Manski family papers

Samuil Manski (1920-2011) was born on 11 October 1920 in Lida, Poland (modern day Lida, Belarus) to Isaac (1894-1967) and Riva (1898?-1967, née Jerzewski) Manski. He had one sister, Mira (later Mira Appel), and one brother, Saul. His father was a veteran of World War I and a volunteer firefighter. He and Riva married in 1919, and the couple owned a grocery store in Lida. As a child and young adult, Samuil was active in the Hanoar Hatzioni youth Zionist movement. In 1937, Isaac left Poland for the United States with the intention of eventually bringing his family over. After Lida was occupied by the Russians in 1939, Samuil joined a militia. His mother also began to plan how the family would be able to leave Poland and join Isaac in the United States, including applying for American visas. In December, Riva, Mira, and Saul crossed the border into Lithuania to meet up with Samuil’s grandparents. Samuil and his cousin Mitchel joined them a week late, and they all stayed in Eišiškės. In August 1940, the family obtained visas through the Japanese consul in Kaunas, Lithuania as part of his effort to aid Jewish refugees. In January 1941, they travelled to Moscow, and from there took the Trans-Siberian Railway to Vladivostok where they boarded a ship to Japan. On 6 May 1941, they sailed to the United States on the Heian Maru. They arrived in Seattle, Washington, and then settled in Boston, Massachusetts where they were reunited with Samuil’s father, Isaac. In 1946, Samuil met Estelle Zonn (1923-2011), and they married later that year. They had three sons, Charles, Richard, and Mark. Samuil worked in the hosiery business in the New England area. The collection documents the pre-war and wartime experiences of Samuil Manski and his family in Lida, Poland (modern day Lida, Belarus). The collection primarily contains pre-war photographs of Samuil, his extended family, and friends. Also included is Samuil’s visa obtained through Chiune Sugihara, the Japanese consul in Kaunas, Lithuania; postcards from Japan; and Samuil’s report cards.