Wednesday, November 24, 2021

Surname Spelling Variations

The Dutch brothers Myndert & Carsten Fredericksen (sons of Frederick Van Iveren) immigrated to the US in the 1600s. Most if not all with the surname Vanevery are descendants of Myndert. Most if not all with the surname Vanavery are descendants of Carsten. 

My second great aunt, Katie Newmark, married Philip Dzeikops, which he changed to Jacobs. 

My wife has some Wallace and Wallis ancestors who are likely related. 

These spelling variations are slight. Even Dzeikops to Jacobs which appears to me to be an Anglicized Yiddish spelling. 

My kin with ancestors from the town of Kruvandai Lithuania probably have the surname with the most spelling variations in my tree. To date, these are the six variations I’ve found:

Kruvant
Kruvand
Cruvant
Cruvand 
Kroovand
Kroband

These are just the spellings in recorded documents. It doesn’t include additional interpretations by census takers or database indexers.

The most intriguing spelling to me is the last one. Some might try to argue it is almost a name change, not realizing that in Hebrew the V and B sound are made with the same consonant. They are only differentiated by a diacritical mark. Similarly - the O and Oo vowels are differentiated by the position of a diacritical mark. The system of diacritical marks, known as Niqqud, was invented in the Middle Ages. Ancient Hebrew didn’t have them. I don’t know the rules of Hebrew that dictate when the letter Bet is pronounced Vet, or when certain vowels are appropriate, but it is my understanding that the originator of this spelling was trying to Hebraicize the name. 

In genealogy we are taught to ignore spelling, or be creative with spelling, in our searches. Names can be recorded or indexed in multiple ways. But differences in spelling can also sometimes tell us something about our ancestors and why they may have chosen that spelling. 

Saturday, November 20, 2021

My great grandfather’s birth record

A few years ago I found the below “birth record” on Ancestry. It is for my great grandfather. However, Ancestry doesn’t have the images, and FamilySearch has the images, but no index. 

The problem with browsing the images is I’m pretty certain this isn’t a birth record. The title of the database is Hungary Civil Registration 1895-1973. 1861 is not in that range. However my great grandparents were married in the late 1890s. The marriage records do provide dates of birth, places of birth, and parent names. I think Ancestry created a birth record from a marriage record. Why they don’t have the marriage record in their database I’m uncertain. It’s possible the record page was damaged in some fashion and the bride’s information was not legible. It’s supposition until I find the record. 


So I browse the marriage records, right? They’re divided by location, naturally. I did look at all the Vitka marriage records. I can’t read the Hungarian, but it’s not too difficult looking for the names on each document. The record wasn’t there, so I suspect my great grandparents were not married in Vitka. So what town were they married in?

I don’t know. That’s the problem. And there are a lot of towns in the database.

My great grandmother was born in Margitta. She doesn’t turn up in the Ancestry search, and there are no Margitta records in the FamilySearch database. I suspect they were married in some town nearby one of their births. 

I did search for the birth records of my grandfather and his siblings - without success. I have a copy of my grandfather’s birth certificate which he had in his records. But I don’t have that for his siblings. I also searched for the record of death for one of his siblings. Browsing through the images I couldn’t find the town of Nagyalmas where they were born. Those records may not have survived. 

It would be really nice if FamilySearch could index this database. 
Or I have a lot of records to browse through. 

Sunday, September 26, 2021

Timeline for William Sliver Denyer (1834 - circa 1896)

Earlier this month I wrote about my 2nd great grandfather's brother, William Sliver Denyer. I had found his Civil War Pension file, which mentioned both a widow, Sarah E Denyer, and a guardian of a minor, Nancy Denyer. I identified Nancy as his wife, and wasn't sure who Sarah was - wondering if she could be my second great grandmother, sister-in-law of William.

Since that post I have found the death certificate of Sarah E Denyer in Arkansas, indicating her maiden name was Trapp, and she was a third wife of William.

This is the timeline for William S Denyer I have from the documents

  • 1834 - William is born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania
  • 1840 - William's mother, Elizabeth Sliver Denyer, dies in Gonzales, Texas (5 years before Texas joined the United States)
  • 1848 - William's father, William Denyer, dies in St. Martin, Louisiana
  • 1861 - William marries Susannah Dilly
  • 1861-1862 - William serves for the Confederacy.
  • 1863 - William's first wife, Susannah, dies.
  • 1864-1865 - William serves for the Union.
  • Feb 1865 - William marries Nancy Rhodes
  • Nov 1865 - Son Andre Denyer is born
  • 1880 - Pension is filed for minor, Nancy as guardian.
  • 1880 Census - William is married to Sarah. No child in the household.
  • 1886 - William files for a pension as an invalid
  • 1896 - Sarah files for a pension as a widow.
  • 1900 census - Son Andre has been married for 3 years.

It is a shame that the 1890 census was destroyed. Though hopefully Nancy and Andre can be found in the 1870 or 1880 census. It  does seem that there was a divorce and not a death in their case. Best guess for death of William would naturally be 1896, since I doubt it would take long for Sarah to file for a pension as a widow.

Wednesday, September 8, 2021

William S Denyer & Danyer - Confederate & Union Soldier

The below Pension Record appeared in my ‘hints’ on Ancestry. 

William S Danyer - Union Soldier in Louisiana Cavalry Scouts

The record identifies a Widow named Sarah E Danyer, who filed from Arkansas in 1896, and a minor with a guardian named Nancy E Danyer, who filed in either 1880 or 1890. The handwriting isn’t clear. I am unsure if the Certificate No. column indicates that the first two applications were successful, and the one for the minor was not.

Could this be William Sliver Denyer, brother of my 2nd great grandfather?

William S Denyer, my great great granduncle, definitely served under the Confederacy 1861-1862 in Louisiana. He was injured in 1862 and his hospital records are the last in the file at Fold3. Both of his brothers Ebenezer and Samuel served under the Confederacy in Texas. However, their father had died in Louisiana in 1848, and William appeared to stay there until the war. (All three sons were born in Bucks County Pennsylvania, and their father was born in England, so traveling was in their blood.)

