Florida Holocaust Museum

Last updated
Florida Holocaust Museum
Florida Holocaust Museum Logo.png
St. Pete Holocaust Museum01.jpg
USA Florida location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within Florida
Location St. Petersburg, Florida
Coordinates 27°46′14″N82°38′26″W / 27.770529°N 82.640622°W / 27.770529; -82.640622
TypeHolocaust museum
Website www.thefhm.org

The Florida Holocaust Museum is a Holocaust museum located at 55 Fifth Street South in St. Petersburg, Florida. Founded in 1992, it moved to its current location in 1998. Formerly known as the Holocaust Center, the museum officially changed to its current name in 1999. It is one of the largest Holocaust museums in the United States. It was founded by Walter and Edith Lobenberg both of whom were German Jews who escaped persecution in Nazi Germany by immigrating to the United States. Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel served as Honorary Chairman and cut the ribbon at the 1998 opening ceremony. [1] The Florida Holocaust Museum is one of three Holocaust Museums that are accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. [2] The museum works with the local community and survivors of the Holocaust to spread awareness and to educate the public on the history of the Holocaust.

Contents

History

Founders

The Florida Holocaust Museum was founded by Walter Loebenberg and his wife Edith Loebenberg in 1992. Both of them had been born in Germany and had escaped Nazi persecution. Walter Loebenberg was born in Wächtersbach, Germany, but due to Nazi prosecution of his father and the subsequent difficulties in running the family store, the Loebenberg family moved to Frankfurt in 1936. It was in Frankfurt in 1938 that the Loebenberg family experienced Kristallnacht, with Walter narrowly escaping physical harm and being forced to hide. Eventually, through the support of an aunt already living in the United States, Walter Loebenberg was able to immigrate successfully and eventually moved to Chicago. He then served in the United States Army for the duration of the World War II after being drafted in 1942.

After completing his time in the military, Walter Loebenberg would go on to meet Edith Loebenberg, leading to their marriage in 1948.

Museum

The museum was founded by Walter and Edith Lobenberg in 1992. It was founded with the idea of "teaching the members of all races and cultures the inherent worth and dignity of life in order to prevent future genocides". The Holocaust Museum was founded as the Holocaust Center in a space that was rented from the Jewish Community Center (JCC) of Pinellas County in Madeira Beach. The museum started as a collection of 10 Holocaust posters which the founders had acquired over the years. [3] At the JCC, the Holocaust Center hosted its first exhibit, 'Anne Frank in the World', which would attract 24,000 visitors within the first month. As the center proved popular it began to run teaching seminars, lectures, and commemorative events in which visitors could participate. Additionally, the center began to connect with the local educational system; schools in an eight county area surrounding Tampa Bay were provided with study guides, teacher training programs, and presentations by Center staff and Holocaust survivors.

By 1996 the Holocaust Center had grown to such a point that a larger space was needed and thus the board of directors voted to buy and renovate a new building for the museum. This new building, a former bank, was 27,000 square feet in comparison to the 4,000 square feet in the previous space. The architect chosen for this task was the Israeli-born Nick Benjacob. He also designed the shopping area under the World Trade Center. He would produce the distinctive shape of the new building which prominently featured triangles, explaining that "the era of World War II is so depressing that I did not want to do anything with either circles or squares, because they are whole shapes. I wanted a broken shape. A triangle is a suppressing shape, it is a hard shape, and I wanted to design a feeling for the visitors before they even entered the museum". This move was completed in 1998, and in January 1999, the Holocaust Center officially changed its name to the Florida Holocaust Museum. Elie Wiesel attended the 1998 opening ceremony in which he served as the Honorary Chairman. [1]

Boxcar on display at Florida Holocaust Museum Holocaust Boxcar.png
Boxcar on display at Florida Holocaust Museum

In this new building the Florida Holocaust Museum has continued its mission of human rights awareness and Holocaust awareness. The new building was able to welcome 65,000 visitors in its first year. Additionally, the extra space in the new building has allowed for the expansion of the museum's library which includes both audio and visual materials. The current building features three floors with the permanent exhibit as well as archives being located on the first floor, and temporary galleries on the second and third floor. The first major exhibition was the boxcar #113 069-5, which became part of the permanent collection. [3]

