Charles Talmazan papers

The Charles Talmazan papers consist of correspondence, photographic materials, clippings, and a family tree documenting Talmazan’s experiences as a hidden child in Belgium during the Holocaust, his father and sister’s deportation to Auschwitz, his efforts to receive reparations from the German and Belgian governments, and his participation in the erection of a monument in Cornemont, Belgium. Charles Talmazan (1933- ) was born in Belgium to Haschel and Tauba (Tania) Talmazan, three years after the Haschel Talmazan had arrived in Belgium from Cetatea-Albă, Romania (now Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Ukraine). In 1942 he was sent to live under a non-Jewish identity first in a children’s holiday camp in a castle and later in the small village of Hotchamps. His father and sister, Perla, were both sent to the Malines (Mechelen) transit camp, deported to Auschwitz, and killed. His mother suffered a mental breakdown and was institutionalized. He was liberated in October 1944 and reunited with his remaining sisters and brother after the war. In 1985 he helped erect a monument in Cornemont, near Hotchamps, in honor of those who rescued Jews during the Holocaust.