding a lawsuit filed by Eric against his lawyers from the firm of Graubard and Moskovitz filed around 1966. Also included are immigration papers, documents regarding the death of Paula Ehrlich, German passports of Aenni and Eric, a clipping from Aufbau of an ad placed by Aenni searching for information on her mother, and photographs of Aenni and Eric’s children, Emil and Ruth, upon their arrival to the United States from Amsterdam in 1940.
System of Arrangement
The collection is arranged as three series: Series 1: Biographical materials, 1930-1951 Series 2: Lawsuits regarding shares of I.G. Chemie/Interhandel, 1940-1966 Series 3: Lawsuit against Graubard and Moskovitz, 1964-1972
People
- Bernstein, Ruth, 1934-
- Kaufman, Emil, 1933-
- Kaufman, Aenni, 1894-1952.
- Ehrlich, Paula, 1868-1942.
- Kaufman, Eric, 1895-1987.
Subjects
- World War, 1939-1945--Claims.
- Emigration & immigration--United States--1940-1950.
- Berlin (Germany)
- Amsterdam (Netherlands)
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Netherlands--Westerbork.
- World War, 1939-1945--Deportations from the Netherlands.
Genre
- Photographs.
- Correspondence.
- Document
- Legal documents.