Siggi B. Wilzig, born Siegbert Wilzig (March 11, 1926 – January 7, 2003), was a survivor of concentration camps
Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...
and
Mauthausen
Mauthausen was a Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen (roughly east of Linz), Upper Austria. It was the main camp of a group with nearly 100 further subcamps located throughout Austria and southern German ...
who arrived in the U.S. in 1947 with little money and only a grade school education. By the time of his death in 2003, he had created an empire in oil and banking with more than $4 billion in assets. Wilzig was a frequent lecturer on the importance of Holocaust memory, an outspoken opponent of Holocaust denial, and instrumental in building the
U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) is the United States' official memorial to the Holocaust. Adjacent to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the USHMM provides for the documentation, study, and interpretation of Holocaust hist ...
in Washington, D.C.
Early life
Siegbert Wilzig was born in 1926 in Krojanke in West Prussia, Germany (now
Krajenka
Krajenka (german: Krojanke) is a town in the Greater Poland Voivodeship of Poland. It has 3,804 inhabitants (2005) and lies in Złotów County.
Geographical location
Krajenka is located approximately 15 kilometers south of Złotów, 50 kilome ...
, Poland), the son of traditional Jewish parents and the second youngest of eight children. In 1936 Siegbert and his family fled mounting antisemitism in their town and relocated to
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
, where his father made a living selling textiles. In 1941, Siegbert was conscripted into forced labor working twelve-hour shifts for a German armament factory. In 1943, at age 16, he was deported along with his family and other Jews to the Auschwitz concentration camp in Occupied Poland. He once calculated that 59 members of his family had been murdered by the Nazis. In Auschwitz, Siegbert survived first by lying that he was eighteen (most young people under eighteen were automatically sent to be murdered in
gas chamber
A gas chamber is an apparatus for killing humans or other animals with gas, consisting of a sealed chamber into which a poisonous or asphyxiant gas is introduced. Poisonous agents used include hydrogen cyanide and carbon monoxide.
Histor ...
s) and then pretending to be a master tool-maker. He continued pretending to be an expert in whatever skills the camp operators needed. He survived selection for death a dozen times, multiple beatings, starvation, and other torture.
By early 1945 Allied forces were winning the war and Nazi soldiers force-marched remaining prisoners to alternate camps. He survived two such
death marches
A death march is a forced march of prisoners of war or other captives or deportees in which individuals are left to die along the way. It is distinguished in this way from simple prisoner transport via foot march. Article 19 of the Geneva Conven ...
and was liberated from Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria in May 1945 by the US Army. Siegbert was the only child in his Jewish school class of 1,500 students to survive the Holocaust. Siggi credited his survival to his foxlike instincts and to “the hand of the Almighty.”
Life after the Holocaust
On May 5, 1945, Wilzig was rescued by the U.S. Army from the
Mauthausen-Gusen
Mauthausen was a Nazi concentration camp on a hill above the market town of Mauthausen, Upper Austria, Mauthausen (roughly east of Linz), Upper Austria. It was the main camp of a group with List of subcamps of Mauthausen, nearly 100 further ...
concentration camp. He expressed his gratitude by spending the next two years as a volunteer helping the
U.S. Counter-Intelligence Corps track down former SS and other operators of Hitler's camps.
In 1947, his service earned him a visa to the
United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
. Soon after he came to the U.S., he legally changed his name to Siggi Bert Wilzig -- "Siggi B. Wilzig." Siggi arrived in New York at age 21, with only $240, no education beyond grade school, and no business contacts. He earned his first dollar shoveling snow in the
Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
after a fierce blizzard. His next job was laboring in toxic sweatshops.
In the 1950s Siggi accepted whatever jobs he could find, including bow-tie presser, traveling salesman, and eventually general manager of a furniture store. He possessed persuasive sales skills and in a matter of months tripled the business. In 1952 a produce vendor working from his truck introduced him to
Naomi Sisselman, daughter of a successful orthodox Jewish businessman, and on New Year's Eve 1953, Siggi and Naomi were married before a judge. Later they had a traditional Jewish wedding service. The couple had three children over the course of their marriage: two sons,
Ivan
Ivan () is a Slavic languages, Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John (given name), John) from Hebrew language, Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. T ...
and
Alan
Alan may refer to:
People
*Alan (surname), an English and Turkish surname
* Alan (given name), an English given name
**List of people with given name Alan
''Following are people commonly referred to solely by "Alan" or by a homonymous name.''
*A ...
