Letter

Held by

Montreal Holocaust Museum via Canadian Jewish Heritage Network (incl. Alex Dworkin Canadian Jewish Archives)

Dates

1939-October 31, 1940 (indexed as 1939–1940)

Level

item

Extent

Letter : Paper : Typewritten : Ink : Beige, black ; Ht: 26 cm x W: 20 cm

Scope & content

Page with two holes punched on left, Department of state seal T.R., The Foreign Service of the United States of America letterhead. Letter from the U.S. Consulate (American Consulate General) to Mr. Herbert Isselbacher concerning the transfer of his dossier to Montreal. Mr. Isselbaecher was attempting to emigrate to the U.S. but had been refused because his sponsors were deemed to have insufficient income. Letter directs Isaac to take all further correspondence to the Montreal office. Narrative: Isaac Herbert Isselbacher was born 1919-11-20 in Isselbach, Germany. His brother was Helmut Isselbacher, born 1921-12-20. Their father was Jacob Isselbacher, born 1883-08-05. They had an uncle and aunt, David and Betty Loewenstein, who lived in New York City with their two children. Isaac left Germany on 1939-07-29, hoping to join his relatives in NYC. He only had the time to get to London, England before the war broke out and started working in a factory. He was arrested at his workplace as an ‘enemy alien’ and sent to Canada for internment in 1940. Isaac was interned in Camp N in Sherbrooke, Quebec. He was drafted into the Works Program Division for woodworking and net-making. In 1940, he received a last letter from his parents which suggested their imminent deportation. After his release, circa November 1942, Isaac worked as a locksmith. He married Fanny Azeff on 1943-12-26 at the Bnai Jacob synagogue in Montreal. Fanny was born on 1921-12-23 in Canada, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harry Azeff. Isaac was naturalized as a Canadian citizen on 1946-06-08. Fanny was naturalized on 1946-08-30 (she had lost her citizenship by marrying Isaac). Isaac’s brother, Helmut Isselbacher, was deported with Transport XXII A from Dossin casern in Mechelen (Malines), Belgium to Auschwitz Birkenau, Poland on 1943-09-20. Of the 2,450 people on the transport, 100 men were selected to work –including Helmut- and the remaining prisoners were gassed. Helmut was made to work as a welder, and was soon fitting new pipes for the gas chamber. He suffered a nervous breakdown as a result. As he was a valued welder, he was transferred to a labour camp in Upper Silesia (Poland) where he remained for two years. As the Russian army advanced, the 6,000 prisoners of this camp were evacuated by train. Helmut remembered being forced to march as the other prisoners died from exhaustion. When liberation was announced, the survivors travelled by ship from Luebeck, Germany, to Sweden with the aid of the Red Cross. After recovery, Helmut decided to remain in Sweden as a welder. Upon learning of his brother’s survival, Helmut travelled to New York in April 1946 to meet with him and their Loewenstein relatives. Afterwards, Helmut travelled to Canada bringing with him a washing machine and bras as late wedding presents for his brother and Fanny. By 1946-08-12, their parents were presumed dead and the two sons inquired into their estate. They received a deed for the land and travelled to the estate to discover that the current owner of their house was their old maid and her son had become the town mayor. Various disputes arose with the current ‘owners’ who believed the Isselbacher family dead. Isaac wished to discuss a settlement, but the mayor’s mother –not realizing Fanny understood German- called the neighbours at work to warn them not to come home as the Isselbacher sons had resurfaced. Payment for the land had reportedly been sent to Israel, though no documentation could be provided.

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Genre / form

textual record

In the picture

DocumentGovernmentImmigrationLetterLetterheadMilitary CampSealSignatureTypewrittenTagged automatically by a vision model; may contain mistakes.

Text in the image

IN REPLY REFER TOFile No. 811.11 - Isselbacher, Isaac Herbert.THE FOREIGN SERVICEOF THEUNITED STATES OF AMERICADEPARTMENT OF STATEAMERICAN CONSULATE GENERALLondon, England, October 31, 1940.Mr. Isaac Herbert Isselbacher,Camp "I",c/o Base Army Post Office,Ottawa, Canada.CANADA OTTAWA OCT 22 1940 SECUREDSir:Very truly yours,For the Consul General:Russell W. Benton,American Vice Consul.811.11 - Isselbacher, Isaak Herbert.Mr. Isaak Herbert Isselbacher,RWB:zad.In accordance with your request of September 25, 1940, your dossier is being transferred to the American Consulate General at Montreal, the supervisory visa office in your vicinity.All inquiries regarding your case either from yourself or from interested parties should be addressed to Montreal unless otherwise instructed by that office.cjhn.caRead automatically; may contain mistakes.

Language

English

Harvested

2026-10-19T03:21:16Z · source datestamp n/a · andornot

Digital objects at the source

• imageOpen original at source ↗1999_1_69.jpg