The Eppler family lived at Neustadter Straße 15 in Mutterstadt, where Isidor Eppler ran a successful cattle business. His son Jakob, also a cattle trader, married Paula Siegel; their sons Heinz and Kurt grew up in Mutterstadt. After 1933 the family felt increasingly isolated, and Heinz later recalled Nazi torchlight processions and the marking of their home as Jewish. In August 1938 Jakob, Paula and the children emigrated to Cleveland with help from relatives in the United States. Isidor remained behind and later married Bertha Neu, sister of his first wife. On 22 October 1940 Isidor and Bertha were deported to Gurs. Isidor died there in January 1941; Bertha reached a Marseille emigration camp but died in 1944 before she could leave for the United States. Heinz later returned to Mutterstadt several times and became an important voice for remembrance and reconciliation.
Jakob Eppler, born in Mutterstadt in 1896, was a cattle trader like his father Isidor. In 1925 he married Paula Siegel from Eubigheim; their sons Kurt and Heinz were born in 1926 and 1927. The family lived with Isidor and Bertha on the farm at Neustadter Straße 15, with two houses, stables, a garden and a barn. Jakob had fought for Germany in the First World War and was proud of his medals, including the Iron Cross. After 1933 the boys became increasingly isolated because they did not belong to the Hitler Youth. With help from Paula’s relatives, the family obtained U.S. visas and left Europe on the Queen Mary in August 1938, settling in Cleveland, Ohio. Jakob and Paula worked hard to rebuild their lives. Kurt and Heinz later served in the U.S. Army, became businessmen and built a successful textile company.
