us-005578-irn518935-irn518472
type: RecordSet
physical characterisitics and technical requirements: Rectangular, cloth flag with a yellow cloth Star of David edged with yellow piping sewn onto the center of both sides. The flag is constructed of horizontal bands of cloth, sewn together in this sequence: white, blue, white, blue, white.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: 1947 November 29
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has record set type: Item
history: Judith Weinstein (born Yehudit Wagner, b. 1932) was born in Rudnik, Poland (now Rudnik nad Sanem) to Chana (née Rheingold, 1903-1993) and Pinchos Wagner (1893-1979). Chana was born in Wieliczka, Poland to Necha (née Koenigsberger) and Isak Rheingold. Pinchos was born in Rudnik to Malka (née Kirschenbaum) and Nuchim Wagner. He had two brothers, Michael and Avraham, and one sister, Kayla. Pinchos, along with his two brothers, owned a wicker factory, Wagner Brothers Baskets Manufacturers & Exporters, and exported their products overseas. Avraham immigrated to the United States and worked to distribute their products in America. Judith had one younger sister, Charlotta (1936-?). On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, starting World War II. On September 17, the Soviet Union joined the invasion from the east, and the two countries divided Poland along the Bug River. In October, the Germans expelled all the Jews from Rudnik, including the extended Wagner family. They were sent over the San River to Ulanow in Soviet-occupied territory. The Wagners then went to Winicki near Lvov (now Lviv, Ukraine). They stayed in Winicki for a few months, but they refused to take Soviet citizenship, so in spring 1940, the Soviets exiled the family to Siberia. Judith and her family were forced to live in Siberia for 14 to 16 months before being allowed to go south to the Ural Mountains and then to Kazakhstan. Judith’s aunt, Kayla, with her husband, was the only one of her father’s siblings to remain in Poland, and they were murdered in the Holocaust. In early 1946, the Wagners were repatriated as Polish citizens and taken to Bielawa in Lower Silesia. They lived there for approximately six months before leaving Poland with the help of the Bricha, an underground immigration movement that helped Jews from Eastern Europe move to Palestine and later Israel. The Wagners travelled with the Bricha through Czechoslovakia to Austria. In Austria, they stayed in a displaced persons (DP) camp in V…
history: The flag was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2006 by Eddie and Judith Weinstein.
identifier: irn518472
is or was included in: us-005578-irn518935
record resource extent: overall: Height: 36.000 inches (91.44 cm) | Width: 86.000 inches (218.44 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Israeli flag made by 15-year-old Judith Wagner on November 29, 1947, immediately after hearing the announcement that the United Nations had voted to partition Palestine into 2 separate states. She was living at the displaced persons (DP) camp in Wels, Austria, when the news was broadcast over the camp loudspeakers. Judith ran home and made the flag in about 2 hours for use at the ensuing celebratory party. Judith grew up in Rudnik, Poland with her younger sister Charlotta, and their parents, Chana and Pinchos. In October 1939, a month after Poland was invaded by Germany and the Soviet Union, the Germans deported the Wagners, with all other Jews in Rudnik, to Soviet-occupied territory. Judith and her family refused to take Soviet citizenship, so they were exiled to Siberia. They lived there for 14 to 16 months before being allowed to move to Kazakhstan, where they stayed for the remainder of the war. In early 1946, the Wagners were repatriated as Polish citizens and taken to Bielawa in Lower Silesia. They lived there for approximately six months before leaving Poland with the help of the Bricha, an underground immigration movement that helped Jews from Eastern Europe move to Palestine and later Israel. The family made it to Austria, where they stayed in a displaced persons camp in Vienna for six months, and then moved to the Wels DP camp. Judith worked as a teacher’s aide at the Wels camp and attended nursing school. Eventually, Judith’s paternal uncle, Avraham, was able to provide the family with affidavits. The family arrived in New York City on June 2, 1951, aboard the USNS General Stewart.
title: Handmade Israeli flag made by a Polish Jewish girl in a DP camp to celebrate statehood