William S Danyer also has a file on Fold3.  Here is his enlistment record. William S Danyer enlisted in the 30th Regiment of Missouri while in Vidalia, Louisiana in Feb of 1864. He was born in Buck County, Mississippi.  

There is currently no Buck County in Mississippi. I suspect there wasn't in 1864. My 2nd great granduncle was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  This is almost definitely him, and we now have evidence that he fought for both the Confederacy and the Union.  Why he claimed to have been born in Mississippi is a mystery, but that could have simply been a clerical error. Other documents in the Fold3 folder indicate William S Danyer deserted in April of 1865, (Perhaps only a couple days before the war ended.) During his year of service between April 1864-April 1865 he was listed on muster rolls as under detached service in Louisiana, which may be why the pension application indicates he was with the Louisiana Cavalry Scouts.

The pension file indicates William's widow filed from Arkansas. If he is my relative, who are Sarah E and Nancy E? That is a question with a potentially intriguing answer. 

William S Denyer had two known wives - Susannah Dilly (who died in 1863) and Nancy E Rhodes, who he married in February of 1865 in Illinois (shortly before he deserted, and likely the reason he deserted.) They had a son, Andre, 9 months later. He would have been 25 in 1890, so it’s likely the year on the document is 1880. But Nancy should be the widow too. Who is Sarah Denyer?

Could she be the widow of William’s brother -- My 2nd great grandmother, Sarah Hartley Denyer Foster. Her father had died in Little Rock Arkansas in 1840. His children ended up in Texas, but Sarah might have returned after her husbands died. 

I don’t have a date of death for William. He could have been deceased and his widow could have tried to help her sister-in-law draw a Union pension since her sister in law’s first husband, Ebenezer Denyer, served the Confederacy. He died in 1872. I’m not sure when her husband George Foster died but it is likely he died before she did. My great grandfather testified in 1900 in front of the Dawes Commission that she was living with them in 1898 when she died. So in September 1896 she could have been a widow again. But while I have been unable to find her 1898 death records, I have not looked in Arkansas for them. And my primary focus has been searching for the name Sarah Foster. But there’s a chance she returned to the name Denyer.  

I like how these documents indicate that there was at least one Denyer who fought, however briefly, for the Union. Just like my ancestor, David Vanevery, fought in the American Revolution on both the Patriot and Loyalist sides. It also seems to show that there was a close relationship between my 2nd great grandmother, Sarah Hartley Denyer Foster, and her sister-in-law.  If Sarah was living with her daughter's family when she died, as the Dawes Commission was told, she almost certainly died in Texas, but she may have briefly been in Arkansas, and I might be able to find records for her there.


Sunday, August 22, 2021

Where my ancestors lived: Losice, Poland

I am writing a series of posts where I provide information about the towns where my ancestors lived. Geography is an essential part of genealogy and family history. We need to know where to look for records, and what we learn about the towns fills in information about how our ancestors may have lived.

My Blatt/Blatyta ancestors are from Losice. My second great grandfather, Morris Blatt, and his daughters Bryna/Blanche and Chana/Anna were likely born there.

Losice (Polish: Łosice; Russian: Lositsy; Yiddish: Loshits).

Province: Masovian Voivodeship / Lublin Voivodeship (before 1939)
GPS: 52.2113° N / 22.7185° E, 52°12'40" N / 22°43'6" E

Jews likely first settled in Losice at the end of the 17th century. On May 30, 1690 the Jewish cemetery was established - a privilege granted by King John III Sobieski. and also allowing Jews to settle in Łosice.

“In 1700, King August the Third [1696–1763] ordered the magistrates of Losice to carefully observe the dealings of Jewish merchants. The historical chronicler of the time reports that the magistrates aligned themselves with the Jews and did not bother them, but instead made things easier for them.”

The community numbered 654 (42% of the total population) in 1827, and 2,396 (71%) in 1897.

There is record of a pogrom in Losice in 1920. The community was liquidated 79 years ago on Aug. 22, 1942, when all the Jews of the town were deported to the Treblinka extermination camp.

Sources and Further Information:

1)Losice

2)Yizkor

3) Jewish Virtual Library

4) Shtetl.org.pl

5) IAJGS

6) Wikipedia

Sunday, August 15, 2021

Where My Ancestors Lived: Varalmas, Hungary / Almasu, Romania

I am writing a series of posts where I provide information about the towns where my ancestors lived. Geography is an essential part of genealogy and family history. We need to know where to look for records, and what we learn about the towns fills in information about how our ancestors may have lived.

Váralmás / Almașu (Transylvania)

Latitude: 46.950
Longitude: 23.133

In 1907 my maternal grandfather, Martin Deutsch, was born in Váralmás (or Nagy-Almás), Hungary - which is now Almașu, Romania. The photographs on this page were taken in 2012.

The Jewish population, as recorded by census, was 11 in 1880, 51 in 1900, 35 in 1910, and 30 in 1930. As long as the census recorded all ages, my grandfather's family of 8 may have accounted for the entire drop between 1910 and 1930, if there were only a handful of births. While the Jewish population was small, nearby towns had larger populations. 

9 miles away in Huedin (where the train picked up my great grandfather and his family when they left) the Jewish population was 1,073 in 1900. 

Historic sights include a castle, and a citadel.

In May of 1944, the remaining Jewish population was moved 49 miles away to the Cehei ghetto, then to Șimleu Silvaniei. They were deported to Auschwitz between May 31 and June 8.


Sources and further information:

Sunday, August 8, 2021

Where My Ancestors Lived: Warka, Poland

I am beginning a series of posts where I provide information about the towns where my ancestors lived. Geography is an essential part of genealogy and family history. We need to know where to look for records, and what we learn about the towns fills in information about how our ancestors may have lived.

I am beginning with Warka, Poland, where my Newmark and Cantkert ancestors resided in the late 19th century, leaving in 1893. Either branch may have at one time resided nearby in Warsaw, but that is not certain. I believe my great grandfather, Barney Newmark, was born in Warka. While a small town, it was apparently a heavily Jewish town.

