Harry J. Mayer papers

Identifier
irn510344
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 2002.52.1
Dates
1 Jan 1930 - 31 Dec 1946
Level of Description
Item
Languages
  • German
  • French
  • Italian
  • Hebrew
  • English
Source
EHRI Partner

Web Source

https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn510344

Extent and Medium

folder

1

Creator(s)

  • Harry J. Mayer

Biographical History

Heinz (later Harry, 1930-2014) Jakob Joseph Mayer was born on January 2, 1930, in Neustadt, Germany, to Maximillian and Hermina (Mina) Mayer and had two siblings: Gusti (b. 1921) and Eric (b. 1924). In June 1937, at age 12, Eric was sent to the United States on a children's transport and was taken in by a family in Minneapolis. In January 1938, Gusti was able to immigrate to the United States where she met Julius Ackerman and they married in 1941. In 1940, Heinz and his parents were deported to Camp de Gurs in France. Several months later, Heinz and a few other children were taken to the village of Aspet, France, in the Pyrenees. In August 1943, an aid organization, possibly Oeuvre de secours aux enfants (OSE), helped the children reach Switzerland. After the war Heinz learned that his parents, Max and Mina, were sent to Camp de Noé in 1941 and later deported to Auschwitz concentration camp, where they perished. In May 1946, Heinz immigrated to the United States aboard the SS Moinot Victory.

Archival History

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Acquisition

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Harry J. Mayer

The papers were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by Harry J. Mayer in 2002.

Scope and Content

The papers consist of booklets, documents, letters, photographs, and postcards relating to the Mayer family including correspondence sent from Camp de Gurs and Camp de Noé in France, images of the family from the pre-war period and from Camp de Gurs, and materials relating to Harry Mayer's membership in the Jewish scouts and his experiences in Switzerland.

System of Arrangement

The collection is arranged as a single series.

People

  • Mayer, Harry J.
  • Harry J. Mayer
  • Mayer family.

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

  • Jewish children in the Holocaust.
  • Gurs (France)
  • Boy Scouts--Switzerland.
  • Refugees, Jewish--Switzerland.

Genre

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.

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