Letter from Georg Bredig to Max Bredig, September 15, 1937
- 1937-Sep-15
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Small JPG1200 x 1847px — 417 KBLarge JPG2880 x 4433px — 2.0 MBFull-sized JPG3590 x 5526px — 3.0 MBOriginal fileTIFF — 3590 x 5526px — 56.8 MBGeorg Bredig (1868-1944) sends family documents to his son, Max Bredig (1902-1977), as Max prepares to emigrate from Germany to the United States in the fall of 1937. Before his departure, Max plans to visit his family in Karlsruhe to say farewell.
Max Bredig had recently been warned that his company, the Bavarian Nitrogen Works, would fire employees of Jewish descent. As a result, he decided to accept a fellowship offer to work with his former mentor, Kasimir Fajans (1887-1975), at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
Max Bredig counted as one of the approximately 282,000 German citizens of Jewish descent who left Germany by 1939 before mass deportations of European Jews to ghettos and concentration camps began in late 1941. Many of Max Bredig's family members, including his sister, Marianne Homburger (1903-1987), and brother-in-law, Viktor Homburger (1888-1968), were deported in October 1941 to the Gurs concentration camp in France.
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Cite as
Bredig, Georg. “Letter from Georg Bredig to Max Bredig, September 15, 1937,” September 15, 1937. Papers of Georg and Max Bredig, Box 7, Folder 13. Science History Institute. Philadelphia. https://digital.sciencehistory.org/works/s40z432.
This citation is automatically generated and may contain errors.
Image 1
15.9.37. Klrh / Mx. 37.
Lieber Max-Albert!
Heute Mittag erhielt ich Deinen Eilbrief vom 14 d.M. mit den beiden Formularen u. meinen Fragebogen. Wir freuen uns sehr auf Deinen Besuch am 18/19 d.M., wenn auch der Abschied nachher für mich ungemein schwer sein wird. Wir wollen ihn aber nicht schwerer machen als nötig. Wir werden hier noch über Manches zu sprechen haben. – Ich sandte Dir soeben Deinen ortspolizeilich hier abgestempelten Antrag wegen Arbeiterfahrkarte zurück.
Hierein lege ich Dir als das Antragsformular wegen Heimatschein wieder bei.
In demselben habe ich auf 1. die Geburts-u. Todesdaten meines Vaters mit Bleistift eingetragen. Papiere von ihm besitze ich nicht mehr. Wenn nötig, liesse sich ja vielleicht von Dir direkt beim Standesamt in Glogau (gegen Nachnahme) noch Geburts- u. Sterbeschein meines Vaters beziehen. Von meinem Grossvater Moritz habe ich nichts. Er starb in Reichenhall, wurde aber in Glogau begraben, wo er ansässig war. – Von mir lege ich Dir hier meinen Geburtsschein bei: Da in demselben mein Vater erwähnt ist als in Glogau ansässig als „Inländer“, so sind wohl über meinen Vater weiter keine Nachweise nötig. Ausserdem füge ich hier bei:
Meinen milit. „Ausmusterungsschein“ v. 1894.
Einen Reichsangehörigkeitsschein der Deutschen Konsulats in Bern 1910 in welchem auf Rückseite auch meine Kinder verzeichnet sind.
Meine Ernennungsurkunde als Prof. in Klrh. 1911.
Image 2
(page 2)
2.
Vielleicht brauchst Du diese Papiere nicht alle vorzugeben (Bern kompliziert die Sache vielleicht nur?).
Jedenfalls erbitte ich meine Papiere möglichst zurück. Andere habe ich nicht. Deinen Geburtsschein hast Du ja wohl schon, sonst müsste ich Dir noch mein „Familienstammbuch“, das bei der standesamtl. Trauung Deiner Elter in Hirschberg beginnt u. Urkunde ist, senden. Ich denke, aber es ist nicht nötig.
Ich werde Dir heute oder morgen noch an Dein Postscheckkonto 1000. – R.M. wunschgemäss in Baar überweisen.
Du musst doch auch Bordgeld, Vorspeisegeld (Sendungsgeld) u. $ für die Fahrkarte New York Ann Arbor etc. mitnehmen bzw. bei Ankunft haben.
Auf baldiges Wiedersehen!
Herzlichen Gruss
Dein Vater
Image 1
September 15, 1937, Karlsruhe / Mx. 37.
Dear Max-Albert,
This afternoon I received your express delivery letter from the 14th of this month, along with the two forms and my questionnaire. We look forward to your visit on the 18th/19th of this month, even if saying goodbye afterwards will be extremely difficult for me. However, we don’t want to make it more difficult than necessary. We shall still have much to talk about here. I just returned your application for a worker’s train ticket by mail. It was stamped here by the local police.
I am enclosing the application form for a residence certificate here.
On the same form, I wrote the birth and death dates of my father in pencil on page 1. I no longer have his papers. If necessary, you could perhaps obtain my father’s birth and death certificates directly from the registry office in Glogau (for cash on delivery). I have nothing from my grandfather Moritz. He died in Reichenhall but was buried in Glogau, where he lived. I am enclosing my birth certificate here. Since my father is mentioned in it as living in Glogau as a “national”, no further proof is necessary about him. I am also including:
My military discharge certificate from 1894
A German citizenship certificate from the German consulate in Bern in 1910, in which my children are also listed on the back.
My certificate of appointment as a professor in Karlsruhe from 1911
Image 2
(page 2)
2.
Maybe you don’t need to present all these documents (perhaps the certificate from Bern will just complicate things?).
In any case, I would like my documents returned as soon as possible. I don’t have any others. You probably already have your birth certificate. Otherwise, I would have to send you my “family register”, which begins at the civil wedding of your parents in Hirschberg and is a certificate. I don’t think it is necessary.
Today or tomorrow, I will send 1000 Reichsmarks in cash, as requested, to your postal checking account.
You must also take money with you for ship expenses, food, and postage, and have dollars available on arrival for your ticket from New York to Ann Arbor.
See you soon!
Warm regards,
Father
