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Day of Remembrance: 20 September 1942

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Quotation from Thuringen Office of Racial Affairs to Mayor Themar, 28.06.1943. (Themar City Archives) Images: l/r: Markus & Else Kahn-Rosenberg, Max & Frieda Freudenberg- Müller (Private Collections)

Between June 1942 and February 1949, 67 Jews connected to the families of Themar were transported to Theresienstadt. The first were Georg and Rudolf Gassenheimer, both born in Themar, with their wives, sisters Selma and Thekla (née Schwab). The last was Doris Lorenzen, née Frankenberg, born in Themar.

On 19 September 1942, eight (8) Jews were deported from the city of Themar: Meta Krakauer, née Frankenberg; Klara Frankenberg, née Bauer; Hugo and Clara Grünbaum, née Schloss; Max and Frieda Müller, née Freudenberger, and Markus and Else Rosenberg née Kahn. They were initially transported to Weimar and there
herded onto a train with 357 other Jews of Thüringen. On 20 September 1932, they set off for Theresienstadt; 520 Jews joined the transport in Leipzig. The deportation train stopped in Bauschowitz as the ghetto itself did not have a train station until the summer of 1943. The prisoners had to walk the three-kilometer
tretch to the ghetto on foot and under guard.

Nanny Steindler née Rindsberg, was the first of the Themar Jews to die — 10 days after her arrival, at the age of 88 years. By the end of 1942, 10 more had died of hunger and typhus. In 1943, another 12 Themarer Jews died, among whom were Max Müller and his wife, Frieda,
 both of whom died in November 1943.

In September 1943, the first two Themar Jews were transported to Auschwitz and 19 more followed in 1944. Five were women like Else Rosenberg, née Kahn, who was taken to Auschwitz after the death of her husband, Markus, to be murdered in the gas chambers and thus perhaps more quickly dead than in the Ghetto.

In February 1945, the last Jew of Themar was deported to Theresienstadt — Doris Lorenzen, née Frankenberg, born 1898 in Themar. Doris lived in Dinslaken
 where her ‘privileged marriage’ to a non-Jew had protected her from deportation until this time. She was 50 years old.

There were still eight (8) people connected to Themar alive in Theresienstadt when Doris Lorenzen arrived and all survived the war: her aunt, Meta Krakauer, née Frankenberg; Minna Frankenberg,
 née Gassenheimer; Helene Gassenheimer, née Hirsch; Hulda Grossmann, née Bär; Rita Dressel, née Walther, and her two children and Gertrud Heim, née Walther. Hulda Grünbaum, née Schlesinger, was also alive in Switzerland; she had been freed as part of a prisoner-exchange in February 1945 that took 1000 Jews from Theresienstadt to Switzerland. None of those who had been deported to Auschwitz
 survived.

These are the names of those men and women with connections to Themar who were deported to Theresienstadt Ghetto.

MEMBERS OF THE JEWISH FAMILIES OF THEMAR WHO WERE DEPORTED TO THE THERESIENSTADT GHETTO, 1942-1945.

THE FAMILY OF SAMUEL & JETTE BAER, née Walther
Hulda GROSSMAN, b. Bär 1874 Marisfeld, d. 1948 Berlin
Anneliese REHBOCK, b. Gerau 1911 Hildburghausen, murdered [Auschwitz]
Adolf REHBOCK, b. 1886 Gehaus, murdered 26 March 1944 Theresienstadt
Machol Peter REHBOCK, b. 1938 Hildburghausen, murdered [Auschwitz]

THE FAMILY OF LÖB & JETTE FRANKENBERG née Hermann
Hermann FRANKENBERG, b. 1862 Marisfeld, murdered Sept 1942 Treblinka
Klara FRANKENBERG, b. Bauer 1863 Albingshausen, murdered 30 Dec 1942 Theresienstadt
Meta KRAKAUER, b. Frankenberg 1868 Marisfeld, d. 1955 Dinslaken
Martha KATZ, b. Frankenberg 1887 Themar, murdered [Auschwitz]
Leopold KATZ, b. 1876 Hannover, murdered 02. Juli 1944 Theresienstadt
Günter Norbert KATZ, b. 1923 Dinslaken, murdered 14 March 1945 Kaufering
Doris LORENZEN, b. Frankenberg 1895 Themar, d. 1970 Dinslaken

THE FAMILY OF HUGO & EVA FRIEDMANN,née Kahn
Sitta LEWIN, b. Friedmann 1903 Themar, murdered 22 Feb 1943 Theresienstadt
Ernst LEWIN, b. 1895 Falkenburg, murdered [Auschwitz]
Joachim LEWIN, b. 1935 Falkenburg, murdered [Auschwitz]

THE FAMILY OF SAMUEL & LOTTE GASSENHEIMER,née  Stein
Minna FRANKENBERG, b. Gassenheimer 1872 Themar, d. 1961 Halle a. d. Saale
Nathan FRANKENBERG, b. 1863 Marisfeld, murdered 06 Dec 1942 Theresienstadt
Siegfried FRANKENBERG, b. 1895 Coburg, murdered [Auschwitz]
Hertha FRANKENBERG, b. Meyer 1909 Berlin, murdered [Auschwitz]
Georg GASSENHEIMER, b. 1874 Themar, murdered [Auschwitz]
Selma GASSENHEIMER, b. 1880 Berkach, murdered [Auschwitz]
Elise NEY, b. Gassenheimer b. 1876 Themar, murdered 06 Oct 1942 Theresienstadt
Max NEY, b. 1873 Halberstadt, murdered 28 Oct 1943 Theresienstadt
Rudolf GASSENHEIMER, b. 1880 Themar, murdered Auschwitz
Thekla GASSENHEIMER, b. Schwab 1884 Berkach, murdered Auschwitz
and
Louis GASSENHEIMER, b. 1873 Bibra, murdered 21 Jan 1943 Theresienstadt
Helene GASSENHEIMER, b. Hirsch 1877 Schweinfurt, d. 1953 Kalifornien
Alma STEINHARDT, b. Gassenheimer 1877 Bibra, murdered Auschwitz

