Ursula Horn papers

Ursula Horn (1922-2009) was born in Berlin to typesetter and World War I veteran Edgar Israel (1885-1966) and seamstress Gertrud Israel (nee Israel, 1888-1970). The family immigrated to the United States in September 1939 and lived briefly and Brooklyn and Indianapolis before settling in Baltimore near relatives Eric and Meta Israel. One of Edgar’s sisters, also named Gertrud Israel, committed suicide to avoid deportation. Sisters Martha Lowenstein and Frida Israel were deported to Warsaw in 1942 and perished. His sister Ella Jacob was also deported with her husband and perished. His brother Adolph Israel survived the war with his wife, Agnes, who was not born Jewish but had converted when she married. The Ursula Horn papers consist of identification papers, passports, and correspondence documenting Edgar and Gertrude Israel, their immigration from Germany to the United States with their daughter, Ursula, in 1939, and their family members who remained in Berlin and Zerbst, Germany. Biographical materials include 1939 German identification papers and passports for Edgar and Gertrude Israel. Correspondence include four letters with envelopes and an empty envelope written in December 1940 to Edgar and Gertrude Israel from relatives Gertrud Israel, Adolph and Agnes Israel, Frida Israel, and Martha Lowenstein in Berlin and from Ella and Leo Jacob in Zerbst. The correspondence is accompanied by narratives written by Ursula Horn’s husband, Dr. Hyram Horn, explaining who the correspondents are and what happened to them. The letters wish Edgar and Gertrud a happy anniversary, respond to inquiries, relate news, and inquire after other relatives and friends.