Jewish Bible, etc. from Mannheim

[Alan Smith]

Gerdan,

I noticed that the handwritten inscription in this book is also dated 18 June 1921 (the Bar Mitzvah date). Possibly you can translate the inscription?

[Alan Smith]

Here is the inscription:

[Hank C.]

Den l(iebe). Erich
zum 18. VI 1921!
Onkel Ernst
Tante Marie

The (roughly, or could be seen as "Our") Dear Erich,
on the 18th June 1921
Uncle
Aunt

best
Hank

[W Petz]

May I suggest that this young man may have served in the US Armed forces during WW2 as did many Germans of the Jewish faith who immigrated to the USA. This could be a source to research as there might be a record through a veteran organization or library/city archives where he lived in the US. Just a thought.

[blinky]

Very touching documentation....relics of the high point in a young mans life and symbols of hope and great happiness for his family marked now with the realization of what was to come for them in a few short years. It's great realizing he survived and made it to the US but also makes you think about all those that were there at that celebration who didn't survive the upcoming regime.

eric

[Alan Smith]

Thanks for the kind thoughts and information; I share all of your sentiments.

Bill: I am inclined to think that Erich Wolff may have been too old to serve in the U.S. military in WWII. I assume that he was likely a teenager in 1921 for his Bar Mivtzah. If so, that would make him 30 to 35 years old by the time the U.S. entered the war. None-the-less, you raise a very interesting point that I noticed when doing follow up research on Mr. Wolff: a significant number of young Jewish refugees from Germany ended up in the U.S. military and serving in the ETO. That must have been a strange experience: to be tossed out of your home country by a tyrancial regime, then to re-enter your homeland some 5 or 10 years later as part of a conquering army.

Again, I really appreciate all of the thoughts and information that have been offered.