Search for Names, Places and Biographies

Else Bernstein * 1923

Bogenstraße 27 (Eimsbüttel, Eimsbüttel)

1942 Auschwitz

further stumbling stones in Bogenstraße 27:
Kätie Bernstein, Rosa Heilbut, Gertrud Hess, Siegfried Kleve, Erna Kleve

Kätie Bernstein, née Hirsch, born on 6 Aug. 1902 in Hamburg, deported on 11 July 1942 to Auschwitz
Else Bernstein, born on 31 Dec. 1923 in Hamburg, deported on 11 July 1942 to Auschwitz

Bogenstraße 27

Kätie Bernstein was the second wife of Dagobert Julius Bernstein (born in 1890), whose first wife, Fanny Elfriede, was born on 19 Feb. 1900 and died on 5 Jan. 1924, only a few days after giving birth to their daughter Else. Elfriede’s and Kätie’s maiden name was Hirsch; they were sisters. Their parents were Hugo Hirsch and Johanna, née Unger. Hugo Hirsch was born in 1861 in Oldesloe and died in Dec. 1920. His wife Johanna was a native of Hamburg, born in 1874. In addition to the sisters Elfriede and Kätie, the family also included a son by the name of Menni Paul, who already died, however, in 1918 at the age of 22. A merchant by profession, he had lived with his parents.

Kätie and Dagobert did not get married immediately after Elfriede’s death but only in July 1931. Prior to her marriage, Kätie had probably not been working. A Jewish religious tax (Kultussteuer) file card was certainly kept for her, but she did not pay any taxes. The file card shows an entry indicating "withdrawal on 8 July 1931 due to marriage.” The entry listed as addresses Weidenallee 63 and Ruthsweg 2. These addresses also appeared on the file cards for her parents Hugo and Johanna Hirsch. Therefore, the parents, daughters, and subsequently the son-in-law and the granddaughter probably shared accommodations. According to the directory, Hugo Hirsch managed a tie production at Weidenallee 63. The family still lived there in the 1920s. In the 1930s, the address was eventually Ruthsweg.

Dagobert Bernstein was the son of factory owner Zelik (Zelka Lipa) Bernstein and his wife Eweline, née Springer. He was born in Hamburg on 12 Dec. 1890. At the time of his marriage with Fanny Elfriede, he was Department Head at Welfare Services and lived at Eppendorfer Landstraße 91. His Jewish religious tax (Kultussteuer) file card lists as his occupation "Department Head of Welfare Services for Surviving Dependants.” However, there is no documentation in Hamburg providing evidence of his work at a Hamburg or Altona public authority, as was revealed in the restitution proceedings. According to the file card, he had a severe war-related disability rated at 70-percent impairment. It is therefore likely that he had participated in the First World War. In 1938, he was listed as "unemployed.” Proof of contributions to unemployment insurance exists only until 1922. Whether he really worked at a public authority or was unemployed is unclear. At the end, he lived with his wife and daughter at Ruthsweg 2. Dagobert Bernstein died on 15 Nov. 1941 at Wandsbek General Hospital of active pulmonary tuberculosis. In the death certificate, he was described as a "retiree.”

Else Bernstein initially went to Rübenkamp Elementary School (Volksschule) and was then transferred in Apr. 1936 to the Jewish Girls’ School, which she attended until Mar. 1939. Kätie and Else Bernstein had to move from Ruthsweg in Barmbek to the "Jews’ house” ("Judenhaus”) located at Bogenstraße 27, where they lived together with one Hirschel family. Both were deported on 11 July 1942 to Auschwitz and murdered. The entry in the deportation list indicated as occupation for Kätie "domestic,” for Else "student.”

The records at the State Archive reveal only one small lead: On 25 Aug. 1942, "1 rolled gold women’s wrist watch” belonging to Kätie Bernstein was auctioned off for 20 RM (reichsmark).

Translator: Erwin Fink
Kindly supported by the Hermann Reemtsma Stiftung, Hamburg.

© Susanne Lohmeyer

Quellen: 1; 4; 5; StaH 214-1 Gerichtsvollzieherwesen, 150; StaH 332-5 Standesämter, 2245 und 153/1891; StaH 332-5, 8770 und 615/1922; StaH 332-5, 8079 und 7/1924; StaH 332-5, 4594 und 930/1941; StaH 332-5, 8049 und 863/1918; StaH 351-11 AfW, 12579 Bernstein, Dagobert; StaH 362-6/10 Talmud Tora Schule StaH 741-4 Fotoarchiv Sa 1247; HAB II 1919, 1928, 1937, 1942; HAB IV 1919, 1928.