After the end of the Second World War the British government granted asylum to 1000 child survivors of the Holocaust. Only 732 survivors were located and of these the vast majority were male. As a result, upon arrival in the Lake District in August 1945, the group became collectively known as ‘The Boys’, despite the presence of around 200 girls.
The teen holding the young child in this photograph is Sidney Finkel, who survived the ghetto in Piotrkow, a forced labour camp in Poland, Buchenwald and a death march to Theresienstadt. More information about the picture and Sidney’s story can be found by consulting his memoir.
The man Sidney is handing the baby over to is his older brother Isaac Finkel who survived experiences in the ghetto, forced labour camps and Buchenwald. The boy right next to Sidney (with suitcase in hand) has been identified as Moniek Shannon. He too survived a ghetto, forced labour camp, Buchenwald and a death march to Theresienstadt.
Note: In order to preserve our original prints and allow for greater access to our photo collection, we are in the process of digitising our photographs. As such, only a small selection of our images are currently searchable online. If you wish to search the full collection please contact our Photo Archivist via email.
