Tracing letter regarding Anna Salzhauer
InventarnummerM2025/004:005
TitelTracing letter regarding Anna Salzhauer
BeschreibungLetter from Metropolitan Police (London), at the Aliens Registration Office regarding the search for the fate of Anna Salzhauer. This letter dated 12 November 1953, expresses regret that they are unable to assist, "as it has not been possible to trace any record of the above-named in the register of aliens resident in the United Kingdom."
Rudolph (Rudi) Salzhauer (Salter) was born in 1919 to Josef and Dwora Salzhauer. Rudi's father was born in Kolomea in a shtetl and was described by his son as uneducated but intelligent and ambitious. He worked in the clothing trade where he and his wife owned up a draper's shop. Rudi also had a sister Martha, born in 1923.
Rudi studied engineering. By the end of 1937 his family began contemplating their options should the Nazis come to power. His father considered selling their retail shop, thinking they might survive the period of Nazi rule by remaining unobtrusive; an illusion shared by many Austrian Jews. Emigration was the only realistic option, but there were serious hurdles to overcome.
After the Anschluss, the family applied for a visa to Australia, and it was granted. Once in Australia, the family settled into a flat in the Eastern Suburbs and set up a small factory, employing both Rudi and Martha. They were able to ship some of their factory machinery and furniture to Australia before they left.
Although they had travelled on German passports because Austria had been annexed by Germany, they were classified as “friendly enemy aliens,” and were not interned. According to Rudi, they did not encounter any overt anti-Semitism. They found Australians to be “friendly and curious and easy to get on with. Most important of all was that nobody wanted to send [them] to concentration camps”.
Rudi and Martha quickly settled into their new lives. They lived in a bubble—only socialising with other Austrian refugees. Their lives were idyllic. Rudi and his sister made friends, formed groups, went to movies, partied together, swam, and sunbaked at Bondi beach. The siblings made Australian friends and became integrated into the Australian way of life.
The outbreak of war in Europe was “shattering” for Rudi. “We sensed that friends and relatives were doomed.”
During the war, Australia suffered a shortage of skilled engineers and Rudi took a break from the family business to work in a variety of engineering jobs. Rudi’s parents amalgamated their two factories and moved to new premises in Camperdown. They now employed a staff of twenty, and Rudi was the general manager.
Rudi met and married Ruth Rosenzweig through a circle of young Viennese refugees. The couple married on 25 January 1942 at the Great Synagogue. They moved to Ashfield and had two children; Judith and David. The couple eventually moved to Bathurst where they were heavily involved in community organisations such as the Art Gallery Society and Meals on Wheels.
Rudolph (Rudi) Salzhauer (Salter) was born in 1919 to Josef and Dwora Salzhauer. Rudi's father was born in Kolomea in a shtetl and was described by his son as uneducated but intelligent and ambitious. He worked in the clothing trade where he and his wife owned up a draper's shop. Rudi also had a sister Martha, born in 1923.
Rudi studied engineering. By the end of 1937 his family began contemplating their options should the Nazis come to power. His father considered selling their retail shop, thinking they might survive the period of Nazi rule by remaining unobtrusive; an illusion shared by many Austrian Jews. Emigration was the only realistic option, but there were serious hurdles to overcome.
After the Anschluss, the family applied for a visa to Australia, and it was granted. Once in Australia, the family settled into a flat in the Eastern Suburbs and set up a small factory, employing both Rudi and Martha. They were able to ship some of their factory machinery and furniture to Australia before they left.
Although they had travelled on German passports because Austria had been annexed by Germany, they were classified as “friendly enemy aliens,” and were not interned. According to Rudi, they did not encounter any overt anti-Semitism. They found Australians to be “friendly and curious and easy to get on with. Most important of all was that nobody wanted to send [them] to concentration camps”.
Rudi and Martha quickly settled into their new lives. They lived in a bubble—only socialising with other Austrian refugees. Their lives were idyllic. Rudi and his sister made friends, formed groups, went to movies, partied together, swam, and sunbaked at Bondi beach. The siblings made Australian friends and became integrated into the Australian way of life.
The outbreak of war in Europe was “shattering” for Rudi. “We sensed that friends and relatives were doomed.”
During the war, Australia suffered a shortage of skilled engineers and Rudi took a break from the family business to work in a variety of engineering jobs. Rudi’s parents amalgamated their two factories and moved to new premises in Camperdown. They now employed a staff of twenty, and Rudi was the general manager.
Rudi met and married Ruth Rosenzweig through a circle of young Viennese refugees. The couple married on 25 January 1942 at the Great Synagogue. They moved to Ashfield and had two children; Judith and David. The couple eventually moved to Bathurst where they were heavily involved in community organisations such as the Art Gallery Society and Meals on Wheels.
SchlagwortVienna, Austria, pre war refugees, immigration, tracing loved ones
Objektbezeichnungletters
Materialpaper
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, donated by Judith Campbell.
In appreciation to the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) for supporting this archival project.