Ida Erdstein
Name at birth
Ida Imber
Date of birth
05/30/1907
Where did you grow up?
Vienna, Austria
Name of father, occupation
Michl Imber,
Businessman
Maiden name of mother, occupation
Charlotte (Auerbach) Imber
Immediate family (names, birth order)
Sister Erna, Brothers Ludwig and Arthur
Who survived the Holocaust?
All of the Imber side of the family survived. Not so for the Erdstein side.
When Hitler took over Austria in March of 1938 many Viennese Jews committed suicide. I was also so inclined, being pregnant with my second child. But my husband, always the optimist, convinced me to hang on. From there, we encountered many scrapes with the Nazis, including my husband’s imprisonment after Kristallnacht, but somehow we survived. While leaving separately from Austria, through luck, we eventually came together again as a family in the United States.
When did you come to the United States?
Came to New York with my two children in April, 1939
Where did you settle?
Washington Heights, New York City
How is it that you came to Michigan?
After my husband died in 1990, I came to Michigan to be near my son, George
Occupation after the war
Dressmaker
When and where were you married?
Married June 28, 1931 in Vienna, Austria
Spouse
Berthold,
Accountant
Children
George Erdstein, architect. Evi (Erdstein) Heilbrunn
Grandchildren
Six grandchildren. Brian Erdstein, Rachel Erdstein, Elana (Erdstein) Perry, Kenneth Heilbrunn, Greg Heilbrunn, Peter Heilbrunn
What do you think helped you to survive?
Luck
Interviewer:
Questionnaire filled out by son, George Erdstein
Interview date:
04/25/2025