Warka, Poland 

Warka is a town in central Poland, situated in Grójec County, currently in the Masovian Voivodeship, but in the Warsaw Voivodeship prior to 1939. Latitude: 51°47'00 Longitude: 21°12'00 

Warka obtained its city charter in 1321. A village called Winiary, which today is part of Warka, was the countryside residence of the Pulaski family where General Casimir Pulaski spent his childhood. Pulaski is known for his assistance in the American Revolution, and there is a Casimir Pulaski Day on the first Monday of March in Illinois, celebrated mostly in areas of large Polish population, such as Chicago. Warka has also been known for its famous brewery since the 15th century. 

Jews settled in Warka in the second half of the 18th century. In 1800, 339 Jews lived in Warka, which was 51.5% of the total population. In 1921 the percentage had held with 50.5%. Warka is known for a Hasidic dynasty, and its founder, Isaac Kalish (1779–1848), became one of the most noted ẓaddikim in central Poland in the first half of the 19th century. After the outbreak of World War II, many Jews escaped Warka, seeking refuge in the Soviet occupation zone. In 1940 many died of disease in the ghetto. In February 1941, Jews were deported from Warka to Treblinka. Few survived.

Sources and more info: 

Monday, August 2, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Declaration of Intention for Philip Jacobs (1889-1954)

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share the Declaration of Intention to Naturalize for Phillip Jacobs, the husband of my great grandfather's sister, Kate Newmark Jacobs. 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DECLARATION OF INTENTION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

NORTHERN ILLINOIS DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS

My full, true, and correct name is PHILLIP JACOBS, formerly known as PHILLIP PINONZEIG

My present place of residence is 5808 N. Kenmore Avenue

My occupation is Tailor

I am 51 years old

I was born on Dec 10, 1889 in Lomza, Poland

My personal description is as follows: Sex male, color white, complexion fair, color of eyes blue, color of hair brown, height 5 feet 4 inches, weight 160 pounds, visible distinctive marks mole on left arm, race White, present nationality Polish.

I am married; the name of my wife or husband is Katie; we were married on 2-6-1913 at St. Louis, Mo. he or she was born at London, England Sept 19, 1896; and entered the United States at New York on about 1910 for permanent residence in the United States, and now resides at with me.

I have two children; and the name, sex, date and place of birth, and present place of residence of each of said children who is living, are as follows:

Nettie, F, born Dec 15, 1914

Harold, M., born July 27, 1916; both born and reside in Chicago, Ill.

My last place of foreign residence was Lomza, Poland.

I emigrated to the United States from Bremen, Germany

My lawful entry for permanent residence in the United States was New York under the name of Dzeikops (Jacobs) Philip on Dec 4, 1911 on the SS Prinz Frederich Wilhelm

Since my lawful entry for permanent residence I have not been absent from the United States, for a period or periods of 6 months or longer, as follows:

I shave not heretofore made declarations of intention.

Philip Jacobs (Signature)

Subscribed and sworn to (affirmed) before me in the form of oath shown above in the office of the Clerk of said Court, at Chicago, Illinois the 17th day of June, anno Domini 1941. I hereby certify that certificate No. 11-283115 from the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization showing the lawful entry for permanent residence of the declarant above named on the date stated in this declaration of intention has been received by me, and that the photograph affixed to the duplicate and triplicate hereof is a likeness to the declared.

Hoyt King

Clerk of the US District Court

(Illegible Signature) Deputy Clerk

Notes

1) I have seen surnames spelled in interesting and unusual ways. Dzeikops for Jacobs might take a prize, but it makes sense. The is no J sound in the Hebrew or Yiddish alphabet. Biblical names that normally begin with J in English (like Joseph, Jacob, Jonathan) actually start with the Y sound in Hebrew. For someone to try to spell Jacobs phonetically without a J, Dzeikops is fairly accurate. 

2) As I indicated last week, the date of birth for Kate is incorrect. Philip had the year of birth for their daughter Nettie/Natalie off by a year. It appears that after Philip filled out his forms, Kate's forms were "corrected" to match his on both Natalie's birth and their marriage year. Even though Kate likely was correct on both counts.

Monday, July 26, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Declaration of Intention for Kate Newmark Jacobs (1894-1960)

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share the Declaration of Intention to Naturalize for my great grandfather's sister, Kate Newmark Jacobs. She is the only female kin for whom I have naturalization papers. All other women who were immigrants either received derivative citizenship through their husbands, prior to 1922, or didn't become citizens. Kate and Phillip married early enough to have gone through the process prior to 1922, but for some reason didn't become citizens until 1941. Once women received the right to vote, legislation was passed requiring them to go through the process of naturalization on their own.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DECLARATION OF INTENTION

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS

My full, true, and correct name is KATE JACOBS 

My present place of residence is 5608 Kenmore Avenue

My occupation is Housewife

I am 45 years old

I was born on Sept 1896 in London, England

My personal description is as follows: Sex female, color white, complexion fair, color of eyes brown, color of hair black, height 5 feet 2 inches, weight 195 pounds, visible distinctive marks none, race White, present nationality Polish.

I am married; the name of my wife or husband is Phillip; we were married on 2-6-1912 (1913) at St. Louis, Mo.; he was born at Lomya, Poland on Dec 1889; and entered the United States at New York on about 1910 for permanent residence in the United States, and now resides at with me.

I have two children; and the name, sex, date and place of birth, and present location of each of said children who is living, are as follows:

Natalie, F., Dec 16, 1913 (1914)

Harold, M., July 27, 1916 both born and reside in Chicago, Ill.

My last place of foreign residence was London, England

I emigrated to the United States from Liverpool, England.

My lawful entry for permanent residence in the United States was at New York under the name of Newmark, Kate on March 21, 1909 on the SS Campania.

Since my lawful entry for permanent residence I have not been absent from the United States for a period or periods of 6 months or longer, as follows:

I have not heretofore made declaration of intention

[...]

