The procurement of the Rudolf Vrba Papers by the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum, located in the countryside, near the town of Poughkeepsie, in New York state, is not without controversy. This website would be remiss if it did not mention accusations have been made that the FDR Library wanted to be associated with Vrba’s heroism because FDR himself has been soundly criticized for doing almost nothing to help the Jews of Europe.
The following brief article by Dr. Rafael Medoff, published on April 29, 2011, in Ha’aretz, summarizes the argument that Vrba’s papers belong elsewhere and, in effect, the procurement of the great whistleblower’s private papers mostly serves as a smokescreen to prevent the world-at-large from seeing the abysmal failure and consistent reluctance of FDR’s administration to lift a finger to save a single European Jew–until finally global response to the Vrba-Wetzler Report forced the U.S. to help pressure Hungary to cease the deportation of Jews to Auschwitz.
A SURPRISING TWIST IN THE FDR-HOLOCAUST DEBATE
by Rafael Medoff
Why would the Franklin D. Roosevelt presidential library be interested in housing the papers of a Holocaust survivor? And why would it choose the one survivor most closely linked to the wartime requests to bomb Auschwitz–the very requests Roosevelt’s administration notoriously rejected?
These were among the intriguing questions surrounding the “International Conference on the Auschwitz Reports and the Holocaust in Hungary,” sponsored by the Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt Institute and the City University of New York’s Rosenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies, which was held April 6 and 7 in Manhattan.
The Auschwitz Reports, compiled by Auschwitz escapees Rudolf Vrba and Alfred Wetzler in April 1944, are the centerpiece of Vrba’s papers, which were acquired recently by the Roosevelt Institute and will be housed in the Roosevelt presidential library, in Hyde Park, NY. The Reports, which included maps pinpointing the gas chambers and crematoria, led to requests by Jewish organizations to the Roosevelt administration to bomb Auschwitz in the summer and autumn of 1944. In his autobiography, I Cannot Forgive (1964), Vrba again raised the issue of the Allies’ failure to bomb the camp.
Ordinarily this is not the kind of issue the Roosevelt Institute would want to spotlight. But at last week’s conference, the Institute’s chairman emeritus, attorney William J. van den Heuvel, hinted at the cynical logic behind his sudden interest in Vrba. Van den Heuvel repeatedly referred to the fact that some Hungarian Jewish leaders who received Vrba’s report, such as Rudolf Kastner, failed to warn the Jewish community about the meaning of the impending deportations to Auschwitz. The inference was obvious: Who can blame FDR for abandoning the Jews if their own leaders abandoned them?
That’s not all. “Until the Vrba-Wetzler Report, the real purpose of Auschwitz-Birkenau remained a secret to the outside world,” van den Heuvel claimed (erroneously). “What did the world know about Auschwitz in the spring of 1944? It’s extraordinary to understand how little was known.” Get it? The Vrba report reached the Allies only in May 1944, just six months before the Auschwitz gas chambers were shut down–so how can anybody criticize Roosevelt for not intervening if he did not even know of Auschwitz until the war’s final hour?
This perverse attempt to use Vrba, the very symbol of the failure to bomb Auschwitz, as a weapon in defense of FDR, might have succeeded–except that the speakers at the conference neglected to fall in line.
The biggest name on the marquee was Prof. Richard Breitman, editor of the journal Holocaust & Genocide Studies. He noted that the administration declined bombing requests on the grounds that “the best way to way to save lives” was “to win the war as quickly as possible.” But “this argument becomes far less convincing when one realizes that by the late summer of 1944, American bombers were already bombing targets in the vicinity of Auschwitz-Birkenau.” They were striking German oil factories adjacent to the death camp, some of them less than five miles from the gas chambers.
Jewish groups that asked the Roosevelt administration to bomb the camp were told a study had been conducted which found that attacking Auschwitz would require diverting bombers from other parts of Europe. But no evidence of any such study has ever been located, Breitman pointed out: “There was no effort [by the administration] to scrutinize the logistics, to calculate the likelihood of destroying the target, what the collateral damage would be, what the anti-aircraft situation would be.” Breitman’s bottom line: “In my view, if a successful bombing raid on the gas chambers and crematoria had been carried out, it would have saved lives.”
Dr. Zoltan Tibori-Szabo, who was flown in from Romania for the conference, pointed out the contradiction between the Roosevelt administration refusing to use even minimal military resources for a humanitarian purpose, and its use of military resources for other non-military aims. “It is a fact,” he noted, “that the American military decided not to bomb the railroad lines leading to Auschwitz because of military and strategic issues, yet it is also true that it was a whole unit of American military that was directed to Austria to save the Lipizzaner horses.”
The Roosevelt Institute’s claim that FDR didn’t know about Auschwitz until Vrba did not fare much better. Prof. Randolph Braham, director of the CUNY Holocaust institute, declared: “The leaders of the world…were fully familiar with the details of Auschwitz. This was even before Rudi escaped.” The aforementioned Dr. Tibori-Szabo seconded that point, and in great detail. He cited eleven other instances in which escapees from Auschwitz (most of them Polish political prisoners) brought news of the death camp to the outside world in 1941-1943, that is, prior to Vrba. A number of similar reports to the Allies by Polish escapees from Auschwitz in 1943 are quoted in Prof. Breitman’s 1998 book ‘Official Secrets: What the Nazis Planned, What the British and Americans Knew.’
