Concentration Camp Liberators Oral History Project
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Interviewer
Hirsh, Michael
Publication Date
September 2008
Abstract
This is an oral history interview with Holocaust concentration camp liberator Eli Heimberg. Heimberg was an assistant chaplain in the 42nd Infantry Division, which liberated Dachau on April 29, 1945. He and chaplain Rabbi Eli Bohnen heard about the camp several hours after it was first discovered and decided to go there. Upon arriving, they asked where the Jewish prisoners were and spent a couple of hours with a group of about twenty-five Polish Jews. Many of them had relatives in America, and Heimberg and Bohnen took their names and contact information. Rabbi Bohnen also recited the Prayer for the Dead before they left. In this interview, Heimberg, who is Jewish, describes his reactions to the camp and how it affected his sense of identity as a Jew.
Keywords
Concentration camps--History--Germany, World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps--Germany, World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps--Liberation, World War, 1939-1945--Chaplains--United States, World War, 1939-1945--Atrocities, World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American, World War, 1939-1945--Veterans--United States, Veterans--United States--Interviews, Jewish veterans--United States--Interviews, Genocide, Crimes against humanity
Holding Location
University of South Florida
Language
English
Media Type
Oral histories
Format
audio/mp3
Identifier
C65-00056
Recommended Citation
Heimberg, Eli, "Eli Heimberg oral history interview" (2008). Concentration Camp Liberators Oral History Project. 46.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/concentration_OH/46
Rights Statement
