Stumbling Stone Broekhem 95

This small, brass, memorial plaque (Stolperstein or stumbling stone) was installed on 10 June 2016 to commemorate:

* Curt Hirschberg, born 1900, murdered 23 August 1943, Blechhammer.

Background

From 1918 until the 1930s, Curt Hirschberg and his twin brother Edwin together operated several cinemas in Breslau, Germany. They then left Germany and started a similar business in the Netherlands. They had cinema theaters in The Hague, Heerlen, Hoensbroek and Helmond. But once again they lost their business with the outbreak of WW2.

At some point, Curt was taken to a Jewish forced labor camp [Juden-Zwangarbeitslager] which provided workers for the synthetic gasoline plants located in Blechhammer. Curt Hirshberg was killed there in 1943. His twin brother survived the war. Their mother did not: she was also a Nazi victim in 1943.

"Stolpersteine" is an art project for Europe by Gunter Demnig to commemorate victims of National Socialism (Nazism). Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) are small, 10x10cm brass plaques placed in the pavement in front of the last voluntary residence of (mostly Jewish) victims who were murdered by the Nazis. Each plaque is engraved with the victim’s name, date of birth, and place (mostly a concentration camp) and date of death. By doing this, Gunter Demnig gives an individual memorial to each victim. One stone, one name, one person. He cites the Talmud: "A human being is forgotten only when his or her name is forgotten."

Borne was the first town in the Netherlands in which Stolpersteine were placed -- on 29 November 2007.

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Source

• Text: Anne Palmer
• Photos: Arjan Vrieze (1), Suzanne Matrosov-Vruggink (2)
• Joods Monument: Curt Hirschberg
• JewishGen.org: Blechhammer
• Stolpersteine.eu