This story is part of The Hidden Museum, a continuing series from the Jewish Light that explores remarkable artifacts held by St. Louis museums. These pieces represent only a fraction of what institutions like the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum preserve behind the scenes. Through this series, we surface the stories attached to objects not always on public display and examine how history lives on through archives, artifacts and memory.
A warning printed before the world was ready to listen
The booklet looks modest. Thin paper wrappers. Just 31 pages.
But the title reads like a headline from history: “Sentenced to Death! The Jews in Nazi Germany.”
Published in St. Louis in 1933, the booklet was written by Rabbi Ferdinand M. Isserman, the longtime rabbi of Temple Israel and one of the city’s most prominent religious and civic leaders.
Today, a surviving copy is preserved in the Jewish Community Archives through the Jewish Community Relations Council Collection, part of the network of materials connected to the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum.
The booklet captures a moment when a St. Louis rabbi was already sounding the alarm about Adolf Hitler.
What a St. Louis rabbi saw in Germany
Isserman served as rabbi of Temple Israel from 1929 until 1963. He became widely known for his advocacy on social justice and interfaith cooperation.
In 1933, shortly after Hitler came to power, Isserman traveled to Germany to see conditions for himself.
During a month-long visit, he witnessed the rapid changes taking place under the new Nazi regime.
Jewish professionals were being forced from their jobs. Political opponents were being arrested. Civil liberties were disappearing.
When Isserman returned to St. Louis, he began speaking publicly about what he had seen.
He also wrote “Sentenced to Death! The Jews in Nazi Germany,” a short report based on his observations.
Printed locally by the Modern View Publishing Company, a St. Louis publisher active from 1898 to 1943, the booklet reflected the mission of the Modern View, a publication dedicated to progress and Jewish ideals edited by Abe Rosenthal.
In its pages, Isserman warned readers bluntly: “There is no hope for the Jews of Germany — the government aim is their human extirpation.”
He concluded that the Nazi government had already begun a campaign of persecution and that violence against Jews and political dissenters would continue to escalate.
The Jews of Germany, he wrote, were living “under a sentence of death.”
At the time, such observations were far from universal.
Many Americans still viewed events in Germany as distant political turmoil rather than the beginning of something far more dangerous.
When warnings become artifacts
Today the booklet serves as more than a publication. It is evidence that the warning signs were visible early.
“There has always been a myth in the American consciousness that the events of the Holocaust were not known to Americans until the concluding days of World War II,” said Robb Nelson, coordinator of exhibitions for the St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum. “Artifacts like Rabbi Isserman’s pamphlet show that this myth has never been correct.”
For historians and archivists, artifacts like this show how the story of the Holocaust unfolded in real time.
They show what people understood, what they feared and how they tried to alert others.
Nelson said the booklet also reflects how St. Louis leaders worked to raise awareness locally as events unfolded overseas.
“This artifact symbolizes the great efforts Rabbi Isserman undertook during the 1930s throughout the St. Louis community to bring more attention to the plight of the Jews in Europe,” Nelson said.
For St. Louis, the document highlights the role local voices played in sounding warnings long before the world fully grasped the scale of Nazi crimes.
Donating artifacts
The St. Louis Kaplan Feldman Holocaust Museum continues to collect photographs, documents, objects and family stories connected to the Holocaust and Jewish life in St. Louis.
Anyone who believes they may have historically significant materials is encouraged to contact the museum’s archives and collections department to discuss preservation and donation options.
