Jews Rescuing Jews: The Ben Zion and Clara Colb Collection

This collection documents the efforts of Ben Zion Kalb (later Colb) to rescue his fellow Jews during the Holocaust. After being beaten up by a German policeman in 1939, he fled from Poland to Slovakia. He later smuggled his fiancée, Clara, from Poland to Slovakia and then realized he could smuggle other Jews out of Poland to relative safety. Working with leaders of the Jewish community in Poland and Slovakia, he was able to smuggle more than 1,000 Jews out of Poland. His children donated the collection to the Museum to bring recognition to their father’s heroism during the Holocaust.

Learn More

• Holocaust Encyclopedia—Jewish Resistance

• Holocaust Encyclopedia—Jewish Aid and Rescue

• Holocaust Encyclopedia—The Holocaust in Slovakia

• Timeline of Events—The Auschwitz Report