Berghausen family: papers

This collection contains the family papers of the Berghausens, a Jewish family from Hanover. Some members of the family lived in London since the beginning of the 20th century and enabled their relatives to emigrate in 1939, thereby avoiding further Nazi persecutions.

Included are Betti and Max Berghausen's qualifications, work references, certificate of origin ('Heimatschein'), marriage certificate, naturalisation certificate (1906) and national registration cards. Also included are Henny Herzberg's last will and papers collected in preparation for emigration such as medical certificate, list of belongings and passport, as well as deed of donation relating to the estate of Joseph and Helene Elsässer.

The Berghausen family originally came from Hanover. Hertz Berghausen, a tailor, and his wife Betti (née Hammerschlag) had two children: Henny (born in 1867) and Max (born in 1870). Max Berghausen was a bookkeeper working at various banks in Hanover. He emigrated to London at the turn of the 20th century where he settled down. He got married to Betty Elsässer from Frankfurt am Main in 1904 with whom he had one son, Derrick, born in 1912. Max and Betty Berghausen changed their name by deed poll to Bentley in 1939.

Max Berghausen's sister Henny got married to David Herzberg, a widowed livestock trader, in Hanover in 1911. It is unknown when David Herzberg passed away but Henny Herzberg was widowed when she was forced to emigrate to her brother in London in April 1939, at the age of 72.

Joseph Elsässer was Betti's brother. He married Helene Lampe, an "Aryan" woman from Frankfurt am Main. He transferred his property to her before they both emigrated to London, in the hope that they would not lose their property.

Chronological

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Donated by Jacqueline Bentley

2010/58