Thekla Samuel papers

Thekla Samuel papers 

Thekla Samuel (1916-1991) was a Jewish nurse who lived with her parents, Moritz and Jeanette Bamberger in Cologne, Germany. In an effort to escape persecution from the Nazis, Thekla fled to Belgian Congo in 1938 and married her pen pal, Erich Samuel (1906-1981), a German-born master watchmaker who was living in Elisabethville (now Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo). In October, 1938 Thekla departed Antwerp, Belgium on board the SS Léopoldville. She and Erich married on November 12, 1938 just three days after meeting. Thelka’s mother, father, and two sisters were shot in a concentration camp in January, 1942. Thekla and Erich had their first daughter, Lydia in October, 1939 in Belgian Congo. Shortly after, Erich was taken prisoner of war and held for 2 years before eventually being released. Upon his release, Thekla and Erich had two more daughters, Ellen (1942-) and Rose Jeanette (1946-), before immigrating to the United States in 1947. The family stayed in Brooklyn, New York for two years and moved to Rochester, New York in 1949. Thekla went on to work as an obstetric nurse. She passed away in 1991 in Rochester. 

Thekla Samuel papers