The Wolf Lewkowicz Collection

Between 1922 and 1939, Wolf Lewkowicz, of Konskie, Lodz and Opoczno, Poland, engaged in a lengthy and intimate correspondence in Yiddish with Sol J. Zissman, his deceased sister's son, who was born in Konskie, Poland, and who had immigrated to the United States as an 11-year old boy prior to World War I. When the correspondence began, Wolf was 36 years old; he and his wife, Malke, and their three children lived in Lodz. At that time, Sol was 20, unmarried, and living in Chicago. After his mother's death in 1920 and his father's remarriage in 1921, Sol had left home and had opened a second hand furniture store.

Because of his affection for his uncle, Sol retained most, if not all, of the letters he received from Wolf. There are more than 175 such letters. Many of them deal with confidential, personal and family matters. Some of them contain detailed information respecting the economic situation that faced ordinary Jews during this difficult period in Poland's history. There are also occasional references to anti-Semitism in Poland. Woven through all the letters, however, is the graphic account of a desperate struggle to achieve economic dignity by a bright, articulate and insightful Polish Jew who, because of his lack of success as a breadwinner, judged himself a failure as a husband and as a father.

The situation in which we find Wolf as the correspondence opens in 1922 is precarious and, tragically, the letters reflect a steady deterioration in his circumstances throughout the rest of his life. His last letter to Sol, Letter 178, is dated in August, 1939, immediately before the outbreak of World War II. Soon after the war began, Wolf and his then two surviving children, Regina and Yosef, moved from Lodz to Opoczno where they lived for the next three years with Wolf's sister and brother-in-law, Esther and Lazer Chmielnicki, and their family. On September 22, 1942, most of the Jews in Opoczno, including Wolf and Regina, were forcibly taken by cattle car from Opoczno to their deaths in Treblinka. Wolf was 56 years old at his death.

Letter 179, written by two of his nephews in 1945 from what was then Palestine, contains a brief description of Wolf's final, tortured days. One of those nephews, Aaron Chmielnicki Carmi, was among the final group of Jews, including Wolf's son, Yosef, sent on the last transport from Opoczno to Treblinka on January 5, 1943. Aaron made a successful escape from the cattle car carrying the closest members of his family to their deaths, found his way to Warsaw and is one of a handful of Jewish Fighters' Organization members who survived the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943. He has elaborated upon Wolf's final days and his own experiences in subsequent letters and more detailed writings that are not included in this Collection.

The Yiddish letters which make up the main body of this Collection constitute the only remaining tangible evidence of the life of Wolf Lewkowicz. It is the hope of the collateral members of his family who cherish his memory that The Wolf Lewkowicz Collection, consisting of (1) copies of the aforesaid Yiddish letters, (2) the English translations and certain other English-language material, and (3) audiotapes of the original Yiddish letters read by Sol J. Zissman, will prove to be of interest to scholars in the future and that, in this way, it will serve as a perpetual monument to his memory. A complete set of The Wolf Lewkowicz Collection has been placed with the Harvard College Library and with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

July, 1995
Revised: August, 1997


All material Copyright 1995 by Marshall L. Zissman and Sol J. Zissman
802 Redbud Lane
Wilmette, IL 60091
email: maz@mit.edu

This web page (http://web.mit.edu/maz/wolf/) is maintained by Marc Zissman (email: maz@mit.edu).


This online version of The Wolf Lewkowicz Collection contains only the English translations of the Yiddish letters. Note that for Letter 178 you can view an image of the first page of the Yiddish letter (313k) and listen to a part of an audio recording of the letter in Yiddish (audio in .au format for Suns (200k) or audio in .wav format for Macs/PCs (200k)) as read by Sol J. Zissman. The numbering of the letters is almost chronological (see Order of Letters). The List of Names describes the relationships among the various people mentioned in the letters.

You may wish to view photographs of Wolf Lewkowicz (37k) with his wife and children (taken 23 October 1936), Sol and Esther Zissman (110k) on their wedding day (15 February 1925) and Marshall, Esther and Sol Zissman (55k) in the 1980s.


