SERIES 2: ORAL HISTORY PROJECT – TAPED INTERVIEWS

As conceived by Dr. Berry, the primary goal of The Survivors of the Holocaust Oral History Project was the preservation of the experiences of the Holocaust survivors in and around Dayton, Ohio. The collection documents Professor Berry's work on the project from 1977 to 1985. It also contains related materials, such as newspaper clippings, pamphlet, and books, to about 1982.

The papers are divided into seven series, each covering a different phase of the project. Most of the file titles are those of Dr. Berry's. It should be noted, however, that a title of a file is not always indicative of its content. In order to remain faithful to the original arrangement, the content of the files has been disturbed as little as possible. Nevertheless, since Dr. Berry's arrangement of the category termed "Educational Materials" included several folders of variegated items that bore little relationship to each other, the processor took the liberty, in Series Six, of combining the materials in these folders into two major groups of like contents.

Much of what is in series four, as well as in series seven, is catalogues, price lists, and like items which are outdated but have been retained due to some unique feature. Such items include illustrations, texts, and biographical sketches. Judging from the amount of letters in Box 1 File 4, Dr. Berry seemed to have had an extensive correspondence with Mrs. Eric (Rita) Kohlhagen and Mrs. Hans (Lottie) Liebermann. It is also noteworthy that most of the meetings' proceedings do not appear as minutes, but they appear in letters addressed to the committee members.

The following files seem to have some significance: Box 1 File 2, insofar as it traces the early developments of the project. It deals with such matters as the final definition of "survivor," the evolvement of the questionnaire, the establishment and maintenance of contact with the survivors, Dr. Berry's estimated budget, and the genesis of the Dr. Hans Liebermann Memorial Lectures. This file also holds the draft letter that expresses Professor Berry's frustration over the differences of opinions regarding the questionnaire. In Box 1 File 3, the resolutions are of some importance, since they clarify the purpose and scope of the project. Box 1 File 15 to Box 2 File 2, contain a great deal of biographical information. Parts of Box 4 File 1, are a biographical sketch of Dr. Hans Liebermann, in addition to the records of Dr. Little's compensation. Almost all of Box 4 File 5 is devoted to the film "Chosen to Live." In Box 4, File 6 is a Program Planning Guide for Holocaust Observances, and Box 4 File 9 contains two photographs, with negatives, of memorial markers placed on mass graves.

The entire Series 5 is made up of newspaper articles that could be of some historical value. In Box 2, File 3, The Dayton Jewish Chronicle of March 2, 1978 offers a short biography of Dr. Berry. Of some local historical value may be the pamphlet concerning the American-Jewish Tercentenary Week that can be found in Box 6 File 5.

The collection also revealed two serendipitous finds. One consists of three, apparently rare, German booklets that are part of Box 4 File 10. Respectively, they pertain to citizens of Berlin who had helped Jews during the Holocaust; the almost forgotten Buam organization; and the Jews of Berlin that were active in the underground. The second discovery comprises a number of copies of the now defunct German newspaper Deutsche Zeitung in den Niederlanden. This paper was mainly a propaganda sheet meant for the ethnic Germans (Ausland deutsche) that resided in the Netherlands. It probably came into the collection as an example of the hectoring of Jews by the Nazis. Also notable, but not unique, is the publication of the termination of Jewish civil rights pursuant to a decree by the Reichskommissar for the Netherlands. Aside from its Jew-baiting, these also may be of interest: The apologia for the German conquest of the Netherlands; advice on the correct relationship of ethnic Germans to the Dutch citizens; the gloating over German military victories; and the treatment of the German retreat. A microfilm of the newspapers, with a letter showing provenance, is located in Box 6 File 6.