Katie Jacobs (Signature)

Subscribed and sworn to (affirmed) before me in the form of oath shown above in the office of the Clerk of said Court, at Chicago, Ill. this 26th day of September anno Domini 1941 hereby certify that Certification No. 11-318136 from the Commissioner of Immigration and Naturalization, showing the lawful entry for permanent residence of the declarant above named on the date stated in this declaration of intention has been received by me, and that the photograph affixed to the duplicate and triplicate hereof is a likeness of the declarant.

Hoyt King, Clerk of the US District Couret

By (illegible signature) Deputy Clerk

Notes

1) Contrary to what she states in this document, she was born on November 27, 1894, according to her birth certificate. Fibbing about the year of birth isn’t an uncommon occurrence, but I’m not sure the cause of the month/date variation.

2) It's not clear from this document why 1914 is written over the year of her daughter, Natalie's birth. Natalie's birth certificate confirms 1913 is correct. This leads me to believe that 1912 is also correct for their marriage, though I have not yet found their marriage records. I will share the naturalization form for Kate's husband next week. It appears he provided the inaccurate years, and after he filled out his forms, Kate's were 'corrected.' There are no marks on his forms to indicate alternate years. 

Monday, July 19, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Intention of Myer Wolf Newmark

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share the Declaration of Intention to Naturalize for my great grandfather's brother, Myer Wolf (Max) Newmark (1892-1931)


United States of America

Declaration of Intention

Invalid for all purposes seven years after the date hereof

United State of America, Eastern District of Missouri

In the District Court of the United States in and for the Eastern Division of the Eastern Judicial District of Missouri

I, Myer Wolf Newmark, aged 25 years, occupation Tailor do declare on oath that my personal description is: Color White, complexion dark, height 5 feet 8 1/2 inches, weight 135 pounds, color of hair black, color of eyes brown, other visible distinctive marks none.

I was born in Warsaw, Russiaj on the 20th day of August, anno Domini 1892; I now reside at 1919 Carr Street, St. Louis, Mo.

I emigrated to the United States of America from Liverpool, England on the vessel Campania; my last foreign residence was London, England. I am married; the name of my wife is Dora; she was born in Austria and now resides with me,

It is my bona fide intention to renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, and particularly to The Present Government of Russia, of whom I am now a subject; I arrived at the port of New York in the state of New York, on or about the 21st day of March, anno Domini, 1909; I am not an anarchist; I am not a polygamist nor a believer in the practice of polygamy; and it is my intention in good faith to become a citizen of the United States of America and to permanently reside therein; SO HELP ME GOD.

Myer Wolf Newmark (signature)

Subscribed and sworn to before me in the office of the Clerk of said Court at St. Louis, Mo., this 10th day of November anno Domini 1917.

Notes

1) I do find it interesting that even though he immigrated to England at the age of 1 years old, and was 17 when he arrived in the United States, it was Russia that he had to declare no oath of allegiance to. I understand this is because the family did not become citizens of the United Kingdom, it just seems he'd be more likely to have some loyalty to where he spent the majority of his life.

2) He is the only sibling of my great grandfather who used their Hebrew/Yiddish name on the Declaration of Intention. It's on his tombstone, so it's not the only record of it.

Sunday, May 30, 2021

Memorial Day 2021

 Below is my annual post for Memorial Day.

A post on what Memorial Day is for, besides barbecues.

The above image comes from a past version of the Memorial Day page at the US Department of Veterans Affairs, explaining that Memorial Day is a day for remembering those who died in the service of their country.  [Read the full text of the poem.]
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. men and women who died while in the military service. First enacted to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War (it is celebrated near the day of reunification after the civil war), it was expanded after World War I to include American casualties of any war or military action. [source]
[More on the history of Memorial Day]


Unnamed Remains the Bravest Soldier - by Walt Whitman (From 'Specimen Days')

OF scenes like these, I say, who writes—whoe’er can write the story? Of many a score—aye, thousands, north and south, of unwrit heroes, unknown heroisms, incredible, impromptu, first-class desperations—who tells? No history ever—no poem sings, no music sounds, those bravest men of all—those deeds. No formal general’s report, nor book in the library, nor column in the paper, embalms the bravest, north or south, east or west. Unnamed, unknown, remain, and still remain, the bravest soldiers. Our manliest—our boys—our hardy darlings; no picture gives them. Likely, the typic one of them (standing, no doubt, for hundreds, thousands,) crawls aside to some bush-clump, or ferny tuft, on receiving his death-shot—there sheltering a little while, soaking roots, grass and soil, with red blood—the battle advances, retreats, flits from the scene, sweeps by—and there, haply with pain and suffering (yet less, far less, than is supposed,) the last lethargy winds like a serpent round him—the eyes glaze in death—none recks—perhaps the burial-squads, in truce, a week afterwards, search not the secluded spot—and there, at last, the Bravest Soldier crumbles in mother earth, unburied and unknown.

The cartoon above is by John T. McCutcheon - published circa 1900

I have many ancestors and kin who served in their nation's armed forces during war-time. I honor them on Veterans Day.

However, the closest relative who was killed in action was my grandfather's brother, my great-uncle, Mandell Newmark.

Mandell was born Jan 31, 1923. He was almost certainly named after his great-grandfather Mandell Mojsabovski. He enlisted in the army on Feb 22, 1943, and served as a Sgt. Technician Fifth Grade, in the 163rd infantry. He was killed in action on April 15, 1945. Less than a month prior to VE day

My grandfather also had a second cousin, Arnold Kruvant, who was killed in action during the D-Day invasion.

Monday, May 24, 2021

Amanuensis Monday - The Death of Joseph Blatt (1894-1895)

 Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share a newspaper account and death certificate for Joseph Blatt, the infant half-brother of my great grandmother, Anna Blatt. The newspaper account is in German, but I took an OCR (optical character recognition) transcript and input it into Google Translate. The translation is likely not exact, but close.

