Fluss and Lipow families papers

Helga Fluss (later Helga Lipow, 1923-2004) was born on October 7, 1923 in Berlin, Germany to Max Fluss (1894-1961) and Lucia Fluss (née Berlowitz). Helga had two sisters: Ilse and Ruth. Her father Max owned a department store in Berlin. The family wanted to emigrate from Berlin, but was unable to secure U.S. visas. Helga and Ilse were sent to a boarding school in London. In 1938 Max fled arrest by the Gestapo and went to Paris. His wife and daughter Ruth later joined him there. The three of them then went to Palestine, and Helga and Ilse joined them from England. After securing U.S. visas, the family immigrated to the United States aboard the Veendam, arriving in New York on April 5, 1939. Helga married Herbert Lipow in 1946 and they had two daughters: Jane (b. 1948) and Wendy (b. 1953). Herbert John Lipow (1913-2009) was born Herbert Japhet Lipowetzki on January 30, 1913 in Berlin, Germany to William and Bertha Lipow. His father William (1883-1943) was born Vladimir Moses Lipowetzki on May 11, 1883 in Odessa (Ukraine). He owned a jewelry store in Berlin. His mother Bertha (1891-1972) was born Berta Winischki on January 3, 1891 in Vilna, Poland (Vilnius, Lithuania). Herbert had one sister, Ruth (1915-2015, later Ruth Graf). Herbert immigrated to the United States prior to Kristallacht. He sailed out of Hamburg and briefly stayed in Cuba while waiting for his U.S. visa. He settled in New York. His parents and sister fled to Antwerp, Belgium in 1938, and immigrated to the United States aboard the Ile de France, arriving in New York on March 15, 1939. Herbert and his father operated a jewelry store. He married Helga Fluss in 1946 and they had two daughters: Jane (b. 1948) and Wendy (b. 1953). The collection documents the Holocaust-era experiences of the Lipow and Fluss families of Berlin, Germany, including their immigration to the United States. Biographical material includes William and Bertha Lipow’s ketubah, immigration documents, correspondence, restitution paperwork, and photographs. Material related to the Fluss family includes identification documents and postcards.