Kindertransport academic shares new research with Manchester survivors
AJR scholar in residence Dr. Amy Williams presents letters, pictures and artwork to children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Kinder
More than 100 Kindertransport refugees and their families gathered at Manchester Jewish Museum on Monday 7th July to hear from the Association of Jewish Refugees’ (AJR) Kindertransport scholar-in-residence, Dr Amy Williams.
The audience included four generations of those linked directly to the Kindertransport; the refugees themselves as well as their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
Dr Williams, appointed to the educational role in June, shared new information revealing which transport the Kinder travelled on and the extent of cross border collaboration between countries.
She also revealed information letters sent to parents which detailed how the children should behave and which also gave advice, such as how older children should hold hands of younger children. She also presented images of letters from individuals desperate for help, including one addressed to The Princess Elizabeth of England in March 1939.
Williams shared research of Manchester survivors including Alice Rubinstein, and the artwork produced by her granddaughter Laura Nathan using both her story and that of other Kinder.
She told Jewish News: “That I was able to return Kindertransport lists and ferry information to Kinder and their families who were in the room was exhilarating and so emotional.
“While Lady Milena Grenfell Baines had seen the overall Winton list which lists the children from Czechoslovakia, I was able to tell her who she actually travelled with on the train.
“I was also able to tell her about the ferry she boarded and what time it arrived at Harwich. Laura and Rosalind Nathan’s grandma and mother had journeyed on the SS Washington and there was a Kindertransport survivor in the audience who was on that same boat! The families met 86-years later.”
- The event was organised by AJR, NHEG (Northern Holocaust Education Group) and Yom Hashoah Manchester.
Keep community journalism free.
Jewish News is free for everyone. No paywall. No barriers. Just trusted journalism for anyone who wants to stay connected to Jewish life in Britain.
If you value that, please support us.
From as little as £5 a month, you can help keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Every day, we report on the issues that matter to our community. We celebrate achievements, support charities, challenge antisemitism and ensure Jewish voices are heard more widely.
From as little as £5 a month, you can help us continue to:
- Report on the stories shaping Jewish life in the UK and beyond
- Bring our community together through shared stories, events and campaigns
- Celebrate the people, culture and moments that define our community
- Support organisations doing vital work across Jewish Britain
You can make a one-off donation or become a regular supporter. Every contribution helps keep our journalism free, independent and accessible to all.
If everyone who values Jewish News gave a small amount, it would make a real difference to our future.