Morris Blatt, who lives in house 2312 Franklin Ave, visited family friends who lived in house 1213 North 7th St. yesterday afternoon with his 18 month old son Joseph Blatt. While the child looked out of the window, he lost his balance and fell deep into the courtyard. He hit his head and suffered a broken skull and a concussion. Dr. Friedman, 809 Carr Str. And Dr. Frumson, 905 North Broadway were called, but could do nothing more for the child, who died about an hour later from the injuries suffered.

Anzeiger des Westens (Scoreboard of the West)
St. Louis, Missouri
20 Sep 1895, Fri - Page 8




City of St. Louis
Health Department
Certificate of Death

This Certificate must be fully and accurately filled out in ink as provided by Section 392 Revised Ordinance, 1893

Name of Deceased: Joseph Blast
Age 1 Years 6 months
Male, White, Single
Place of Birth St. Louis
Residence in St. Louis 2312 Franklin Ave
Place of Death: 1233 N. 7th Street
Exact Locality of Death
Ward No. 4
Date of Death Sept 19 / 95
Cause of Death: Fracture of Skull, Account of Fall (Accident)

I Certify that the person above named died of the disease stated on the dat above named.
(Illegible)

Burial Permit
Office of Health Department
St. Louis Sept 20, 1895

I CERTIFY that the intended place of burial for the body of the above named person is Chesed Shel Emeth Cemetery - D. Goldberg


Notes

1) The newspaper says the house the Blatts were visiting was 1213 North 7th Street. The Death Certificate states 1233 North 7th Street. Without any other evidence I would go with the death certificate, but either could be wrong. I will try to figure out who was living at both residences and see if I recognize the names. Of course, if the child falls off a balcony and dies in a courtyard, the courtyard could be for both addresses. 

2) I have retrieved the exact plot location for the burial from the cemetery. There was no marker, and the child was buried in a charity section for infants. I will try to locate the plot on my next visit to the cemetery.  David Feinstein (1895-1896), the infant brother of my great grandfather, Herman Feinstein, is buried nearby in another unmarked grave. He died of pneumonia.

3) I am reminded of this news story from October 1904. Pearl Cruvand, the wife of my great grandmother's first cousin, witnessed a 6 year old fall off a balcony and rushed the child to a hospital.

Monday, May 17, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Passport Application of Mala Blatt - May 1898

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share the passport application for Mala (Mollie) Kellner Katz Blatt the second wife of my second great grandfather, Morris Blatt. She claimed citizenship based on his naturalization. 

FORM FOR PERSON CLAIMING CITIZENSHIP THROUGH NATURALIZATION OF HUSBAND OR PARENT

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
MAY 18, 1898
STATE OF Missouri
CITY OF St. Louis

I, Mala Blatt, a NATURALIZED AND LOYAL CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES, hereby apply to the Department of State, at Washington, for a passport for myself.

I solemnly swear that I was born at [Wisniewitz?]. Russia on or about the 10 day of March 1864; that my husband emigrated to the United States, sailing on board the Steamer [Marsala?] from Hamburg on or about the 12th day of June 1888; that he resided 10 years, uninterrupted, in the United States, from 1888 to 1898, at St. Louis, Mo; that he was naturalized as a citizen of the United States before the St. Louis Court of Criminal Correction at St. Louis on the 14th day of May 1898, as shown by the accompanying Certificate of Naturalization; that I am the wife of the person described in said Certificate; that I have resided in the United States, uninterrupted, for 11 years, from 1887 to 1898, at St. Louis, Mo; that I am domiciled in the United States, my permanent residence being at St. Louis in the State of Missouri, where I follow the occupation of none; that I am about to go abroad temporarily; and that I intend to return to the United States within one year with the purpose of residing and performing the duties of citizenship therein.

Oath of Allegiance

Further, I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I take the obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; SO HELP ME GOD

Sworn to before me this 14th day of May 1898
[Signature - Mala Blatt]
[Illegible Signature of Notary Public]

DESCRIPTION OF APPLICANT
Age: 34 Years
Stature: 5 feet, 6 inches, Eng.
Forehead: low
Eyes: Brown
Nose: Small
Mouth: Small
Chin: Oval
Hair: Dark Blonde
Complexion: Fair
Face: Oval

Identification:

I hereby certify that I know the above named Mala Blatt personal, and know her to be the wife of the person referred to in the within-described Certificate of Naturalization, and that the facts stated in her affidavit are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.

A. Jacob, 526 Pine St., St. Louis, Mo


Notes:

1) I do not know why she intended to leave the country, and for how long besides it being less than a year. She gave birth to a son 6 months later. It might be possible she wasn’t aware yet that she was pregnant and postponed/canceled the trip. 

2) This record does indicate my second great grandfather was naturalized, and provides the details necessary to obtain a copy of his records. Since it predates the 1906 statutes standardizing the process, it is unlikely the record contains much more than a signature, date, and origin country. But I have located it in a Missouri Archives database, and will request a copy.

It also provides a date for when he immigrated. I had not been able to find his ship information yet, and it is difficult to read the name of the ship provided on this application, It looks like Marsala. There was an SS Marsala that made the trip from Hamburg to NY on May 2 of 1888, which seems like a good match since he might have arrived in New York about June 12 - the average crossing was 43 days, so it's spot on. I have not found him in any passenger manifests at Ancestry.com. I will try to get creative with the spelling in the search index since I am pretty certain I have zeroed in on the ship.

Saturday, April 24, 2021

Researching Nathan Sandler (1853-1931)

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I recently found an entry at FindaGrave for a Nathan Sandler (1853-1931). Is he the father of Sarah Sandler/Sarah Nathan - the wife of Sol Newmark, and sister-in-law of my great grandfather Barney Newmark?

1901 and 1911 London census records suggest the Nathan Sandler I am looking for was born in 1856, but census records can be off by a few years. So can death records. All records depend upon the accuracy of the informants. I requested a photograph of the tombstone through FindaGrave's volunteer network. This is what was found. (The photographer took four photographs, which all can be viewed at the link above.)



Not much is left of the surface. This is surprising for a 1931 tombstone. Being in London, I wonder if the damage was related to WW2 bombing. Nearby tombstones don't appear to be similarly effected.