All in all, not the best of days for Roosevelt’s defenders. Sure, you can lead historians to a conference (especially if honoraria, airfare, and comfortable accommodations are provided). You can use those scholars’ credentials to lend luster to the event and to the soon-to-be-published proceedings. But don’t expect those scholars to revise the historical record to suit the sponsor’s agenda.
[Dr. Medoff is director of The David S. Wyman Institute for Holocaust Studies, in Washington D.C., www.WymanInstitute.org]
*
Rudolf Vrba Papers, 1934-2008 | Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum, New York City, N.Y.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Museum Exterior
Collection Overview
Title: Rudolf Vrba Papers, 1934-2008
ID: 30/32/
Creator: Vrba, Rudolf
Extent: 46.03 Cubic Feet
Arrangement: The papers are arranged into seven series, as follows: Holocaust, Academic, Personal, Photographs, Audiovisual Materials, Memorabilia and Printed Materials, Foreign Language Materials. Most foreign language materials are grouped together in a series, but a small amount remains foldered along with clearly related materials according to original order of the documents as received by the Library.
Abstract
This collection details the personal, professional, scholarly, and humanitarian life of Auschwitz escapee and co-author of the Vrba-Wetzler Report, Rudolf Vrba. Dr. Vrba is credited with being among the first witnesses to report the nature, methods, and scale of mass extermination performed by the Nazis. The Papers largely pertain to Dr. Vrba’s life and work following his emigration from Eastern Europe, including his biochemistry and pharmacology research career and efforts in support of Holocaust remembrance.
Scope and Contents of the Materials
The Rudolf Vrba Papers primarily reflect Vrba’s personal and academic life after emigrating from Eastern Europe. The papers include documentation of his role and interest in Holocaust remembrance, his published autobiography, and various lectures and public appearances. There is also a great deal of material unrelated to Holocaust legacy, including family correspondence, family photographs, professional activities, and other general material useful for biographical study. Most contents date between 1980 and 2006, with very little pre-dating the 1960s.
The majority of this collection takes the form of correspondence and printed materials, though photographs, memorabilia, audio-visual materials. The collection also contains numerous items in languages other than English including: German, French, Russian, Hebrew, Czech, Hungarian and others.
Administrative Information
Access Restrictions:
This collection contains some material of a personal nature which is closed to researchers at this time.
This collection contains an unprocessed series of foreign language material that is closed to researchers until such time as the contents can be processed and released.
Use Restrictions: This collection contains some material which is under copyright by various parties, and may not be used without permission of the copyright holder.
Related Materials:
Within the Records of the War Refugee Board are English language translations of the documents known collectively as the Auschwitz Protocols:
War Refugee Board press release of November 26, 1944
The Extermination Camps of Auschwitz (Oswiecim) and Birkenau in Upper Silesia [The Vrba – Wetzler Report]
Death Camp at Oswiecim
Transport – The Polish Major’s Report
Additional archival material related to the Holocaust can be found in several other collections held by the FDR Library, including the Records of the War Refugee Board, FDR’s Papers as President, the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers, the Henry Morgenthau Jr. Papers, and several others. A curated subject collection called the Selected Documents Related to the Holocaust and Refugees draws on documents housed across these collections at the FDR Library, and is available for research both online and in the Library’s research room.
Processing Information: The collection was donated to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library in Hyde Park, New York by Robin Vrba in 2010. Archivist Sarah Malcolm, Field Study Intern William Villano, Archives Specialist William Baehr, Archives Volunteer Linda Mattis, and Visiting Scholar Nikola Zimring arranged and described the materials. Some duplicate materials, empty envelopes, and corrosive fasteners or containers were routinely disposed of during processing.
Box and Folder Listing
Museum Entrance
Series 1: Holocaust
This series includes materials relating directly to the Holocaust and associated events, such as trials of former Nazi war criminals. Some items throughout the series are in languages other than English and every effort was made to maintain original order. The majority of materials in the Holocaust series were either authored solely by Dr. Vrba or received substantial contributions from him. There are four sub series within the Holocaust series, arranged as follows: Correspondence; Lectures, Publications, and Events; Legal Case Materials; and Research Materials.
Sub-Series 1: Correspondence
The Correspondence subseries is arranged alphabetically by correspondent and contains letters and printed emails from personal friends, journalists, academics, members of the general public, Holocaust-related organizations that focus on remembrance and survivors.
