Source Information

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Ancestry.com. UK, Selected Records Relating to Kindertransport, 1938-1939 (USHMM) [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.

This collection was indexed by World Memory Project contributors from the digitized holdings of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, RG-59.075: Selected records relating to Kindertransport from the National Archives, UK. For more information about this collection, click on the collection title above to access the USHMM’s catalog record, or email [email protected].

About UK, Selected Records Relating to Kindertransport, 1938-1939 (USHMM)

Established in 1933 as the German Emergency Committee, the Friends Committee for Refugees and Aliens (FRCA) worked to help refugees from continental Europe fleeing persecution and war. Following Kristallnacht, which saw the murder and incarceration of many Jews in Germany, the organization set into motion a plan that would allow thousands of children to escape Germany in an evacuation that became known as "Kindertransport." The original documents are held by the National Archives (United Kingdom).

The Quakers, or “Friends,” negotiated with the German government to obtain safe passage for the children, and working with Jewish aid groups, the Kindertransport program evacuated approximately 10,000 children, with the Quakers responsible for 2,000.

This collection is an index to lists of children who were transported from Germany through Kindertransport, as well as some adult emigrants. The index also references Quaker minutes, reports, and correspondence, as well as some travel documents.

Historical Background

The Religious Society of Friends, also known as Quakers, was founded by George Fox in the mid-17th century in England. Their strict moral code that placed faith above country, refusal to participate in the state church or pay tithes, and a non-violence ethic that forbade military service made them the subject of persecution. Despite this, Quakers, often called “Friends,” have made their mark in progressive social movements such as abolition, workers’ rights, women’s equality, and anti-war efforts. More information about Kindertransport is available in the online Holocaust Encyclopedia for ordering information.

Ordering Records

Additional details about these victims may be included in the original records. While the index is freely accessible from Ancestry.com, the images of these records are not available in this database. Copies of the images can be ordered at no cost from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Click here for ordering information.