Rebecca Gratz to Anna Maria Boswell Shelby Gratz - May 07, 1852

Kitty regales her relative Rebecca with the details of a difficult journey by coach, her visit to see family, and apologizes for not writing sooner.

Rebecca writes to her sister-in-law Ann, continuing to worry about the health of family members and friends in Lexington during the Cholera epidemic. She also updates her on her family's travels to Cape Island and the wellbeing of those in Philadelphia.

Rebecca writes to her sister-in-law Ann, begging for information on her brother Ben after the death of his son Cary in battle.

This document is a formal letter of condolence from François Mitterrand, as the President of the French Republic, to Elie Wiesel. Mitterrand expresses his gratitude for Wiesel's message of sympathy following the death of his brother, Philippe. He conveys that Wiesel's condolences touched him deeply and concludes by expressing his best regards.

Samuel Flor1 was born in Czernowitz, Romania. He talks about experiencing antisemitism, his education, and his career as a composer, musician, and a professor at the university in Czernowitz. He describes life in Czernowitz first under Russian and then under German occupation. He explains why it was impossible to leave and how he and his wife, Gertrude tried to escape in June, 1941, but failed. He was part of a brutal roundup of Jewish men, and had to bury Jewish men who were machine-gunned to death by Germans near the River Prut. After being tormented by the Germans, the survivors, including Samuel Flor, returned home. In October, 1941 all Jews had to move into a ghetto until they were deported to the Ukraine under terrible conditions, including periodic whippings by both German and Romanian soldiers. He describes a particularly cruel incident involving Jews from Mogilev, a forced circular death march, and several atrocities committed by Ukrainian peasants. Mr. Flor worked as a slave laborer in a stone quarry in Ladesti on the Bugac and in Tulchin in a hospital. He relates a chilling vignette in which Sonderführer Fritz von Rohde explains why killing Jews is a service to humanity. As the Germans retreated Mr. and Mrs. Flor and about 66 other people hid in a hole they had dug previously for more than three days, until March 15, 1944. He describes how the 300 Jewish survivors tried to cope once the Russian army came, and his return to Czernowitz. His apartment had been nationalized so Mr. and Mrs. Flor joined the Czech army. He explains how they got out of Prague, emigrated to Barranquilla, Colombia, (South America) and then to the United States where Mr. Flor continued his musical career.