Box 1
Adler, Peter, 1986-1989
Allen, Michael, 2004
Barnea, Aryeh (LAPID), 1993
Barok, Daniel, 2005
Baron, Frank, 1993, 2001
BBC, 1981-1982, 1994, 2002-2004
Benz, Wolfgang, 1997
Ben-Ami Yehoshua, 1998
Boettcher, Susan R., 2004
Bonnyman, Jim, 2006
Bowman, Stephen, 1993, 2000
Braham, Radolph L., 1982, 1994
Breindel, Eric, 1974
Brother Andr, 1994
Campion, Joan, 1977-1979
Carter, President James E., 1977
Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, 2002
Cherry, Gordon, 1985
Ciechanover, Aaron, 1998
Claims Conference, 2007
Cochrane, Don, 2003-2004
Cohen, Ed, 1990
Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, 2001-2004
Conway, John S., 1976
Correspondence of John S. Conway (1 of 2), 1976-1978, 1981-1987
Correspondence of John S. Conway (2 of 2), 1985, 1994
Countess, Dr. Robert, 1993
The Daily Telegraph (Alan Bestic), 1982
Davis, Ruth, 1985, 1991, 2003-2004
DeBruler, Roberta, 2005
Deyrmenjian, Artin; United Armenian Committee of British Columbia, 2001
Dickman, Steven, 1993
Dittmann, Laurent, 2002
Dodek, Arthur, 2005
Roosevelt’s Desk
Box 2
Dohm, Patrick D., 1998-1999
Downie, Nick and John Man, 1982-1986
Dragan, Myroslaw, 1993
Druker, Geoffrey, 1999, 2005-2006
Du Pre, John, 1986
Empty Envelopes, 1989, undated
Erdheim, Stuart, 1998-1999
Fabian, Fifi, 2005
Fabre
Federick, Gary (Gerry Frederics), 2001
Felstiner, Mary, 1997
Filletti, Connie, 1989-1990
Foregger, Richard, 1987
Forrest, Mark and Mark Cousins, 1992-1993
Foster, Mark B., 2004
Franova, Ludmila, 2002-2003
Freier, Ilene D.; Gail Herring Stranger and Pamela J. Wiedner, 1999
Fritz Bauer Institut, 1963-1964, 1993, 2002-2004
Fujinaka, Mariko, 2001
Galione-Nahas, Mary, 2001
Gaull, Gerald E., 1995
German Correspondence, 1999, 2005, undated
Germain, Joan Cecelia, 2003
Gilbert, Martin (1 of 3), 1980-1981, 2000-2001
Gilbert, Martin (2 of 3), 1942-1945, 1980
Gilbert, Martin (3 of 3), 1942-1944, 1974-1976, 1980-1990
Goldhaber, Alfred Scharff, 2006
Goldhagan, Erich, 1977-1978, 1996-1997
Goldin, Milton, 1989
Gong, Catherine, 1997
Halivini, Tzipora Hager, 1979-1980
Museum Interior
Box 3
Hancock, Ian F., 1986-1988
Hanyok, Robert J., 2005
Haynes, Charles, 1988-1989
Haynes, Charles (Postcards)
Heming, Gerald, 1982
Herman, Pini, 2006
Hilberg, Raul, 1989
Hirt-Manheimer, Aron, 1985
Hodges, Robert H., 1987-1988
Honey, Michael, 1998
Honeywell, Joan, 1982
Imperial War Museum, 1996-2000
Inbar, Yehudit, 2005
Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Vancouver, 1999
Johnson, Simon, 2000
Jordan, Fred, 1987
Kamrani, Fariborz, 2005
Karsui, Helen, 1995, 1999
Kerenyi, Norbert, 2006
Kinstler, Everett Raymond, 1989
Klein, George (1 of 2), 1987-1992, 1999
Klein, George (2 of 2), 1977, 1985-1988, 2001
Kleiner, Dr. Julius, 2005
Kluszczynski, M. Yves, 1992
Knellessen, Dagi; Fritz Bauer Institut, 1963, 2002-2004
Kouri, Isabel, 1985
Kowalski, Isaac, 1984-1985, undated
Kraus, Alexander and Miroslav Kerner, 1985-1988
Kraus, Frantisek, 2001
Krause, Dr. Hans-Joachim, 1995
Krell, Robert, 1979-1983, 1987-1989
Box 4
Kulka, Erich, 1962, 1984-1985
Kuetko, Martin, 1988
Langbein, Hermann, 1977, 1986-1989, undated
Lanzman, Claude, 1978, 1985-1987
Lennard, Jack, 1985
Leon, Robert, 1978
Letters to Rudi (Czech/Slovak), 2002-2006
Lichtenstein, Heiner, 1984, 1988
Linn, Ruth (1 of 2), 1998-1999, 2004-2005
Linn, Ruth (2 of 2), 2004-2005
Littman, Sol, 1985
Louk, Jacquelyn, 2006
Manvell, Roger, 1967
Masel, Rachel, 1986
Mazal, Harry W., 1997
Metzger, Fred
Michel, Ernest W. (United Jewish Appeal), 1985-1986
Milarova, Eva M., 1999
Montren, James, 2005
Morris, Miriam Friedman, 1941, 1973, 1982, 1987
M, 1987-1998
M, 1986-1990, 1996-1999
M, 1984- 1988, 1999
FDR Museum Archives
Box 5
Nahas, Anthony Edwin, 1993-1994
Nature, 1988-1991
Obec Lubina (Hraborska, Olga), 2005
O’Neill, Megan, 1985-1986
Ostrovsky, Milan, 1998, 2004
Ovadiah, Janice E., 2002-2003
Pallai, Anna, 2005
Parnes, Shmulik, 2005
Pearce, Bill, 2002-2006, undated
Petras, Michael, 1994
Plocki, Jenny, 1963-1964, 1985-1989
Pollack, Martin, 2004
Praha, 1993
Radio Times (Hitchcock, Veronica; George Watson), 1982
Rieman, Rob, circa 2004
Roeder, Ulrich and Hans-H. Mohrmann-Walter, 1990
Rose, Kassie, 1989-1991
Rosenberg, Walter (Recompensation Papers), 1942-1945, 1998
Rubenstein, Bill, 1998
Russin, Joseph M., 1996
Samuelson, Maurice, 1985-1989
Seidelman, William, 1988
Seidler-Feller, Rabbi Chaim, 1987
Sheinin, Dr. Rose, 1985-1988
Sherwood-Sobolweski, Sigmund, 1934-1937, 1970, 1986-1992
Sm
Smith, Steven and Benjamin Meed, 1998
