us-005578-irn597340-irn597491
title: Brown cloth and leather trimmed suitcase used by an American internee
has record set type: Item
is or was included in: us-005578-irn597340
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
scope and content: Suitcase taken by Leonie Roualet to France and used while she was interned in Vittel internment camp in German-occupied France from September 1942 through September 1944, and on her return voyage to the United States. Leonie was born in New York to Leonie Calmesse and Henry Charles Roualet, French champagne vintners who had immigrated to the US in the 1890s. In the 1930s, Leonie’s mother returned to France to take care of her ailing brother. While caring for her brother, she too became sick, and in 1939 Leonie traveled to France to take care of her mother and her uncle. In May 1940, Germany invaded France and occupied the northern half of the country. Leonie’s sister, Henriette, began to worry about the fate of her mother and sister as she struggled to contact them, and she wrote repeatedly to the U.S. State Department for information on their whereabouts. In November, she received a telegram stating that her mother was in a hospital in Bordeaux, while Leonie was living with their uncle in Épernay. On September 24, 1942, the Gestapo arrested Leonie as an enemy alien and sent her to a prison in Châlons. From there she was transferred to Frontstalag 194 in Vittel. She remained there for two years until the camp was liberated by Free French forces on September 12, 1944. Immediately following liberation, Leonie worked for the Red Cross and helped establish the first displaced persons (DP) camp in Paris. In December 1945, Leonie returned to the United States, accompanying a convoy of refugees at the request of the American Embassy.
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn597340-irn597491/alternateIDs/1
physical characterisitics and technical requirements: Brown cloth and leather suitcase. The body of the suitcase is made with a thick, brown-and-white crossweave cloth. The top and base of the suitcase are sturdier and covered with brown leather, and the sides are trimmed with brown leather. The top has metal buckles attached on either end where a handle could be fastened and a rectangular, yellow sticker adhered in the lower right corner. On the front is a large flap held shut on three sides by a metal zipper with a brown cloth backing. The pull tab of the zipper has the top portion of a tuck lock clasp attached to it. The base of the clasp is attached below the zipper on the lower left of the suitcase. The base of the suitcase has slim metal feet attached at each corner. The interior is lined with off-white cloth. Three pockets with elastic openings, in an off-white fabric made with satin weave are sewn on each side. There are two elastic straps sewn onto the top and base of the interior, with metal buckles sewn onto the ends so the straps can clasp in the center. These straps hold down anything being stored in the suitcase. There is English text printed on the yellow sticker, and engraved on the pull tab of the zipper and on both pieces of the tuck lock clasp. The leather trim is heavily disintegrated, and the interior is stained throughout. top, sticker, printed, black ink : Lot No. / EC11997 / 253 / PIECE NO. / executive / CLASS
type: RecordSet
has or had some members with language: eng
date: 1939-1945 December
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn597340-irn597491/acquisitions/1
history: The suitcase was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2018 by Mark Roualet, great nephew of Leonie Roualet.
identifier: irn597491
history: Leonie Berthe Roualet (1900-1978) was born in Hammondsport, New York to Leonie (née Calmesse, 1869-1942) and Henry Charles Roualet (1866-?). Leonie and Henry were both originally from France, where they worked as champagne vintners. They immigrated to New York in 1890, where they continued to work as wine merchants. Leonie Berthe was raised Catholic and had two older brothers, Georges (George, 1891-1951) and Andre (Andrew, 1894-1973), and one older sister, Henriette (1898-1969). Georges served in the U.S. Navy during World War I aboard the USS Wisconsin. After the war, the entire family moved from New York to Cleveland, Ohio. In the 1930s, Leonie’s mother, Leonie Calmesse Roualet, returned to France to take care of her ailing brother. While caring for her brother, she too became sick, and in 1939 Leonie traveled to France to take care of her mother and her uncle. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded Poland, and two days later France and Britain declared war on Germany, officially starting World War II. In May 1940, Germany invaded France and occupied the northern half of the country. Leonie’s sister, Henriette, began to worry about the fate of her mother and sister as she struggled to contact them, and she wrote repeatedly to the U.S. State Department for information on their whereabouts. In November, she received a telegram stating that her mother was in a hospital in Bordeaux, while her sister was living with their uncle in Épernay. On December 11, 1941, four days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Germany declared war on the United States. Following this declaration, German authorities began arresting American citizens in their occupied territories with the hope that they could exchange them with German citizens interned abroad. On September 24, 1942, the Gestapo arrested Leonie as an enemy alien and sent her to a prison in Châlons. From there she was transferred to Frontstalag 194 in the Vittel internment camp. In Vittel, Leonie lived in hotel-like acco…
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-camps/1982
record resource extent: overall: Height: 17.375 inches (44.133 cm) | Width: 18.625 inches (47.308 cm) | Depth: 10.500 inches (26.67 cm)
has or had holder: us-005578