us-005578-irn523225-irn518017
type: RecordSet
archival history: The drawing was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Michael G. Rossmann, the son of Nelly Rossmann.
biographical history: Nelly (Cornelia) Bertha Schwabacher was born on February 14, 1899, in Frankfurt, Germany to Anna Cahn and Heinrich Schwabacher. Her father, a merchant and dealer in rare coins, was from a large, wealthy, prominent Jewish family which had lived in Frankfurt for generations. She had an older brother, William (Willy) Heinrich, born in 1897. The family was assimilated and liberal, and considered themselves Germans. Her maternal grandfather, Adoph E. Cahn, was a prominent coin dealer and the family had been established in the area for generations. On January 30, 1930, Nelly married Alexandre Sasha Rossmann, a member of a wealthy, non-Jewish family from Wiesbaden. Their son, Michael, was born on July 30. Alexandre’s father was a professor and principal of the local Gymnasium. His mother was extremely antisemitic and refused to speak to Nelly. His brother, Bruno, was a dedicated Nazi Party member. Despite the family's anti-Semitism, Nelly and Alexandre's son, Michael, often had enjoyable family visits with his father's family. Nelly and Alexandre divorced in 1933 and Nelly and her son lived with her parents. Her mother looked after the child when Nelly started to work full time as a graphic artist for the Frankfurter Zeitung, a highly respected democratic and intellectual newspaper published since 1866. Around this time, Nelly, a pacifist, became a member of the Society of Quakers. On January 30, 1933, Hitler was elected Chancellor of Germany. By summer, the Nazi dictatorship was firmly established: the civil rights of all Germans were eliminated and anti-Jewish laws had been enacted. Jews were no longer allowed to work in government positions and there were restrictions placed upon their participation in other areas of economic and cultural life in Germany. In 1935, Nelly was fired from Der Zeitung due to a government decree that Jews could not work in the publishing industry. To support her family, she opened a crafts studio where she gave lessons to Jewish children. Mic…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Ink drawing on paper depicting a wide, 3 stepped patio with a table and chairs. Adjacent to the patio is the facade of a large 2 story rotunda. The top floors have elongated, arched windows and the bottom have elongated, rectangular windows. To the right is a 2 story square building extension with pillars. The round bilding has horixontla hatchwork and the square building has crosshatching. On the far right is a tall, cypress tree and a alrge, rounded, leafy tree. An opaque, white paint shades portions of the house, trees, and patio chairs. The artist’s signature is inscribed in the lower right corner and German text in the lower left. On the reverse are blue grease pencil markings. front, lower left corner, black ink : FM Rothschild'sehen Garten / auf du Bockenheimer Landstraße. [FM Rothschild Garden view / off Bockenheimer highway]
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
has beginning date: 1933-01-01
has end date: 1933-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: deu
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn518017
is or was included in: us-005578-irn523225
record resource extent: overall: Height: 10.250 inches (26.035 cm) | Width: 9.250 inches (23.495 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Ink drawing of a house and patio in the Rothschild Gardens in Frankfurt am Main by Nelly Rossmann. Nelly was a graphic designer for the Frankfurter Zeitung, a progressive newspaper in Frankfurt, Germany, when Hitler was appointed Chancellor on January 30, 1933. Antisemitic legislation soon took away the rights of Jews. Nelly was a Quaker, but she had been born Jewish, and in 1935, she was fired due to a decree that Jews could not work in publishing. Nelly taught children crafts to support her 5 year old son, Michael. After the Kristallnacht pogrom in November 1938, her parents left for England, but Nelly still had strong pro-German feelings and was not ready to leave her country. In 1939, she and Michael went to England to visit her family; while they were there, Germany invaded Poland and war broke out. They remained in England and, after the war ended in May 1945, she became a British citizen.
title: Drawing of a house in the Rothschild Gardens in Frankfurt by a German Jewish refugee