Doll kept by Jeanne Sternberg Lowe in hiding
Gift of Erna Sternberg
Id no. 1935.90, Toy/game
This doll was given to Jeanne Sternberg Lowe in 1942 by the Von Fehlson family, who hid the Sternbergs in Belgium during part of the war.
The Von Fehlsons gave the doll which had previously belonged to their children, to Jeanne. As hiding became more and more dangerous, Jeanne?s mother Erna, moved Jeanne to three separate hiding places. First she was in a convent where she was underfed and neglected. Then Jeanne was sent to the countryside with some cousins. Finally she was sent to stay with a priest but Jeanne kept the doll with her throughout the war.
Erna Sternberg and her husband Julius were born in Germany. Erna lived in Belgium, but eventually moved to British Mandatory Palestine, where she married Julius in 1935. They moved to Brussels in 1936, and their daughter Hannelore (later Jeanne) was born in Belgium in 1941. In May 1942, during the first arrests in Belgium, the Von Fehlsons, hid Erna and Jeanne and made an agreement with Erna that should she not survive the war, they would adopt Jeanne. The family requested that Erna sign a document saying they could convert Jeanne to Catholicism if they kept her, but Erna refused. The Sternberg family survived the war and moved to the US in 1947.
The Von Fehlsons gave the doll which had previously belonged to their children, to Jeanne. As hiding became more and more dangerous, Jeanne?s mother Erna, moved Jeanne to three separate hiding places. First she was in a convent where she was underfed and neglected. Then Jeanne was sent to the countryside with some cousins. Finally she was sent to stay with a priest but Jeanne kept the doll with her throughout the war.
Erna Sternberg and her husband Julius were born in Germany. Erna lived in Belgium, but eventually moved to British Mandatory Palestine, where she married Julius in 1935. They moved to Brussels in 1936, and their daughter Hannelore (later Jeanne) was born in Belgium in 1941. In May 1942, during the first arrests in Belgium, the Von Fehlsons, hid Erna and Jeanne and made an agreement with Erna that should she not survive the war, they would adopt Jeanne. The family requested that Erna sign a document saying they could convert Jeanne to Catholicism if they kept her, but Erna refused. The Sternberg family survived the war and moved to the US in 1947.