1922

Letter 3 Lodz, 5 August 1922
Letter 1 Lodz, 4 November 1922
Letter 2 Lodz, 18 November 1922

1923

Letter 3a 20 January 1923
Letter 4 Lodz, 29 January 1923
Letter 5 Lodz, 10 February 1923
Letter 6 Lodz, 5 April 1923
Letter 7 Lodz, 24 April 1923
Letter 8 Lodz, 20 May 1923
Letter 9 Lodz, 5 June 1923
Letter 10 Lodz, 22 June 1923
Letter 11 Lodz, 10 July 1923
Letter 46 July 12, 1923
Letter 89 Opoczno, 28 July 1923
Letter 12 Lodz, 15 August 1923
Letter 13 Lodz, 2 September 1923
Letter 91 September, 1923
Letter 13a Lodz, 22 September 1923
Letter 37 Lodz, 1 October 1923
Letter 96 Lodz, 15 November 1923
Letter 96a Lodz, November 1923
Letter 21a Lodz, 30 December 1923

1924

Letter 15 Lodz, 1 February 1924
Letter 17 Opoczno, 15 February 1924
Letter 18 Opoczno, 15 February 1924
Letter 18x
Letter 19 Lodz, 19 March 1924
Letter 20 Lodz, 30 March 1924
Letter 16 Lodz, 25 May 1924
Letter 21 Lodz, 27 May 1924
Letter 21b Lodz, 20 June 1924
Letter 22 Lodz, 20 July 1924
Letter 23 Lodz, 18 August 1924
Letter 24 Lodz, 16 September 1924
Letter 25 Lodz, 8 October 1924
Letter 26 Lodz, 20 November 1924
Letter 14 Lodz, 20 December 1924

1925

Letter 27 Lodz, 1 January 1925
Letter 28 Lodz, 1 February 1925
Letter 29 Lodz, 21 February 1925
Letter 30 Lodz, 26 March 1925
Letter 31 Lodz, 20 April 1925
Letter 32 Lodz, 8 May 1925
Letter 33 Lodz, 5 June 1925
Letter 34 Lodz, 25 July 1925
Letter 36 Lodz, 27 September 1925
Letter 38 Opoczno, 9 November 1925
Letter 39 Lodz, (November) 1925
Letter 40 Lodz, 8 December 1925
Letter 41 Lodz, 23 December 1925

1926

Letter 42 Lodz, 27 January 1926
Letter 43 Lodz, 29 January 1926
Letter 44 30 January 1926
Letter 45 Lodz, 15 February 1926
Letter 47 Lodz, 31 March, 1926
Letter 48 Lodz, 1 April 1926
Letter 49 Lodz, 11 April 1926
Letter 50 Lodz, 20 April 1926
Letter 51 Opoczno, 28 April 1926
Letter 52 Opoczno, 10 May 1926
Letter 52a
Letter 53 Opoczno, 27 May 1926
Letter 54 Opoczno, 13 June 1926
Letter 55 Opoczno, 17 July 1926
Letter 56 Opoczno, 24 July 1926
Letter 57 Opoczno, 15 August 1926
Letter 58 Opoczno, 31 August 1926
Letter 59 Opoczno, 2 September 1926
Letter 60 Opoczno, 12 September 1926
Letter 60a Opoczno
Letter 61 Opoczno, 8 October 1926
Letter 62 Opoczno, 31 October 1926
Letter 63 Opoczno, 28 November 1926
Letter 64 Opoczno, 20 December 1926

1927

Letter 65 Opoczno, 16 January 1927
Letter 66 Opoczno, 30 January 1927
Letter 67 Opoczno, 3 March 1927
Letter 68 Opoczno, 15 March 1927
Letter 69 Opoczno, 10 April 1927
Letter 85 Lodz, 22 April 1927
Letter 70 Opoczno, 5 May 1927
Letter 71 Opoczno, 28 May 1927
Letter 72 Opoczno, 14 June 1927
Letter 73 Opoczno, 20 July 1927
Letter 74 Opoczno, 23 August 1927
Letter 75 Opoczno, 12 September 1927
Letter 75a Opoczno, 13 September 1927
Letter 76 Opoczno, 8 November 1927
Letter 77 Opoczno, 10 December 1927

1928

Letter 78 Lodz, 1 January 1928
Letter 79 Lodz, 24 January 1928
Letter 80 Lodz, 9 February 1928
Letter 81 Lodz, 22 February 1928
Letter 82 Lodz, 12 March 1928
Letter 83 Opoczno, 22 March 1928
Letter 84 Lodz, 16 April 1928
Letter 86 Lodz, 1 May 1928
Letter 87 Lodz, 14 June 1928
Letter 88 Lodz, 5 July 1928
Letter 90 Lodz, 28 August 1928
Letter 92 Lodz, 18 September 1928
Letter 93 Opoczno, 3 October 1928
Letter 94 Lodz, 14 October 1928
Letter 95 Opoczno, 3 November 1928
Letter 97 Lodz, 1 December 1928

