“Postpone postpone postpone”
…Breckenridge Long
With escalating pressure on the German Jewish community throughout the 1930s in the form of deprivation of civil rights, the boycotting of Jewish-owned businesses, and physical violence, many Jews opted to emigrate. However, the unwillingness of most countries to open their doors to Jewish refugees during the Great Depression made it difficult for many to find sanctuary. The U.S. held fast to strict immigration quotas on Jews, reflecting in part active efforts by the State Department under Secretary of State Cordell Hull and head of the Visa Division Breckenridge Long to discriminate against Jews under the pretext that they may be security threats or communists by fudging statistics and continually changing the criteria for granting visas.
The European and British Commonwealth countries as well were reluctant to absorb more refugees. The crisis spurred Roosevelt to call for the Evian Conference in 1938. Thirty-two nations participated but no viable solution emerged. While immigration remained steady even after the Nuremberg Laws of 1935 and their sequels, the crisis would reach a head in November 1938 with the Kristallnacht pogrom: the burning of synagogues, the seizure of Jewish property, the physical violence and murder of Jews. The number of Jews seeking visas would increase exponentially.
Increasing numbers of Jews found that Japanese-occupied Shanghai was an open port: no visas or passports were required to gain entry. Following Kristallnacht, there was an explosion in the number of German and Austrian Jews and their families that came to Shanghai. Losing most of their assets to the Reich, due to an escalating emigration tax and restrictions on the amount of money that could be transferred from German banks, they were compelled to live in Japanese- occupied Shanghai’s “Designated Area for Stateless Refugees” in the Hongkew district, a far cry from the life they had left behind. Most were unable to afford the more luxurious centers of Shanghai. Having arrived, the refugees had to learn how to manage a mélange of languages, ethnic traditions, as well as challenges in their own community of refugees: differences in levels of education, socioeconomic status, degrees of religious observance, or work and business opportunities. Some were able to open small businesses or utilize trades or professions in which they had been previously employed; for example, teaching, medicine, or architecture. Others were able to open or find employment in cafes or restaurants, bakeries, or other shops. For refugees with difficulty finding employment, the AJDC could help, but with so many refugees, financial assistance was meager. Soup kitchens and group homes were created, but many refugees were forced to sleep in the same room. After World War II most of the refugees were able to emigrate to the United States, Australia and Great Britain.
The following items include correspondence relating to the postal history of stateless Jewish refugees in Shanghai, China from 1938 to 1945: 2019.2.227; 2014.1.83; 2015.2.2; 2014.1.445; 2020.1.11; 2014.1.153; 2012.1.286a; 2012.1.301; 2014.1.49; 2012.1.299.
--Michael D. Bulmash, K1966
Browse the Bulmash Family Holocaust Collection.
-
Postcard from Austrian Ship Redirected to German Refugee in Shanghai, China
2019.2.227
Postcard with one red stamp and one brown stamp in upper right corner, “17 July 1939” stamped inside box marked with large “R” in green ink, addressed “Lloyd Triestino für Passa.”
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash:
Postcard sent from Vienna to Lloyd Triestino Shipping Line (cachet) for a Jewish refugee fleeing Nazi Germany on his way to the Shanghai Jewish Quarter in the Hongkew District aboard the S.S. Victoria. This cover was first posted to Port Said, and then redirected to Shanghai. On this voyage were 300 German Jews fleeing to China, among the almost 20,000 Jewish refugees who fled to Japanese controlled Shanghai from Europe. Shanghai was an open port, no visas or passports were required, and was one of the only places in the world where Jews could find refuge from the Nazis. Many refugees fled after Kristallnacht - more than 12,000 in 1939 alone - through the Lloyd Triestino Line.
-
From Adolf Israel Weisz to Hans Weisz in Shanghai
2014.1.83
Front: An envelope with a typewritten address to Hans Weisz with blue postage stamp, and red censor markings. Back: Typewritten return address with Nazi censor tape and hand stamp. Further information: This envelope contained information on the Nuremburg Laws to be sent from Adolf "Israel" Weizs in Vienna to Hand Weisz in Shanghai's Jewish Ghetto.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash:
German antisemitic Nuremberg laws cover sent by Adolf "Israel" Weisz in Vienna to Hans Weisz in the Jewish ghetto in Shanghai, China December 3, 1940 via Moscow. Censored with B-20 and B-54 Japanese censor.
