us-005578-irn512914-irn46819
type: RecordSet
physical characterisitics and technical requirements: Silver colored metal bar pin with a convex top covered by a grosgrain ribbon with 5 vertical stripes: narrow red, gold, very wide red, gold, narrow red. Attached to the center is a small, gold colored die-cast metal oval with an oak leaf border and a relief of a left facing, spread winged eagle clutching an oak leaf wreath with a swastika above a shovel crossed with a sword, which is above the corner of a bunker. On the back, the ribbon ends are covered by a bar with an attached swing hinge pin and hook. The ribbon is soiled.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: after 1937-before 1940 May, after 1944 July-before 1946 June
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has record set type: Item
history: The German ribbon bar was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2003 by Howard S. Sichel and Linda Sichel Strohmenger, the children of Rudolph Daniel Sichel.
history: Rudolf (Rudolph) Daniel Sichel was born on January 2, 1915, in the Hesse district of Frankfurt am Main, Germany, to Ernst and Frieda Oppenheimer Sichel. Ernst was born on July 20, 1874, in Frankfurt am Main, to Seligmann and Sophia Seligmann Sichel. Frieda was born on April 24, 1876, in Rimbach, Germany, to a Jewish couple. Rudolf’s mother had one older sister, Georgine, and two younger ones, Ida and Cecelia, all of whom had immigrated to the United States by 1908. Rudolf’s father managed the family business, a haberdashery shop, S. Sichel, which had been established in 1874. Rudolf had an older brother, Walter (1905-1955.) In the early 1930’s, Rudolf worked as a sales clerk in his family’s store. Following his graduation from school, he began a course of study at the University of Frankfurt. Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933. Anti-Jewish decrees were enacted to severely restrict Jewish participation in German society. In 1933, Frankfurt had a Jewish community of about 26,000, the second largest in Germany. In 1934, 19 year old Rudolf went to London, England, to study business. In 1936, Rudolf, unable to return to Germany because of the restrictions on Jews, left for the United States aboard the SS Berengaria. He arrived In New York City on May 26, and moved in with his aunt and uncle, Ida and Moe Blum. Later that year, Rudolph found work as a sales clerk at R.H. Macy & Co. He often went by Rudy, and, unofficially, seems to have changed the spelling of his name to Rudolph. In October 1937, Rudolph’s brother Walter and his wife, Elizabeth, arrived in New York City. On November 9 or 10, 1938, during the Kristallnacht pogrom, Rudolph’s father, Ernst, was arrested, marched down the street with his hands up in the air, and taken to Buchenwald concentration camp. He was assigned prisoner number 4173. On November 27, Ernst was released and returned home. Soon after his return, Ernst was forced to sell the family store to a non-Jew for les…
identifier: irn46819
is or was included in: us-005578-irn512914
record resource extent: overall: Height: 0.750 inches (1.905 cm) | Width: 1.000 inches (2.54 cm) | Depth: 0.125 inches (0.318 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Deutsches Schutzwall-Ehrenzeichen ribbon bar commemorating construction of the German West Wall acquired by Rudolph Sichel, a Jewish refugee from Frankfurt, Germany, who served in the US Army in Europe from July 1944 to June 1946. The West Wall medal was issued from August 2, 1939, to January 31, 1941, to those who built the fortifications along German’s western boundary, or were stationed there prior to May 4, 1940. In May 1936, Sichel, unable to return to Germany from England, left for the US. In April 1943, he enlisted in the army and was sent to Camp Ritchie for military intelligence training. In July 1944, Sichel, now Chief Interrogator, Interrogation of Prisoners of War Team 13, landed on Utah Beach in France, where his unit was attached to the 104th Infantry, the Timberwolf Division. As the unit advanced through France, Belgium, and into Germany, Sichel interrogated those captured. On April 11, 1945, the unit liberated Dora-Mittelbau/Nordhausen concentration camp and Rudolph witnessed the horrific conditions. A skilled photographer, he took snapshots of the camp and other events of his military tour. Following Germany’s surrender in May, 2nd Lt. Sichel was attached to the 9th Army. He interrogated prisoners of war and civilian witnesses and did fact finding for war crimes trials. In June 1946, 1st Lt. Sichel returned to the US. He was awarded a Bronze Star for his service.
title: Ribbon bar award for construction of the German West Wall acquired by German Jewish US soldier