Hana Porgesová
(11th March 1923 Plzeň - ? 13th June 1942)


Hana was born on March 11th, 1923. Her father's name was Emil (born on July 28th, 1887) and her mother's name was Hedvika (born on May 28th, 1887 in Buštěhrad, neé Spitzová). Her parents got married in February 1914 in Karlín, Prague and their first daughter Gerta was born on April 20th, 1915. Their first place of residence was near Příbram and later they moved to Plzeň where they lived consequently at 3 Zbrojnická Street, 6 Husova Street and 9 Bendova Street. Emil Porges was a butcher foreman.
Hana began her studies at grammar school in September 1934, but she left the school in the same school year for an unknown reason.
Then her family moved to 15 Fodermayerova Street (now the street is called Bedřicha Smetany). They were transported to Terezín on January 22nd, 1942 and on June 13th, 1942 they were taken away in an unknown transport labelled AAi that was supposed to carry 1000 people to the Trawniky camp. Most probably this transport arrived at Sobibor and almost all deportees including Hana and her parents (with numbers 290, 291 and 293) were killed in gas chambers.
In the Terezín Memorial Book there is a mention about a girl named Jana Porgesová whose birth date is the same as Hana's. The protectorate authorities often confused the names Hana and Jana because they transcribed both as "Johanna".
Hana's elder sister Gerta married Kurt Schneider (born on May 19th, 1910). They lived in Prague and in Hlinsko. At the beginning of the year 1942 they lived in Plzeň at 2 Saská Street. During the last months before the transport Kurt was employed as a worker and Gerta worked in a household. They were transported to Terezín on January 26th, 1942 and nearly three years later further to the East. Their transport (Ev) arrived at Auschwitz on October 30th, 1944, carrying 2038 people (949 men and boys, 1089 women and girls). After the selection 217 men and 132 women who were able to work were placed into the camp (Durchgangslager BIIc). The other 1689 men, women and children died in Birkenau gas chambers. It was the last gassed transport in Birkenau. Neither Gerta nor Kurt returned from Auschwitz.