Yvonne Sommerfeld – The Mysterious French Jewess involved with German Spy Josef Jakobs

/ People / 6 minutes of reading

Josef Jakobs was many things – son, brother, father, grandfather, dentist, bootlegger, philanderer, black marketer, criminal and spy. Can we add “liar” to that list? Josef told his British interrogators many stories during his incarceration at Camp 020, MI5’s secret wartime interrogation centre. Fantastic stories of German cabaret singers, Finnish bootleggers, black market passports, gold […]

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Book Review – The Hagley Wood Tree Murder – Keith Swallow – 2023

/ Bella in the Wych Elm, Books / 7 minutes of reading

This is the second book about the Hagley Wood Murder (a.k.a. Bella in the Wych Elm Murder) that I have read this year. The first book, by M.J. Trow is a sad and disappointing volume which mixes fiction with fact. It contributes nothing to the investigation of the case and actually muddies the waters even

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Does the Jakobs Family Album contain Photos of German Jew Werner Adolf Goldmann?

/ People / 8 minutes of reading

This blog is Part 4 of a 4-Part Series on German Jew Werner GoldsteinPart 1 is here, Part 2 is here, Part 3 is here. Werner Adolf Goldstein, chemist and gold counterfeiter was a mysterious man. While I have uncovered the barest outline of his life, there are still many frustrating unknowns. The core mystery

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German Jew Werner Adolf Goldstein Sought Refuge from the Holocaust in Italy

/ People / 14 minutes of reading

This blog is Part 3 of a 4-Part Series on German Jew Werner GoldsteinPart 1 is here, Part 2 is here, Part 4 [will be here when it is posted]. While Werner’s father, Willy, perished under the Nazis, Werner himself managed to escape Germany and fled to Italy. He made a good choice. While many

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The Jewish Chemist Turned Gold Counterfeiter – Werner Adolf Goldstein

/ People / 12 minutes of reading

This blog is Part 2 of a 4-Part Series on German Jew Werner GoldsteinPart 1 is here, Part 3 & Part 4 will be here when posted. I never thought I would find any information on Josef’s gold counterfeiting buddy. To me, the name “Goldstein” (Goldstone) seemed too utterly made-up to be real. But, it

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German Spy Josef Jakobs’ Gold Counterfeiting Story Confirmed by Swiss Archives Documents

/ People / 13 minutes of reading

This blog is Part 1 of a 4-Part Series on German Jew Werner GoldsteinPart 2 is here, Part 3 & Part 4 will be here when posted. I burst into tears the other day. Now, this is not an unusual occurrence when I am researching the lives and deaths of Jewish victims of the Holocaust.

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Spooky Trees

Lavinia Stratford – A Candidate for Bella in the Wych Elm?

/ Bella in the Wych Elm, People / 24 minutes of reading

A few months back, I read M.J. Trow’s 2023 volume on the Bella in the Wych Elm mystery. The book was a disappointment. It suffered from a number of errors and inaccuracies. On top of that, the dearth of source citations meant that readers and researchers were left wondering what was fact and what was

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