Collection of medical certificates from Hungary and Germany detailing illnesses and conditions acquired by Stephen and Agatha Casey during the German occupation of Hungary
Object numberM2020/024:005
TitleCollection of medical certificates from Hungary and Germany detailing illnesses and conditions acquired by Stephen and Agatha Casey during the German occupation of Hungary
DescriptionA collection of medical certificates from 1964 to 1969 which provide details of the impaired health of both Stephen and Agatha Casey as a direct result of their confinement during the Holocaust. Most of the documents concern Agatha Casey specifically. The medical certificates in Hungarian include translations into German by the Berlitz Direct Method School of Languages, Sydney. Similarly, the certificates in English from Australian doctors have also been translated into German.
Istvan Katona (Stephen Casey) was born 29 June 1924 in Kartal, Hungary to Aladar and Erzebet (Elizabeth) Katona (nee Elefant). When Germany occupied Hungary on 19 March 1944, all Hungarian Jews were made to wear yellow stars and forcibly relocated to ghettos. Istvan and his family were deported to a ghetto in Bagolyuk at the beginning of April 1944 and he was conscripted into the ghetto police. In May 1944 Istvan was forced into compulsory military battery service in northern Hungary. Three weeks after his departure, his parents were deported to Auschwitz. His mother was sent to the gas chamber on arrival and his father was deported to Dachau where he was murdered on 27 February 1945.
During an armed uprising, Istvan and other members of the labour battalion were arrested by the Hungarian authorities and deported to Germany. Istvan arrived at Buchenwald concentration camp on 9 November 1944 and was assigned to forced labour as a registered electrician at the Panzerfaust factory in Schlieben. Later, he worked as an electrician in a hospital in Flossberg concentration camp.
He was deported to Mauthausen concentration camp on 13 March 1945. On 5 May 1945 the United States Armed Forces liberated the camp. Istvan returned to Hungary in June 1945 and began to search for family. He discovered that out of 41 relatives, only 5 had survived.
In 1948 he married Agota (Agatha) Halmi and they had two children, Andris (Andrew) and Janos (John).
In 1956 the Katona's fled the Hungarian revolution. They escaped to Austria and sought passage to Australia, but could not travel for six months because their son was sick. During this period the Katona's sought the legal advice of Karl Meth, a practitioner in Vienna, regarding a claim for compensation.
The Katona's arrived in Sydney on 19 June 1957. Istvan changed his name to Stephen and anglicised Katona to Casey.
In 1963 the Casey's pursued compensation from the German government in a claim which spanned almost two decades. Concurrently, they also sought compensation from the Hungarian government. Their claim for compensation for loss of freedom, health, and property was not advanced until the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany Inc. (Claims Conference) took over in the 1990s. The resulting agreement, known as the Article 2 Fund, awarded Stephen with a monthly pension. In 2005 the Casey's received a letter from the Office of the German President, expressing regret that the original claim had not been granted.
Agatha passed away 24 April 2014. Stephen passed away 18 October 2015.
Included in this collection is:
a) A letter from the Medical Director of the Anti-Tuberculosis Association of New South Wales, dated 3 April 1964, which references Agatha Casey's ongoing treatment for pulmonary tuberculosis, as well as her incapacity to work full-time.
b) A medical certificate dated 16 February 1968 which states that Agatha Casey is 80% invalid
c) Two employment certificates from Agatha Casey's employers, noting her limited capacity to work due to her ill health
Istvan Katona (Stephen Casey) was born 29 June 1924 in Kartal, Hungary to Aladar and Erzebet (Elizabeth) Katona (nee Elefant). When Germany occupied Hungary on 19 March 1944, all Hungarian Jews were made to wear yellow stars and forcibly relocated to ghettos. Istvan and his family were deported to a ghetto in Bagolyuk at the beginning of April 1944 and he was conscripted into the ghetto police. In May 1944 Istvan was forced into compulsory military battery service in northern Hungary. Three weeks after his departure, his parents were deported to Auschwitz. His mother was sent to the gas chamber on arrival and his father was deported to Dachau where he was murdered on 27 February 1945.
During an armed uprising, Istvan and other members of the labour battalion were arrested by the Hungarian authorities and deported to Germany. Istvan arrived at Buchenwald concentration camp on 9 November 1944 and was assigned to forced labour as a registered electrician at the Panzerfaust factory in Schlieben. Later, he worked as an electrician in a hospital in Flossberg concentration camp.
He was deported to Mauthausen concentration camp on 13 March 1945. On 5 May 1945 the United States Armed Forces liberated the camp. Istvan returned to Hungary in June 1945 and began to search for family. He discovered that out of 41 relatives, only 5 had survived.
In 1948 he married Agota (Agatha) Halmi and they had two children, Andris (Andrew) and Janos (John).
In 1956 the Katona's fled the Hungarian revolution. They escaped to Austria and sought passage to Australia, but could not travel for six months because their son was sick. During this period the Katona's sought the legal advice of Karl Meth, a practitioner in Vienna, regarding a claim for compensation.
The Katona's arrived in Sydney on 19 June 1957. Istvan changed his name to Stephen and anglicised Katona to Casey.
In 1963 the Casey's pursued compensation from the German government in a claim which spanned almost two decades. Concurrently, they also sought compensation from the Hungarian government. Their claim for compensation for loss of freedom, health, and property was not advanced until the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany Inc. (Claims Conference) took over in the 1990s. The resulting agreement, known as the Article 2 Fund, awarded Stephen with a monthly pension. In 2005 the Casey's received a letter from the Office of the German President, expressing regret that the original claim had not been granted.
Agatha passed away 24 April 2014. Stephen passed away 18 October 2015.
Included in this collection is:
a) A letter from the Medical Director of the Anti-Tuberculosis Association of New South Wales, dated 3 April 1964, which references Agatha Casey's ongoing treatment for pulmonary tuberculosis, as well as her incapacity to work full-time.
b) A medical certificate dated 16 February 1968 which states that Agatha Casey is 80% invalid
c) Two employment certificates from Agatha Casey's employers, noting her limited capacity to work due to her ill health
Production date 1964-03-02 - 1969-06-24
Subjectrestitution, post-liberation medical problems, post-liberation recovery, employment, compensation claims
Object namemedical records
Materialpaper
Dimensions
- width: 205.00 mm
height: 263.00 mm
Language
- German Ms Agatha Katona would be examined by Dr. J. Katz on 3 June 1969. She declares that she spent the time during the war in Budapest, and spent most of her time from October 1944 until January 1945 in a cellar, which was overcrowded with people. In March 1945 she had haemoptysis, and was diagnosed with active tuberculosis. Right pneumothorax would begin from 1946 to 1948.
‘The German army on 19.4.1944 came to Budapest in Hungary, where I lived. The Russian army came on 18.1.1945 to Pest. Between these two dates, my life because I was Jewish, was in danger and my freedom decreased. Beginning April 1944 I was forced to wear the Jewish badge and live in a Judenhaus (Jew House). End of May with false papers I moved in a nicht-Judenhaus (non-Jew house), where I lived in a cellar, where I could not see anyone. This negatively affected my nerves since it was prohibited and was punishable by death. End of July or beginning of August I moved back to my mother and grandparents in Judenhaus. There I would be deported to a Labour Camp and later to the Budapest Ghetto, where I stayed until 18.1.1945.’
Hungarian
English
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by John Casey
In appreciation to the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) for supporting this archival project.