This exhibition shares the story of Markus and Anna Mattes, a Polish Jewish couple who moved to Mainz, Germany, in 1908 to raise their family. Through family pictures, documents, maps, and first-hand accounts in letters written by members of the Mattes family, we learn of the couple’s witness to the beginnings of the Holocaust, and their desperate attempts to escape Nazi Germany and join their children who found a home in the Quad Cities. These attempts, which ultimately failed, are haunting and echo the experience of many Jewish families during this time. The story of the Mattes family, as told through their own words from 1938-1941, honors the memory of those who did not survive.
On display on the 4th floor October 16th – November 27th, 2022
