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| Matarasso Maurice from Saloniki (Thessaloniki) and his brother Sami were liberated on April 15, 1945 in Bergen-Belsen and brought (through Lübeck) on the UNRRA White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid (ferry) to Sweden. Chief doctor on that ship was dr. Lisa Welander. White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid, on July 11, 1945, left several severe sick survivors in Malmö before it continued to its final destination - Gothenburg and hospitals there. The picture was taken on the car deck that was rebuild to accept as many Holocaust survivors as possible. |
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Matarasso Maurice from Saloniki (Thessaloniki) and his brother Sami were liberated on April 15, 1945 in Bergen-Belsen and brought (through Lübeck) on the UNRRA White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid to Sweden. The chief doctor on that ship was dr. Lisa Welander. White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid, on July 11, 1945, left several severe sick survivors in Malmö before it continued to its final destination - Gothenburg and hospitals there.
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At the end, of WWII thousands of Jews came to Sweden in missions called White Boats, White buses, and by Spoke trains that ended in Padborg. The biggest number of Holocaust survivors were brought by UNRRAs White Boat mission that started in June 1945. Many Jews died at Swedish hospitals, numerous shortly after their arrival. Several died and were buried in the Jewish cemetery in Malmö. There are several rows of gravestones there. Also, the Holocaust monument honors their memory. On the monument, one can read the names of the countries of origin of the Jews buried in Malmö, Holocaust victims.
One of the gravestones is white, not gray or brown like most of the Holocaust victim's stones in Malmö. It belongs to young Greek Matarasso Maurice from Saloniki (Thessaloniki). He and his brother Sami were liberated on April 15, 1945, in Bergen-Belsen and brought (through Lübeck) on the UNRRA White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid. The chief doctor on the ship was dr. Lisa Welander. White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid, on July 11, 1945, came to Malmö with numerous survivors before the ship continued to its final destination - Gothenburg and hospitals there. Matarasso Maurice was off the boat in Malmö and was first hospitalized at Nya Museet and thereafter at Borgarskolan wherefrom he was moved to Garnisonssjukhuset on July 24, 1945. Matarasso Maurice died on February 18th, 1946. There are several documents concerning Matarasso Maurice in the archives of the Swedish Holocaust Memorial Association.
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One of the gravestones is white, not gray or brown like most of the Holocaust victim's stones in Malmö. It belongs to young Greek Matarasso Maurice from Saloniki (Thessaloniki). He and his brother Sami were liberated on April 15, 1945, in Bergen-Belsen and brought (through Lübeck) on the UNRRA White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid.
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Mattarasso Maurice and Matarasso Sami with Lübeck numbers L: 5442 5457 arrived to Malmö on July 11, 1945 with White Boat Kronprinsessan Ingrid from Lübeck. Brothers were deported to start with to Auschwitz.
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The biggest number of Holocaust survivors were brought by UNRRAs White Boat mission that started in June 1945. Many Jews died at Swedish hospitals, numerous shortly after their arrival, and were buried in the Jewish cemetery in Malmö. There are several rows of gravestones there. Also, the Holocaust monument honors their memory. On the monument, one can read the names of the countries of origin of the Jews buried in Malmö, Holocaust victims.
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| Matarasso Maurice and Mattarasso Sami with Lübeck numbers L: 5442 5457 arrived to Malmö port on July 11, 1945 with UNRRAs White Boat M/S Kronprinsessan Ingrid from Lübeck. Two brothers were deported to start with to Auschwitz, thereafter to Dachau and Bergen-Belsen. Here are, the registration cards of Sami Mattarasso from Auschwitz and Dachau concentration camps. |
The history of Matarasso family. In February 1943, German authorities concentrated the Jews of Thessaloniki - Salonika in two ghettos. The ghetto in the western quarter was near the old railway station that was thereafter used for the deportations in the cattle wagons to the death- and concentration camps. Between March and August 1943, the Germans deported more than 45,000 Jews from Thessaloniki to the Auschwitz death camp. Most of the deportees were gassed on arrival in Auschwitz.
Entire Matarasso family, father Abraham 47 years old, mother Sara. 45 years old and their four sons were brought in cattle wagons to Auschwitz on April 18th, 1943. Mother and father and two youngest sons, brothers of Maurice, and Sami were murdered in gas chambers upon arrival. Maurice, born in 1919, and his brother Sami, born 1925 (1924) were transferred to the Dachau concentration camp. When Dachau was evacuated at the beginning of 1945 by means of death marches both brothers ended in Bergen-Belsen.
Almost 1 700 Thessaloniki-born Jews were deported from France to the death camps in the east.
300 Jews that were holders of Spanish identity papers ended up in Bergen-Belsen. About 500 Thessaloniki Jews escaped to nearby mountains and joined partisans.
Sami Matarasso left Sweden after his brothers death and went to Germany to one of hundreds of DP-camps close to Munich There he married Serin Weis (Szerena Weisz ?), another Holocaust survivor that was prisoner of Auschwitz, Dachau and Buchenwald concentration camps.
