War Refugee Board

In honor of Yom HaShoah: an interview about my research projects at the FDR Library and Museum

| Dr. Abby S. Gondek
In honor of Yom HaShoah, the Director of the FDR Presidential Library and Museum, Paul Sparrow, interviewed me about two of my recent research projects at the library. In the first segment, I discuss my online exhibit about the War Refugee Board’s effort (in collaboration with the Joint Distribution Committee) to smuggle Jewish refugee children out of France and into Spain, Portugal and Switzerland. In the second half, I talk about the influence of Henrietta Klotz on Henry Morgenthau Jr.’s stance toward rescuing Jews during the Holocaust.

My blog about Henrietta Klotz can be found here: https://fdr.blogs.archives.gov/2020/03/24/updates-morgenthau-holocaust-collections-project-2/

You can also find my presentations about Henrietta Klotz in the “Projects” tab on this website

Henrietta Klotz: Women’s influence in the U.S. Government during the Holocaust

| Dr. Abby S. Gondek

I served as the Morgenthau Scholar-in-Residence at the FDR Presidential Library from 2019-2021. I blogged about my role here. I posted about my initial research on the importance of Henrietta Stein Klotz, the assistant to Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Morgenthau Jr., here. She played a central role in convincing Morgenthau to take a more active stance in refugee rescue policy during the end of World War II. A more complete blog about Henrietta entitled “Henrietta Stein Klotz: ‘Watchdog of the Secretary of the Treasury'” can be found on the FDR library’s blog page. A chapter I wrote about her will be published in Jewish Studies in the Digital Age by De Gruyter in 2022.

Photograph of Henry Morgenthau Jr. and Henrietta Stein Klotz, 12/3/1935 in his office. Picture is from the Library of Congress, Harris and Ewing collection. Digital id: hec 39676 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/hec.39676
“Firm financeer. Sec. Henry Morgenthau, Jr., photographed at a press conference where he answered questions concerning the pending financing. Among other things, the administration says that the carrying-charge on the bonded debt of the United States has been reduced materially under the leadership of Sec. Morgenthau in the Treasury. 12/3/35.” Henrietta Klotz is to the right of HMJ in the photo. Find original photograph with archival information here. Thank you to Kirsten Carter, Head Archivist, for helping me locate this photograph and identifying Henrietta in it.
Watch my Intro video 1 which provides an overview of the morgenthau holocaust collections project, introduces you to the open access resources I used for my research & Briefly discusses Henrietta Klotz
Here you can find my 2nd intro video which provides a more in-depth guide on how to use the Henry Morgenthau Jr. Diaries and the War REfugee Board Papers


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