Overview
Scanned copy, only available in electronic form, of Louisa Levite Sommers's memoir entitled "Looking Back," in which she describes her childhood in Germany (diphtheria, first day of school, death of her mother), the increasing threat of Nazis, how her family left Germany and came to the United States, and her schooling.
Dates
- Creation: 1941
Language of Materials
Materials in English.
Access Restrictions:
Access. Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright. Copyright in the memoir created by Louisa Levite Sommers may be held by Sommers, or her heirs or assigns.
Copying. Memoir may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures.
Extent
23 Megabytes (1 file)The collection consists of a scanned copy, only available in electronic form, of Louisa Levite Sommers's memoir entitled "Looking Back," which was written in 1941 when Louisa was living in New York and attending high school. In the memoir, she describes her childhood in Germany (diphtheria, first day of school, death of her mother), the increasing threat of Nazis, how her family left Germany and came to the United States, and her schooling. Also included are photographs and Schwarzhaupt, Mandelbaum, and Levite family trees.
BIOGRAPHY
The daughter of Max and Irma (Schwarzhaupt) Levite, Louisa Levite Sommers escaped from Nazi Germany in 1937, staying first in London before sailing for New York. The family settled in Terre Haute, Indiana, for a couple of years before moving to New York City in 1941. Louisa married Walter M. Sommers in 1947; they had two children, Nancy and Ron.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Accession number: 2017-M26
The memoir of Louisa Levite Sommers was given to the Schlesinger Library by her daughter, Nancy Sommers, in February 2017.
Processing Information
Processed: February 2017
By: Anne Engelhart
Updated with additional description: June 2020
By: Johanna Carll
The original memoir was returned to Nancy Sommers after being digitized by Harvard Library Imaging Services in 2017.
The Schlesinger Library attempts to provide a basic level of preservation and access for all collections, and does more extensive processing of higher priority collections as time and resources permit. Finding aids may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.
- Author
- Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
- Language of description
- eng
- Sponsor
- Processing of this collection was made possible by the Jeannette Ward Fund.
- EAD ID
- sch01806
Repository Details
Part of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute Repository
The preeminent research library on the history of women in the United States, the Schlesinger Library documents women's lives from the past and present for the future. In addition to its traditional strengths in the history of feminisms, women’s health, and women’s activism, the Schlesinger collections document the intersectional workings of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class in American history.