Smok, Martin, 1998-1999
Smolen, Kazimierz and Jerzy Wroblewski; Directors of: Panstwove Museum Oswicim Brzezinka State Museum of Auschwitz Birkenau, 1989-1994
Steinberg, Lucien, 1996-1997
Stewart, James
Sud, D.B., 1999
Susoeff, Elaine, 1989-1991
Swartz, Richard, 2001-2002
Swiebocka, Henryk, 1996-2004
Swiss Claim, 1999-2000
Box 6
Tafler, Sid, 1998-1999
Tiefenbrum, Eran (Yedioth Ahronoth), 1998
Time Magazine, 1985
Unidentified, 1964, 1991, 1998-2003, undated
United Restitution Organization, 1989, 1993
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, 1997-2004
Valenta, Dr. Jaroslav, 1993
The Vancouver Province, 1982
Vancouver Voter Registration
Van den Bussche, R., 1989
Vermeulen, Kathleen, 1985
Vertes, Agnes M., 1999
VfZeitgeschichte, 1995-1996
Vizinczey, Stephen, 1997, undated
Wall Street Journal (John Conway), 1995
Warner, Alexander
Wayne State University Press, 1998
Wellers, Georges, 1989
Wiesel, Elie, 1996-1999
Wistril, Robert, 1988
Wohlgelernter, Elli, 1998
Wyman, David, 1976-1977, 1996
Yad Vashem, 1987-1991, 2005
Yoder, Don A., 1967
Zarrow, Aaron, 1997
Zeitlin, Froma I., 1996
Sub-Series 2: Lectures, Publications, and Events
The Lectures, Publications, and Events subseries includes writings produced by Dr. Vrba and materials related to publications, documentaries, and events to which Dr. Vrba made a substantial contribution. The majority of Dr. Vrba’s lectures and appearances are associated with specific Holocaust remembrances or scholarly conferences. Researchers can expected to find formal invitations, correspondence, travel arrangements, promotional flyers, programs, copies of lectures, and photos from various events.
Box 6
“44070- The Conspiracy of the Twentieth Century.” Correspondence between reviewers and Star and Cross Publishing House, 1989, undated
“44070-The Conspiracy of the Twentieth Century.” Reviews and Supplements, 1989, 1994, undated
Auschwitz and the Allies; BBC, Radio Times, 1982
Auschwitz and the Allies (Book), 1980
Berlin Programme: “The Role of the Holocaust in German Economic and Military Strategy During 1941-1945”, 1997
Berlin Technical University, 1996-1997
Blue Mountain Community College. Holocaust Memorial Lecture: “Witness to Auschwitz” and “Money and the Holocaust”, 1992-1994
Boston College Law School. The Holocaust/Human Rights Research Project, 1988
Box 7
Book World, 2001
Canadian Broadcast Company Untitled, 1985, undated
CBC. Man Alive Series. “Witness to Auschwitz”, 1996-1999
Colloque International. Totalitarismes, Crimes et G, 1966-1967, 1985-1989, 1998-1999
Congregation Emanu-El Yom Ha Shoah Commemoration, 1939-1945, 1949, 1997, undated
“Die Bedeutung des Holocaust f, 1941, 2001, undated
Die Missachtete Warung Betrachtungen, 1994-1996
“Escape from Auschwitz” Correspondence with Foreign Publishers, 1985-1986
“The Extermination Camps of Auschwitz (Oswiecim) and Birkenau in Upper Silesia” and “The Polish Majors Report” collectively known as “The Auschwitz Protocols”, 1944, 1979
“Footnote to the Auschwitz Report” Draft 3., 1991
Hamburg Institut fur Sozialforschung, 1997-1998
History of the Second World War. Volume 5, Number 13. “The Camps, An Inside View” interview with Roger Manwell, 1968
Holocaust Center of Northern California Yom Hashoah, 1997-1998
Holocaust Memorial Center. Fifth Anniversary Dinner, 1989
“I Cannot Forgive” Correspondence and Supplements, 1963-1964, 1985-1986, 1998-2005
“I Cannot Forgive” Correspondence with Alison Leslie Gold of Scholastic Publishing, 1999
“I Cannot Forgive” General File, 1963, 1988-1989, 1996
“I Escaped from Auschwitz” Supplements and Correspondence, 1967, 1986, 1993-1998, 2002
Box 8
Indianapolis Jewish Community Relations Council Holocaust Memorial Service, 1990
International Scholars’ Conference on the Holocaust in Hungary. “The Preparations for the Holocaust in Hungary: An Eyewitness Account.” The Holocaust in Hungary Fifty Years Later, 1949, 1991-1997, undated
Jewish Currents. Volume 20 Number 3. “Footnote to the Auschwitz Report.”, 1944-1945, 1966
Jewish Federation of Edmonton. “The Role of the Holocaust in German Economic and Military Strategy 1941-1945” Kristallnacht the 50th Anniversary (1 of 2), 1986-1988
Jewish Federation of Edmonton. “The Role of the Holocaust in German Economic and Military Strategy 1941-1945” Kristallnacht the 50th Anniversary (2 of 2), 1988
Misc./General, 1977, 1990, 1997, 2002, 2004
Montreal Holocaust Memorial Center: “The Role of the Regular German Army in the Holocaust”, 1986
