Object numberM2017/012:004
DescriptionThis is a photograph of 23 year old Miriam (Manci) Blumberg, nee Weinberger and friend, on the deck of the Surriento passenger ship, travelling to Australia 12 August, 1949; she is pictured on the left. The photo was donated by her daughter Vivienne Beck.
Manci, was Born in Mukacevo, Czechoslavakia into a strict orthodox family of eight children; she was the only girl. Their town was home to a large Jewish community. Manci’s family managed the city baths.
Following the area’s Hungarian annexation in 1939, life for Munkacs changed drastically; religious freedom was quashed, property confiscated and Jewish men were rounded up for forced labour. Despite obtaining false papers that stayed their arrest, by 1942 Manci’s eldest brother, her father and uncle were all taken; her Auntie and six cousins moved into their family home. The family remained in Mukacevo until sometime in 1943. Manci’s exact movements from then to liberation are unknown. It is assumed she was in a concentration camp; more details regarding her movements are currently being researched. Only Manci and three of her siblings survived the war. Her mother perished in the last selection at Auschwitz in October 1944 and her father’s fate is unknown. Following liberation, the remaining family were reunited in Kosice, Slovakia.
Manci travelled to Australia on the Surriento’s second voyage. Prior to its role as a passenger vessel, it had served as USS Barnett, a troopship and then attack transport involved in several allied landings in Europe. Research indicates Manci may have travelled with the assistance of the Australian Immigration Project, funded in part by Jewish Welfare agencies in the U.S. This is indicated by her point of embarkation, by the ship itself which was operating as part of the Flotta Lauro line and the time of her journey.
Manci, was Born in Mukacevo, Czechoslavakia into a strict orthodox family of eight children; she was the only girl. Their town was home to a large Jewish community. Manci’s family managed the city baths.
Following the area’s Hungarian annexation in 1939, life for Munkacs changed drastically; religious freedom was quashed, property confiscated and Jewish men were rounded up for forced labour. Despite obtaining false papers that stayed their arrest, by 1942 Manci’s eldest brother, her father and uncle were all taken; her Auntie and six cousins moved into their family home. The family remained in Mukacevo until sometime in 1943. Manci’s exact movements from then to liberation are unknown. It is assumed she was in a concentration camp; more details regarding her movements are currently being researched. Only Manci and three of her siblings survived the war. Her mother perished in the last selection at Auschwitz in October 1944 and her father’s fate is unknown. Following liberation, the remaining family were reunited in Kosice, Slovakia.
Manci travelled to Australia on the Surriento’s second voyage. Prior to its role as a passenger vessel, it had served as USS Barnett, a troopship and then attack transport involved in several allied landings in Europe. Research indicates Manci may have travelled with the assistance of the Australian Immigration Project, funded in part by Jewish Welfare agencies in the U.S. This is indicated by her point of embarkation, by the ship itself which was operating as part of the Flotta Lauro line and the time of her journey.
Production date 1949-08 - 1949-08
Subjectimmigration, Holocaust, ships, families, forced labour, survivors, Jewish Welfare Board
Object namephotographs
Materialphotographic emulsion, paper, paper
Dimensions
- width: 64.00 mm
height: 60.00 mm
Language
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Vivienne Beck