THE FAMILY OF LOESER & JOHANNA GRÜNBAUM, née Bergmann
Bertha SECKEL, née Grünbaum, b. 1867 Walldorf, murdered 30. Nov 1942 Theresienstadt
Bertha’s inlaws:
Rosa HERZBERG, née Seckel, b. 1864 Groß Munzel, murdered 29 March 1943 Theresienstadt
Hugo SECKEL, b. 1866 Groß Munzel, murdered Sept 1942 Treblinka
Ella SECKEL, née Heinemann, b.1874 Hull/Eng, murdered Sept 1942 Treblinka

THE FAMILY OF NOAH & MINNA GRÜNBAUM, née Friedmann
Hugo GRÜNBAUM, b. 1868 Walldorf, murdered 24 Oct 1942 Theresienstadt
Minna ROSENTHAL, b. Grünbaum 1872 Themar, murdered 01 June 1943 Theresienstadt
Klara GRÜNBAUM, b. Schloss 1873 Schwanfeld, murdered 25 Nov 1942 Theresienstadt
Ludwig Schloss, b. 1867 Schwanfeld, murdered 13 May 1943 Theresienstadt [Klara Grünbaum’s brother]
Lina Schloss, b. Neubürger 1873 Ellingen, murdered 08 Dec 1942 Theresienstadt  [Klara Grünbaum’s sister-in-law]
Frieda Dottenheimer, née Reinhardt, b. 1889 Gerolzhofen, murdered 29 Jan 1943 Auschwitz [Klara Grünbaum’s niece]
Siegmund Dottenheimer, b. 1887 Gunzenhausen, murdered 1943 Auschwitz [Frieda’s husband]

THE FAMILY OF NOAH & JOSEFINE GRÜNBAUM
Karl GRÜNBAUM, b. 1876 Themar, murdered 29 March 1943 Theresienstadt
Hulda GRÜNBAUM, née Schlesinger, b. 1876 Wasungen, d. 1963 Australia

THE KAHN FAMILIES
Isaak KAHN, b. 1870 Marisfeld, murdered 22 Dec 1942 Theresienstadt
Jacob KAHN, b. 1868 Marisfeld, murdered 28 June 1943 Theresienstadt
Hulda KAHN, b. Adler 1875 Bremke, murdered 18 June 1943 Theresienstadt
Else ROSENBERG, b. Kahn 1888 Themar, murdered [Auschwitz]
Markus ROSENBERG, b. 1886 Lichenroth, murdered 17 July 1943 Theresienstadt
Rosa LILIENFELD, b. Kahn 1906 Marisfeld, murdered [Auschwitz]
Hans LILIENFELD, b. 1930 Neustadt, murdered [Auschwitz]
Walter LILIENFELD, b. 1935 Neustadt, murdered [Auschwitz]

THE FAMILY OF SALOMON & KAROLINE MÜLLER, née Friedmann
Rita DRESSEL, b. Walther 1903 Hildburghausen, d. Frankfurt am Main
Walter DRESSEL, b. Hildburghausen, d. 2012 Greifswald
___ DRESSEL, b. Hildburghausen, survivor
Gertrud HEIM, b. Walther 1888 Hildburghausen, survivor
Max MÜLLER, b. 1873 Themar, murdered 26 Nov 1943 Theresienstadt
Frieda MÜLLER, b. Freudenberger 1874 Neustadt, murdered 06 Nov 1943 Theresienstadt
Nanny STEINDLER, b. Rindsberg 1854 Uehlfeld, murdered 17 Sept 1942 Theresienstadt
Emma NEUHAUS, b. Steindler 1887 Cham, murdered 1944 [Auschwitz]
Adolf NEUHAUS, b. 1879 Herelshausen, murdered 17 July 1943 Theresienstadt

THE SACHS FAMILY
Salomon HOFMANN, b. 1869 Marisfeld, murdered Auschwitz
Frieda HOFMANN, née Plaut, b. 1885 Schmalkalden, murdered Auschwitz  
Hedwig SACHS, née Sachs, b. 1866 Themar, murdered 09 Jan 1943 Theresienstadt
Hirschine BACHRACH, née Sachs, b. 1862 Berkach, murdered 19 Nov 1942 Theresienstadt
Rosalie FRIEDMANN, née Freudenthal, b. 1862 Tann, murdered 08 02 1943 Theresienstadt

THE FAMILY OF SAMUEL & BABETTE WALTHER, née Landecker
Richard WALTHER, b. 1874 Themar, murdered 25 Dec 1942 Theresienstadt
Ida WALTHER, b. Levor 1881 Barchfeld, murdered [Auschwitz]

THE FAMILY OF NATHAN & MALVINA WERTHEIMER, née Frankenberg
Milton WERTHEIMER, b. 1886 Themar, murdered 11 Oct 1944 Auschwitz
Rosa EDELMUTH, b. Wertheimer 1887 Themar, murdered 09 March 1944 Auschwitz
Jacob EDELMUTH, b. 1884 Beuern, murdered 09 March 1944 Auschwitz