Biographical/Historical Information
Eugen Neter was born in Gernsbach, in the Black Forest region of Germany, on October 29, 1876. He grew up in a large family, the eighth of twelve children. After finishing medical school at the University of Heidelberg, Neter settled in Mannheim to work as a pediatrician. He married Luise (Liesel) Janson in 1909, and they had one son, Martin (later Schaul). Eugen Neter practiced medicine in Mannheim until 1938. In addition to his private practice, he taught health courses at the Fröbel-Seminar in Mannheim, which prepared nursery school teachers and social workers. He also wrote a number of books in the field of pediatrics, the majority of them advice for parents, and he also edited two magazines: “Das Kind. Monatschrift für Kinderpflege, Jugenderziehung und Frauenwohl“, and „Zeitschrift für Kinderpflege, Jugenderziehung und Auflkärung“. In addition, he was the head doctor at a home for unwed mothers in the Neckarau district of Mannheim. During World War I, he served for four years on the front in France, for which he received the Kriegs-Rettungsmedaille. In 1938, Eugen Neter became president of the Jewish Community in Mannheim. On October 20, 1940, the remaining Jews of Baden and the Pfalz were deported to the Gurs concentration camp. Eugen Neter was exempted from the deportation because his wife was not Jewish, but he went to Gurs voluntarily in order to support the members of his community. In 1946, Eugen and his wife emigrated to Palestine to join their son at the kibbutz Deganyah Alef. His son Schaul died defending Deganyah during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Eugen Neter remained in Deganyah, where he was known as "Saba Neter" ("grandfather Neter"), until his death on October 8, 1966. The city of Mannheim named a school for handicapped children in his honor, the Eugen-Neter-Schule.
Reproductions and Permissions
We welcome fair use of this content. Please credit the Leo Baeck Institute in your citation. For usage policies and to request higher resolution images, see Reproductions and Permissions.
Citation
Eugen Neter with pipe, Leo Baeck Institute, F 2820.