German Middleclass Jewish Family: The Gompertz Family (1930s)


Figure 1.-- This photograph of the Gompertz family was taken in Gelsenkirchen, Germany during 1930. We see the parents, Leo and Betty Gompertz and their three boys, Albert (8 1/2 or 9 years old), Fred (nicknamed Fritz, 6 1/2), and Rolf (2 1/2). They were a middle class family with a comfortable life. The father had a furrier business in Gelsenkirchen. The two older boys seem to be almost identically dressed in short trousers with long stockings and blouses with open collars.

This photograph of the Gompertz family was taken in Gelsenkirchen, Germany during 1930. The Gompertzs wwre a family tracing their history in Germany back to the 16th century. Here we see the parents, Leo and Betty Gompertz and their three boys, Albert (8 1/2 or 9 years old), Fred (nicknamed Fritz, 6 1/2), and Rolf (2 1/2). They were a middle class family with a comfortable life. The father had a furrier business in Gelsenkirchen. The two older boys seem to be almost identically dressed in short trousers with long stockings and blouses with open collars. Fred (and probably Albert also) are probably wearing Leibchen (notice the hose supporter clasp which shows on Fred's leg). The Gompertz family were Jewish and suffered under the Nazis. Albert had some bad experiences in school. His gym teacher wore a Stormtrooper (SA) uniform. The music teacher had the children sing song with anti-Semrtic lyrics like "When the Jewish blood runs from our knives. He and other Jewish children had to be constantly alert to avoid being being up by Hitler Youth boys. The family managed to avoid major trouble until Kristallnacht. After that they managed to escape to America through the Netherlands. Most of their relatives in Germany perished in the Holocaust.

Family History

The Gompertzs wwre a family tracing their history in Germany back to the 16th century.

Family Portrait

This photograph of the Gompertz family was taken in Gelsenkirchen, Germany during 1930. Here we see the parents, Leo and Betty Gompertz and their three boys, Albert (8 1/2 or 9 years old), Fred (nicknamed Fritz, 6 1/2), and Rolf (2 1/2).

Family Situation

The Gompertzs were a middle class family with a comfortable life. The father had a furrier business in Gelsenkirchen.

Childhood

Albert recalls, "While I couldn't associate with my Gentile classmates, I had many Jewish friends. After school we rode bikes, played chess, ping pong and other games. And by this time, 1932, the Jewish War Veterans (my father was the local Commander) had formed a Jewish Youth Group called the Schild (the Shield) and we met at least once a week for gymnastic exercises. On weekends we met at a makeshift outdoor field for soccer and other field exercises such as sprinting, high jump, long jump and the like."

School Experiences

The Gompertz family were Jewish and suffered under the Nazis. Albert had some bad experiences in school. His gym teacher wore a Stormtrooper (SA) uniform. The music teacher had the children sing song with anti-Semrtic lyrics like "When the Jewish blood runs from our knives. He and other Jewish children had to be constantly alert to avoid being being up by Hitler Youth boys. Albert writes of his school experiences duringb the NAZI era, "Naturally, the progressively growing anti-Jewish sentiment influenced and depressed me and the other Jewish children, particularly because we had to be constantly on the alert to avoid contact with any of the Hitler Youth and other hoods who might beat us up. In the spring of 1932 I was admitted to the Citywide Realgymnasium on Adolf Hitler Strasse in Gelsenkirchen. I started in the grade called Sexta, and Latin was our basic language next to German, The following years I entered Quinta, and then Quarta, at which time French was added to our curriculum. After Quarta came Untertertia, and in the spring of 1936 I entered Obertertia with English as a third foreign language. However, in September of that year, I was dismissed along with all other Jewish students (there were not too many any more) because of new edicts issued by the governing Nazi party. I did receive passing grades in all subjects except in Religion (which we received at our Rabbi's house), and in mathematics I was graded "good," which meant above average. The four and one-half years I spent in the Realgymnasium were very depressing, to say the least, and in retrospect I do not know how I got through them. My gymnastic teacher, Herr Hohenroth, usually appeared in a Stormtrooper uniform and started and ended our lessons with the greeting "Heil Hitler." (He was the same fellow who served in the first world war with my father and wrote defamatory articles against him in the regional Nazi party newspaper. He also is the one who led a horde of schoolchildren on November 10, 1938, after Kristallnacht, into my father's store to destroy any remaining merchandise.) Our music teacher, who wore a Swastika button in his lapel to indicate his membership in the Nazi party, led our class in the presence of Jewish students, me included, in the singing of Nazi songs, one of which had the refrain, "When the Jewish blood runs from our knives." Naturally, none of our non-Jewish fellow students objected."

Clothing

The two older boys in the portrai seem to be almost identically dressed in short trousers with long stockings and blouses with open collars. Fred (and probably Albert also) are probably wearing Leibchen (notice the hose supporter clasp which shows on Fred's leg).

Kristallnacht

The family managed to avoid major trouble until Kristallnacht. Their father's shop was ransancked and he had to sell it for a nominal sum. Fred and the Jewish enployees had to pick up the glass with their hands. Albert was at school where he was arrested, but because he was still 16 years old, was not sent to a concentration camp. His father ahnd the other men of Gelsenkirchen were arrested and sent to a camp where they were starved and brutalized.

Escape to America

After Kriistalnnacht, th parents realized tgey had to get out of Germany as soon as possible. They had already begun the process. They were separated for a time, but managed to get to the Netherlands before World war I broke out. From their they managed to escape to America before the German invasion. Most of their relatives in Germany perished in the Holocaust. A few survived in the Nertherlands where Dutch gentiles hid them.

Experiences

Readers may want to look at Akbert's detailed account: Experiences of Albert Gompertz. It is available in both English and German.








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Created: 5:41 AM 2/10/2011
Last updated: 5:41 AM 2/10/2011