The Otto Frank File

Anne Frank’s diary and the story of her family’s two years in hiding are known around the world. What most people don’t know is how desperately her father, Otto, tried to get his family out of Nazi-occupied Netherlands – an effort detailed in a file of original documents discovered in YIVO’s archives in 2005.

Filled with personal correspondence and official records, most of the file dates from April 30, 1941, almost a year after Germany invaded the Netherlands, to December 11, 1941, the day Germany declared war on the United States. A month later, the first Jews from Amsterdam were sent to Nazi work camps. Six months after that, the Franks went into hiding. The final documents pick up in June 1945, when Julius Hollander, the brother of Otto’s wife, Edith, sought information about the family, and end in 1946, when he connected with Otto, the sole survivor.

The documents appear to have come from the files of the National Refugee Service, which merged into HIAS in the 1950s. The Otto Frank file was transferred with tens of thousands of other case files that HIAS gave to YIVO in 1974. Thirty-one years later, YIVO volunteer Estelle Guzik discovered the file while she and other volunteers were indexing files to make them accessible to anyone using YIVO’s archives.

The file reveals that Otto Frank sought help from his friend from college, Nathan Straus, Jr., the son of the founder of Macy’s and head of the U.S. Housing Authority. Otto Frank wrote to Mr. Straus in April 1941 asking for financial assistance in securing affidavits to immigrate to the U.S. In the letter, Otto Frank writes, “I would not ask if conditions here would not force me to do all I can in time to be able to avoid worse.” He stresses that “it is for the sake of the children mainly that we have to care for. Our own fate is of less importance.”

Nathan Straus, Jr., and his wife, Helen, made several appeals on the Franks’ behalf to the Migration Department of the National Refugee Service, and contacted the State Department for information and assistance. Julius Hollander, the brother of Otto’s wife Edith, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1939 along with his brother, Walter, also sought to help the Franks. Julius’s employer, Jacob Hiatt, generously supplied an immigration affidavit for Anne and Margot. Julius and Walter had enough savings to secure immigration for their mother, Rosa, who was living with the Franks in Amsterdam, but not for the entire family. Unfortunately, their efforts were in vain due to the vast numbers of refugees seeking safe haven, as well as drastic tightening of U.S. immigration policy – based partly on fears that some immigrants might be spies or saboteurs.

When it became clear that new restrictions made coming directly to the U.S. impossible, Otto Frank wrote that “The only way to get to a neutral country are visas of others States such as Cuba … and many of my acquaintances got visas for Cuba.” The Strauses offered to make the required deposits for visas to Cuba for the Frank family, which were very expensive, since the Cuban government required, a visa fee plus bonds totaling $2,500 per person. On December 1, the Cuban government issued a single visa in the name of Otto Frank. Ten days later on December 11, Germany declared war on the United States and the Cuban visa was cancelled.

Otto Frank survived the horrors of Auschwitz and died in Switzerland in 1980. Edith died of starvation at Auschwitz. Anne and Margot died of typhus within days of each other at Bergen-Belsen.

The original Otto Frank file is housed at YIVO, and its contents are available on-site for research purposes.

Read the press release about the Otto Frank File for more information.

Press

History, Anne Frank's Family Tried Repeatedly to Immigrate to the U.S. (July 6, 2018)

MassLive, Researchers: Anne Frank emigration to U.S. thwarted by many factors (July 6, 2018)

T-Portal, I obitelji Anne Frank odbijena je viza za SAD (January 30, 2017)

Agenzia Giornalistica Italia, Stop visti in Giornata Shoah, Usa lo negarono a Anna Frank (January 29, 2017)

Blic Online, Među izbeglicama kojima je odbijen ulazak u SAD bila je I PORODICA ANE FRANK (January 29, 2017)

Aljazeera Blakans, Strašna stvarnost Anne Frank se ponavlja muslimanima i SAD-u (January 29, 2017)

Independent, Donald Trump’s refugee policy is compared to the Nazi persecution of Anne Frank (January 28, 2017)

The New York Times, Yom HaShoah, Anne Frank and Refugee Security Checks (May 3, 2016)

The Washington Post, Anne Frank and her family were also denied entry as refugees to the U.S. (November 24, 2015)

Examiner.com, HIAS CEO Mark Hetfield testifies about the Syrian refugee crisis (November 19, 2015)

Addicting Info, Anne Frank Literally Died Because Of America’s Anti-Refugee Stance (November 18, 2015)

The New York Times, Rare Otto Frank Archive to Be Auctioned in New York (August 14, 2012)

The New York Times, In Old Files, Fading Hopes of Anne Frank’s Family (February 15, 2007)

The Los Angeles Times, Anne Frank's father tried to flee to U.S. (February 15, 2007)

The Telegraph, America closed its doors to Anne Frank (February 15, 2007)

The New York Sun, American Visas Were Denied for Anne Frank, Family (February 14, 2007)

Reuters, Anne Frank's family sought U.S. visa, letters show (February 14, 2007)

The Washington Post, Anne Frank's Father Tried to Get to U.S. (February 14, 2007)

NPR, Letters of Anne Frank’s Father Uncovered (February 14, 2007)

Boston Globe, Letters of Anne Frank's father found (January 26, 2007)

BBC News, Anne Frank's father sought visas (January 25, 2007)

Time, Otto Frank's Letters Discovered (January 25, 2007)

The Washington Post, Anne Frank's Father's Letters Disclosed (January 25, 2007)