Holocaust Postal History: Harrowing Journeys Revealed through the Letters and Cards of the Victims

Description

© 2016                                                                                  170 pages

In Holocaust Postal History, author Justin Gordon takes readers on a journey, using actual correspondence written by Holocaust victims to document the steps along the way. As Gordon attests, everyday items such as letters and cards bear more than a message: they represent lives, hopes, and history. Correspondence sent during the Holocaust is made all the more poignant by the circumstances in which the senders and recipients lived and died. Holocaust Postal History begins with Hitler’s rise to power, his creation of anti-Semitic laws, and how those laws were reflected in the postal system. It passes through ghettos, concentration camps, and work camps, examining the struggles of individuals who were trapped in the Nazi web of lies and cruelty. However, it also focuses on the hope provided by kind individuals and the ultimate destination—the creation of a new state for the Jews of Europe. Holocaust philately does not provide answers to the major questions that still haunt us; however, it does offer insight into the personal, unique journeys of victims of the Nazi onslaught. In many cases, an envelope or a postcard, as highlighted in this book, is the final remnant of an individual’s life.