Montreal Holocaust Memorial Center: Holocaust Education Series, 2005
Nature. Volume 350. Issue 6320. Letter to the Editor., 1991
Nassau Community College. The 29th Annual Scholars Conference on The Holocaust and the Churches. The Burdens of History: Post-Holocaust Generations in Dialogue., 1999
“Nazi Genetics as Law: The Ideological Backbone of the Holocaust.” St. Mary’s Church., 2001
Nazi Racial Policy In Its Relation to Military Stategy: The Final Phase, 1966
“On the Genesis of the Vrba-Wetzler Report”, 1975-1976, 1994
“The Nazi’s War, the Money and the Jews. The Role of the Holocaust in German Economic and Military Strategy during 1941-1945”
“On the ‘Leuchter Report’ and the Gas Chambers in Auschwitz” by Georges Wellers. Translated by Rudolph Vrba., 1988-1989
One World Human Rights Festival. Prauge, Czech Republic., 2000-2003
Państwowe Muzeum Auschwitz-Birkeneau w. Oświęcim, 2004
Box 9
“Personal Memories of S.S. Doctors of Medicine in Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II (Birkenau)”, 1989-1992, undated
“Preparation for the Holocaust in Hungary: An Eyewitness Account” (in Hebrew) (1 of 2), 1993-1995
“Preparation for the Holocaust in Hungary: An Eyewitness Account” (in Hebrew) (2 of 2), 1984, 1993-1994
Radio- France Interview, 1987
“The Role of the German Medical Profession in Auschwitz: An Eyewitness Account” (1 of 2)
“The Role of the German Medical Profession in Auschwitz: An Eyewitness Account” (2 of 2), 1942, 1997, undated
“The Role of the Holocaust in German Economy and Military Strategy During 1941-1945”
“The Role of the Holocaust in German Military Strategy: An Eyewitness Account”
Rotary Club of Chilliwack, 1991
Shelter Rock Jewish Center, 1997
Sniegon, Tomas. Odpustit Nemoze a Zabudnut Nechce, 2000, undated
Stanford University. “Resisting Evil: A Personal Account.” Faculty/Graduate Student Colloquia Series, 1996-1997
State University of New York at Albany. Select Seminar on the Holocaust., 1986-1989, undated
T, 2002
University of Alberta. “The Role of the Holocaust in German Military Strategy” and “The Role of the German Medical Profession in Auschwitz”, 2002-2004
Box 10
University of Cincinnati. “Money and the Holocaust.” National Day of Remembrance of the Holocaust., 1993
University of Haifa. Honorary Degree Ceremony, 1998-1999
University of Haifa. War, Morality and Deception- The Germans and the Jews, 1998
University of Kansas. “War, Morality, and Deception: An Auschwitz Perspective”, 1966, 1998-2001
Untitled. (Robin’s title: “Hubert Pfocal I think with comments by Rudi”)
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. What Was Known in Hungary about the Holocaust? “Preparations for the Holocaust in Hungary revealed but not Heralded”, 1993-1994
U.S. Holocaust Research Institute. “Preparations for the Holocaust in Hungary Revealed but no Heralded.” Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Deportation of Hungarian Jewry., 1994
Vancouver Holocaust Centre Society and State of Israel Bonds., 1999
Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre. 25th Annual High School Symposium on the Holocaust. “Nazi Genetics as Law: The Ideological Background of the Holocaust”, 2000
Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre. “The Role of the Holocaust in German Economic and Military Strategy During 1941-1945.”, 1996-1997
Vancouver Sun, 2001, undated
Vrba: A Documentary Film, 1966, 1992-1994
“War, Morality, and Deception-the Germans and the Jews (1939-1945)”, 1998
Whitman College. “Money and the Holocaust: The Economies of Genocide” and “Personal Memories of S.S. Doctors at Auschwitz”, 1985, 1993-1994
Winnipeg Jewish Community Council. Yom Hashoah and Information Radio., 1993
Zentrale, 2005-2006
Sub-Series 3: Legal Case Materials
The files within this sub-series relate to Dr. Vrba’s role in the trials and legal cases of former Nazis and Holocaust deniers. Dr. Vrba’s role in these trials most often involved expert testimony either delivered from the stand or submitted as written statements as evidence for the prosecution. Materials include case-related correspondence and news clippings. Correspondents include other Holocaust survivors and Jewish advocacy groups, and the letters demonstrate the lengths to which Dr. Vrba went to see that former Nazi party members were prosecuted. Legal materials related to cases that never went to trial (such as potential lawsuits against Holocaust deniers) are included as well.
