Identity Statement

Reference Code

HU OSA 439-1-4

Title

Letters Received by Gertrud Bortstieber

Date(s)

1931 - 1963

Description Level

Series

Extent and medium (processed)

5 Archival boxes, 0.62 linear meters

Context

Name of creator(s)

Bortstieber, Gertrud

Content and Structure

Scope and Content (Narrative)

The series consists of letters received by Gertrud Bortstieber from her relatives, friends and professional contacts. Some of the letters were received on behalf of Gertrud Bortstieber's husband, György Lukács, mostly from editors. Among the more notable correspondents of Gertrud Bortstieber are the members of her family, as well as Lilly Becher, Remo Cantoni, Cesare Cases, Tibor Déry, István Eörsi, Béla Fogarasi, Milán Füst, Walter Janka, Thomas Mann, Júlia Lászlóné Rajk, Bence Szabolcsi, and André Wurmser.

Bortstieber received the largest number of letters in this series from her two sons, Lajos Jánossy (Lajcsó) and Ferenc Jánossy (Ferkó) and their spouses and descendants, as well as from Bortstieber and Lukács's daughter Anna (Ancserl) Jánosi, her husband and their descendants. Much of this family correspondence is in German, with only some of the letters being written in Hungarian or in English (typically letters written by the third generation). Some family letters are in Russian (i.e. the correspondence with Ferenc Jánossy's first wife, as well as with Ferenc himself, during his exile in the Soviet Union).

Accruals

Not Expected

System of arrangement

At the time of arrival to Blinken OSA, some of the content of these 5 archival boxes was not organized in strict alphabetical order: letters written by Bortstieber's children, along with some other family correspondence, were placed in a separate box. During re-cataloging at Blinken OSA, the alphabetical order of folders (following the Hungarian alphabet), established by Ferenc Csóka, was restored.

Where the first name or maiden name of a married woman sender is not known, the name is recorded in the traditional Hungarian format (last name of husband, first name of husband, suffix for "Mrs."). Where the maiden name is known, it is added to the sender's name, thus causing minor differences in folder titling, when compared to Ferenc Csóka's original inventory.

Conditions of Access and Use

Conditions governing access

Partially restricted

Languages

English, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Russian

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Due to their poor condition, the letters written by Ferenc Jánossy from exile are not accessible in hard copy; requests for the digitization of these should be made well in advance.

Description Control

Archivist's note

Processed by Mark László-Herbert, March 31, 2022.