Eva and Jack Lewin family papers

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 

Eva Lewin was born in Swinemünde, Germany in 1925 to merchant Theodor Lifschitz (1888-1942) and Selma Rothstein (1898-1942). Her parents arranged for her to go to London on Kindertransport in 1939 where she attended St. Mary’s Episcopalian School. After the war Eva immigrated to the United States and became a nurse. Theodor and Selma were deported in 1942 and killed in Auschwitz. Eva’s brother Hans Lifschitz (1922-1958) was sent to a Kibbutz in Palestine in 1938 and later joined the Jewish Brigade. Eva attempted to bring Hans to the United States, but his papers were denied and he committed suicide in 1958. Eva’s husband Jakob (later Jack) Lewin was born in Würzburg, Germany in 1925 and spent the beginning of the war in the Gurs internment camp. In 1941 Jack went into hiding in Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, France and later obtained false papers to enter Switzerland. Jack immigrated to the United States in 1946 where he settled in New York City and married Eva Lifschitz. 

Eva and Jack Lewin family papers 

box 1 

The Eva and Jack Lewin family papers consist of biographical material, family correspondence, emigration and immigration material, and photographic material documenting Eva Lewin’s Kindertransport in 1939, her life in the United Kingdom, and efforts to bring her brother to the United States, along with Jack Lewin’s time hiding in France and immigration to the United States. The collection also includes documents and correspondence regarding claims for property restitution and compensation for the Lifschitz family (Eva's family) as well as documents, correspondence, a photograph, and a German passport "Reisepas") regarding Hans Lifschitz. Biographical materials include a certificate of identity from the Swiss Confederation and a refugee card for Jack, a certificate of identity for Eva, a passport and identification card for Hans Lifschitz, along with other material relating to his death and estate, and death declarations for Theodor and Selma Lifschitz. Family correspondence includes wartime letters between Eva and her parents, Theodor and Selma, discussing life in Germany and England, and postwar letters between Eva and her brother Hans. Emigration and immigration materials include education and work papers Eva and Hans collected in preparation for immigrating to the United States. Restitution files include correspondence, lists, and invoices regarding claims for property restitution and compensation for the Lifschitz family for loss of property, education, and liberty. Photographic materials consist of wartime photographs taken in Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, France showing Jewish children who were hiding in the town and photographic postcards of France. 

The Eva and Jack Lewin family papers are arranged as five series: Series 1: Biographical materials, 1939-1967, Series 2: Lifschitz family correspondence, approximately 1939-1955, Series 3: Emigration and immigration materials, 1934-1946, Series 4: Restitution files, approximately 1953-1999, Series 5: Photographic materials, approximately 1939-1942