Box 10
Butz, Arthur R. (U.S.), 1977-1979, 1984
Butz, Arthur R. (U.S.) Clippings, 1964, 1974-1988
Box 11
Citron, Sabina (Letters), 1993-1994
Graf, Otto, 1963
Kaufman, S., 1964
Kirschbaum, Joseph (Canada) (1 of 2), 1962-1963, 1980-1981, 1986-1989
Kirschbaum, Joseph (Canada) (2 of 2), 1940, 1985, 1989
Kirschbaum, Joseph (Canada) Clippings and Supplements (1 of 2), 1988-1990, 2005
Kirschbaum, Joseph (Canada) Clippings and Supplements (2 of 2), 1980, 1988-1992
Koenig, Ernst August (Germany), 1987-1990
Kuhnemann, Heinrich (Germany), 1989-1991
Lipschiz, Hans (Antanas Lipsys) U.S. Immigration Court. Chicago, IL. File A10682861, 1982-1983
The Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration (Canada) v. Josef Nemsila, 1990
Monus, Aron (Hungary) Decision Number 0103-3. Vh.18148/1999/5, 2005-2006
Polhora-Pomffy, Mikulas (Austria) Reference Number 33 Vr 193/92, 1990-1994
Zundel, Ernst (Canada), 1985-1988
Zundel, Ernst (Canada) Clippings (1 of 4), 1985
Zundel, Ernst (Canada) Clippings (2 of 4), 1985-1986
Box 12
Zundel, Ernst (Canada) Clippings (3 of 4), 1985
Zundel, Ernst (Canada) Clippings (4 of 4), 1985
Zundel, Ernst (Canada) Trial Transcript, 1985
Sub-Series 4: Research Materials
The Research Materials subseries primarily consists of newspaper clippings, journal articles, and letters collected by Vrba concerning Holocaust research. The majority of the subseries is housed in fourteen general research folders. Researchers can also expect to find information on Holocaust museums within this subseries.
Box 12
Ben Ami, Yehoshua Erno Weisz “Past and Present”, 1992
General (1 of 14), 1963, 1978, 1994-2005
General (2 of 14), 1977-1981, 1985, 1991-1992, 2004-2006, undated
General (3 of 14), 1942-1944, 1964, 1972-1973, 1979, 1985, 1989, 2005
General (4 of 14), 1944, 1996-1997, 2003-2005, undated
General (5 of 14), 1942, 1981-1982, 1990-1992, undated
Box 13
General (6 of 14), 1944, 1956, 1989, 2006, undated
General (7 of 14), 1979-1987, 1998-2001, undated
General (8 of 14), 1979-1985, 1991, 2000, 2005, undated
General (9 of 14), 1978, 1982, 1985, 1991, 2000
General (10 of 14), 1977, 1981, 1986-1987, 1994, 1999, undated
General (11 of 14), 1963-1964, 1974-1981, 1985-1989
Box 14
General (12 of 14), 1979, 1990, 2001, 2008
General (13 of 14), 1981, 1987, 2000-2002, undated
General (14 of 14), 1966, 1996-2005
Newspaper Clippings, 1977-1982, 1986-1994, 1999-2005, undated
Halbrohr, Peter “A Statement” (1 of 2), 1990-1991
Halbrohr, Peter “A Statement” (2 of 2), 1990-1991
Hayes, Peter “Profits and Persecution: German Big Business and the Holocaust”, 1998
Holocaust Museums (1 of 2), 2001- 2005
Holocaust Museums (2 of 2), 2001-2006
Series 2: Academic
The academic papers contain correspondence with professional colleagues, paraphernalia from academic conferences, and requests to speak at said conferences. Also included are papers related to Dr. Vrba’s time at the University of British Columbia, his curriculum vitae, and his academic awards. This series also contains academic papers written by Vrba as well as other scholarly papers and journals related to his field of study. Some of these papers are printed in foreign languages. Vrba’s research files related to biochemistry are also included in this series.
