Edith Simon Babich papers

Edith Simon Babich (1922-2005) was born Edith Simon on July 1, 1922 in Cloppenburg, Germany to Karl Simon (1884-1943) and Selma Simon (née Katz, 1894-1943). Her father was a cattle merchant, and she had three sisters: Ruth Simon (later Ruth Heinemann, b. 1925), Hildegard "Hilde" Simon (later Hilde Gernsheimer, 1926-2019), and Ilse Simon (1928-1943). During Kristallnacht in November 1938 Karl and his cousin Julius Frank were arrested and deported to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. They were released a month later. While they were still imprisoned, Edith’s sisters Ruth and Hildegard were sent on a Kindertransport to England. In May 1939 Karl, Selma, Edith, and Ilse booked passage to Havana, Cuba from Germany on the MS St. Louis. Cuba canceled the landing permits, and the ship was forced to return to Europe. Edith and her family disembarked in the Netherlands and went to Arnhem where Karl’s sister lived. Edith’s parents got her on a Kindertransport to Coventry, England in August 1939. She immigrated to the United States in November 1940, and eventually settled in Illinois in 1941. She met Reuben Babich (1923-2021), who was stationed with the United State Army in Illinois in 1944, and they married in 1945. Karl, Selma, and Ilse, were deported in May 1943 to Westerbork and Sobibor killing center, where they were murdered. The collection contains photographs and copyprints of Edith Simon Babich, her parents Karl and Selma Simon, and her sister Ilse Simon aboard the MS St. Louis during its voyage to Havana, Cuba, in 1939. Some of the photographs are annotated on the verso. Also included is a personal narrative written by Edith’s husband Reuben Babich describing the Holocaust experiences of the Simon, Frank, and Lazarus families of Cloppenburg, Germany; a Red Cross letter documenting the fates Karl, Selma, and Ilse; and two prewar postcards related to the MS St. Louis.