Heinrich Pollatschek collection

Heinrich and Zdenka Pollatschek lived in Vienna until they were taken by the Nazis to Kielce, Poland, which soon turned into a ghetto. Their son, the donor's father, was able to escape to Great Britain in late 1938, having been sponsored by a non Jewish family. Their daughter, Lisl, was able to stay in Vienna, having married a non Jew in March 1938. The vast majority of the correspondence was sent from the donor's grandparents back to their daughter, Lisl Musil and her husband, Franz and the remainder to Herma Pollatschek, the donor's father's first wife, whom he married on 24 December 1936. Copy family correspondence including postcards from Heinrich Pollatschek in Buchenwald to his wife, Zdenka, between August 1938 and March 1939; also letters and postcards from Heinrich and Zdenka Pollatschek from Kielce ghetto, Poland to family in Vienna and London. The correspondence describes the miserable conditions which they endured including food scarcity and cramped accommodation. Heinrich is described as working as an orderly at the office of the Jewish Council of Elders. His wife suffered from high blood pressure and severe rheumatism; also includes English summaries of some of the correspondence. Open