Box 15
Abstracts of Internal Neurochemistry Symposium on Enzymic Activity of the Central Nervous System, 1962
Acta Physiologica Polonica, 1964
Adler, Peter, 2001
American Journal of Physiology, 1974
Application 58, 1967, 1973-1975
Baylor College of Medicine, 1970-1972
Benmouyal, Elie, 1973
Biochemical Journal, 1962, 1966-1970, 2000
Biochemical Pharmacology, 1966
Biochemical Society (The), 1948, 1961-1971, undated
Biochemist (The), 1998
Business Cards and Contact Information, 1960, 1965
Canadian Federation of Biological Societies, 1987-1988
Canadian Journal of Biochemistry, 1971-1973, 1982
Carleton, Gajdusek D., 2005
Charest, David, 1997-1998
Chemical Pathology of the Nervous System, 1961
Collection Czech
Correspondence Related to Vrba’s Appointment as Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia, 1967-1983
Cruelty to Animals Act, 1964
Curriculum Vitae, Publication Lists, and Resume, 1993, 1997-1999, 2003
Curriculum Vitae, Publication Lists, and Resume 1960-1963, 1993, 2003
Curriculum Vitae, Publication Lists, and Resume, 1967, 1993, undated
Derek Richter: Life in Research, 1989
Documents Related to Israel, 1959- 1962, 1966, undated
Box 16
Experientia, 1958
Fabre, Henri, 1995-1998
Fodor, J. George, 1997
Foreign Language Scientific Publications (1 of 4), 1951-1956
Foreign Language Scientific Publications (2 of 4), 1951-1957
Foreign Language Scientific Publications (3 of 4), 1956-1957, 1971-1972, undated
Foreign Language Scientific Publications (4 of 4), 1953-1957, 1971-1972, 1996, undated
Goethe Institut, 1999-2000
Godin, Dr. D.V., 1999
Grant Application: Tumor Related Pathways of Glucose Carbon in Vivo, 1973
Haley, Dr. L. Correspondence Concerning Dr. Etela Neumann, 1989
Immunochemistry, 1976
International Society for Neurochemistry, 1976, undated
Journal of Endocrinology, 1967
Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry, 1985
Journal of Neurochemistry, 1955-1962
Journal of Physiology, 1965
Klein, George, 1985-1989
Box 17
Lancet (The), 1962, 1988
Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 1973-1976
Medical Research Council, 1960-1968, 1974-1977, 1982
Medical Sciences, 1975
Medical Science without Compassion “Personal Memories of Actions of SS-Doctors of Medicine in Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II (Birkenau)”, 1992
Metabolism of the Nervous System, 1957
Miscellaneous, 1965, undated
M, 1985-1987, 1997-2001
Murphy, Bruce D., 1986-1988
National Health Service Regulations, 1967
National Westminister Bank, 1990
Nature, 1955-1958, 1962-1964
New England Journal of Medicine, 1975
Nineth International Congress of Biochemistry, 1973
Pharmazeutisches, 1971-1972, undated
Proc. Con. Fed. Bio. Soc., 1972
Proceedings of the Federation of European Biochemical Societies, 1972
Protein Metabolism of the Nervous System, 1961, 1967-1970
Ren, 1983, 1990, undated
Republic of Czechoslavakia Records, 1945-1949, 1955
Requests for Papers, 1965-1967
Research File (1 of 4), 1978, 1985-1994
Research File (2 of 4), 1976, 1980, 1986-1989, 1993-2001
Box 18
Research File (3 of 4), 1985, 1991, undated
Research File (4 of 4), 1990-1994, undated
“Revascularization of Femorpopliteal Disease”, 1995
Review of Czechoslovak Medicine
Seiler, Nikolaus, 1987-1990, undated
Sigma Xi, 1983
Symposium on Interaction of Drugs and Subcellular Components in Animal Cells, 1967
Thank-you Letters, 1960-1961, 1965-1967
Third International Neurochemical Symposium, 1958-1961
Thomason, Conrad, 1993, 2003
Travel Information, 1965, 1985, undated
Trek, 2006
Tumor Papers, 1988-1989
UBC Medicine, 2006
University of British Columbia Administrative File (1 of 2), 1959, 1973, 1982, 1986-1989, 1997-1999, 2003-2005
University of British Columbia Administrative File (2 of 2), 1967-1969, 1977, 1986-1990, 2002-2006, undated
University of British Columbia Professors Emeriti, 1995-1998, 2002-2005
University of British Columbia Publications, 1997, 2005-2006
University of British Columbia Reports, 1997, 2001
University Envelopes, 1976, undated
University of Haifa, 1998
University of Saskatchewan Annual Research Meeting, 1972
Series 3: Personal
This series documents personal interactions with friends, family, admirers, and legal or business organizations. Most items in this series are either personal and private discussions of family matters, or official documents including immigration and naturalization papers, other government documents, financial materials, and items related to Dr. Vrba’s health. Items relating to Vrba’s daily schedule, as well as his family and social life may also be found in this series. Many of Dr. Vrba’s personal friends were also scholars who engaged in the study of the Holocaust; the correspondents in this series often overlaps with the correspondents found in the Holocaust series, but the items in this series are primarily convened with the personal and social life of Dr. Vrba. The series also includes a large selection of newspaper clippings, biographical materials, and obituaries.
