Object numberM2018/018:041
DescriptionLetter written to Melbourne University's Hungarian Students' Rehabilitation Committee, authored by Hungarian Jewish Holocaust survivor Joseph Sarkadi. Letter dated 5 January 1958, when Joseph was 23 years old.
This organisation appears to secular, perhaps providing assistance to young Hungarians who migrated to Australia following the Hungarian Revolution.
Joseph enquires about enrolling at the University of Melbourne, which never eventuated. He writes "I ... came to Melbourne after the Revolution." There is no mention of the Holocaust, or of the anti-Semitic targeting of his family by the Hungarian Communists which spurred the family's migration.
Joseph Sarkadi was born on 8 December 1934 to Laszlo and Ilona Sarkadi (nee Reisz). The Hungarian Jewish Reisz and Sarkadi families were long-time residents of Kunszentmiklos, a village just south of Budapest. Joseph had 2 siblings - Stephen (b. 1938) and Emily (b. 1947).
Laszlo spent the majority of the World War II in forced labour, while Ilona and her sons fled to Budapest. Joseph and Stephen were eventually placed in hiding, sometimes separately. Both carried the trauma of this period with them for life.
The family lost many loved ones to the Holocaust. They rebuilt their lives in Budapest after the war. Joseph and Stephen returned to school and were involved in Communist youth activities. Joseph attended university in Budapest for 2 years.
The family was eventually persecuted by the Communist government. In 1958, the family migrated to Melbourne along with Ilona's mother Margit. They operated a restaurant from 1960-63.
Joseph was devastated by the death of his grandmother in 1963, and died in a car crash that same year.
This organisation appears to secular, perhaps providing assistance to young Hungarians who migrated to Australia following the Hungarian Revolution.
Joseph enquires about enrolling at the University of Melbourne, which never eventuated. He writes "I ... came to Melbourne after the Revolution." There is no mention of the Holocaust, or of the anti-Semitic targeting of his family by the Hungarian Communists which spurred the family's migration.
Joseph Sarkadi was born on 8 December 1934 to Laszlo and Ilona Sarkadi (nee Reisz). The Hungarian Jewish Reisz and Sarkadi families were long-time residents of Kunszentmiklos, a village just south of Budapest. Joseph had 2 siblings - Stephen (b. 1938) and Emily (b. 1947).
Laszlo spent the majority of the World War II in forced labour, while Ilona and her sons fled to Budapest. Joseph and Stephen were eventually placed in hiding, sometimes separately. Both carried the trauma of this period with them for life.
The family lost many loved ones to the Holocaust. They rebuilt their lives in Budapest after the war. Joseph and Stephen returned to school and were involved in Communist youth activities. Joseph attended university in Budapest for 2 years.
The family was eventually persecuted by the Communist government. In 1958, the family migrated to Melbourne along with Ilona's mother Margit. They operated a restaurant from 1960-63.
Joseph was devastated by the death of his grandmother in 1963, and died in a car crash that same year.
Production placeMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Production date 1958-01-05
Subjecteducation, survivors, Post-War Life, migration, students, Hungarian Students' Rehabilitation Committee, University of Melbourne, child survivors
Object nameletters
Materialpaper
Techniquetypewritten, handwritten
Dimensions
- height: 222.00 mm
width: 171.00 mm
Language
- English
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Ester Sarkadi-Clarke