Holocaust Memorial Education Center

Refer to Interview below with Harold Wasserman, son

Interviewer: Nancy Gorrell with Howard Wasserman, Son

Location: Wasserman Residence (phone interview)

Date: July 2017

Q: Describe your family background.
My mother’s mother (my grandmother) was Hedwig and her father was Otto. My mother had one younger sibling; a brother named Karl. The story is that Otto was in the German army in World War I. He was injured and died at a young age as result of his injury. Hedwig was alone in the house. She took on boarders. She was a good cook and she supported her children that way.

Q: Was the family religious?
Hedwig was extremely religious. I don’t know about Otto. I don’t know about his background, but my mother said they were assimilated Jews.

Q: What happened to your family when the war began?
I’m not sure. There were lots of time gaps. I’m not sure of a timeline.

 Q: What do you know happened?
Shortly after the war began, things got bad. Hedwig had a drunkard for a neighbor. One night he came in telling them to go to the police station because the Nazi’s were going crazy, and in the police station, there were all her friends and no one warned her.

Q: What happened next?

The let her go from the police station.

Q: What happened next?

I know my mother left first; then they brought Hedwig over on one of the very last ships. The date is on her passport.

Q: What happened to Karl?
Karl was smuggled somehow to Palestine through some underground thing where he fought the British and he worked to build the country. It was back breaking work.

Q: When was this?

Karl was in the physics university and got thrown out and he had to get out.

Q: Do you know exactly when?
No.

Q: Was Dietz the main family home.
Yes, I’ve never heard of any other family house. I know it was Canal Strasse; maybe #8 in Dietz.

Q: Have you ever visited Dietz or your family home?
I’ve been to Germany a number of times for business, but I didn’t want to see the family home. It kind of gave me the creeps. I just kind of didn’t like it. Actually, there were many things I liked, but because of the history, I just didn’t want to be there.

Q: Did your mother get married in Germany?
No, she met Joseph in America. He was from Lativa. When she first came over, she went to uncle Nathan (father of Kurt Kaufmann I think). He was here and he helped her out in the beginning.

Q: Tell us about Otillie settling in America with family.
Tillie was a governess in France. She left Germany for France and then left for NY and here she was cleaning houses to survive and had no money. What money she had she sent to Hedwig. All three were living in an apartment together with my grandmother. She was an au pair for a Rabbi in France. She was all alone. Nathan was living in south Jersey on a farm. Salem, I think. 

Q: How did Otillie meet Joseph and get married?
First, she went to NY and met Joseph in NY. He was in the hat business. I don’t know how they met. I don’t know when they got married. They were not married when Hedwig came over but whenever they got married Hedwig lived with them in NY in an apartment. Later they moved to west NY.

Q: When were you born and where did you grow up?
I grew up in West NY first in an apartment and then a house. I was born in 1952. Barbara, my sister was born 10 years earlier. It was very late in life. My father was 48 when I was born and he died when he was 73 and I was 25 years old. Later they moved to Parsippany. He was in the hat business and then the lace business.

Credits:

SSBJCC Interview July 2017 with Harold Wasserman, son; Digital historic and family photographs and documents donated by Harold Wassserman.