-
Postcard from Arthur Cohn in Shanghai to Dr. Siegfried Walter in Gleiwitz, Germany
2015.2.2
Front: Typewritten message. Back: 'Carte Postale - Chine.' Includes orange Chinese characters, and a printed stamp in orange on upper right corner showing a man with a black circular Shanghai handstamp over it. In upper left are two pasted stamps: one blue, and one green, each depicting a man with Chinese characters in the upper corners. Another black circular Shanghai handstamp over them. Beneath is a typewritten message. Below the message is a pencil signature. Return address typed horizontally in middle, with red Nazi eagle stamp over it.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash:
“Dear Doctor, A few days ago, I received your letter of February 1st of this year, which I have already confirmed to my brother-in-law in Beuthen these days. After several days of effort, I am now able to see your file at Hicem here. The last one available is a letter from Hicem to the Reich Association dated December 11, 1939. (Case 1154/4523) telling you that they can't do anything for you and that you should contact friends about work permits. I assume that this prompted your letter of 2/1/40. I am now trying to use my connections here to get you an employment contract, but unfortunately, I must tell you right now that this is very difficult…”
-
Immigration Record for Hinde Gottesfeld, a Jewish Refugee in Shanghai, China
2014.1.445
Tan document titled, "Directory of Jewish Refugees." Includes writing in Chinese and English and a pasted black and white photograph of a woman.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash:
A page from the Directory of Jewish Refugees, stamped by the local Committee for the Assistance of European Jewish Refugees in Shanghai, formed in 1938 by prominent local Jews with some assistance from the "Joint" in New York. Hinde Gottesfeld, a forty-nine-year-old German housekeeper of German nationality, left for Shanghai in 1938 from Vienna. Nazi policy encouraged Jewish emigration from Germany, but other countries were either limiting or denying entry to Jews.
-
Postcard from Father in Shanghai to Son in Bridgeport, Connecticut
2020.1.11
Postcard with red printed text in French and Chinese at top alongside two red stamps. American address handwritten in blue ink. Message handwritten on opposite side in blue ink.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash:
One of the few places in the world where Jews could seek refuge from the Nazi onslaught was Shanghai, China. Shanghai was an open port, and no visas or passports were required. Mr. Ehrenberg was one of almost 20,000 Jews who lived in the Shanghai ghetto. A mass exodus occurred after Kristallnacht in 1938: more than 12,000 Jewish refugees fled Germany and Austria.
-
Postcard from Hermann Schaffraiuski in Shanghai Ghetto to Atuleh, Palestine
2014.1.153
Front: 'Cart Postale - Chine.' Includes several censorship markings, mailing and return addresses, and hand stamps, as well as an orange postal stamp in the upper-right corner. Back: A letter written in ink, which fills the entirety of the page.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash: Cover with additional postage that has fallen off from the Jewish ghetto in Shanghai, China to Atuleh, Palestine. With censorship markings. Postmarked 1941. Sender is Hermann Schaffraiuski. Before and during WWII many Jews fleeing Nazi persecution took refuge in Shanghai, forming a ghetto.
-
"Israel" Envelope to Shanghai
2012.1.286a
Green envelope with handwritten address to Hugo Caspary and four stamps. Includes a handwritten return address on back flap.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash: A law enacted August 17, 1938 required Jews with non-Jewish forenames to assume the name "Sara" if a woman and "Israel" if a man. This law became effective January 1, 1939. These names were to be used on all correspondence -- private or official -- including return addresses on mail. This is an "Israel" envelope with Berlin censor tape, addressed to Shanghai, China.
-
“Israel” Envelope to Shanghai from Vienna via Siberia
2012.1.301
Tan postcard with red printed postcard lines. Handwritten address to Robert Lederer and return address from Max Israel Tausky. Includes handwritten message in black ink.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash: A law enacted August 17, 1938 required Jews with non-Jewish forenames to assume the name "Sara" if a woman and "Israel" if a man. This law became effective January 1, 1939. These names were to be used on all correspondence -- private or official -- including return addresses on mail. This is an "Israel" postcard sent from Max "Israel" Tausky in Vienna to Robert Lederer in the Hongkew district of the Shanghai Ghetto via Siberia. Note the AB censor marker.
-
Envelope from Jewish Refugee in Shanghai, China to Haifa, Palestine
2014.1.49
White envelope with red/white/blue borders. "AIR-MAIL" stamp, address, stamps. Back: Handwritten information, Chinese stamps.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash: From refugee community of Jews living in Shanghai.
-
Third Reich Cover to Dr. Pappenheimer in Shanghai from Isaak Gottleib
2012.1.299
Tan envelope with typewritten address to Mr. & Mrs. D. Pappenheimer. Includes handwritten address on back flap from Mr. Isaak Gottlieb.
Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash: This envelope to Dr. Pappenheimer traveled through Siberia to reach its destination in Shanghai where Jews were given safe haven. Nazi censor markings.