08-03-2025
NAU leads effort to preserve untold Holocaust histories. Here's how
When Karl Krotke-Crandall, a specialist in Russian-Holocaust genocide studies, joined Northern Arizona University as an assistant teaching professor in 2023, he was surprised to discover a box of untouched audio recordings from Holocaust survivors, preserved in the library.
"What was a collection of historical audio tapes doing hidden in Flagstaff?" he remembered wondering when he first discovered the untapped archive. "There was a degree of mystery to it."
Krotke-Crandall, alongside several student interns from NAU's Honors College, has spent the past two years beginning to unravel that mystery.
What he uncovered was a collection of 80 cassette tapes containing 52 personal oral histories, primarily from Holocaust survivors. The collection was accompanied by a piece of paper that read 'Delaware Valley Holocaust Committee,' a group he and his students are still working to learn more about.
None of the recordings had been previously archived.
"Audio-cassettes have a shelf-life, and these recordings would not have survived much longer," said Krotke-Crandal, who said most of the survivors on the tapes shared their stories in the 1980s. "These individuals shared their stories with the intention that they would be heard. That is why it is so critical that collections like these are preserved."
The collection featured several remarkable accounts, including an interview with Leon Poullada, a former U.S. ambassador and investigator for the Nuremberg trials, who recounted his experience prosecuting Nazis for war crimes. In one recording, Poullada details his interview with Hermann Göring, one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party.
The majority of the interviews, however, were with Holocaust survivors, many of whom were living in Arizona when their stories were recorded. Krotke-Crandall noted that very few of the survivors in the collection are still alive today.
Becca Sandhu, a sophomore at NAU's Honors College double majoring in political science and media, joined Krotke-Crandall in transcribing the extensive oral histories.
"Coming into this internship I had a little knowledge of the Holocaust and genocide, but nowhere near the extent of my understanding now," said Sandhu. While she used to think of political science and Holocaust studies as separate areas of focus, the project has shown her how deeply interconnected the topics are.
"At the end of the day, genocide was a political action, propagated through a political campaign and legislation," she said. "That understanding has really broadened my perspective."
She was also deeply moved by the diverse experiences shared in the Holocaust survivor accounts. One individual was just an infant when Hitler came to power and was taken to a convent by their parents to ensure survival. Another was 12 years old when the Nazis rose to power and was sent to live with relatives in the United States to escape the war.
"Every person's story is different, even though they all come from the same event," said Sandhu, who finds herself on the edge of her seat while transcribing these decades-old cassettes.
"With every new story, you never know what is going to happen next," she said. "That's the most interesting part."
The project has left her feeling deeply connected to the historical storytelling process. "I'm hearing their stories, but they'll never know I'm the one who listened," she said.
Today, all of the recordings have been digitized, and NAU students are actively transcribing, labeling, and organizing the content. Once the project is complete, the collection will be transferred to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., where it will be accessible to the public.
Krotke-Crandall ensured that NAU students remain involved throughout the process, allowing it to serve as an ongoing educational experience.
"The individuals who sat for these interviews did so with the intention that history not repeat itself, that this never happen again," said Krotke-Crandal. "It is our responsibility to preserve these voices so they are not lost to history."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: NAU digitizes forgotten Holocaust survivor recordings for DC museum