1929

Letter 98 Lodz, 21 January 1929
Letter 99 Opoczno, 15 February 1929
Letter 100 Lodz, 27 February 1929
Letter 101 Lodz, 2 April 1929
Letter 102 Lodz, 15 April 1929
Letter 103 Lodz, 30 April 1929
Letter 104 Lodz, 7 June 1929
Letter 105 Lodz, 11 June 1929
Letter 106 Lodz, 1 July 1929
Letter 107 Lodz, 28 July 1929
Letter 108 Lodz, 12 August 1929
Letter 109 Opoczno, 29 September 1929
Letter 110 Lodz, 16 October 1929
Letter 111 Opoczno, 16 November 1929
Letter 112 Opoczno, 8 December 1929

1930

Letter 113 Opoczno, 20 February 1930
Letter 114 Lodz, 27 February 1930
Letter 115 Lodz, 17 April 1930
Letter 116 Lodz, 20 July 1930
Letter 117 Lodz, 17 September 1930
Letter 118 Lodz, 30 September 1930
Letter 119 Lodz, 10 November 1930

1931

Letter 120 Lodz, 6 January 1931
Letter 121 Lodz, 10 March 1931
Letter 122 Lodz, 18 April 1931
Letter 123 Lodz, 21 April 1931
Letter 124 Lodz, 12 July 1931
Letter 125 Lodz, 31 August 1931
Letter 126 Lodz, 18 October 1931
Letter 127 Lodz, 20 December 1931

1932

Letter 128 Lodz, 7 February 1932
Letter 129 Lodz, 24 April 1932
Letter 130 Lodz, 1 August 1932
Letter 131 Lodz, 16 September 1932
Letter 132 Lodz, 8 November 1932
Letter 133 Lodz, 28 December 1932

1933

Letter 133a Lodz, 9 March 1933
Letter 134 Lodz, 14 May 1933
Letter 135 Lodz, 20 August 1933
Letter 136 Lodz, 10 September 1933
Letter 136x
Letter 137 Lodz, 10 October 1933
Letter 138 Lodz, 12 December 1933

1934

Letter 139 Lodz, 30 January 1934
Letter 140 Lodz, 23 April 1934
Letter 141 Lodz, 31 May 1934
Letter 142 Lodz, 20 August 1934
Letter 143 Lodz, 7 October 1934
Letter 143a Lodz, 7 October 1934
Letter 144 Lodz, 12 December 1934

1935

Letter 145 Lodz, 20 January 1935
Letter 146 Lodz, 10 March 1935
Letter 147 Lodz, 28 April 1935
Letter 148 Lodz, 20 June 1935
Letter 149 Lodz, 1 October 1935
Letter 150 Lodz, 1 December 1935

1936

Letter 151 Lodz, 6 January 1936
Letter 152 Lodz, 17 February 1936
Letter 153 Lodz, 1 March 1936
Letter 154 Lodz, 7 May 1936
Letter 155
Letter 156 Lodz, 17 August 1936
Letter 157 Lodz, Rosh Hashona Eve, 9 September 1936
Letter 158 Lodz, 15 November 1936

1937

Letter 159 Lodz, 4 January 1937
Letter 160 Lodz, 22 February 1937
Letter 161 Lodz, 7 March 1937
Letter 161a Lodz, 5 March 1937
Letter 162 Lodz, 18 May 1937
Letter 163 Lodz, 15 July 1937
Letter 164 Lodz, 12 September 1937
Letter 165 Lodz, 22 October 1937
Letter 166 Lodz, 22 November 1937
Letter 167 Lodz, 30 November 1937
Letter 167a Lodz, 29 November 1937
Letter 168 Lodz, 14 December 1937
Letter 169 Opoczno, 28 December 1937

1938

Letter 170 Lodz, 16 January 1938
Letter 171 Lodz, 20 February 1938
Letter 172 Lodz, 10 March 1938
Letter 173 Lodz, 20 April 1938
Letter 174 Lodz, 15 May 1938

1939

Letter 175 Opoczno, 7 April 1939
Letter 176 Lodz, 8 June 1939
Letter 177 Lodz, 14 July 1939
Letter 178 Lodz, 8 August, 1939 and an image of the first page of the Yiddish letter (313k) and part of an audio recording of the letter in Yiddish (audio in .au format for Suns (200k) or audio in .wav format for Macs/PCs (200k)).

1945

Letter 179 Tel Aviv, 29 December 1945

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