Enlarge

Herb DeLivie

 

Herb DeLevie was a survivor of the Nazi Holocaust who settled in Maidson, Wisconsin, after World War II.

Herb DeLevie was born in Rheine, Germany, on May 7, 1934. His mother was German and his father was Dutch. His father's family had practiced the traditions of Sephardic Judaism for centuries. After witnessing rising anti-Semitism in Germany, the DeLevie family moved to Stadtskanaal, Holland, in 1936 to escape the growing sanctions against Jews.

In late 1940, Herb's father, a prominent business owner, went into hiding. Six months later, 7-year-old Herb, his mother, and 11-year-old sister joined him. Over the next four years, they hid in one room of a small farmhouse on the out¬skirts of Stadtskanaal with a large group of relatives and friends. To keep occupied, young Herb read more than 3,000 books brought by the Dutch Underground.

After liberation by a Canadian army unit in 1945, the DeLevies returned to their home. The senior DeLevie resumed his business and the family made plans to immigrate to the U.S. They left Holland in December 1949. The family resided with relatives in New York City until late spring 1950, when they arrived in Madison, Wisconsin.

Herb graduated from West High School in 1951 and enrolled in the University of Wisconsin. A chance encounter with Frank Lloyd Wright resulted in Herb's acceptance at Taliesin in May 1953, where he remained for two years. He joined the Army shortly thereafter and was sent to Korea. After his discharge, Herb settled in Los Angeles, where he worked as an architect, teacher, clothing designer, and cook, and married. His first marriage ended in divorce in 1964.

In June 1964, he married Monica Freund-Fasslicht in Los Angeles. He soon returned to Wisconsin because his father was ill. He set up shop as an architect in Madison, where his sons were born in 1968 and 1971. His second wife died in 1975 and two years later he married again. In 1976, Herb formed the Madison architectural firm of DeLevie and Associates, which he ran until his death from a brain tumor in 1989.

Herb DeLevie, Oral History Interview

Herb's Testimony

Listen to Herb DeLevie tell his story to the Wisconsin Historical Society interviewer. 

Learn More

Oral Histories: Wisconsin Survivors of the Holocaust

Hear the stories of 22 Holocaust Survivors and two American witnesses interviewed between 1974 and 1981.