Forst and Levy Family Collection

The Forst and Levy Family Collection holds the papers of members of the Forst and Levy families, ancestors of Susan Schomer. A large portion of the collection is made up of the World War I correspondence of the Forst family. In addition the collection includes later correspondence of Joseph Levy, paper money, genealogical notes, affidavits of support, restitution correspondence and other materials.

Much of the collection features documents of the Forst family, including the above mentioned World War I correspondence, found in the correspondence of Series I. Many of these letters and postcards were sent to or from Simon Forst while he was on the West Front; they primarily consist of brief greetings between Simon and his wife and children at home. Later correspondence of this kind includes notice of and condolences for his death. Series II includes a folder of correspondence regarding Friederike Forst’s widow's pension and restitution for their losses under Nazi Germany.

Levy Family materials are also located in both series of the collection. They include a folder of correspondence to Joseph Levy in the United States from his family members during the late 1930s and early 1940s. Financial affidavits for Isaak Levy and a partial family tree that depicts the connection between the Levys and the Forsts are also part of Series II.