Objects

Label

A liquor bottle label sold under the “Było nie było” brand, an alcoholic drink produced by the Jakob Haberfeld Vodka and Liqueur Factory in Oświęcim. Founded in 1804 by Simon Haberfeld, this well-known company was the first factory ever established in the town of Oświęcim. A native of Turá Lúka (present-day Slovakia), Haberfeld relocated to Oświęcim in the late-eighteenth century to marry Jacheta Reider. Their son Jakub (1839–1904) transformed the plant into the renowned Spirit Refinery and the Vodka and Liqueur Factory. Manufactured on-site, all alcoholic beverages were based on natural juices. Over the course of its history, the distillery produced dozens of brands of vodka, liqueur, cognac, and rum. Raspberry, cherry, lingonberry, and rowan juices as well as lemonades and soda waters were also produced there. In addition, the factory served as a bottling plant for the Jan Götz Brewery in Oświęcim, and represented the Archducal Brewery in Żywiec, acting as a sales agent. In 1935, the factory’s maximum efficiency was estimated at 50,000 litres, while the actual value of production amounted to 100,000 Polish zlotys. In 1938, the company employed 22 personnel. In the summer of 1939, Alfons (1903–1970) and Felicja (1911–2010) Haberfeld, the last co-owners of the factory, sailed to New York to present a range of their products at the World’s Fair. The outbreak of World War II found them at sea, as they were making their return voyage to Poland. Instead, their ship was forced to head for Scotland, where their travel ended. Their only daughter, Franciszka Henryka (b. 1937), stayed behind alongside her grandmother in Nazi-occupied Poland. Both were killed in the Nazi German extermination camp in Bełżec (present-day eastern Poland). During the war, the buildings belonging to the Haberfeld family were seized by the Nazi German-occupying authorities, and after the war the assets were nationalized by the communist government of the Polish People’s Republic. In 1995, both the Haberfeld family residence (tenement building) and the factory entered the Polish Registry of Cultural Property. Despite that, due to the advancing deterioration of the buildings, they were eventually demolished in 2003. For almost 150 years, the Haberfeld family extended their enormous influence on the history of the town and on its development, not only economic, but also social, political, cultural, and charitable. Members of the Haberfeld family performed key functions both in the City Council, as councillors and deputy mayors, and in the Jewish community, as leaders and social organisers. At present, the descendants of the factory founders reside in among others Australia, Israel, and the USA.

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Information about the object
Author / creator
Fabryka Wódek i Likierów Jakóba Haberfelda (Oświęcim; 1804-)
Object type
graphic
Place of creation
Oświęcim (Małopolskie Province)
Technique
printing
Material
paper
Keywords
Copyright status
the object is not protected by copyright law
Owner
Oshpitzin Jewish Museum in Oświęcim
Identification number
MŻ 30/d