Barbara Rodbell papers

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 

Barbara Rodbell (née Ledermann) was born in 1925 in Berlin, Germany to Franz and Ilse (née Citroen) Ledermann and had one sister, Susanne (b. 1928). In 1933, Barbara's family moved to Amsterdam, the Netherlands where they became friends with Anne Frank and her family. After the Germans invaded the Netherlands in 1940, Barbara's friend, Manfred Greenback, had underground contacts and was able to obtain false papers for her. In 1942, Franz, Ilse, and Susanne were deported to Westerbork and then to Auschwitz concentration camp where they were killed. Barbara survived by using the false papers and assisted in helping Jews find hiding places. After the war, Barbara immigrated to the United States in 1947 where she married Martin Rodbell in 1950 and had four children, Paul, Susanne, Andrew, and Phillip. 

Barbara Rodbell papers 

folders 2 

The Barbara Rodbell papers consist of photographs of Franz, Ilse, Susanne, and Barbara Ledermann in Amsterdam, Netherlands, in the 1930s and 1940s, correspondence between Barbara and her family while they were in Westerbork, a letter from Barbara to her Aunt and Uncle after the war, and a guest book with signatures of guests who came to the Ledermann home to listen to music. The Ledermann’s were friends with Anne Frank and her family while they lived in Amsterdam. Anne and Margot Frank are included in a photograph and Otto and Edith Frank signed the guest book. 

The Barbara Rodbell papers are arranged as two folders: Folder 1: Correspondence and photographs, 1937-1946, Folder 2: Guest book, 1931-1942.