us-005578-irn597414-irn616393
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn597414-irn616393/acquisitions/1
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn597414-irn616393/alternateIDs/1
has record set type: Item
title: Cream-colored underskirt with a diamond pattern owned by a Jewish Austrian refugee
biographical history: Herta Schwarzbart (later Stoer, 1908-2007) was born in Vienna, Austria-Hungary, to Arthur (1875-1914) and Pauline Flesch (1873-1937) Schwarzbart. Arthur was born in Terezín, Austria-Hungary, to Alexander and Rosala Schwarzbart. Arthur had five siblings. Arthur’s mother died in the late 1890s, and his father later married Josephine, who had two sons. Pauline was born in Vienna, to Abraham and Johanna Ernst Flesch. Pauline had an older sister, Hermine or Minna (later Tischler, 1869-1943), and a younger brother, Samuel or Sammy. Pauline’s mother died in 1912, and her father later remarried. He had a son before dying in 1917. In 1895, 20-year-old Arthur was corresponding with Pauline while serving in the Austro-Hungarian army in Moravia. In 1900, Arthur and Pauline married in Vienna. Herta’s aunt Minna married, had two children, and ran a candy store. Herta’s Uncle Sammy was wounded during World War I, and died of complications in the 1930s. After Herta’s oldest sister, Hilda (1901-1942), was born, Arthur, worked briefly in Germany, while Pauline worked from home, sewing for a girdle factory. Herta had three other siblings: Friedrich (Fritz, 1902-1945), Gisela (Ella, 1904-1942), and Hansi (1913-?). Pauline taught Arthur how to sew and he began designing fancy petticoats. He would take orders from wholesalers, and then both he and Pauline would fill the orders at home. Their company grew to employ 125 additional seamstresses. Herta’s family lived very comfortably, with a hired maid and vacations at a resort in the Alps. World War I began in August 1914, and as a member of the peacetime army, Arthur was called up immediately. In November, Arthur was shot while fighting on the Russian front. He developed a tetanus infection and died. The war prevented Pauline from buying material for the business, and she was forced to close. With inadequate resources at home, 6-year-old Herta, Ella, Hansi, and Fritz were placed in an orphanage in early 1915. The children attended school a…
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn597414-irn616393/alternateIDs/2
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Women’s, knee-length, cream-colored, matelassé cloth A-line underskirt with a drawstring closure at the waist. The plain, lightweight cloth waistband is approximately 2.250 inches high and is neatly folded along the top to form a two-layered band ending at a long, neatly finished, V-shaped slit on one side. The band layers are stitched together to form an inch high channel for the cream-colored twill drawstring to pass through, leaving approximately 26-inch long ties extending from the ends. Two words are stamped on each tie in faded black ink. The bottom of the waistband is machine stitched to the gathered top of the skirt’s body, which consists of four panels sewn together with vertical French seams. The thick, woven cloth of each panel has a textured, repeating diamond pattern with latticed borders and central dots. A four-inch high cloth ruffle, matching the waistband material, is sewn below a wide hem along the body’s lower edge. The ruffle has a finished hem, and four narrow, horizontal tucked pleats stitched along the bottom. The skirt is unlined and the interior body is worn and tufted from wear. There are several small reddish-brown stains on the outer and inner waistband and upper body. drawstring ties, stamped in script, black ink : Stefanie Façon
archival history: The underskirt was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2018 by Joyce Cordi, the daughter of Leopold and Herta Stoer.
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-camps/43
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-camps/433
type: RecordSet
identifier: irn616393
scope and content: Diamond-patterned petticoat brought to the United States by Herta Schwarzbart Stoer when she emigrated from Vienna, Austria, in February 1939. The underskirt was created in the early 1900s by her parents, Arthur and Pauline, who ran their own lingerie manufacturing business. Herta lived in Vienna with her parents, and four siblings: Hilda, Fritz, Ella, and Hansi. In August 1914, Arthur was selected to fight in World War I, and three months later, he died of tetanus. As a result, Pauline closed the business, and sent Fritz, Ella, Herta, and Hansi to an orphanage. Hilda and Pauline ran a small children’s clothing business. Herta was transferred to a boarding school for Jewish orphan girls, where she later returned as a teacher. In 1932, Hansi married and moved to Palestine. In early 1936, Herta began dating Leopold (Leo) Stoer. In June 1937, Pauline passed away. On March 13, 1938, Austria was annexed into Germany. Later that month, Herta and Leo married, but continued to live separately in Vienna. Leo immigrated to the US in September 1938, followed by Herta in February 1939. In September, the couple moved to California, where they began running a chicken farm to raise money to help their families immigrate. As World War II progressed, Herta and Leo lost contact with most family members. Herta later learned that her family members had been deported to concentration camps and killed in 1942 or 1943. Only her sister-in-law, Sidi, and nephew, Paul Schwarzbart, survived in hiding. Leo’s entire family had been deported to concentration camps and killed in 1942.
record resource extent: overall: Height: 28.500 inches (72.39 cm) | Width: 15.250 inches (38.735 cm)
has beginning date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1901-01-01
has end date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1914-12-31
is or was included in: us-005578-irn597414
date: 1939 February
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-camps/2030
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-camps/2
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
has or had subject: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/vocabularies/ehri-camps/1976