That said, there is a fragment of Hebrew left. What does that fragment tell us.

Here Lies

Reb (Mr.) N......Moshe the Levite.

One of the genealogically wonderful things about the standard format of Hebrew tombstones is that the name of the father is usually provided and easy to spot. For almost the entire surface to be gone, but for the father's name to remain, is incredible. There is a lot of space between where Nathan's name begins and his father's name begins, suggesting Nathan's last name was probably engraved (this is often skipped, especially when English is also on the tombstone, but we don't know if this was the case or not.) Nathan's father may have also had two Hebrew names engraved. The tombstone also indicates that the family believed themselves to be members of the Tribe of Levi. (This does not indicate they were Cohenim/Priests. Cohenim are a subset of Levites, and would be specified.)

The tombstone provides no information for me to base any decision on whether this is Sarah's father. So I ordered the death certificate from the UK General Records Office. Back in 2007 I ordered Sarah and Sol's marriage certificate and the birth records for my great grandfather's younger siblings who were born in London, and not Poland. Back then it cost 7 pounds, and the rate of exchange was 2:1, costing $14 each. Today the cost is 11 pounds, but the rate of exchange still comes out to about $14. If one wants a paper certificate. However, if one is happy with an electronic PDF, they only charge 7 pounds, which is slightly under $10.

This certificate provides an address I could compare against the 1921 census when it is released next year, and the 1931 census in 10 years, but I don't want to wait that long. The occupation says he was a Street Trader. The 1911 census states Sarah's father was a Green Grocer. But someone who sells food on the street could be described in both ways. And perhaps a store in 1911 no longer existed in 1931. The Great Depression impacted the United Kingdom as well. The informant wasn't his wife, but a daughter named B. Rubenstein. The 1901 and 1911 census records mention a daughter Bessie. Some online family trees indicate that the Nathan Sandler in my tree had a daughter Bessie who married a Rubenstein. But if there are two Nathan Sandlers it would be easy for that mistake to be made. The obituary for Sarah's brother Lewis, who also immigrated to St. Louis, mentions a sister Bessie Robbins. Robbins would be a likely Americanization of Rubenstein. (I wonder if she immigrated after 1931?) It's not definitive proof, but I think it is very likely that this is Sarah's father. Unfortunately, the UK death certificate doesn't provide a place for parent names, so I am unable to confirm my reading of the tombstone. That leaves the marriage record for Nathan and his wife Fannie to be the most likely place to find it. Unfortunately, that would be in Kaunas, Lithuania. I've researched Kaunas Lithuania records before. That is where my Cruvant ancestors come from, though I think the Sandlers were from the actual city, and my ancestors were from the rural outlying area. My initial searches at JewishGen have not been fruitful.

Monday, April 5, 2021

Amanuensis Monday - Heirlooms Taken July 31, 1969

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share a memo my grandfather wrote on July 31, 1969 and saved in his files.


From Melvin L. Newmark

Heirlooms taken from residence of Melvin L. Newmark, 701 Payson, Olivette, Mo. on 7/31/69, 7:00 to 10:00 P.M.

Gold locket about size of silver dollar - initials B.N. on one side and B/C on the other side in old English script on gold necklace chain.

Gold watch presented to Herman Feinstein by Flint Laundry 1937 on double strand antique necklace c hain.

Love bird charm on gold necklace chain - 50th Anniversary - Herman & Annie Feinstein.

Gold charm bracelet with 7 gold charms - one says SIS - 50th Birthday - one has pictures of ___, Steve, __ & Mel in little gold book, others commemorate special occasions.

[I edit out names of living individuals]










Notes:

1) My assumption is that there was a burglary while my grandparents were out, as opposed to a burglary while they were home. It was a Thursday night. The heirlooms taken were a gold locket belonging to his parents (my great grandparents) Barney Newmark and Bertha Cruvant Newmark; a gold watch belonging to my grandmother's father, Herman Feinstein; A love bird charm, possibly belonging to my grandmother's mother, Annie Feinstein; and I assume my grandmother's gold charm bracelet, with a charm I'm guessing my grandfather gave to her on her 50th birthday (1964), and with pictures of my grandfather and their kids.

I don't believe these heirlooms were ever found. While it's painful to consider what was lost, we treasure what remains.

Sunday, April 4, 2021

1911 UK Census for Nathan and Fanny Sandler

I've written before about Sarah Nathan who married Sol, the brother of my great grandfather in London in 1902. Her parents were Nathan and Fanny Sandler. On many documents Sarah went by Sarah Nathan, following the Jewish naming convention of using her father's given name as her surname, but without using the Bat/Ben Daughter/Son prefix. On other documents she used Sandler. Sarah, Sol, and their children immigrated to America with the rest of the Newmark family in 1909. In the 1910 census, one of Sarah's brothers, Sam Nathan, is  in the same household as Sarah and Sol. It appears he, too, was using his father's given name as a surname, but if Sarah was the informant on the census, she may have given him the surname. I have not been able to track him later than 1910 under either possible surname.

In the 1901 UK Census, Sam, born in 1891, is indicated as having been the first Sandler child born in the UK, though I have not yet located the family in the 1891 census, or his birth record. I have also found the Sandler family in the 1911 UK Census. I find the 1911 UK census interesting in that each household seems to have gotten their own page.

Census of England and Wales - 1911

  • Nathan Sandler - Head - Age 55 - Married - 30 years married - 9 children - 7 still living - 2 dead - Green Grocer - Working at Home - Birthplace Russia - Nationality Russian
  • Fanny Sandler - Wife - Age 50 - Married - Birthplace Russia - Nationality Russian
  • Joseph Sandler - Son - Age 18 - Single - Birthplace London
  • Rebecca Sandler - Daughter - Age 11 - Single - Birthplace London
  • Leon Sandler - Son - Age 7 - School - Birthplace London
I'm not sure how a green grocer works at home, but they may have lived above the grocery. I have possibly located Nathan Sandler on FindaGrave. The 1901 and 1911 census records suggest a birth year of 1856, and not 1853 as the FindaGrave profile suggests, but it's close. I've submitted a request for a researcher to photograph the tombstone, as well as to check if Fanny is buried nearby. Fanny is very possibly a nickname. If I can find some birth records of the younger children they might contain a given name I can use to find her death record.

