Louis S. (Ludwig Salomon) Wolf Family Collection

Biographical note Louis S. Wolf was born in Kaiserslautern, Germany on February 24, 1933 as Ludwig Salomon Wolf to Wilhelm/Willi Wolf (1907-1936) and Alice Wolf (née Eckhaus, 1909-1997).

His grandfather Leopold Wolf, his uncle Max and other family members ran a cattle and butchering business in Kaiserslautern located on Eierstrasse and Huehnerstrasse. Willi Wolf and Alice Wolf married in Bad Dürkheim in 1932. Willi worked for his father Leopold running a dairy located on another property in Kaiserslautern close to his father's business. The family was very active in the reformed synagogue of Kaiserslautern, which was then headed by Rabbi Sally Baron. Leopold Wolf was involved in the founding of this reformed temple. Louis' sister Doris was born in 1935. At that time, Louis had started attending Tante Hedde's nursery school that had its origins in the reformed synagogue. In the late afternoons, Louis' father was attempting to teach him Spanish since they had planned to join his uncle Karl in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

In 1936, Willi Wolf suddenly passed away as a result of peritonitis in conjunction with appendicitis. Leopold Wolf transferred the remaining properties to his widowed daughter-in-law Alice Wolf and prepared the emigration of the family. All Wolf family members left Germany, most of them to Argentina, likewise many members of the Eckhaus family, mainly to the United States. The only family left in Germany was Alice Wolf, then 27 years old, her two children Louis and Doris as well as her younger brother Albert Eckhaus. Alice Wolf started renting out parts of the Wolf properties. Amongst the tenants was a Nazi officer who was very interested in acquiring some of the Wolf properties, especially her house. Her brother Albert took over the negotiations and sold the officer various Wolf properties for $10,000 American Dollars and four train tickets over the Dutch border to Gennep to visit Alice's brother-in-law Adolph Spiegel (married to Martha Wolf Spiegel, a sister of Willi Wolf). During the war Adolph Spiegel became part of the Dutch underground and was instrumental in saving many Jewish lives. Albert Eckhaus presented this to the Nazi officer as a little family vacation to celebrate the Wolf property sale—and through this trick, Alice, Louis, Doris, and Albert could escape Nazi Germany hiding the money in a piece of furniture. Before going to the Netherlands, they had already shipped some of their belongings to the Spiegels. The photo albums that are contained in the collection very probably were among these items. Eventually the family emigrated via Rotterdam on board the S.S. Volendam to the United States in August 1938. Although Alice Wolf had initially planned to live with their relative Karl Haas in Maine, she decided to stay in New York where many other family members lived, e.g. her mother Elisabeth in Washington Heights. The money that Alice Wolf had been able to smuggle out of Germany helped her and many other family members to start or finance business opportunities; she was also very successful with investing in the stock market.

In 1942, Alice Wolf married her second husband Henry Wertheimer (1914–1981); their daughter Carrie was born in 1944. Louis S. Wolf became a successful businessman in the telecommunication industry. After having lived in various places in New York State, he settled in Fort Lee, New Jersey and Florida. He had three children from his first marriage with Holly Schonholtz: William/Billy (born 1960), David (born 1963) and Elizabeth/Liz (born 1967). In the 1990s, Louis S. Wolf visited various cities and villages where his family had lived in Germany (Kaiserslautern, Kindenheim, Bad Dürkheim etc) and took photos of the tombstones of his father, grandparents, great-grandparents and other family members.

