The Sprechers of Cologne

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Name of the exhibit: The Sprechers of Cologne

Submitted by: Marlene Wolinsky

Date of origin: March 7, 2018

Origin of the object: This book is a compilation of records and personal accounts relating to my father and his families struggles as German Jews living in Cologne Germany. It is a collaboration by the second generation of holocaust survivors to remember and record our family history.

Description: This book contains historical documents, family letters, official records (deportation, expulsion, death notices), family photos and first-hand accounts of the treatment of Jews in Germany from 1936, prior to the war until 1944. It tells of the painful road of survivors during and after the war and their struggles to create a new life in Canada, England and Israel.

Voyage to Ottawa: The records within this volume were sourced from Germany, England, the United States, Israel and Montreal. It was published in the USA and then distributed to members of the Sprecher family at a reunion of first and second cousins and grandchildren in Toronto in June 2018.

The following are some pertinent documents and correspondence from this book, which chronicle Arnold and his brothers’ journey from Germany to England to Halifax and on to Sherbrooke, Quebec. They provide timelines and correspondence with Refugee Organizations that assisted them to escape from Germany and eventually settle in Canada.

Letter from National Refugee Service to Arnold Sprecher (May 9, 1941)
Letter from Arnold Sprecher to National Refugee Service (May 17, 1941)
Letter from National Refugee Service to Sprecher family (June 9, 1941)
Letter to Arnold Sprecher from London Jewish Refugees Committee (June 4, 1941)
Jewish Refugee Committee Statement (June 19, 1941)
Letter from Dominion Clothing Mfg. Co. (June 12, 1942)
Letter to Dominion Clothing Mfg. Co. (June 18, 1942)
Refugee Status card
“Ettrick” ticket (July 3, 1940)
Camp “N” Release Dates
1942 Montreal Article “Regains Citizenship Lost For Two Years”
Reference Letter for Arnold Sprecher from the Department of National Defence (July 4, 1942)