, and a daughter named Sherry.
Building an empire
In the early 1960s, Siggi began spending his sales commissions to purchase stock in Wilshire Oil Company of Texas. A chance meeting with a more experienced investor led to Siggi spearheading a takeover of Wilshire. Despite his ignorance of the oil and gas industry, he demonstrated to Wilshire's board of directors that he possessed extraordinary insight when it came to business decisions. By 1965, he had grown Wilshire's bottom line, and the board elected him the company's new president. Six months later, at the age of 39, he was elected president and Chief Executive of the company.
Sensing that future growth would depend on access to large amounts of cash, Siggi led Wilshire in acquiring a controlling interest in the Trust Company of New Jersey (TCNJ), a full-service commercial bank. Once again, despite his lack of experience in the particulars of the industry, Siggi grew TCNJ into one of the largest, most profitable mid-sized banks in the state of New Jersey. In 1969 the bank board elected him its new president, chairman of the board and chief executive officer. Cancer forced him to step down from his duties as president in 2002. By then, Siggi had grown TCNJ's assets from $181 million to more than $4 billion. He was succeeded as president by his son, Alan, and in 2003, less than a year after Wilzig's death, the bank was sold to
North Fork Bank
North Fork Bank was an American bank that operated from 1950 until 2008 when it became Capital One Bank (after the name of its new parent). In November 2007, it had 365 branches in the New York metropolitan area.
History
North Fork early histo ...
for $726 million in an all-stock transaction. Two years later, North Fork Bank was sold to Capital One.
Philanthropy
In addition to his business interests, Wilzig was a leading figure in Jewish humanitarian and philanthropic affairs, particularly projects relating to the
Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...
. In 1975 he became the first Holocaust survivor to lecture before cadets and officers of the United States Military Academy at
West Point
The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
. In 1980, when Nobel Prize laureate author
Elie Wiesel
Elie Wiesel (, born Eliezer Wiesel ''Eliezer Vizel''; September 30, 1928 – July 2, 2016) was a Romanian-born American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Peace Prize, Nobel laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He authored Elie Wiesel b ...
was appointed to head the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council by President
Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
, the first person Wiesel nominated to serve with him was Siggi, who was sworn in as one of the Museum Council's founding members. In 1985, Siggi received an honorary doctorate of law from
Hofstra University
Hofstra University is a private university in Hempstead, New York. It is Long Island's largest private university. Hofstra originated in 1935 as an extension of New York University (NYU) under the name Nassau College – Hofstra Memorial of Ne ...
Law School, where the Siggi B. Wilzig Distinguished Professor of Constitutional Rights was endowed. He received a second honorary doctorate of law from the Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School, where he was a founding director. He was a recipient of the
Ellis Island Medal of Honor
The Ellis Island Medal of Honor is an American award founded by the Ellis Island Honors Society (EIHS) (formerly known as the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations (NECO)), which is presented annually to American citizens, both native-born a ...
in recognition of his contributions to the nation.
Siggi's successes enabled him to support a number of charities, including Wilzig Hospital at the
Jersey City Medical Center
The Jersey City Medical Center is a hospital in Jersey City, New Jersey. The hospital has had different facilities in the city. It is currently located on a 15-acre campus at Grand Street and Jersey Avenue overlooking New York Harbor and Lib ...
, the Daughters of Miriam Home for the Aged, and the Jewish Home and Rehabilitation Center. He raised more than $100 million in Israeli bonds, and for his support of the State of Israel was awarded the nation's Prime Minister's Medal.
In 2003 at age 76, Siggi B. Wilzig died after a struggle with multiple myeloma. He was survived by his wife, Naomi (who died in 2015), his sons
Ivan Wilzig
Ivan L. Wilzig (born January 6, 1956) is an American recording artist and songwriter who is best known for his pop-dance remakes of 1960s and early 1970s peace songs.
He created The Peaceman Foundation, a non-profit organization that battles h ...
and
Alan Wilzig
Alan Wilzig (born April 20, 1965) is an American entrepreneur, philanthropist, semi-professional race car driver, and restaurateur. He was formerly CEO, president and chairman of the Trust Company of New Jersey.
Background and early life
Wilzig ...
, his daughter Sherry Wilzig Izak.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilzig, Siggi
20th-century American businesspeople
Auschwitz concentration camp survivors
20th-century German Jews
1926 births
2003 deaths
Deaths from multiple myeloma
Mauthausen concentration camp survivors
German emigrants to the United States