There are two pages to the 1911 UK Census, which might be easy for some to miss. But of course, whenever looking at records online (or offline), it is always important to page forward and backwards just to make certain you aren't missing anything. The primary piece of information on this page is the address. It appears to be 1 Genter Street N, though I am unable to identify a street with that name. There appears to have been multiple families residing at that address in the census.

I'm looking forward to next year's release of the UK 1921 Census, as well as the 1950 US Census.

Sunday, March 14, 2021

Checking the Calendar

A summary of past posts on this topic.

(The above video was created from a still wedding-day photo colorized and animated using MyHeritage software)

My Great-Grandfather, Barney Newmark, was born in 1886, 135 years ago. He celebrated his birthday on March 17th, and claimed to have been born in Dublin, Ireland. It's significantly more likely that he was born in Warka, Poland - on the outskirts of Warsaw. The dates of March 25th and April 14th also appear on some documents as his date of birth, but no birth records have been uncovered, so anything is possible.

There may be some significance to the fact that there are 20 days between March 25th and April 14th. 12 days adjustment between the Gregorian and Julian calendar, and 8 days between birth and circumcision. Due to a superstition against celebrating birthdays, it was common for Eastern European Jewish males to celebrate the dates of their circumcision instead. I have uncovered several instances in my tree where there are birth records, that the observed birthday was 20 days later.

There is another possibility with Barney. There are also 8 days between March 17th and March 25th. And April 14 is exactly 1 lunar month after March 17. What’s the importance of a lunar month? Not much I can find - except when converting to the Hebrew calendar, Barney was born in the 2nd leap month of Adar. In leap years on the Hebrew calendar there are two months of Adar. Those born in Adar II are *supposed* to observe their birthday in Adar in non-leap years. But some people born on Feb 29 observe their birthday on the 28th and others on March 1. If Barney decided to adjust forward a month it would explain all three dates. It would also make March 17 his actual date of birth, which would make several in my family happy. In this scenario none of the dates are Julian. Without being able to ask Barney directly, though, this is all supposition.

This just illustrates when there is some conflict between dates in records, check the calendars. Plural. In some cases, more than 2.

In 2007 I wrote a blog post about Barney for St Patrick’s Day and a friend sent me a census record they found online. My eyes were opened to internet genealogy and the rest is Family History.

Monday, February 22, 2021

Amanuensis Monday - Affidavit of a Nickname - Belle Sissie Newmark

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share an Affidavit my paternal grandmother signed in front of a notary to prove that her nickname, that everyone knew her by, belonged to her. And that the name that appeared on all government documents was hers too. I am not sure what prompted the affidavit - what agency, business, person first questioned her identity. I also do not know how often she had to present the affidavit.


AFFIDAVIT

I, Sissie Newmark, being duly sworn on her oath says that she was born in St. Louis, Missouri on August 14, 1914, and that she was given the name of "Belle" by her parents Herman and Anna Feinstein. They registered her birth under the name "Belle" and she attended school in Clayton, Missouri under the name of "Belle."

Affiant further states that she was known by all of her class mates, friends and family members as "Sissie" and has continued to this date to use the name "Sissie". Belle and Sissie Newmark are one and the same person.

_______

Affiant

Subscribed and sworn to before me this __ day of October 1986.

____________

Notary Public

My commission expires: 


Notes:

1) This unsigned copy was saved by my paternal grandfather in his archive folders. I am sure my grandmother retained the signed copy

2) Letters indicate she spelled her nickname Sissy early on, but at some point changed the spelling. Many friends abbreviated the nickname to Sis, which of course is the etymology of the name her older brother gave to her. Her younger brother ended up with the nickname "Babe."



Monday, February 15, 2021

Amanuensis Monday - My Grandfather Writes to his War Buddies - 1945

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

In going through all of the documents my paternal grandfather saved, in one folder is correspondence between him and his war buddies. My grandfather served as a Field Director for the American Red Cross. When he returned from the war in 1945, and landed in San Francisco, he learned his brother, Mandell, had been killed. Below are paragraphs from several letters where he informed his buddies. 

To Lt. Bernard Samoff - Aug 29, 1945

My return was not the happy event I looked forward to - I suppose you learned that my suspicions about my little brother having been killed were true. But since the return safely of my other brother and the ending of the war, I’m beginning to feel good.

To Kurt Stone - Aug 30. 1945

I don’t know whether you remember my talking about my little brother Mandell - he was with the 41st division. We were at Biak together for about three months. Did you know that I got to Biak just about a week after you left. While I was on my way home, Mandell was killed at Zamboanga and I learned about it when I arrived in Frisco. So my homecoming was anything but the happy event that I thought it would be. It is difficult for me to write about it.

To Zach Levine - Aug 30, 1945

My homecoming wasn’t very pleasant. While I was enroute, Mandell was killed and I got the news when I arrived in Frisco. It happened at Zamboanga. The whole division had a rough time of it, although I understand little or no new got into the papers about it. About a week before Mandell was wounded, he had received the Bronze Star. I wanted so badly to get him out of that outfit. I feel pretty bitter about it but I suppose that doesn’t do any good. When I get to thinking about it, I just can’t think of anything else - so will you forgive me for making this short.

To Col. Chet Lange - May 11, 1946

After I left Morsby I went to Biak for about six months and then spent a little time in Manila. I cam home completely beaten. My littler brother who was with the 163rd Inf. was killed at Jolo. I cam home on leave and before my leave ended the war was over. I got back into law practice around the first of the year and while it was slow going at first I am getting all the business I could handle now. So much so but every once in a while I get to wishing I was back at Morsby. The more I think about it the more I love that place and the more I realize what a swell bunch of people there were.


Notes:

1) In one day my grandfather went from "beginning to feel good" to feeling "pretty bitter about it," but that is natural for the grieving process.

