Genealogy Chat

Can i point out one thing? His phone number is available to all and sundry, if he didnt want to be contacted his phone number would be private and unlisted i would also like to add( probably talking bull poo now as well) but Anne Frank was a heroine of mine from when i was at school, whos to say Herta wont be the next Anne Frank of our kids generation, it would be fantastic to have a closure on this story and i believe he has a right to know what happened to his future wife, he may have read about the air raids in the papers but never knew the outcome, or he may have ben told but always wondered what happened to her belongings

Ok, the die is cast - when is this phone call happening, so I can check in?

about midnight i think Athena said ( our time)

Just because a person doesn't post regularly doesn't make their opinion less valid. His comment about people doing it for their own glory.....and mine as it happens.....is how it appears from the outside looking in. My question still hasn't been answered.....has either the archives or the newspaper been given the chance of contacting Mr Boley themselves? And if not, why not? I'll walk away from this now as it seems the decision has already been made. I do actually wish you the best of luck! Jeanette x

Jeanette I did of course say that Patrick is perfectly entitled to have an opinion - just dont think there was any need to express it so offensively. OC

Old Crone, I too have no wish to have a slanging match with anydody. You yet again accuse of me being insulting. I have not suggested anywhere that the information should be witheld from the gentleman, quite the opposite. Please read what I write before casting aspersions. You are obviously all hell bent on pursuing this matter by telephone, I can only reiterate I find that approach remarkable, to say the least. I will leave you all to it.

I have just spent quite a long time reading all the postings and I have to say it is all very exciting!!! I too, like most people have my own opinions. Although I do believe these items should be returned to their rightful owner it does pose the question - who is the rightful owner? Herta never did marry Heinz so he was never her next of kin although some might argue that the letters he wrote to her should be returned to him or his family. As for the other items, they clearly belong to the Lobenstiens, don't they?? Or, is the rightful owner now the Lambeth archives........would they be prepared to part with such a great collection? It might be a good idea to find out first if they would be prepared to hand them over...... Deb

Well Patrick having been following this thread I think you will find that with a great deal of thought and good intentions a democratic vote was taken, be it right or wrong, with no thought of glory and now that you have made your point let it rest. Well done everyone Norah

I have to say while I admire your teamwork and eagerness to reunite the items with their rightful owners, I tend to agree with Jeanette and Patrick. This should really be handled by the newspaper or the Archives. Also, I don't think a phone call is the correct way to go about it - that is very intrusive - if this is his son and DIL, they may not even know about Herta. At least with a letter, they have time to digest the information and think about how they want to tackle the situation with Heinz. These letters etc have been lost for 60 years, a couple more weeks won't hurt surely? Debby

Still checking in from time to time this evening and watching this thread....but I can't stay up much longer, got to go to bed (I'm ahead of UK time) an my eyelids are dropping.....will check in first thing in the morning to see what happened ref: the phone call. Goodnight all,, Karen

Ive just found this website, dont know if anyone has been on it, ive just skimmed through its jewishwebindex* com

Debby I take your points. However, it seems from this thread that the Archives have no plans to pursue this matter. I personally dont think that a phone call from a local Newspaper in England will be any less shocking than a phone call from an individual. Athena is hardly likely to say 'So, Heinz, tell us how you felt when Herta was killed in an Air Raid?' And I dont think, in this particular case, that a letter is any better than a phone call. After all, this may not be the right man! The shock/delight/surprise is going to be the same, however the information is rendered. AS to ownership of the contents of the suitcase, I THINK I am right that legally, letters belong to the person who wrote them (But not 100% sure). The rest of the stuff belongs to Herta's next of kin - Henry may know whether any of her kin survived. My father was engaged to be married before he met my mother. The engagement was broken off by mutual agreement. I view this as a mildly interesting fact about my father's life. It does not cause me any distress at all and doubt if it would if it came to light today and I hadnt previously known about it. Olde Crone

Just thought i'd wish you luck for the phone call tonight. I have been following this link since it first started but couldn't join in as i'm not very good/quick at searching as not been a member for a long time. Jennie

Absolutely I agree that the ideal body to return those papers would be Lambeth, but seeing as they didnt even manage to find Herta's death (bit feeble that email - 'we didnt see her cos she was buried over the border in Camberwell' - erm, a stone's throw - not a galaxy away, and anyway, did they sit there just going through indexes looking for deaths in their little area? - I dont think they are that bothered either finding her rellies or returning the stuff. They are busy people and this would just be an expensive and irritating aside for them.

Points taken OC & Heather I would just hate to see anyone hurt because of peeps on here - it isn't our right to interfere in strangers lives however well meaning that interference is! Having said that, I wish you all the luck in the world and really hope it has a happy outcome and that Hertas belongings are finally with the people who they belong to. Debby

I see the well thought out plan is not to speak to him, but to speak to a family member. What are you going to say if he answers the phone ?

Well, at a wild guess Patrick, 'May I speak to Karen or Howard Boley please?'

What a facinating saga this is. Heard about it from the General Topics section, so had to come and read about it. Won't be able to stay up until a report about the phone call comes in, 'cos I'm on a different time scale too, but I will be looking in some time tomorrow. I don't know many of the 'key' people on here and you certainly don't know me, but you seem to have this carefully planned and I'm sure if he is the right man, no harm will be done. Good luck with whatever tactic you decide upon and I'll keep my fingers crossed that it's the right man. Margaret

All I can say is that I have been following this story with interest, I can see everybodies point of view, but i think contact is the only way to get this story forward. He might not be the right man, but if he is he has a right to know, and i am sure his children, the people who know him best, will be able to make the right decision. I wish you good luck with the phone call, and will be awaiting further posts on the outcome. Well Done everyone who has helped in the search, this is really amasing. Sue

I echo what Sue has just said and will be popping back in the morning to see what has happened. Good Luck everyone Germaine x