The history of the Reiter family
Adolf Reiter was born Abraham Eber Spund-Reiter on May 8, 1875 in Stanislau/Galicia (now Ivano-Frankivsk/Ukraine) and grew up in Czernowitz (now Ukraine).
On October 1, 1902, he moved from Plauen, where he had worked in a department store for two years, to Hof and founded the store “Kaufhaus Adolf Reiter” at Ludwigstraße 54. In March 1903, he married Sabine (Sprinze) Fuhrmann (born 2.2.1879) in Czernowitz. Their first son Bruno was born in Hof in December 1903. In the following years, sons Leo (1905), Julius (1907) and Kurt (1909) were born. Erich Reiter (later: Eric Reed) followed in 1923. Adolf Reiter and his family acquired Bavarian citizenship in 1912. In his department store, he mainly sold household and kitchen appliances as well as luxury goods and toys. Today, the building houses the Sparda Bank.
After the National Socialists came to power, Adolf Reiter was subjected to increasing harassment. In April 1933, he was arrested together with other Jews and held in prison for several days. The persecution got worse and worse and also affected the children.
Even before the National Socialists came to power, the trainee lawyer Julius Reiter was subjected to massive anti-Semitic hostility from National Socialist publications due to the accusation of an alleged relationship with a non-Jewish woman. The defamation ultimately led to the loss of his professional position. Due to the anti-Semitic persecution, Julius Reiter and his siblings Bruno and Kurt fled to London in 1933. Leo Reiter emigrated to Brazil.
Adolf, his wife Sabine and their youngest son Erich remained in Hof for the time being. However, Adolf Reiter was forced to close his department store on June 30, 1936 due to a boycott-related drop in sales, before foreclosure was announced on August 29, 1938. Over the years, he suffered from a severe stomach ailment which, according to his own statements, became worse after every contact with the Nazis.
During the Reichspogromnacht, he was supposed to be arrested by the Nazis, but was deemed unfit for transportation due to his health problems, which is why his wife was imprisoned in his place. She was released the next day. Shortly afterwards, the family fled to England, where Adolf Reiter died in March 1939, his health weakened. Sabine Reiter also died in England on July 19, 1957. The couple’s children managed to build a new life in England.
