Student Profile: J. Widawski

Jehoszuja moved from West Strasse 36 to Krauter Gasse 13 Flat 15. His occupation was "student."

I believe that he is the most likely match for "J. Widawski," even though there appear to be two other potentials.

Jakob (Jakub) Widawski is another possibility. He was born in 1921, which although it is possible he could have been in gymnasium at age 20, is less likely than someone born in 1924.

Another possibility is Jakob Pineles Widawski (born 1926); however, this person is listed in the Lodz Ghetto Database as being a female (though the name seems like a male to me).

This is possible; though you are right that the two Jakobs are possibilities, as well.

This is further research we have found on J. Widawski. We decided to explore the option of J meaning Jakub rather than Jehoszuja. I would also like to note there are two listings, one Jakub and one Jakob, both with the same address but different birthdates. The birthdates also are in the same year.

Thank you for your thorough research. As you indicated yourself, we cannot be sure which first name that the initial J. stands for. While Jakub Widawski could be the J. Widawski that signed the album, the other options show us that we Jakub is only a possibilty. Thank you for your time and effort!

The information from the secondary source indicates that Jakub was transferred out of Wolsztyn, which is a town in central Poland. We assume that he was transferred from Lodz to Wolsztyn before being taken finally to Auschwitz. We found his serial number in the secondary source on August 27, 1943, so we think he was transported with this group. Also, one record indicates his birth on May 1, and another states June 1. We think this is simply a data entry error.

Good research, it seems you have found a good deal of information out about Jakub Widawski. However, since we are not sure if Jakub Widawski is the J. Widawaski that signed the album, we can only mark your findings as possible.

Through outside research we discovered a record of Jacob Widawski, a Holocaust survivor and immigrant to Australia in 1949. The birthdate matched that of Jakub Widawski, a resident of Lodz and Auschwitz. We also found a picture of Jacob with his wife, Celina in Australia. http://www.slv.vic.gov.au/immigvic/0/0/1/doc/iv001017.shtml
This picture was taken in 1991, a year before Celina's book was published detailing her experiences during the Holocaust. Both Jacob and Celina have oral histories through USC's Shoah Foundation. All websites researched have records showing that Jacob immigrated to Australia, which further supported our belief of his survival through Lodz Ghetto and Auschwitz. We were unfortunately unable to find a liberation date at this time.

Good find! Though this does look promising, we cannot confirm your research because it is still not clear if this Jacob/Jakub Widowski was the same J. Widawski that signed the album in 1941. Thank you for your time and effort!