Guide to the Marga Silbermann Randall Papers 1824, c. 1930-2005
- Repository
- Heinz History Center
- Title
- Marga Silbermann Randall Papers,
- Creator
- Randall, Marga Silbermann, 1930-2005
- Collection Number
- MSS 543
- Extent
- 0.5 linear feet (1 box)
- Date
- 1824, c. 1930-2005
- Abstract
- Born in Lemforde, Germany, on March 20, 1930, Marga Silbermann Randall and her family experienced Nazi persecution before fleeing to the United States and settling in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Some of the members of her immediate family survived the war and were reunited, but most of her extended family perished. Marga Silbermann Randall married, had a family, and was active in the Jewish community, including as the president of Women's American Organization for Rehabilitation through Training (ORT) in the 1960s. In 1981, she returned to Germany to begin to piece together her family's history and confront her own memories. She spent the rest of her life teaching and lecturing about her personal experiences in the Holocaust both locally and abroad.
- Language
- The material in this collection is in English and German.
- Publisher
- Heinz History Center
- Address
- 1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org
History
The youngest of four children, Marga Silbermann Randall was born to Louis and Johanna (Hannah) Silbermann in Lemforde, Germany, on March 20, 1930. The sudden death of her father fractured the family, and her mother and siblings went in separate directions to support themselves. After moving into a small apartment, her mother was employed as a housekeeper. Her brothers Manfred and Herbert, and her sister Hilda went to acquire trade skills for employment. Marga Silbermann was sent to Schermbeck, Germany to live with her maternal grandparents Gustav and Emma Adelsheimer and her aunt, Paula.
Soon after Kristallnacht in November 1938, the family laid plans to flee Schermbeck for Berlin. After two and a half years of waiting for exit visas in Berlin, Marga Silbermann. her sister Hilda, and her mother boarded a ship that would bring them to the United States in 1941. Upon arrival, they moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where Marga Silbermann's aunt Bertha Adelsheimer Kann and her husband Nathan Kann lived, having immigrated a few years before.
After her arrival in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Marga Silbermann went to Colfax School, located in Squirrel Hill. She learned the English language and eventually received United States citizenship. She also was a member of Rodef Shalom Congregation. After graduating high school, she worked in sales, married Jordan Randall, and had a family consisting of three children.
Marga Silbermann Randall was active in the Jewish community in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, serving as the South Hills Chapter Evening president of Women;s American Organization for Rehabilitation through Training (ORT) during the 1960s. She supported Action Reconciliation Peace Services, an organization that sends young Germans to provide Holocaust education and care for survivors worldwide, and was also involved in the Pittsburgh Holocaust Center.
In 1981, forty-one years after fleeing, Marga Silbermann Randall decided to travel back to Schermbeck and confront her past. After an initial visit, she returned to both Schermbeck and the town of her birth, Lemforde, Germany, multiple times. After 1981, Marga Silbermann Randall devoted her life to educating people about the Holocaust. In 2004, she established a Holocaust Memorial Garden at her synagogue, Temple Emanuel in Mt. Lebanon, with the soil she brought back from the ash pits at Auschwitz-Birkeneau concentration camp where her aunt Paula had died. She spent her time teaching, lecturing, and participating in Holocaust survivor programs locally and throughout the world. She made presentations at universities, public and private schools, conducted Holocaust workshops and seminars, and spoke to community organizations. She passed away on November 24, 2005 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Scope and Content Notes
The collection primarily consists of articles and correspondence. The collection includes an extensive documentation about Women's American Organization for Rehabilitation throught Training (ORT) during the time Marga Silbermann Randall was president of the South Hills Evening Chapter. The documents include attendance and membership, events, programs, newsletters, newspaper clippings, reports, and speeches. Also included in the collection is materials related to Dr. Hedwig O. Pregler, principal of Colfax School, and the woman Marga Silbermann Randall credited. These materials include articles, biographical material, and correspondence, between her and Dr. Pregler. The collection has documentation related to Marga Silbermann Randall's return trips to Germany, speeches, and presentations. Some of these materials are in German. A VHS video cassette using narration and photographs, documentation her return trips to Lemforde, Germany, photographs of her family's table which she donated to Heinz History Center museum, and archival documentation related to these museum artifacts are included in the collection. Also included is a book commemorating the German Jewish soldiers that died during World War I.
Arrangement
- The collection is housed in one archival box with the folders arranged alphabetically.
Conditions Governing Access
No Restrictions.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Marga Silbermann Randall on November 21, 2001, January 18, 2002, March 15, 2002, May 5, 2003, October 30, 2003.
Preferred Citation
Marga Silbermann Randall Papers, 1824, c. 1930-2005, MSS#543, Rauh Jewish Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
This collection was processed by Theresa E. Rea on on November 17, 2009, with generous support from the Simon Hafner Charitable Foundation.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Related Materials
An oral history by Marga Silbermann Randall relating to her Holocaust experiences is available on the USC Shoah Foundation Institute's website. (Accessed November 20, 2009).
Randall, Marga. How Beautiful We Once Were: a remembrance of the Holocaust and beyond. Pittsburgh, Pa: Cathedral Publishing, 1998; is available in the Heinz History Center library collection.
Separated Materials
The Marga Silbermann Randall Photographs have been arranged and described with the catalog designation of MSP#543.
Artifacts from Little's Shoe Store, Acc#2003.0246 donated on October 30, 2003 and the table from Germany, glove, three pieces of silver, and table covering donated on February 6, 2002 were separated from the collection and located with the museum division.
Subjects
- Women's American Organization for Rehabilitation through Training (ORT)
- Colfax School
- Rodef Shalom Congregation
- Pittsburgh Holocaust Center
- Temple Emanuel
- Emma Kaufmann Camp
- Adelsheimer Family
- Adelsheimer, Emma, 1865-?
- Adelsheimer. Gustav, 1865-1943
- Adelsheimer, Paula, 1906-1943
- Pregler, Hedwig O., ?-1996
- Kann, Bertha Adelsheimer, 1892-?
- Kann, Nathan
- Randall, Jordan
- Randall, Marga Silbermann, 1930-2005
- Silbermann Family
- Silbermann, Herbert, 1920-?
- Silbermann, Hilda, 1921-?
- Silbermann, Johanna, 1899-?
- Silbermann, Louis, 1888?-1934
- Silbermann, Manfred, 1919-?
- Pittsburgh (Pa.)
- Schermbeck, Germany
- Lemforde, Germany
- Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh (Pa.)
- Mt. Lebanon, Pittsburgh (Pa.)
- Berlin, Germany
- Jews--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh
- Jewish Organizations--Women--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh
- Education--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh
- Jewish--Immigrants--History
- Holocaust survivor--Pittsburgh--Pennsylvania--Biography
- Jewish immigration--World War II--History
- Holocaust--Education--Pennsylvania
- Kristallnacht--Germany--History