Hilbert Margol papers

Hilbert Margol (b.1924) and his identical twin brother Howard (1924-2017) were born in Jacksonville, Florida, to Morris and Sarah Margol. The twins had an older brother Melvin (1921-1992) and a younger sister Bernice (later Wolf, b. 1930). The twins did everything together, including graduating from high school early in January 1942. Howard knew that he and Hilbert would eventually be selected for military service, and wanted to spend as much time in college as possible. During his freshman year at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Howard participated in ROTC with his brother, and they both served in a horse drawn artillery unit. In October, US Army representatives approached Howard, Hilbert, and many of their friends with a proposal: if the young men enlisted in the Army Reserve, they would be able to finish school before being called up for active duty. This convinced both Howard and Hilbert to enlist in the Reserve. Four months later, both were called up for active duty. They reported to Camp Blanding, Florida, on April 3, 1943, and several days later, they were moved to Fort Bragg, North Carolina for basic training. Howard and Hilbert were slated to attend Officer Training School, but a friend on the general’s staff got them reassigned to the Army Service Training Program (ASTP) so they could stay in school. The program sent soldiers to universities in order to fill demand for junior officers with particular technical skills like engineering, foreign languages, and medicine. They attended Syracuse University and the University of Illinois from the fall of 1943 into February 1944, when the training program was ended. In March, Private First Class Howard Margol was assigned to the 104th Infantry, nicknamed the Timberwolf Division, and sent to desert training at Camp Granite in the Mojave Desert of California. Shortly after his arrival, Howard’s Division was sent to Camp Carson in Colorado, for mountain training because the front had moved from North Africa to Italy. Hilbert was assigned to the 42nd Infantry, nicknamed the Rainbow Division, and sent to Camp Gruber in Oklahoma. The brothers wanted to be together and Howard kept requesting a transfer to the 42nd. Howard asked his mother to send a letter to the White House requesting that her sons be allowed to serve together, and she did so. The request was successful, and in the summer of 1944, Howard was transferred to Battery B, 392nd Field Artillery in the 42nd Division, with Hilbert. In December 1944, the Division boarded the USS General Gordon to Marseilles, France. In February 1945, the 42nd Division entered combat near Strasbourg, France. In March, the Division crossed into Germany and captured Dahn. While the 42nd was resting and reequipping, the Division Chaplain, Rabbi Eli Bonner, realized that Passover would begin in a few days. He printed a special edition of the Haggadah and returned to France to acquire wine, chickens, and fresh vegetables so that a proper Seder could be held for the Jewish soldiers. The Seder was held in a former German school where locals served more than 1,500 soldiers from all nearby units, including Howard and Hilbert. The Division crossed the Rhine River, and in April, captured Wertheim, Wurzburg, Furth, and Donauworth. On April 29th, the 42nd Infantry was one of three Divisions to liberate Dachau concentration camp, which held more than 30,000 prisoners. The 392nd had just advanced to a new position, and Howard and Hilbert were manning guns near each other when they noticed an odd smell in the air. One of the jeep drivers came up to them and said there was a strange camp they might want to see. After a five minute walk through the woods, they reached Dachau. The first thing Howard saw was a rail siding near the main gate with 35 or 40 railcars piled with dead bodies. In the camp, Howard saw many inmates and barracks and realized what the smell had been when he spotted the crematorium ovens. Soon after, the 42nd Division advanced to the southeast and captured Munich. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered. Howard and Hilbert remained on occupational duty manning border checkpoints and dealing with refugees in Salzburg, Austria. One Friday, Howard’s unit was transporting several thousand Jewish refugees to a resort town in the Alps when, near sunset, cries went up throughout the convoy. The refugees refused to travel on the Sabbath, which would begin at sundown. Howard understood their concerns, but tried to explain that if they went just 20 more minutes, they could be in very comfortable hotels with hot food. The leaders insisted that they be able to celebrate one of the first Sabbaths they had the opportunity to observe in years. The soldiers pulled out blankets and set up mobile kitchens so that the convoy could stay on the side of the road until sundown on Saturday. That winter, Howard supervised German prisoners as they chopped wood to heat the displaced persons camps around Salzburg. In March 1946, Howard and Hilbert joined the 83rd Infantry Division in order to return to the US where they were honorably discharged in April. Howard and Hilbert returned to The University of Florida and in 1948, graduated with degrees in accounting. On June 28, 1948, Howard married Esther Landey (b. 1928) of Valdosta, Georgia. Howard and Hilbert joined their brother Melvin’s furniture business in Jacksonville. Howard and Esther had four children and eventually settled in Atlanta, Georgia. When Howard retired in the early 1990s, the family business had 42 locations along the east coast. As a retiree, Howard became very interested in genealogy and became a respected authority on Lithuanian genealogical research, leading Roots Tours to Lithuania for 20 years. He and Esther also began the Lithuania Latvia Fund to help rebuild Jewish communities in those nations.

