Nathan Silow
"America is a good country especially if you have a good job. Be proud to be Jewish."
Name at birth
Nachman Szylowicz
Date of birth
03/10/1910
Name of father, occupation
Yaakov Shlomo,
Plumber
Maiden name of mother, occupation
Rivka Leah,
Homemaker
Immediate family (names, birth order)
Parents, two brothers, one sister and me
How many in entire extended family?
30
Who survived the Holocaust?
Two brothers: Yossel and Yisrael Aaron, my sister Mania. One brother was in hiding in France and one brother and my sister were in concentration camps.
I was in Warsaw in 1939. Soon after the Germans occupied Warsaw, I was walking down a street; two German soldiers were walking ahead of me. There was a Jewish man fixing a broken window. I overheard one of the German soldiers say to the other, watch me shoot that Jew. The other German said to the other, put away your gun, we don’t have our orders yet. When I heard this, I decided to escape to Russia. I asked my parents and family to leave with me, but they thought it would not get to be so bad. So, I left for Russia on my own. When I came to the border, the guard asked me if I was a Jew. I said I was. The guard said to me you can come in; we are not like the Germans; to us, all people are the same.
Where were you in the Former Soviet Union?
I escaped to Bialystok, then further into Russia. I worked in a coal mine in Siberia, later was with the army.
Where did you go after being liberated?
Brussels, Belgium. Two brothers and sister survived, were living there
When did you come to the United States?
December, 1952
Where did you settle?
San Antonio, Texas and then to St. Louis, Missouri
How is it that you came to Michigan?
After retirement, moved to Detroit to join son living there
Occupation after the war
Auto Worker, General Motors and Fisher Body-Chevrolet, St. Louis, Missouri
When and where were you married?
1948 in Brussels, Belgium
Spouse
Sara Parzenczeska Silow,
Homemaker
Children
Charles, psychologist and director of the Program for Holocaust Survivors and Families of Jewish Senior Life
Grandchildren
Two granddaughters: Shoshana and Naomi
What do you think helped you to survive?
Fled from Warsaw, Poland to Russia. Worked in Siberian coal mine, then army.
What message would you like to leave for future generations?
America is a good country especially if you have a good job. Be proud to be Jewish.
Experiences
Survivor's map
