Köppel family papers

Identifier
irn516252
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 2005.1.1
Dates
1 Jan 1933 - 31 Dec 1939
Level of Description
Item
Languages
  • German
Source
EHRI Partner

Extent and Medium

folder

1

Creator(s)

Biographical History

Judith Köppel (now Steel) was the daughter of Josef Köppel and Irmgard Weissenberg Köppel. She was born in 1938 in Berlin, Germany, where her father was a fur dealer and her mother was a milliner. When she was just 14 months old, Judith sailed along with her parents and grandfather, Jakob Köppel, on the MS St. Louis for Cuba. After the ship was forced to return to Europe, the family was sent to France and rented an apartment in the home of Joseph and Eliette Carapezzi Enard in Nay, a small town in southern France. Judith became friendly with the landlord's daughter, Suzy, and Eliette whom she affectionately referred to as "Maman Suzy." One day in 1942, French gendarmes arrived at the home, arrested the Köppels, and sent them to Gurs concentration camp. Jakob, who was sickly and confined to bed, remained behind. After three weeks, Josef and Irmgard said goodbye to Judith, and the Œuvre de secours aux enfants (OSE) brought her out of the camp.

Archival History

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Acquisition

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum collection, gift of Judith Koeppel Steel

The papers were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Judith Koeppel Steel.

Scope and Content

The papers consist of twenty photographs that include images of Judith Köppel [donor] after her birth in 1938 and images of her parents, Josef and Irmgard, a menu from the MS St. Louis is dated May 21, 1939, and two documents issued to Josef Köppel in 1933 and 1939.

People

Corporate Bodies

Subjects

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.