us-005578-irn34671-irn35933
has or had holder: us-005578
physical characteristics and technical requirements: a. Green cloth short sleeved shirt with a 2 button v-neck and 2 pleated pockets with a button and flap. Each shoulder has an epaulet, and there are 6 scout badges, including a white cloth ribbon on the chest with 2 lions and the motto: TOUJOURS PRET [ALWAYS READY], and one cloth tag attached. b. Square blue cloth neckerchief with a gray cloth border on 3 sides. c. Rectangular leather band (woggle) with a single elastic strap attached to each end. Pinned to the leather is a metal shield with 2 seated lions and a banner with the letters S and F at either end, with a tied knot decoration at the point of the shield. A safety pin is enclosed with the band.
has record set type: Item
title: Eclaireurs Israélites de France shirt and kerchief worn by former hidden Jewish boy
record resource extent: a: Height: 25.380 inches (64.465 cm) | Width: 23.000 inches (58.42 cm) b: Height: 28.000 inches (71.12 cm) | Width: 26.880 inches (68.275 cm) c: Height: 1.000 inches (2.54 cm) | Width: 1.500 inches (3.81 cm)
is or was included in: us-005578-irn34671
has or had some members with language: fra
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
scope and content: Eclaireurs Israélites de France (Jewish Scouts of France) shirt, neckerchief, and slide fastener worn by Steven Simon when he was a scout in 1945-46. His scoutmaster Simon Barenbaum gave Steven his own neckerchief when Steven needed to recite his scouting pledge of allegiance. Steven and his parents, Arthur and Irma Simon, were Jewish German immigrants living in Paris, France, when it was occupied by Nazi Germany in 1940. They fled to the unoccupied southern region where they survived the war by adopting false identities. Scouting was very important for Steven as it eased his reintegration with postwar life after so many years spent living in hiding. They returned to Paris after liberation in 1944 and emigrated to the United States in 1947.
date: 1945-1947 April
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn34671-irn35933/alternateIDs/1
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn34671-irn35933/acquisitions/1
identifier: irn35933
has beginning date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1945-01-01
has end date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1945-12-31
biographical history: Steven W. Simon was born on January 22, 1932, to Arthur L., born 1896, and Irma R. Sostmann Simon in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. His family immigrated to Paris, France, in March 1934. Arthur established two businesses: a faux leather and crystal import business and a specialty confectioner packaging company that featured folkloric and holiday designs created by Arthur. Steven’s maternal uncle, Kurt Sostmann, born June 22, 1904, in Mannheim, and his wife, Erna, arrived from Germany and settled nearby. Arthur applied for United States visas in 1938. His parents, Sigmund, born 1853, and Recha, born 1872, and his sister, Irma, a fashion designer and seamstress, arrived in Paris in March 1939 and lived with Arthur and his family. When World War II began in September 1939, the Simons were on vacation in La Bourboule. French officials requisitioned their car for the French army and interned Arthur Simon as an enemy alien. Steven and his mother were stranded because they did not have the special permits that non-citizens now needed to travel. They finally received permission to return home to Paris in December. The following month, January 1940, Irma sent Steven to a Quaker boarding home, Moulin de la Ferriere, in Noce, Normandy, to escape the German bombing of Paris. In early May, she retrieved him because she had to present him to the police to avoid being interned herself. On June 14, 1940, the Germans occupied Paris. Arthur was in the Les Milles camp and he volunteered for the French Foreign Legion. Since he was now in poor health, he failed his physical exam, but the French released him from the camp on August 30, 1940. He returned to his family in Paris and tried to continue his business, though his partners and staff had been arrested or disappeared and he was not permitted to travel to visit clients or to obtain stock. On August 6, 1941, the business was confiscated and its assets transferred to the Germans. In September 1941, the family hired a guide to take them t…
type: RecordSet
archival history: The scout shirt and neckerchief were donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2008 by Steven W. Simon.