Exhibits

Permanent collection

The permanent collection of the Florida Holocaust Museum is housed on the first floor in an exhibit titled: "History, Heritage, and Hope". This exhibit features various artifacts from the period and takes the form of a self-guided audio tour through the history of the Holocaust beginning with the history of antisemitism and life before World War II, followed by the rise of Hitler, Nazis, and anti-Jewish legislation. The history of other victim groups, ghettos and rescue are shown as well. The exhibition culminates with sections about concentration camps and killing centers. The final area presented is 'Lessons for Today', where visitors learn about other genocides and acts of hatred occurring today. The centerpiece of the permanent collection is an actual box car #113 069-5 (from Gdynia, Poland) [4] that transported victims of the Nazi regime to the concentration camps. It rests upon original track from the Treblinka Killing Center as a silent tribute to those murdered in the Holocaust. Notably, the collection of prolific artist and Holocaust survivor, Toby Knobel Fluek, was recently donated to the museum's permanent collection and is in the process of being processed by museum staff.

Temporary exhibits

On the second and third floors of the building, temporary exhibits are hosted with topics varying from artistic interpretations of the events of the Holocaust to informative exhibits which illuminate related topics, such as the Nuremberg Trials. The third floor also features a large open gallery in which lectures, presentations and events are held as well. Currently on display is the innovative, interactive exhibit, Dimensions in Testimony. This exhibit allows visitors to ask questions that prompt real-time responses from pre-recorded video interviews with Holocaust survivors. This pioneering project integrates advanced filming techniques, specialized display technologies and next generation natural language processing to create an interactive biography. [5] Also on display is Matezevot for Everyday Use, an exhibit of photographs of tombstones marking Jewish graves. During the war, cemeteries were razed to make room for new buildings and courtyards, while the matezevot were repurposed to make items such as pavers, foundations, and grinding stones, many of them still bearing the Hebrew inscriptions that told the stories of the graves' deceased. [6] A special exhibit, Humanity behind Barbed Wire, informs the visitor about a little known occurrence in Florida history, the internment of more than 10,000 German prisoners of war throughout the state, including McDill Air Force Base in Tampa. [7]

Programs

The Florida Holocaust Museum additionally runs several programs of outreach within the community with the aim of continuing their mission of raising awareness of human rights. They include "Speak Up, Speak Now!", [8] which is a multi-session program that aims to engage students in discussion and includes guest speakers such as Holocaust survivors, law enforcement officers, and activists. The Anne Frank Humanitarian award, established in 2001, recognizes high school juniors who have shown humanitarian efforts in and outside of school. [9] The museum also provides police agencies in Florida with Law Enforcement And Society (LEAS) lessons, which are meant to educate officers about the role that German police had in the Holocaust. [10] Additionally, the Generations After group is made up of the daughters, sons, and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, who are dedicated to telling their families' stories. [11]

Education

Florida was one of the first states to mandate Holocaust education in public K-12 schools. Notably the museum played a crucial role in getting the legislation passed in 1994. [12] The Florida Holocaust Museum sends speakers to schools and brings classes to the museum. As part of its education program, teachers can borrow material for teaching about the Holocaust for free. [13] In 2014 the trunks cost $300 to ship around the US, reached 17 states, and impacted around 50,000 people. [14]

The Florida Holocaust Museum also offers school-group docent-led tours. School group tours take about two hours and are available for fifth through twelfth grades. [15]

The museum offers free after-school workshops to all teachers in the state of Florida. [16]

In response to COVID-19, the Florida Holocaust Museum created a Virtual Education Outreach Program. [17]

Volunteer

The Florida Holocaust Museum also runs volunteer programs where everyone from students to the elderly is able to assist in the educational process. The museum is one of many organizations worldwide where young Austrians can serve their Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service. [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elie Wiesel</span> Romanian-born American writer (1928–2016)

Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored 57 books, written mostly in French and English, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a Jewish prisoner in the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yad Vashem</span> Israels official memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust

Yad Vashem is Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; echoing the stories of the survivors; honoring Jews who fought against their Nazi oppressors and gentiles who selflessly aided Jews in need; and researching the phenomenon of the Holocaust in particular and genocide in general, with the aim of avoiding such events in the future. Yad Vashem's vision, as stated on its website, is: "To lead the documentation, research, education and commemoration of the Holocaust, and to convey the chronicles of this singular Jewish and human event to every person in Israel, to the Jewish people, and to every significant and relevant audience worldwide."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Holocaust Memorial Museum</span> Holocaust museum in Washington, D.C.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust history. It is dedicated to helping leaders and citizens of the world confront hatred, prevent genocide, promote human dignity, and strengthen democracy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum of Jewish Heritage</span> Holocaust/Jewish museum in New York, NY

