Notice of achievement received by a boy in a Lodz ghetto orphanage 2005.558.1 back
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Washington, United States
Picture postcard presented to 12 year old Jakub Lapides in the school he attended in the Jewish ghetto in Lodz, Poland, from 1939-1942. It recognizes his contribution to student self-government in the orphanage from August-September 1940. Jakub and his three siblings were living in an orphanage in Lodz, Poland, when it was occupied by the Germans in September 1939. The Jews were forced into a ghetto and at first, things were better for the children because the Jewish Council gave orphans larger food rations. But soon conditions worsened and hunger was everywhere. Deportations to concentration camps increased, and children and the elderly were often targeted for pickup. During one such roundup in September 1942, while Jakub and his siblings were hiding in a cemetery, they saw men delivering soup to the orphanage. As they were waiting in line, German trucks arrived; Jakub urged the others to flee with him, but they did not and he "saw that they boarded the trucks." After 2 days, he left his hiding place and went to his aunt's house because the orphanage no longer existed. In March 1944, Jakub was deported to a slave labor camp in Czestochowa. It was liberated by Soviet troops in January 1945. Jakub returned to Lodz and got a job in a bakery so that he would never be hungry again.
Picture postcard presented to 12 year old Jakub Lapides in the school he attended in the Jewish ghetto in Lodz, Poland, from 1939-1942. It recognizes his contribution to student self-government in the orphanage from August-September 1940. Jakub and his three siblings were living in an orphanage in Lodz, Poland, when it was occupied by the Germans in September 1939. The Jews were forced into a ghetto and at first, things were better for the children because the Jewish Council gave orphans larger food rations. But soon conditions worsened and hunger was everywhere. Deportations to concentration camps increased, and children and the elderly were often targeted for pickup. During one such roundup in September 1942, while Jakub and his siblings were hiding in a cemetery, they saw men delivering soup to the orphanage. As they were waiting in line, German trucks arrived; Jakub urged the others to flee with him, but they did not and he "saw that they boarded the trucks." After 2 days, he left his hiding place and went to his aunt's house because the orphanage no longer existed. In March 1944, Jakub was deported to a slave labor camp in Czestochowa. It was liberated by Soviet troops in January 1945. Jakub returned to Lodz and got a job in a bakery so that he would never be hungry again.
- Title: Notice of achievement received by a boy in a Lodz ghetto orphanage 2005.558.1 back
- Provenance: The picture postcard was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Jakob Lapides., The picture postcard was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Jakob Lapides.
- Subject Keywords: Child concentration camp inmates--Poland--Czestochowa. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Poland--Łódź--Personal narratives. Jewish orphans--Poland--Łódź. Jewish children in the Holocaust--Poland--Łódź. Jews--Education--Poland--Łódź--History. World War, 1939-1945--Conscript labor--Poland., Child concentration camp inmates--Poland--Czestochowa. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Poland--Łódź--Personal narratives. Jewish orphans--Poland--Łódź. Jewish children in the Holocaust--Poland--Łódź. Jews--Education--Poland--Łódź--History. World War, 1939-1945--Conscript labor--Poland.
- Type: Information Forms, Information Forms
- Rights: Permanent Collection, Permanent Collection
- External Link: See the full record at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, See the full record at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
- Medium: Rectangular, offwhite card constructed from 2 postcards glued together. One card has handwritten inscription, names, and an address in Polish on the front. The other card features a black and white print of an engraving of a painting by a 19th century Polish painter. The image depicts a family seated under a large tree with an overhanging bough. Three adults sit in front of the tree: from the right: a dark haired woman with a somber face and downcast eyes in a long sleeved dress with a full skirt, a younger women with light hair, her head partly covered,and her hand pressed to her forehead, with a worried expression on her face, dressed in a flowing white robe, and a bearded man in a dark costume with his head resting on his fingers. In front of them are 2 small children reaching out their hands towards a stick of bread held by the dark haired woman. In the right background is a house and trees with a wide stream in front. In the right middle ground are 2 women in profile wearing long gowns and walking near the stream., Rectangular, offwhite card constructed from 2 postcards glued together. One card has handwritten inscription, names, and an address in Polish on the front. The other card features a black and white print of an engraving of a painting by a 19th century Polish painter. The image depicts a family seated under a large tree with an overhanging bough. Three adults sit in front of the tree: from the right: a dark haired woman with a somber face and downcast eyes in a long sleeved dress with a full skirt, a younger women with light hair, her head partly covered,and her hand pressed to her forehead, with a worried expression on her face, dressed in a flowing white robe, and a bearded man in a dark costume with his head resting on his fingers. In front of them are 2 small children reaching out their hands towards a stick of bread held by the dark haired woman. In the right background is a house and trees with a wide stream in front. In the right middle ground are 2 women in profile wearing long gowns and walking near the stream.
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