Box 19
Arts Club, 1995-1998, 2002-2003
Authors’ Club, 1965-1967
Biographies, Newspapers, and Clippings. English. (1 of 5), 1964, 1974, 1982-2005
Biographies, Newspapers, and Clippings. English. (2 of 5), 1982-1985, 1989-1998, undated
Biographies, Newspapers, and Clippings. English (3 of 5), 1983, 1988-1989, 1994-1998, 2005-2006
Biographies, Newspapers, and Clippings. English (4 of 5), 2006
Biographies, Newspapers, and Clippings. English (5 of 5), 2005-2008
Biographies, Newspapers, and Clippings. Foreign Language., 1974, 1988-1991, 1995-2001, 2005-2006, undated
Box 20
Bomber, Gil, 2002
Bryant, Gillian, 1963, 1967
Canadian Immigration, 1966, 1977, undated
Correspondence. Bachelard, Herman, 2002-2004
Correspondence. Brauner, Edith, 1998
Correspondence. Brunovsky, Josef, 1998
Correspondence. Calderon, Lici and Sam, 1983-1985, 1988-1989, 1998
Correspondence. De Rothschild, Batsheva, 1985-1986
Correspondence. Drabek, Dr. Jan, 1997
Correspondence. Duchovni, Ehud, 1998
Correspondence. DuPr, 1996-1998, 2004, undated
Correspondence. Fabian, Ivan, 1997
Correspondence. Gal, Joan, 1997, 1998
Correspondence- General (1 of 4), 1961, 1965-1967, 1977, 1982-1985, 2004-2005, undated
Correspondence- General (2 of 4), 1962-1968, undated
Correspondence- General (3 of 4), 1962-1968, 1982, 2006, undated
Correspondence- General (4 of 4), 1980-1982, 1987-1990, 1994, 1999-2006, undated
Correspondence- General, Foreign Language (1 of 2), 1986-1992, 1997, 2000-2002, 2006, ND
Correspondence- General, Foreign Language (2 of 2), 1962-1968, 1978, 1981-3, 2000, 2004-2005, undated
Box 21
Correspondence. Goddard, Theodore, 1987, 1998
Correspondence. Hilton, Gerta, 1998
Correspondence. Izsak, Judith, 1986
Correspondence. Kamenicka, Helena, 1985-1990
Correspondence. Lambert, Betty, 1979, undated
test maybe should be closed, very personal letters
Correspondence. McKay, Paul
Correspondence. Meadows, Stanley, 1985-1986
Correspondence. Philippe Cywan, 1967-1968
Correspondence. Stefancik, Milan, 1999
Correspondence. Thomason, Conrad, 1997, 2003-2005
Correspondence. Trestikova, Helena, 1999-2000, undated
Correspondence. Unglik, Gilles, 2001, 2006
Correspondence. Urstein, Dennis, 1998
Correspondence. Venasova, Ivana, 2000
Correspondence. Vogel, Eva M., 2000
Correspondence. Zelena, Miluse, 1996
Correspondence. Zeman, Laco, 1995-2000, 2004
Correspondence. Zola, Benjamin E.
Custody of Helena and Zuzana Vrbov, 1956-1968
Documents, Canada, 1967, 1972, 2003
Documents, Czechosolvak Republic, 1942-1949, 1951-1989, 1963, 1990, 1998, undated
Documents, United Kingdom, 1948, 1966
Documents, United States, 1973-1975, 1967, 2003
Driving Licence (United Kingdom), 1967, undated
F.C. Finance Limited, 1964-1967
Hidden Heroes of the Holocaust. Teacher Lesson Plans by Christina Mic
Last Will and Testament, 1967
Lease- 13 Eaton Court, Surrey. England, 1965-1967
Life Insurance, Canada. Sun Life, 1967, undated
Box 22
Life Insurance, Switzerland, 1966-1967
Life Insurance, U.K., 1963
Medical, 2004-2005, undated
Miscellaneous, 1967-1968, 1992, 1998-2000, 2005, undated
Naturalization, United Kingdom, 1962-1966
The Order of Canada (1 of 2), 1990-2000, 2010
The Order of Canada (2 of 2), 1990-2000, 2010
Order of White Double-Cross- Slovak Republic, 2006-2008
Palatinus, G.m.b.H., 1985-1988
Stuart, Lyle, 2001, 2005
United States Immigration, 1966, 1967
Visa-Czech Republic, 1993-1995
Vrba, Robin, 1987, 1999-2002, 2006
Vrba, Robin. Correspondence-Passing of Rudolf Vrba (1 of 3), 2001, 2005-2008, undated
Vrba, Robin. Correspondence-Passing of Rudolf Vrba (2 of 3), 2006-2008, undated
Vrba, Robin. Correspondence-Passing of Rudolf Vrba (3 of 3), 2005-2006
Box 23
Vrbova, Helena (1 of 3), 1981-1988
Vrbova, Helena (2 of 3), 1982
Vrbova, Helena (3 of 3), 1990
Vrbova, Zuza, 2004-2007, undated
Wikipedia, 2006, undated
Series 4: Photographs
(Containers 42-49) This series contains Dr. Vrba’s photograph collection, including both personal and professional materials. The vast majority of photographs depict family social events, and nearly all individuals are unidentified. There are also a number of images depicting Holocaust remembrance locations and events. All photographs are arranged in rough chronological order. A preliminary inventory is available upon request.
Series 5: Audiovisual Materials
(Containers 50-51) This series contains audio and video recordings related to Dr. Vrba’s life and work. Most are recordings of Dr. Vrba’s lectures and public appearances. Materials are unarranged and available as original media only. A preliminary inventory is available upon request. Researchers wishing to access these recordings should work with an archivist to evaluate feasibility of playback and other access restrictions on a case-by-case basis.
Series 6: Memorabilia and Printed Materials
(Containers 52-56) This series contains framed certificates, medals, and other distinguished honors awarded to Dr. Vrba, along with miscellaneous ephemera.
Series 7: Foreign Language Materials
(Containers 57-59, closed for privacy concerns) This series contains material in a variety of foreign languages related to Dr. Vrba’s work, primarily concerning the Holocaust.
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