George Rothman papers

The George Rothman papers document the Holocaust-era experiences of George Rothman (born Georges Bardenstein) and his parents Emmanuel and Esfira Bardenstein in Bordeaux and Paris, France, including Emmanuel’s enlistment in the French Army, George’s hospitalization due to a severe illness, his parent’s deportation to Drancy and Auschwitz, and his survival as a hidden child in a Catholic orphanage. Included are pre-war biographical papers, correspondence, photographs, and a memoir. The bulk of the biographical materials consists of correspondence and immigration documents regarding George’s Great Uncle Isaac Rothman, living in Los Angeles, California, discovering George survived the Holocaust, and the process to bring him to the United States. The correspondence is primarily between George, Isaac, and Philippe and Martha Lequien, who hid George during the war, and cared for him afterwards in Paris. There is also a small amount of wartime correspondence. Other material consists pre-war documents of Emmanuel and Esfira Bardenstein including marriage certificate, family book, employment records, French Army papers, and post war correspondence regarding their fate during the Holocaust. Files of George Rothman include his French passport, military entry permit card, and memoir entitled “My Life is a Series of Miracles.” Photographs include Holocaust-era depictions of George as a child, his parents Emmanuel and Esfira, various relatives, and Philippe and Martha Lequien. Copyright Holder: Mr. George Rothman George Rothman was born Georges Bardenstein on 1 September 1933 in Strasbourg, France to Emmanuel and Esfira Bardenstein. His father Emmanuel Bardenstein (1904-1942) was born on 7 August 1904 in Kharkow, Russia (Kharkiv, Ukraine) to Abram Bardenstein and Perle (née Rachman) Bardenstein. He had two sisters, Dina and Sarah. Emmanuel studied architecture and engineering. George’s mother Esfira Bardenstein (1909-1942) was born Esfira Chor on 12 October 1909 in Sculeni, Romania (Sculeni, Moldova) to Moise Chor and Leia Libmann. She worked as a pharmacist. George and Esfira met in Strasbourg and married in 1933. The family moved to Bordeaux in 1935. Emmanuel joined the French Army in 1939, primarily in an attempt to gain French citizenship. Germany invaded France in May 1940, and France and Germany signed an armistice on 22 June 1940. George’s family moved to Paris in June 1941. Unable to find work as a pharmacist, Esfira began working as a maid, and Emmanuel as a busboy. They also converted to Catholicism in an attempt to avoid antisemitic laws. George became severely ill with a kidney inflammation (Acute glomerulonephritis) in April 1942 and had to be hospitalized. His parents arranged for Philippe and Martha Lequien, a Parisian couple whom Esfira used to clean for, to care for George if they were unable to. Emmanuel and Esfira were deported from Paris to Drancy on 9 August 1942 and then sent to Auschwitz on 21 August 1942 where they both perished. As George recovered, he was moved from the hospital to a convalescent home, and then with the Lequien family. In December 1942 he was hidden in a Catholic orphanage under the name of George Bardin. After the war, he lived with the Lequiens again. In 1946, George’s paternal great uncle, Isaac Rothman, who lived in the United States, learned that Emmanuel and Esfira had likely perished, but that George had survived. He began corresponding with George and the Lequiens, and in March 1947 George immigrated to the United States to live with Issac and his wife Emma Rothman in Los Angeles. The Rothmans adopted George in 1948, and he later changed his name to George Rothman. He went on to have a career as a dentist. He and his wife Gail had two children.