Margot Malachowski Wertheimer Collection

The Margot Malachowski Wertheimer Collection documents the lives and memorable events of members of the Malachowski and Wertheimer families. The collection centers around the family photographs, but also includes material on family weddings, a small amount of correspondence, obituaries and financial and restitution correspondence.

The bulk of papers in this collection focuses on family members' lives in Germany. The many photographs of Series II are an important part of this documentation. Although few photographs are labeled, the central individuals of this collection – Max and Johanna Malachowski, their daughter Margot and her husband Hans Wertheimer – are frequently featured.

Further material on family members is located in Series I, which is arranged in three subseries. Subseries 1 holds the papers of Max and Johanna Malachowski. Several folders of this subseries focus on their marriage, including an album of wedding telegrams, a wedding newspaper and texts of Festlieder (celebratory songs) presented at the wedding reception. Other papers of theirs include a number of obituaries for Max Malachowski accompanied by a few for Johanna Malachowski and her mother Frieda Lichtenauer. Furthermore there are two folders of personal correspondence between Max Malachowski and his wife. Subseries 2 also concerns itself with a marriage, the union of Margot Malachowski and Hans Wertheimer, including two folders of congratulations from friends and family on the event. This subseries additionally holds a small amount of correspondence of the couple and a few papers relating to their professions such as certificates and business cards. Subseries 3 constitutes papers of unidentified family members.

More information on the Malachowski and Wertheimer family members' lives in Germany may be found through perusal of the copious restitution correspondence of Series III. Such correspondence, especially focuses on Hans (Harold) Wertheimer's efforts to receive restitution from Germany for his losses. He pursued restitution for the disruption to his profession due to his emigration from Germany as well as the effects upon his health from his incarceration in Dachau. Since the family was required to leave Germany soon after his release from the camp, Johanna Malachowski lost the opportunity to sell her own possessions prior to emigration; her loss of this property is documented in the correspondence, for which she sought restitution.