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Wimpfheimer Family Collection

 Collection
Identifier: AR 25907

Scope and Contents

This collection holds the papers and legal documents of the Wimpfheimer family from Karlsruhe, Baden. It mainly consists of vital records, such as birth certificates, passports, marriage contracts, etc., as well as documents related to the family’s emigration to Switzerland and the United States. The folder on Alice Wimpfheimer covers her adult life in the United States. The folder on Clémence Wimpfheimer includes her Swiss and German legal documents. After her marriage to Eugen, Clémence became a naturalized German citizen. Upon emigrating to Switzerland in 1937, Clémence was classified as a Foreigner (“Ausländer”). In 1945/46 she and her husband became naturalized American citizens. Also included are records for Clémence’s vaccination in the late 1950s.

There are vital records for Eugen Wimpfheimer, as well as certificates of good conduct. The collection includes the marriage contract of Eugen and Clémence Wimpfheimer as well as their shared power of attorney, both written in 1939 in Basel.

Furthermore, there are documents pertaining to Maria (Mia) and Karl Wimpfheimer. Maria had studied in Paris and then agriculture and horticulture in England during the late 1930s and early 1940s. . In London, Maria was also involved with Hachsharath Hanoar, the British Council of the Young Pioneer Movement for Palestine,. By 1944, Maria had emigrated to the United States and continued her studies of international administration at Columbia University.

Folder 6 contains legal documents of the “K.H. Malzfabrik Wimpfheimer” under Eugen Wimpfheimer, as well as the later “Karlsruher Malzfabrik K.H. Wimpfheimer GmbH.” under his son Karl Wimpfheimer. Also included are newspaper articles about the closing and demolition of the malting factory in the early 1980s. Additionally, folder 6 contains copied pages from the book “Grössere industrielle Etablissements in Karlsruhe” (Major industrial establishments in Karlsruhe), mentioning the malting factory. Furthermore, this folder holds copies of the correspondence between Alice Wimpfheimer and Chananya (Hans) Teutsch, the only surviving son of Albert Teutsch, a manager at the malting factory who was murdered in the Holocaust. The series also contains copies of articles on the history of the malting factory published by the city of Karlsruhe. Also included is the correspondence between Alice Wimpfheimer and representatives of Karlsruhe on the topic of installing a plaque on the grounds of the former factory.

Dates

  • 1893-2016

Creator

Language of Materials

The collection is in German and English.

Conditions Governing Access

Open to researchers.

Conditions Governing Use

There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact: Leo Baeck Institute, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011 email: lbaeck@lbi.cjh.org

Biographical Note

Eugen Wimpfheimer was born into an upper-class family in Karlsruhe on the 15th of July 1875. His parents were Karl and Fanny Wimpfheimer (née Offenheimer), who owned Karlsruhe’s largest malting factory. The Wimpfheimer malting factory supplied malt to the German army during World War I. Eugen Wimpfheimer was married to Clémence Wimpfheimer (née Guggenheim), who was born in the city of Lengnau in the Swiss Kanton Aargau in 1882. Their first daughter Maria (Mia) was born in Heidelberg in 1914.

Maria (Mia) Fanny Wimpfheimer studied French culture, earning a Diplome d’études de Civilisation Française in Paris before studying horticulture in England. She later graduated from Columbia University in New York in international administration. Maria emigrated to Israel where she married Micha Pietrkowski who passed away in 1980. Maria’s brother Karl Friedrich Wimpfheimer was born in Heidelberg in 1920, followed by their youngest sister Alice Adelheid Wimpfheimer in 1924. By then, the Wimpfheimer family had returned to Karlsruhe. Since sales had dropped by almost 50% by 1937, Eugen had no choice but to sell his company. The family had left for Switzerland in early 1937. After successfully emigrating to the United States in 1941 and living in New York, Eugen Wimpfheimer died in 1946 while vacationing in Switzerland.

The Wimpfheimer malting factory was returned to the Wimpfheimer family by 1949. Karl Wimpfheimer became the new head of the “Karlsruher Malzfabrik K. H. Wimpfheimer GmbH” until the factory closed in 1982.

Extent

0.25 Linear Feet

Abstract

The collection holds the documents and correspondence of the Wimpfheimer family from Karlsruhe. The collection covers the Wimpfheimers’ emigration to Switzerland and later the United States as well as their restitution efforts regarding the family’s malting factory in Karlsruhe.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in one series.

Title
Guide to the Papers of the Wimpfheimer Family
Author
Processed by Moritz Rinaldo
Date
2022
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository

Contact:
15 West 16th Street
New York NY 10011 United States