Howard Margol (1924-2017) and his identical twin brother Hilbert (b.1924) were born in Jacksonville, Florida, to Morris and Sarah Margol. The twins had an older brother Melvin (1921-1992) and a younger sister Bernice (later Wolf, b. 1930). The twins did everything together, including graduating from high school early in January 1942. Howard knew that he and Hilbert would eventually be selected for military service, and wanted to spend as much time in college as possible. During his freshman year at the University of Florida in Gainesville, Howard participated in ROTC with his brother, and they both served in a horse drawn artillery unit. In October, US Army representatives approached Howard, Hilbert, and many of their friends with a proposal: if the young men enlisted in the Army Reserve, they would be able to finish school before being called up for active duty. This convinced both Howard and Hilbert to enlist in the Reserve. Four months later, both were called up for active duty. They reported to Camp Blanding, Florida, on April 3, 1943, and several days later, they were moved to Fort Bragg, North Carolina for basic training. Howard and Hilbert were slated to attend Officer Training School, but a friend on the general’s staff got them reassigned to the Army Service Training Program (ASTP) so they could stay in school. The program sent soldiers to universities in order to fill demand for junior officers with particular technical skills like engineering, foreign languages, and medicine. They attended Syracuse University and the University of Illinois from the fall of 1943 into February 1944, when the training program was ended. In March, Private First Class Howard Margol was assigned to the 104th Infantry, nicknamed the Timberwolf Division, and sent to desert training at Camp Granite in the Mojave Desert of California. Shortly after his arrival, Howard’s Division was sent to Camp Carson in Colorado, for mountain training because the front had moved from North Africa to Italy. Hilbert was assigned to the 42nd Infantry, nicknamed the Rainbow Division, and sent to Camp Gruber in Oklahoma. The brothers wanted to be together and Howard kept requesting a transfer to the 42nd. Howard asked his mother to send a letter to the White House requesting that her sons be allowed to serve together, and she did so. The request was successful, and in the summer of 1944, Howard was transferred to Battery B, 392nd Field Artillery in the 42nd Division, with Hilbert. In December 1944, the Division boarded the USS General Gordon to Marseilles, France. In February 1945, the 42nd Division entered combat near Strasbourg, France. In March, the Division crossed into Germany and captured Dahn. While the 42nd was resting and reequipping, the Division Chaplain, Rabbi Eli Bonner, realized that Passover would begin in a few days. He printed a special edition of the Haggadah and returned to France to acquire wine, chickens, and fresh vegetables so that a proper Seder could be held for the Jewish soldiers. The Seder was held in a former German school where locals served more than 1,500 soldiers from all nearby units, including Howard and Hilbert. The Division crossed the Rhine River, and in April, captured Wertheim, Wurzburg, Furth, and Donauworth. On April 29th, the 42nd Infantry was one of three Divisions to liberate Dachau concentration camp, which held more than 30,000 prisoners. The 392nd had just advanced to a new position, and Howard and Hilbert were manning guns near each other when they noticed an odd smell in the air. One of the jeep drivers came up to them and said there was a strange camp they might want to see. After a five minute walk through the woods, they reached Dachau. The first thing Howard saw was a rail siding near the main gate with 35 or 40 railcars piled with dead bodies. In the camp, Howard saw many inmates and barracks and realized what the smell had been when he spotted the crematorium ovens. Soon after, the 42nd Division advanced to the southeast and captured Munich. On May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered. Howard and Hilbert remained on occupational duty manning border checkpoints and dealing with refugees in Salzburg, Austria. One Friday, Howard’s unit was transporting several thousand Jewish refugees to a resort town in the Alps when, near sunset, cries went up throughout the convoy. The refugees refused to travel on the Sabbath, which would begin at sundown. Howard understood their concerns, but tried to explain that if they went just 20 more minutes, they could be in very comfortable hotels with hot food. The leaders insisted that they be able to celebrate one of the first Sabbaths they had the opportunity to observe in years. The soldiers pulled out blankets and set up mobile kitchens so that the convoy could stay on the side of the road until sundown on Saturday. That winter, Howard supervised German prisoners as they chopped wood to heat the displaced persons camps around Salzburg. In March 1946, Howard and Hilbert joined the 83rd Infantry Division in order to return to the US where they were honorably discharged in April. Howard and Hilbert returned to The University of Florida and in 1948, graduated with degrees in accounting. On June 28, 1948, Howard married Esther Landey (b. 1928) of Valdosta, Georgia. Howard and Hilbert joined their brother Melvin’s furniture business in Jacksonville. Howard and Esther had four children and eventually settled in Atlanta, Georgia. When Howard retired in the early 1990s, the family business had 42 locations along the east coast. As a retiree, Howard became very interested in genealogy and became a respected authority on Lithuanian genealogical research, leading Roots Tours to Lithuania for 20 years. He and Esther also began the Lithuania Latvia Fund to help rebuild Jewish communities in those nations.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Hilbert Margol

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Hilbert and Howard Margol

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, gift of Hilbert Margol

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

Hilbert and Howard Margol donated the Hilbert and Howard Margol papers to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2018, 2019, and 2021.