Margaret P. Holocaust testimony

Identifier
HVT 0566
Language of Description
English
Level of Description
Collection
Source
EHRI Partner

Abstract

Videotape testimony of Margaret P., who was born in Newark, New Jersey in 1923. She recounts her father's death before she was born; her mother's return to her parents in Budapest; visits with her paternal grandparents in Czechoslovakia; and anti-Semitic incidents in school. Mrs. P. describes sudden changes when Germany occupied Hungary; her marriage on April 8, 1944 during her husband's leave from a Hungarian labor battalion; a round-up in December; a fascist guard giving her the opportunity to escape but refusing since she had no place to go; and arrival in Bergen-Belsen on the last transport from Budapest. She recalls conditions in Belsen; learning of gas chambers and crematoria; transfer to Raguhn to work in an airplane factory; sores all over her body, particularly her feet; a more humane camp commander; transfer to Terezi?n; and liberation. Mrs. P. remembers returning to Budapest; reunion with her mother and husband; spending one year at a Czech tuberculosis sanitarium; returning to Budapest; having to terminate a pregnancy due to ill health; emigration to Sweden in 1947; the births of her children; and emigration to the United States in 1950. She emphasizes the importance of having prayed to her grandmother and credits dreams about her with giving Mrs. P. the strength to survive. She also discusses her family with pride and joy.

Extent and Medium

1 videocassette (3/4" u-matic)

Conditions Governing Access

This testimony is open with permission.

Conditions Governing Reproduction

Copyright has been transferred to the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies. Use of this testimony requires permission of the Fortunoff Video Archive.

Rules and Conventions

Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Process Info

  • compiled by Staff of the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies

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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.