The Museum of Jewish Heritage, located in Battery Park City in Manhattan, New York City, is a living memorial to those murdered in the Holocaust. The museum has received more than 2 million visitors since opening in 1997. The mission statement of the museum is "to educate people of all ages and backgrounds about the broad tapestry of Jewish life in the 20th and 21st centuries — before, during, and after the Holocaust."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gedenkdienst</span>

Gedenkdienst is the concept of facing and taking responsibility for the darkest chapters of one's own country's history while ideally being financially supported by one's own country's government to do so. Founded in Austria in 1992 by Andreas Maislinger, the Gedenkdienst is an alternative to Austria's compulsory national military service as well as a volunteering platform for Austrians to work in Holocaust and Jewish culture-related institutions around the world with governmental financial support. In Austria it is also referred to as Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service provided by the Austrian Service Abroad. The Austrian Gedenkdienst serves the remembrance of the crimes of Nazism, commemorates its victims and supports Jewish cultural future. The program is rooted in the acknowledgment of responsibility by the Austrian government for the crimes committed by National Socialism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holocaust Memorial Center</span> Holocaust museum in the United States

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holocaust Museum Houston</span> Holocaust museum in Houston, Texas

The Holocaust Museum Houston is located in Houston's Museum District, in Texas. It is the fourth largest holocaust museum in the U.S. It was opened in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">March of the Living</span> Annual international Holocaust education and remembrance program

The March of the Living is an annual educational program which brings students from around the world to Poland, where they explore the remnants of the Holocaust. On Holocaust Memorial Day observed in the Jewish calendar, thousands of participants march silently from Auschwitz to Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp complex built during World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holocaust Museum LA</span> Museum in Los Angeles, California

Holocaust Museum LA, formerly known as Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust, is a museum located in Pan Pacific Park within the Fairfax district of Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1961 by Holocaust survivors, Holocaust Museum LA is the oldest museum of its kind in the United States. Its mission is to commemorate those murdered in the Holocaust, honor those who survived, educate about the Holocaust, and inspire a more dignified and humane world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Podwal</span> American artist and physician

Mark Podwal is an artist, author, filmmaker and physician. He may have been best known initially for his drawings on The New York Times Op-Ed page. In addition, he is the author and illustrator of numerous books. Most of these works — Podwal's own as well as those he has illustrated for others— typically focus on Jewish legend, history and tradition. His art is represented in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Israel Museum, the National Gallery of Prague, the Jewish Museums in Berlin, Vienna, Stockholm, Prague, New York, among many other venues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum</span> Holocaust / human rights museum in Dallas, TX

The Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum is a history education museum in Dallas, Texas, in the West End Historic District at the southeast corner of N. Houston Street and Ross Avenue. Its mission is to teach the history of the Holocaust and advance human rights to combat prejudice, hatred, and indifference. It features climate-controlled archives and a research library to expand education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center</span> American museum in Skokie, Illinois

The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center is a museum located in Skokie, Illinois, near Chicago. According to the Center's mission statement, its founding principle is to "Remember the Past; Transform the Future." Its mission is to preserve the legacy of the Holocaust by honoring victims' memories and to educate in the service of combating hatred, prejudice, and indifference. The Museum fulfills its mission through its collections-based exhibitions and through education programs and other initiatives that promote human rights and the elimination of genocide.

Holocaust studies, or sometimes Holocaust research, is a scholarly discipline that encompasses the historical research and study of the Holocaust. Institutions dedicated to Holocaust research investigate the multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary aspects of Holocaust methodology, demography, sociology, and psychology. It also covers the study of Nazi Germany, World War II, Jewish history, religion, Christian-Jewish relations, Holocaust theology, ethics, social responsibility, and genocide on a global scale. Exploring trauma, memories, and testimonies of the experiences of Holocaust survivors, human rights, international relations, Jewish life, Judaism, and Jewish identity in the post-Holocaust world are also covered in this type of research.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish Community Centre of Kraków</span>

Jewish Community Centre of Kraków is a secular cultural and educational centre that opened in 2008 as the result of an initiative by the Prince of Wales. The site is leased from the official Jewish Community of Kraków. "JCC" is located in the Kazimierz district of Kraków on ul. Miodowa. It stands on the site of a garden to the rear of the Tempel Synagogue, abutting the adjacent building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Breman Jewish Heritage & Holocaust Museum</span> Holocaust museum, Jewish Museum in Atlanta, United States

The William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum, colloquially known as The Breman, is a cultural center in Atlanta dedicated to Jewish history, culture and arts with special emphasis on Georgia and the Holocaust. The Breman, which opened in 1996, is the largest museum of its kind in the Southeast, and it is located at the corner of 18th Street and Spring Street, across the street from the Center for Puppetry Arts, in Midtown. The museum is named for Atlanta businessman William Breman, a philanthropist active in the Jewish community of Atlanta.

Harry James Cargas was an American scholar and author best known for his writing and research on the Holocaust, Jewish–Catholic relations, and American literature. He was a professor at Webster University for nearly three decades, and his circle of friends and collaborators included the American novelist Kurt Vonnegut, Nobel Laureate and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel and sportscaster and humanitarian Bob Costas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vladka Meed</span>

Vladka Meed was a member of Jewish resistance in Poland who famously smuggled dynamite into the Warsaw Ghetto, and also helped children escape out of the Ghetto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eli Rubenstein</span>

Eli Rubenstein is a Holocaust educator, writer, and filmmaker. He is currently the religious leader of Congregation Habonim Toronto, a Toronto synagogue founded by Holocaust survivors. He is also the National Director of March of the Living Canada, Director of Education for March of the Living International, Director of March of Remembrance and Hope Canada, and Chairman of the Canadian Friends of the Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind.

The Holocaust Documentation & Education Center, located at 303 N. Federal Highway, Dania Beach, Florida, was founded in 1980. The Center is raising funds to build the first South Florida Holocaust Museum, which will – uniquely for a museum of this type – serve both the Spanish- and the English-speaking public. After vacating its previous location, a three-story building at 2031 Harrison Street in Hollywood, Florida, it moved into its current location, a 25,000-square-foot facility, on September 28, 2016.

Sigmund Strochlitz was a Polish-born Jewish American entrepreneur, political activist, and Holocaust survivor. He served on the U.S. President's Commission on the Holocaust and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council from 1978 to 1986, establishing the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Strochlitz was the first chair of the council's Days of Remembrance committee, persuading state and federal officials to hold annual Holocaust commemorations in all fifty state capitals and in Washington, D.C. in 1985 and every year since. According to the Encyclopedia Judaica, Strochlitz was a "major figure in institutionalizing Holocaust commemoration" throughout the United States.

References

  1. 1 2 Fryer, B. (2016, July 15). Elie Wiesel leaves lasting impression on Bay area. https://www.jewishpresspinellas.com/articles/elie-wiesel-leaves-lasting-impression-on-bay-area/
  2. "Florida Holocaust Museum". St. Pete Clearwater. Visit St. Pete/Clearwater. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Edie Loebenberg, Florida Holocaust Museum co-founder, dies | Jewish Press of Tampa". m.jewishpresstampa.com. Archived from the original on 2018-11-28.
  4. "About our Boxcar". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 2010-09-24.
  5. "Dimensions in Testimony". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 2023-04-14.
  6. "Matzevot for Everyday Use Photographs by Łukasz Baksik". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 2023-04-16.
  7. "Humanity Beyond Barbed Wire - Hitler's Soldiers in the Sunshine State Special Exhibit". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 2023-04-16.
  8. "Speak up, Speak Now!".
  9. "Anne Frank Humanitarian Award".
  10. "Law Enforcement and Society".
  11. "Generations After".
  12. Solodev (2022-11-22). "Commissioner of Education's Task Force on Holocaust Education". www.fldoe.org. Retrieved 2023-04-15.
  13. "Teaching Trunks".
  14. "Trunks educate kids about the Shoah". 26 January 2015.
  15. "Tours". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  16. "Teacher Training". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  17. "Virtual Resources". The Florida Holocaust Museum. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  18. "Partner organizations". Austrian Service Abroad. Retrieved 2010-09-24.