In a groundbreaking discovery, UK historian Amy Williams has uncovered previously unknown records of the Kindertransport, defying long-held beliefs by Holocaust experts. The Kindertransport was a rescue operation that relocated approximately 10,000 Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Europe to Britain and other countries between 1938 and 1940. Williams’ discovery was made at Israel’s Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, where she found documents detailing the evacuation of 9,000 children, hidden within a Dutch file on “foreign nationals.”
Williams, who serves as the Kindertransport scholar-in-residence at the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR), identified these documents at the end of 2024. She explained, “I don’t think people found the records because they aren’t catalogued under Kindertransport and they exist within a file which has hundreds of other lists.” The records include vital information such as children’s names, home addresses, dates of birth, and details of their British host families.
The Historical Significance of the Kindertransport
The Kindertransport has been commemorated globally, often symbolized by statues of Jewish children wearing nametags. The operation was a lifeline for many Jewish families after the Nuremberg Race Laws were enacted in 1935, prompting parents to consider sending their children to safety abroad. However, detailed records of the operation have been scarce, partly due to the tragic fate of many children’s families during the Holocaust.
Williams’ discovery challenges the perception that the Kindertransport was solely a British rescue effort. “It’s important as I’ve found lists which show that the Kindertransport isn’t just a British rescue. The children went to many different countries,” she noted.
A Personal Connection to History
For survivors like Hanna Zack Miley, 92, who was rescued on a Kindertransport, the discovery of these records has been transformative. “I am still feeling the reverberations of seeing my details on the Kindertransport list. Reclaiming the past is an ongoing journey for me,” shared Miley, who now resides in Arizona. The records have provided a sense of authentication and closure for many survivors and their descendants.
“My first reaction was a feeling of authentication — this actually did happen, I was really there. I’m embracing more deeply both the losses and the deliverance, the saving of my life,” said Miley.
Unveiling Unknown Aspects of the Rescue
Williams’ research has also shed light on the extensive network of organizations involved in the Kindertransport. These records reveal that Jewish communities in countries like Germany, Austria, Poland, and Czechoslovakia created lists that were then sent to the Dutch Kindertransport committee and border guards. This ensured that the transports had permission to travel through the Netherlands.
Working with the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People at the National Library of Israel, Williams is further identifying children rescued from Austria and sent to various countries, including the UK, France, Belgium, and Australia. She anticipates future announcements regarding Jewish children relocated from Austria.
“What [the documents] show you is the extent to which all the different organizations were desperately trying to get people out to so many different places. The files aren’t digitized or searchable, so you manually have to go through everything, and there are thousands of pages,” Williams explained.
The Chilling Reality of Kindertransports to Death
In a sobering twist, Williams discovered another set of Kindertransport lists created by German authorities. These lists included names of Jewish children who were later deported to concentration and death camps. “Some of the children who were on Dutch Kindertransports were later deported to the concentration camps and death camps. Many did not survive. These were Kindertransports to death,” Williams revealed.
“The Kindertransport is synonymous with rescue and arrival, but it didn’t always mean that at the time,” she added.
According to William Niven, a professor of German history at Nottingham Trent University, the documents are of immense historical significance. “These documents will help answer questions that many Jewish people have carried for their entire lives. For those people who were on the Kindertransport but have since passed away, it will allow their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren to learn more about their family origins and the historic train journey that gave them freedom,” he said.
As Williams continues her research, she hopes the Kindertransport records will eventually be housed at the UK-based Association of Jewish Refugees and World Jewish Relief, making them accessible to survivors and their descendants. Her work not only enriches historical understanding but also provides a crucial link to the past for many families.
