Sigo and Else Baum Family Collection
Scope and Contents
The collection contains materials pertaining to the family of Sigo and Else Baum. Series I is comprised of personal papers of both Sigo and Else, and their family. Materials in the series include official documents, restitution claims, and a genealogical tree of the Weil family. Also included are postcards and other correspondence to various family members across the late 19th and early 20th century. Of note in the series is an autograph album belonging to Else’s first cousin Hedwig Schwerin and her husband Leo from the mid-19th century.
Series II is made up of loose photographs and three photo albums. The loose photographs mainly represent Sigo and Erwin’s family in the early 20th century. Included are photographs of the brothers in the military during World War I. The photo albums document everyday life and travel in Germany before World War II.
Dates
- 1864 - 1972
Language of Materials
The collection is in German and English
Biographical / Historical
Sigo Baum was born on December 17th, 1900, to Artur and Lina Baum in Ulm, Germany. Both, Sigo and his brother Erwin Baum, served in the German army during World War I. Sigo married Else Weil in the 1930s. Else was born on December 11th, 1910, in Bad Saulgau to Julius and Lina (née Dreyfus) Weil.
In 1932, Sigo and Erwin Baum, along with Hermann Reichle founded Unitex Purchasing Association. With the Nazis’ rise to power and increase in hostilities against Jews, Sigo, who acted as the managing director of the company, was forced to leave his position, and flee the country. Sigo and Else and their immediate family emigrated to the United States between 1936 and 1939. They lived in New York, while Erwin Baum settled in New Jersey. The couple died within a month of each other in 1982.
Extent
.5 Linear Feet
1 Folders (1 oversized folder )
Abstract
The collection contains materials relating to the Sigo and Else Baum family. The bulk of the collection is made up of photo albums documenting everyday life of the family. Other materials in the collection include, correspondence, official documents, clippings, and an autograph album.
Arrangement
The collection had been arranged thematically. Original order when applicable was preserved.
Items
- Series I: Personal Papers, 1864-1972 Series II: Photographs, 1916-1929
Separated Materials
A Siddur (1906) belonging to Artur Baum, Sigo’s father ; Gebet- und Andachtsbuch für israelitische Frauen und Mädchen by Jacob Freund (1867) belonging to Anna Baum née Dreyfus, Sigo’s mother ; and a small Jewish prayer booklet given to German soldiers fighting during World War I., Feldgebetbuch fuer die jüdischen Mannschaften des Heeres / Berlin, 1914 were removed to the LBI Library.
Processing Information
During processing, folders were grouped to form series and subseries. Original order when applicable was preserved.
- Title
- Guide to the Papers of Sign and Else Baum
- Author
- Processed by Agata Sobczak
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository
