Answers held in a 21 Sep 1958 letter

I remembered getting a copy of a letter that spoke about the STEUER family lore. I decided to read it again and dissect it. Since I keep want to go backwards and find out more on our ancestors, I wanted more clarity in where to look.

There is a letter from Minnie & Barney Steuer, dated 21 Sep1958, to Kermit & Henrietta states that the STEUER name doesn't go back more than three generations. It does state that Bernhardt, Aaron and Julius were brothers and about 6 brothers stayed behind in Hungary as as they knew. The descendants of those brothers had either been lost track of or were murdered in the holocaust.

Pg 1 of Barney Steuer's letter to Kermit, 1958

This letter continues to state that the father of these brothers was not STEUER but Yudkovitch (Judkowitz, Judkiewicz (Hungarian spelling), Judkovics). The story came from Max David Steuer, known as "Pop" to his family, the son of Bernhardt. The story was one of Bernhardt's brothers was bethrothed to a young lady whose last name was STEUER. She was an only child and her father, anxious to have the family name perpetuated asked the prospective son-in-law (whom is still unknown at this time) to take the name of Steuer when he married his daughter.

This brother did take on the name STEUER and the, gradually, one by one the other brothers did the same. The only one who didn’t do it was Bernhardt who came to the USA as Judkowitz, not Steuer, so said by Barney. I do have Hungarian birth records for six of Bernhardt’s children, all born in Bihar Megye, Hungary and some had the last name of Judkiewicz and Mary and Max were born as Steuer.

Some birth records for Bernhardt (Berl) & Fanny's children

The brother I have as not changing his name was Hersk Judkiewicz. His grandson, Josef/Joseph Judkovic was born in Csebinye, Zemplen Megye, Hungary and arrived in New York on 11 February 1898 at the age of 17. He had been told by his father, Abraham Judkiewicz, never to change his name. Marc Judkowitz is a known DNA match to Arthur and Michael, Bernhardt’s great-grandsons and to one of Julius Steuer’s (Cleveland branch) great-great-grandson.

Josef Judkovic Passenger Record

Bernhardt and Fanny may have emigrated under the name of Yudkatitch/Judkiewicz/Judkowitz or someother spelling for the name. The story Max Steuer told, after his father Bernhardt arrived in New York and being introduced as Mr. Steuer, he found the conflict of names embarrassing and then took the name of Steuer as well. Max went on to state that the family was Hungarian and mentioned they were from Grossvardein (the German name for Nagyvarad) and Homona (where the famous Max D Steuer was from).

I have often wondered why Max referred to the place he was born as Grossvardein instead of Nagyvarad if the family had always been Hungarian. The letter from Barney continues to state that the place where Max was born was at one time part of Bohemia, hence could be the reason for the German name. Bernhardt’s brother Aaron was a vintor in Bohemia before he and his family emigrated to New York (before Bernhardt emigrated).

Nagyvarad (Grossvardein) are known today as Oradea, Romania. In Hebrew and Yiddish texts the German name was used. It’s known that Jews in Nagyvarad were immigrants from Bohemia and Moravia. These Jews adopted the Hungarian language and culture earlier than other Jewish communities in Hungary.

 

Nagyvarad, Hungary

I haven’t been able to find any Bohemian records. I do have some theories as to other family members because of their spouses family names are names that others in the extended Steuer family married into, so this tends to lead to the general areas they were from. Still missing other brothers, so there still are large puzzle pieces missing. Maybe one of these days I will find more records and be able to go back a few more generations.

Eva Steuer, daughter of Bernhard & Henriette

In November 2018 I was contacted by Julie regarding her great-grandmother, Eva Steuer. She didn’t know much about Eva, but did know she was related to Rabbi Urlich Steuer.

I was able to let Julie know that Eva was the daughter of Bernhard Steuer & Henriette Eisner. Julie was only able to tell me about Eva’s husband and daughter Ellie Hiller. Now I have been able to find out more about Eva’s family.