Genealogical Overview and Related Families The Wolf family was from the Palatinate and settled in Kaiserslautern where they ran a large cattle and butchering business. Leopold Wolf (1868, Wolfsheim, Palatinate–1948, Buenos Aires, Argentina) and Karolina Haas (1876, Glan-Münchweiler, Palatinate–1955, Buenos Aires, Argentina) had seven children: Else Wolf Aaron (1894); Max Wolf (1896–1968) who married Rosalie Spiegel; Martha Wolf (died 1940) who married Adolph Spiegel; Carl/Karl Wolf who married Zilli; Wilhelm Wolf who married Alice Eckhaus; Lotte Wolf who married Kurt Maier, then Alfredo de Mucci; Gustl who married Issy Maier. Leopold's parents were Leonhardt Wolf (1840, Wolfsheim–1929, Kaiserslautern) and Philipina Jacob (1842, Essweiler–1932, Kaiserslautern). Leonhardt's parents were Moses Wolf (1816-1886) and Etel Krauss; and Moses' parents were Abraham Wolf (1774–1850) and Gittel.

The ancestors on the Eckhaus side of the family are assumed to have come to Germany from Toledo, Spain in the early 18th century. Louis S. Wolf's great-great-grandfather David Joseph, later Eckhaus (1803, Kindenheim–1855, Kindenheim) worked as a butcher in Kindenheim. David Eckhaus's birth register entry lists his parents as Joseph David, later Joseph Eckhaus (1774, Grethen, Palatinate–1842, Kleinbockenheim) and Braeunle Trifus, later Elisabeth Braeunle (1774 or 1781–1847, Kleinbockenheim) (name change around 1808). In 1830, David Eckhaus married Agathe Straus, formerly Jache/Juchert Schmay (1804–1859), daughter of Aron Schmay, later Straus (died 1837) and Berle/Regina Sussman (died 1840). Their son Aaron Eckhaus (1838, Kindenheim-1900, Kindenheim) married Barbara Decker in 1867. Their son Salomon Eckhaus (1875, Kindenheim–1932, Kindenheim) married Elisabeth Strauss (1882, Steinbach, Palatinate–1972, New York City), they had four children: Adolph (1905–1969, New York) married to Gustel, Siegfried/Fritz (1907–) married to Gretl/Margarete Schattenfeld, Alice Eckhaus (1909–1997) married to Willi Wolf and later to Henry Wertheimer, Albert (1912–1979) married to Paula Rubel.

Louis S. Wolf was born in Kaiserslautern, Germany on February 24, 1933 as Ludwig Salomon Wolf to Wilhelm/Willi Wolf (1907-1936) and Alice Wolf (née Eckhaus, 1909-1997).

His grandfather Leopold Wolf, his uncle Max and other family members ran a cattle and butchering business in Kaiserslautern located on Eierstrasse and Huehnerstrasse. Willi Wolf and Alice Wolf married in Bad Dürkheim in 1932. Willi worked for his father Leopold running a dairy located on another property in Kaiserslautern close to his father's business. The family was very active in the reformed synagogue of Kaiserslautern, which was then headed by Rabbi Sally Baron. Leopold Wolf was involved in the founding of this reformed temple. Louis' sister Doris was born in 1935. At that time, Louis had started attending Tante Hedde's nursery school that had its origins in the reformed synagogue. In the late afternoons, Louis' father was attempting to teach him Spanish since they had planned to join his uncle Karl in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

In 1936, Willi Wolf suddenly passed away as a result of peritonitis in conjunction with appendicitis. Leopold Wolf transferred the remaining properties to his widowed daughter-in-law Alice Wolf and prepared the emigration of the family. All Wolf family members left Germany, most of them to Argentina, likewise many members of the Eckhaus family, mainly to the United States. The only family left in Germany was Alice Wolf, then 27 years old, her two children Louis and Doris as well as her younger brother Albert Eckhaus. Alice Wolf started renting out parts of the Wolf properties. Amongst the tenants was a Nazi officer who was very interested in acquiring some of the Wolf properties, especially her house. Her brother Albert took over the negotiations and sold the officer various Wolf properties for $10,000 American Dollars and four train tickets over the Dutch border to Gennep to visit Alice's brother-in-law Adolph Spiegel (married to Martha Wolf Spiegel, a sister of Willi Wolf). During the war Adolph Spiegel became part of the Dutch underground and was instrumental in saving many Jewish lives. Albert Eckhaus presented this to the Nazi officer as a little family vacation to celebrate the Wolf property sale—and through this trick, Alice, Louis, Doris, and Albert could escape Nazi Germany hiding the money in a piece of furniture. Before going to the Netherlands, they had already shipped some of their belongings to the Spiegels. The photo albums that are contained in the collection very probably were among these items. Eventually the family emigrated via Rotterdam on board the S.S. Volendam to the United States in August 1938. Although Alice Wolf had initially planned to live with their relative Karl Haas in Maine, she decided to stay in New York where many other family members lived, e.g. her mother Elisabeth in Washington Heights. The money that Alice Wolf had been able to smuggle out of Germany helped her and many other family members to start or finance business opportunities; she was also very successful with investing in the stock market.

