Sieraczek family papers

Jerzy Sieraczek (Jerome Sears) (b. 1936) was born in Warsaw, Poland to Henryk Sieraczek (1903-1982) and Leokadia Eizenberg. After the German invasion of Warsaw and the establishment of the Warsaw ghetto Henryk worked in the textile factory. In 1941 Leokadia was captured in a raid and taken to a concentration camp. In 1942, Henryk arranged for Jerzy to escape from the ghetto and live with the Bonczak’s family on a farm in Ozarow, Poland. Jerzy hid in an attic until 1945 when his father came for him after the Warsaw ghetto uprising. They fled temporarily to Łódź on their way to the American occupied zone in Germany where they lived in the Zeilsheim DP camp. After the camp was dissolved, they lived in Frankfurt, Germany until 1951 when Henryk and Jerzy received paperwork to immigrate to the United States. The Sieraczek family papers include biographical material, correspondence, and photographs relating to Henryk Sieraczek and his son Jerzy Sieraczek’s (Jerome Sears) experience living in the Warsaw ghetto, going into hiding, and living in the Zeilsheim DP camp. The collection also includes papers relating to their immigrating to the United States. Biographical materials include Henryk’s passport for stateless persons and identification card as well as Jerzy’s identification card for his school in Lodz. Correspondence include letters from Henryk to his family about his experiences during the war, life in the DP camp, and attempts to obtain affidavits and visas to the Unites States as well as letters from other Sieraczek family members about daily life. This series also includes a letter from a Nazi officer regarding an investigation of the land at Auschwitz. Immigration and emigration materials include papers relating to Henryk’s time at the DP camp, papers certifying his internment in the Warsaw ghetto, and papers from the Office of Military Government for Germany (U.S.) regarding his immigration to the United Stated. Photographic materials include photographs the Sieraczek family at the Zeilsheim DP camp as well as prewar and postwar family photographs.