Thanks to Berlin birth records, I found other children of Hermann and Eva (Steuer) Hiller. Eva Steuer Hiller was the mother of Ellie, born 22 Feb 1885; Johanna, born 23 Jan 1894, Berlin; Wilhelm, born 29 Oct 1896, Berlin and died 04 Feb 1897, Berlin; Bertha, born 08 Mar 1898, Berlin; and Ernst, born 07 Oct 1899, Berlin.

Bertha Hiller married and had at least one daughter Elfriede Hiller (Siedner). Bertha and Elfriede emigrated to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1959. 

Ernst Hiller married Berta Drachmann, daughter of Jacob Drachmann and Iohanne Birnzweig. Ernst and Berta had at least one daughter, Beatriz Eva Hiller, born 08 May 1929 in Berlin. Ernst and his family emigrated to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Ernst entered Rio de Janeiro in August 1949, 21 Jul 1950 and on 13 Apr 1955. Berta and Beatriz Eva Hiller emigrated in 1950.

Beatriz Eva Hiller

Berta Drachmann Hiller

Still searching for more information on Hillers that went to Rio de Janeiro, more information on Hermann Hiller, as well as Johanna Hiller. As far as I know, Eva Steuer Hiller died in 1926, Brzezinka, Upper Silesia.

Steuers Popping out of the Woodwork

Another connection made! Thank you Marjorie for writing your article on her husband reclaiming his German citizenship. Julie contacted her because of it and contacted me thanks to Marjorie.

Now I have a bit more information on another child of Bernhard and Henriette (Eisner) Steuer. Up until now I only knew that Eva was born on 29 Oct 1866, Brzezinka, Upper Silesia, Prussia.

Eva was Bernhard and Henriette’s first born, as far as I know. She and her sister Lina were the only two daughters that lived long enough to marry. They were also the only two that I couldn’t find information on their spouses and/or descendants.

This Eva Steuer married Herman Hiller. They moved to Breslau at some point. I was told they owned a successful clothing store called Hillers Department store. Herman was a commodities trader.

So far only know about Herman and Eva’s daughter Ellie who married Ernest

Cohn/Kohn. She was listed as a survivor in the newspaper “Aufbau, Sep 1944-Sep 1946” in the “Published Lists of Survivors”. She died 25 Jan 1956 (Gunther was 10 years old).

Ellie’s husband Ernest was forced to leave his family behind by the Nazis when he fled Germany to Cuba, and later to the USA. Ellie and Ernest’s children were put in an orphanage and stayed there until their father was able to arrange for their escape in 1939 with the help of Jewish charities. Everything they owned was left behind.

Ernest sent his two daughters to South America. I was told that Gunther escaped from a Jewish orphanage in Berlin, in 1939, on the last ship out before war was declared. Gunther departed Hamburg on the SS Hamburg on 10 Aug 1939. He arrived in New York on 18 Aug 1939 at the Port of New York. On the passenger manifest he was listed as Guenther/Hermann Nathan and he was 13 years old.

Gunther registered for the US Army on 05 Sep 1944. Ernest was listed as next of kin on his WWII draft information. They sent him to train with the Office of Strategic Services, a wartime intelligence agency. At the time he lived in St. Joseph, Buchanan County, Missouri. He found himself back in Berlin, this time hunting war criminals.

He spoke fluent German and worked undercover finding former SS officers, prison guards and other Nazis suspected of murdering Jews and other ethnic minorities during the Holocaust. One story relayed is:

On one occasion, he tracked a former high-ranking colonel to a political meeting in a beer hall. The former colonel had been tipped off that he was being followed. While turned away from Mr. Kohn, the former colonel pulled his pistol, turned and pointed it at Mr. Kohn and was about to pull the trigger. That’s when a U.S. soldier accompanying Mr. Kohn saw what was happening from across the room and shot the colonel in the head.

“That was as close as he got to getting killed.”

Gunther returned to the US and settled in St. Louis, Missouri where he started and operated his own business. Many years later he was one among others who helped found the St. Louis Holocaust Museum.