Renate Herzfeld Modern Family Collection

On December 27, 1810 Levi Herzfeld was born in Ellrich, Thuringia, Germany, the son of Ruben and Frederike (née Levi) Herzfeld. In Braunschweig, Levi Herzfeld studied theology and the Talmud under Rabbi Samuel Egers, where he also attended the Gymnasium. Afterwards he attended universities in Würzburg and Berlin, studying philosophy, Oriental languages, geography, archaeology, and history in addition to attending Berlin lectures on the Talmud under scholars such as Leopold Zunz and others. In 1836 he received his doctorate in philosophy with a dissertation (in Latin) on the chronology of the Biblical judges and the first kings. He returned to Braunschweig to continue his rabbinical studies.

In 1842 Levi Herzfeld was named Braunschweig's regional Rabbi (Landesrabbiner). A prolific writer, he achieved renown as a scholar of history and economics, and was called the first Jewish economic historian. His works included the three-volume Geschichte des Volkes Israel von der Zerstörung des ersten Tempels bis zur Einsetzung des Makkabäers Schimon zum Hohen Priester und Fürsten (History of the People of Israel from the Destruction of the First Temple until the Establishment of the Maccabee Simon to the High Priests and Princes), as well as Die Kunstleistungen des Hebräers (The Art Accomplishments of the Hebrews), a work derived from lectures he gave at Braunschweig's Art Club. Other works included Die Handelsgeschichte der Juden des Altertums (The Trade History of the Jews of Antiquity) and in 1883, Einblicke in das Sprachliche der semitischen Urzeit (Insights into the Linguistics of the Semitic Primeval Times). In 1879 the Duke (Herzog) of Braunschweig awarded Levi Herzfeld the title of professor in recognition of his scholarly work.

Levi Herzfeld married Georgine Salomon. They had eight children: Anna, Felix, Elsbeth, Robert, Clara (Claire, Klara), Lea, Gottfried, and Marta. Levi Herzfeld died in 1884.

Felix Herzfeld was the eldest son of Levi Herzfeld, and was born September 3, 1849 in Braunschweig. He became a banker, but also had an interest in writing poetry and in Italian literature. He married Anna Bremer of Gandersheim, Germany; together they had three children: Adolf, Ernst, and Ludwig. Felix Herzfeld died in 1910, Anna Herzfeld committed suicide in 1943 on the eve of deportation to Theresienstadt.

Adolf Herzfeld was born in 1883 in Hannover. He completed his Gymnasium studies in 1901 and then studied law and political science in Freiburg, Berlin, and Heidelberg. In 1906 he received his Doctor of Philosophy from the Friedrich-Wilhelms-University of Berlin. In 1906 and 1907 he lived in France and England, where he learned wholesale trade and banking. At the end of 1907 he joined the Braunschweiger Privatbank A.G. and in 1911 the Dresdner Bank in Berlin, where he worked as secretary of the bank's branches. In 1914 he became director of the Dresdner Bank in Kassel. Later that year he volunteered for World War I, where he became a First Lieutenant (Oberleutnant) of the infantry. For his service he received the Iron Cross First and Second Class.

In August 1919 Adolf Herzfeld married Lisbeth (Luise) Wolfes, the daughter of Hermann and Rosa (née Nordheimer) Wolfes. He rejoined the Dresdner Bank in Berlin in March 1920 and in April became a general partner in the firm founded by his father-in-law, Gebrüder Wolfes Bank und Getreidegeschäft, Hannover.

Hermann Philip Wolfes had founded the firm Gebrüder Wolfes in 1850 in Elze, near Hannover, and in 1891 it was established in Hannover. It was one of the leading firms in grain (Getreide) wholesaling in northern Germany and belonged to one of the prominent private banking firms of Hannover. The firm was a leader in the development of the cement industry in the Hannover region. In 1898 the firm helped found the Norddeutsche Portland-Cement-Fabrik (North German Portland Cement Factory) in Misburg, near Hannover. In addition to having founded Gebrüder Wolfes, Hermann Wolfes was prominent in the commercial sphere of Hannover. From 1912-1915 he was a Minister of Trade for the city. He also headed the Getreidebörse (grain exchange) of the city for decades and was a member of the city's Chamber of Commerce. He and his wife had one daughter, Lisbeth (also called Luise; her official documents include the use of both names). She was musically inclined and studied piano under Heinrich Lutter, a former student of Franz Liszt and Hans von Bülow. As a young woman she participated in musical performances. Lisbeth and Adolf Herzfeld had two daughters, Edith and Renate.

Following the death of Hermann Wolfes in 1924, Adolf Herzfeld was elected chair of the North German Portland Cement Factory in Misburg, a position he held until 1933 when he had to resign. He was also on the Board of Directors for several other cement factories and was chair of the interest group for these factories.

Adolf and Lisbeth Herzfeld left Germany in 1937; they first stayed from March-July 1937 in Amsterdam before leaving for Brazil and settling in São Paulo. There Adolf Herzfeld began a printing business. After completing school, Renate Herzfeld spent one year studying art but then assisted her family in their business. She became a graphic artist; her sister Edith, who married Jiri Low-Beer, became an artist who worked with metal and jewels. Renate Herzfeld married Geraldo (Gerhard) Modern; they have four children.