Tick family papers
Extent and Medium
folder
1
Creator(s)
- Sidney S. Tick
Biographical History
Sidney S. Tick was born on July 16, 1923, in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to a Jewish couple, Joseph (1884-1951) and Sadie (1882-1958) Solomon Tick. Both of his parents were born in Poland and immigrated to the United States, Joseph in 1899 and Sadie in 1904. Joseph owned a dry goods and hardware store. Sidney had three older siblings: Jacob, William, and Frances. In spring 1941, Sidney graduated from high school. That fall he began college and worked as a salesperson. Following the December 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States entered World War II. On February 6, 1943, Sidney was drafted into the US Army. Private First Class Sidney Tick was assigned to the Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 329th Infantry Regiment, 83rd Infantry Division. In spring 1945, Sidney was sent to the European Theater to join the 83rd Division as it advanced through western Germany. In April, the Division encountered and liberated a group of adjacent subcamps of Buchenwald concentration camp. Following the liberation, Sidney’s commanding officer selected him to work closely with the former prisoners of Buchenwald and its subcamps because he spoke Yiddish and could translate. He was also tasked to work with liberated prisoners from Dachau concentration camp. Mr. Wilkowitz, one of the prisoners Sidney spoke with, asked if he could get a message to his brother in New York City to let him know that he and his family had survived. Sidney wrote to his father, Joseph, and asked him to find the family. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered. The 83rd Division was placed on occupation duty in Germany. Joseph was able to locate the Wilkowitz family in New York and let them know that their relatives were alive. On March 26, 1946, the 83rd Division returned to the US for deactivation. On April 9, Sidney was honorably discharged. Sidney returned to Scranton and became a successful businessman. Sidney, 79, died on August 31, 2002, in Scranton.
Archival History
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the Estate of the Tick family
The papers were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum by the Estate of the Tick family.
Scope and Content
The papers consist of photographs of Dachau concentration camp taken from May to June 1945; a pamphlet entitled, "Buchenwald Concentration Camp: A Letter Home," written and published by Col. F.M.S. Miller of the 15th U.S. Army in May 1945; and a typed letter with envelope written to Joseph Tick in Scranton, Pa., by Louis Wilkowitz in Brooklyn, N.Y., expressing gratitude to Mr. Tick for his assistance in locating Mr. Wilkowitz's surviving brother in Germany.
People
- Tick, Joseph.
- Wilkowitz, Louis.
- Tick, Sidney.
- Sidney S. Tick
Corporate Bodies
Subjects
- World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps--Liberation--Germany.
Genre
- Document
- Photographs.
- Letters.