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KARL SCHNEIDER’s TESTIMONY ON THE RIGA GHETTO
Karl Schneider, deported from Euskirchen to the Riga Ghetto, was the only survivor of his family.
His wife, Frieda, née Heumann, and his two boys, Erwin and Harry, were murdered in Riga. After
Karl’s death in 1961 his second wife Gerda, née Kallmann, found his memoir, “Religiöses Leben im
Ghetto von Riga”, with his own English translation “Religious Life in the Riga Ghetto”.
This most touching document allows us to appreciate how, under the most cruel and difficult
conditions, the deportees maintained tradition and faith and a sense of community.
A selection from the photographic collection of Sibilla Schneider, Karl’s sister, which can be seen at
http://www.museumoffamilyhistory.com/ce/euskirchen/01.htm
, provides a glimpse into the pre-war
life of the Schneider family. These photographs not only illustrate the life of one family — they are
also evidence of the rich variety of the Jewish life that was destroyed.
After the war Karl Schneider came to Sweden where he met Gerda Kallmann, a refugee from
Berlin. Three letters from her parents [1939 & 1941] can be found on the Berlin KehilaLinks at
http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/berlin/Home.html
The Schneiders had one daughter, Doris, and
emigrated to the USA in 1949.
May these documents be a testimony to keep their memory alive!