us-005578-irn50903-irn79021
type: RecordSet
archival history: The concentration camp uniform cloth remnant was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2013 by Diane Spiegel Belok and Donna Kantor Krasner, the nieces of Henry Dressler.
biographical history: Henry Dressler (born Heniz, 1919-2005) was born on October 22, 1919, in Dresden, Germany, to Joachim (1888-1971) and Martha Miriam (1896-1956) and had one sister, Susi (1914-1954). Joachim served in the Austro-Hungarian Army in World War I. Joachim owned a textile factory that manufactured linen tablecloths, sheets, and other textiles and had five to ten employees. Martha assisted him with the business. The family was moderately observant and Heinz attended Hebrew school. In 1933, the Nazi dictatorship assumed power in Germany and enacted a series of anti-Jewish policies. Joachim’s brother, Ferdinand, closed his office in Berlin on April 1, 1933, and left for Palestine. Many Jews were forced to put non-Jews in charge of their businesses or sell them at a loss to Nazi approved buyers, but Joachim’s business was never Aryanized in this way. The family considered leaving Germany, possibly for the US, but the strict quotas made getting visas unlikely. In 1936, Henry was forced to leave school because he was Jewish. He attended a private school run by the Dresden Chamber of Commerce. He participated in some school activities, such as orchestra, but as a Jew, could not go on school outings, or participate in activities, such as sports, that took place in public spaces. He then got an internship with a private, Jewish-owned bank and was promoted, until 1938, when the bank was Aryanized. Henry then got a job with a luxury department store, Hirsch & Co. In October 1938, the family was taken to police headquarters and their passports were invalidated. They were taken to the railway station in open trucks to shame them publicly and deported to Poland along with 1500 other Jews. Because Joachim was not born in Germany and did not have German citizenship, the family was considered stateless. Joachim recalled that some family members lived in Krakow, Poland and the family was welcomed there by the Wasserberger family. They had a large house and converted the gym into a bedroom. H…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Narrow, rectangular, worn, faded cloth handkerchief with light brown acorns on a dark red field. The uneven edges are hemmed by hand with light brown thread.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: 1944 October-1945
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 2
has or had identifier: 1
has or had subject: 433
has or had subject: 556
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn79021
is or was included in: us-005578-irn50903
record resource extent: overall: Height: 5.375 inches (13.653 cm) | Width: 12.125 inches (30.798 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Maroon handkerchief with acorns found inside the prisoner uniform of Heinz or Joachim Dressler. In October 1938, the Dressler family, Joachim, wife, Martha, and children Susi, 24, and Heinz, 19, were deported from Dresden, Germany, to Krakow, Poland. Germany occupied Poland in September 1939. In May 1941, the Dresslers were sent to the Jewish ghetto. In 1942, Heinz was a forced laborer sent to construct Krakow-Płaszów labor camp. In March 1943, the Germans liquidated the Krakow ghetto and Heinz's family were sent to the camp. Płaszów was a brutal camp where the Ukrainian guards daily shot inmates for no reason. In 1944, Płaszów became a concentration camp and conditions worsened. That August, the family learned of Oskar Schindler’s list. Schindler was a German businessman who ran an enamelware and an armament factory nearby. He employed about 900 Jewish forced laborers, who he protected from the abuse at Płaszów and from deportation. Heinz knew Izak Stern, who worked for Schindler. The family was able to get added to the list, partly because they spoke German. As the Soviet Army approached, the Germans decided to dismantle the camp. Schindler arranged to relocate his factory to Brunnlitz in Czechoslovakia as a subcamp of Gross Rosen. In October 1944, Heinz and Joachim were transported to Gross Rosen, and sent to Brunnlitz. Martha and Susi arrived in November. They worked in Schindler's ammunition plant. Schindler kept German camp personnel out of the camp and did his best to feed the inmates. Schindler left the camp on May 7, 1945, the day Germany surrendered. The camp was liberated May 9 by Soviet troops. The family left for Prague, then traveled to different transit camps until emigrating to the US in February 1947.
title: Maroon handkerchief with acorns used by a concentration camp inmate saved by getting on Schindler's list