Walter Schnell papers

The collection consists of documents related to the emigration of Walter Schnell from Breslau, Germany (Wrocław, Poland) to Shanghai, china in 1939. Documents include ones issued to Walter from the Reichvertretung Der Juden in Deutschland (Reich Association of Jews in Germany) requesting that Walter stay at a refugee camp in Richborough, England; one issued by Der Oberburgermeister Der Hauptstadt Breslau Hauptsteuerkasse (The Tax Division of the City of Breslau) granting Walter permission to emigrate and that he owes no taxes; and one issued by Deutsches Reich Heimatschein (German Citizenship Affidavit) stating that he was a German citizen. Walter Schnell (1904-2008) was born on April 16, 1904, in Strehlen, Germany (Strzelin, Poland) to Alfred (b. 1863) and Betty (b. 1880, née Löwenberg) Schnell. His parents owned a prominent glass and porcelain business. In 1937 Walter’s family sold their business and moved to Breslau, Germany (Wrocław, Poland). During Kristallnacht Walter hid in the attic but was later arrested by the Gestapo. He was deported to the Buchenwald concentration camp on November 10, 1938 and released on January 1, 1939 on the condition that he emigrate from Germany. He planned to immigrate to Panama, but was unable to get a visa. Walter then decided to go to Shanghai, China in May 1939 where a visa was not required for entry. He survived the Holocaust in Shanghai and worked as the manager of the General Kosher Kitchen which supplied food for Orthodox Jews. In 1947 Walter immigrated to the United States after receiving a visa from two cousins in New York. Walter’s mother was deported from Brelsau to Theresienstadt in 1942.