Philippi family papers
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
folders oversize folder 20 1
The collection has been arranged as three series: Biographical, 1847-1971; Correspondence, 1938-1951; Photographs, 1930-circa 1946.
Julius Philippi (1884-1955) was born on 29 October 1884 in Köln, Germany to Emil (Elige Emil Philippi, 1850-1940) and Juliana (née May, 1851-). He had at least five siblings, Martha (later Martha Rosenzweig), Enrico, Hedwig (later Hedwig Blankenstein, 1887-1941?), Caroline (later Caroline Ganz, 1888-1943), and Klara (later Klara Anschel, 1887-1942?). Julius was a veteran of World War I, and worked in the leather goods business. He married Hedwig Grünewald in 1919 and they settled in Offenbach, Germany. Julius and Hedwig had two children, Hans (1922-) and Gretel (1920-2015). Julius owned his own leather goods business, but it went bankrupt in the early 1930s. He obtained a work permit for Great Britain in 1938, and shortly after Kristallnacht, Hedwig, Hans, and Gretel obtained visas and left Germany for London on 15 November 1938. The family became British citizens in 1948 and then immigrated to the United States in 1949-1950. Enrico and Martha survived the war. Caroline committed suicide in 1943 when she learned she was to be deported. Julius's sisters Hedwig Blankenstein and Klara Anschel both perished during the war. Hedwig (1888-1978) was born in Offenbach, Germany to Gerson (d. 1915 and Sophie (née Grünebaum, d. 1935?) Grünewald. She had four siblings, Rosette (1883-1938), Mathilde (later Mathilde Pinto, 1890-1942), Friedl (1897-1935), and Henry (1880-1945). Rosette committed suicide in 1938. Mathilde perished in the Sobibor concentration camp.
The collection documents the experiences of Julius and Hedwig Philippi and their daughter Gretel and their immigration to Great Britain shortly after Kristallnacht in 1938. The papers also document the wartime experiences of their extended families in Offenbach, Köln, and Düsseldorf, Germany. Included are identification documents; naturalization certificates; birth, marriage, and death certificates; and family genealogy documents. Wartime correspondence includes letters to Julius from his siblings Klara and Enrico, and correspondence between Caroline Philippi’s husband Karl Ganz and Lord Melchett. Photographs include depictions of Julius Philippi and Gretel Philippi’s handball team. There is also a family album documenting the Hertz family, including Henrietta Hertz, who were relatives of the Philippi family.