Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive

Eva Cigler - March 17, 1982

Hungarian Annexation

Well, life changed dramatically after the Hungarians came in.

Yes, because uh, you couldn't go on the street. You have a certain hour.

Oh you immediately had a curfew.

A curfew. But a year after that uh, we have a curfew.

Nineteen forty, 1939?

Uh, 1939 yes and 1940 uh, they had a curfew. You can't go on the street. I think eight o'clock was the curfew. We have to stay--the Jewish men have to stay uh, off the street that time.

What kind of work did you and your sister do when your father was sent?

When my father was sent uh, I think I went to a factory when they was making some bricks and then we was working uh, in that factory. My sister went to a--in a sewing uh, place where they sew some dresses. But uh, I was sewing too that time. But they couldn't pay for me so I had to go to this uh, factory to work to help him out.

Oh.

And then after my uh, younger sister when she get a little bit older, then she went to the factory to work too. So three of us was bringing home the little money like we get to uh, to keep us going.

Did you work for Jewish people in the factory?

That time still uh, they had uh, people who weren't Jewish. It was a mixed marriage. I don't know if uh, they keep it, the factory on the man's name because the woman was Jewish.

Oh.

So I don't know what the story was there, but uh, we was working. And special over-time, sometime I was working sixteen hours a day.

Sixteen.

Yeah, to uh, get more money to bring something home.

Did your mother work too?

No, she couldn't because there was younger children and nobody was home to take care of them.

How old were the younger children?

Uh, the youngest was uh, in third--about eight years old or seven years old until nine.


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