Item 07: Holocaust survivors from Germany ; Vera Sklan interviewed by Megan Benjamin, 1990

MLOH 500/118

item

30/06/1990

Nonmusical Sound Recordings, Oral Histories

997102

Sound Recording : CY MLOH 500/118

1 sound cassette (1 hr.)

Vera Sklan, nee Weinstein, was born in Berlin, Germany in 1924. Before the war some of her extended family left Germany because of the rise of anti-semitism. After Kristallnacht her father was taken away briefly and then released. She recalls changed living conditions such as the requirement to wear the yellow star, the imposed curfew, the disappearance of neighbours and her father doing forced labour.

In 1941 Vera and her family were transported to the ghetto in Riga, Latvia. Later she was taken from the ghetto, leaving behind her parents, to work for about six months in a rubber factory. In 1942 she was taken by boat to Stutthof, Danzig. She was put to hard labour in various camps in the region. In early 1945, she joined many Jewish prisoners on a forced march towards the German border, as the Russians approached.

After Liberation Vera spent several months in a deserted German village before returning by train to Berlin. She remained in Germany for three years before migrating to Australia in 1948.

In copyright:
Approval for reproduction required: Contact Senior Librarian (Team Leader), Original Materials - Manuscripts
Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales and Courtesy copyright holder

Log of interview available in the Mitchell Library Reading Room -

Original Mitchell Library allocated tape number 61.