In 1942, Alice Wolf married her second husband Henry Wertheimer (1914–1981); their daughter Carrie was born in 1944. Louis S. Wolf became a successful businessman in the telecommunication industry. After having lived in various places in New York State, he settled in Fort Lee, New Jersey and Florida. He had three children from his first marriage with Holly Schonholtz: William/Billy (born 1960), David (born 1963) and Elizabeth/Liz (born 1967). In the 1990s, Louis S. Wolf visited various cities and villages where his family had lived in Germany (Kaiserslautern, Kindenheim, Bad Dürkheim etc) and took photos of the tombstones of his father, grandparents, great-grandparents and other family members.

The Wolf family was from the Palatinate and settled in Kaiserslautern where they ran a large cattle and butchering business. Leopold Wolf (1868, Wolfsheim, Palatinate–1948, Buenos Aires, Argentina) and Karolina Haas (1876, Glan-Münchweiler, Palatinate–1955, Buenos Aires, Argentina) had seven children: Else Wolf Aaron (1894); Max Wolf (1896–1968) who married Rosalie Spiegel; Martha Wolf (died 1940) who married Adolph Spiegel; Carl/Karl Wolf who married Zilli; Wilhelm Wolf who married Alice Eckhaus; Lotte Wolf who married Kurt Maier, then Alfredo de Mucci; Gustl who married Issy Maier. Leopold's parents were Leonhardt Wolf (1840, Wolfsheim–1929, Kaiserslautern) and Philipina Jacob (1842, Essweiler–1932, Kaiserslautern). Leonhardt's parents were Moses Wolf (1816-1886) and Etel Krauss; and Moses' parents were Abraham Wolf (1774–1850) and Gittel.

The ancestors on the Eckhaus side of the family are assumed to have come to Germany from Toledo, Spain in the early 18th century. Louis S. Wolf's great-great-grandfather David Joseph, later Eckhaus (1803, Kindenheim–1855, Kindenheim) worked as a butcher in Kindenheim. David Eckhaus's birth register entry lists his parents as Joseph David, later Joseph Eckhaus (1774, Grethen, Palatinate–1842, Kleinbockenheim) and Braeunle Trifus, later Elisabeth Braeunle (1774 or 1781–1847, Kleinbockenheim) (name change around 1808). In 1830, David Eckhaus married Agathe Straus, formerly Jache/Juchert Schmay (1804–1859), daughter of Aron Schmay, later Straus (died 1837) and Berle/Regina Sussman (died 1840). Their son Aaron Eckhaus (1838, Kindenheim-1900, Kindenheim) married Barbara Decker in 1867. Their son Salomon Eckhaus (1875, Kindenheim–1932, Kindenheim) married Elisabeth Strauss (1882, Steinbach, Palatinate–1972, New York City), they had four children: Adolph (1905–1969, New York) married to Gustel, Siegfried/Fritz (1907–) married to Gretl/Margarete Schattenfeld, Alice Eckhaus (1909–1997) married to Willi Wolf and later to Henry Wertheimer, Albert (1912–1979) married to Paula Rubel.