2) Was Mandell killed in Jolo or Zamboanga? Newspaper reports indicate Jolo. It is possible initial information the family received suggested Zamboanga. It's possible his troop was stationed at Zamboanga and had a mission on the nearby island of Jolo. While officially "Killed in Action" he was killed when a fellow officer was cleaning his weapon.

3) My grandfather saved correspondence to/from individuals stapled, paperclipped, or prong-fastened together. Sometimes including envelopes, sometimes not. The copies he saved of the letters he wrote often don’t have last names of those he wrote to, but these can be determined by other documents fastened to the letter. In the case of the letter to Zach Levine there is no such document, but he did have a separate list of addresses he titled “Overseas Mailing List.”  There is only one Zach on that list. 

4) If by chance you are reading this because you found the entry searching for your relative, one of the letter recipients, let me know. There may be letters they wrote in the folder I could scan and send to you. 

Monday, February 8, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Letter from Melvin Newmark July 28, 1943

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share part of a letter my grandfather wrote in 1943. I’m not sure to whom he was writing, nor am I positive the letter got sent. I assume it did and my grandfather felt it important enough to keep an unsigned copy of his letter. I do have a copy of the letter referenced in the first line, but there is no surname on the letter. 


Dear Micky:

Glad to hear from you.

[…]

Sissy and I are going away on a little vacation. We are leaving St. Louis Friday and will probably be gone about ten days. We are going up to Elkhart Lake, Wisc. to try to cool off.

I have an opportunity to go across for the American Red Cross as a field director and I am having a very difficult time trying to make up my mind. I am hopeful that during my vacation I will be able to think the thing out and reach a decision. I don’t know whether you are familiar with the job or not. It pays $275.00 per month. While I would not be considered part of the military, I would wear an officer’s uniform and live with the officers. If I went in I would probably leave the country in about four weeks. I wish I had your faculty for reaching a decision.

Apparently you do not like your present assignment. All of the fellow that I know have griped about the training and you have the consolation that that will be through soon.

Your thoughts about the law practice are pretty much the way I feel. If I do not take the Red Cross job, however, and if I am not drafted, I will probably never have the nerve to quit it. More power to you.

[…]

I understand Stella and the Baby are with you. Give her my best.

Sis and the Kids are fine. Sissy is very set against my going into service and if I don’t go in it will probably be because of her wishes.

Good luck, Micky, and let me hear from you soon.

Sincerely,


Notes:

1) My grandfather took the job with the Red Cross. When he returned after the war, he returned to the law practice.  I’m not positive what his issues were. Micky’s letter is handwritten and difficult for me to read, but I’m going to work at it.

2) Both of my grandmothers weren’t initially supportive of my grandfathers serving. A letter I’ve previously shared indicates my maternal grandmother was upset about my grandfather’s decision without her consent.

3) Sissy was the nickname of my grandmother given to her as a child by her brother. Later she would spell it Sissie.  

Monday, February 1, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Melvin Newmark's Speech to Maryville College - Feb 1958

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share a speech my grandfather gave to Maryville College (now Maryville University) in St. Louis in February of 1958. He would have been 46 years old at the time. This was given in connection with National Brotherhood Week, which was promoted by the National Conference of Christians and Jews, of which my grandfather was an active member.

 For delivery February 13th 1958 Maryville College

This meeting this morning is one of many held during Brotherhood Week in Schools and colleges of America. It is an opportunity for students and teachers alike to reappraise the American goal of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness — from our earnest studies of history we all have some knowledge of the dreams and aspirations of our founding fathers and their concepts of a truly democratic state. From our own daily experiences we all have some knowledge of the way in which those ideals have or have not been fulfilled. An opportunity, then, such as this one to examine wherein we have failed and to look for ways and means of improvement is essential to the orderly, progressive development of our democratic society.

Once, for instance, people of good intentions thought of America as a great melting pot — until we came to realize that you don’t solve problems of group differences by eliminating the difference — anymore than you would solve a headache by cutting off the head. It’s true there would be no more headache, but then neither would there be a you. And if the differences between the peoples and groups of this great country were eliminated the strength and vigor of America would be sapped and democracy would have been dealt a death blow.

Today people of goodwill understand the differences and no longer fear them. Whenever tensions do develop you can be sure that lack of understanding and baseless fears have blinded some from the truth. And sometimes evil men, who prosper on discord, try to mislead us and distort the meaning of our democracy. Ignorance is our worst enemy — truth and understanding our only hope.

However imperfect is our present form of government, however impatient some of us may at times seem, none of us doubts the ultimate success of our system to establish a climate where all of us, regardless of our differences, whether they be race or religion, will be able to live and prosper together in peace and harmony.

We fully believe so because we know that the ideal of American democracy is simply a fulfillment of the one basic law common to both science and religion.

From science we have learned the value of cooperation. The way in which single, simple cells unite, for instance, to join together to form more complex patterns of living matter. The history, for instance, of evolution which reveals the pattern of progress and survival through cooperation. Countless other examples testify to the scientific proof that the basic law of nature is cooperation. We know now that it is not enough to say “live and let live”, we must say “live and help live.”

From the religions of our Judean-Christian civilization we learn, too, there is one basic law, one commandment, which seems to sum up everything that God has ever revealed to mankind. That law, that commandment is “Love thy neighbor”. Hate, we know, will destroy us, but love will fulfill us.

Love and cooperation are different words meaning the same thing.

The democracy our forefathers established in America actually began when Moses led the Hebrews out of Egyptian slavery. His goal was freedom, not just freedom alone from restrictive tyranny, but freedom as well for restraining law - so that free people could thereafter live together without fear or hatred. The laws and commandments then revealed to Moses established the only kind of freedom possible, a freedom, if you will, that simply makes your feel easy in your harness, and these laws and commandments were preserved by the great Christian religions and are the backbone of our American democracy.

The uniqueness of this democracy is the degree of unity we are able to achieve without at the same time giving up our differences.

If everyone thought alike and looked alike and prayed alike, or if everyone did not pray at all, then there would be, for sure, unity, but no diversity, and we would thus have totalitarianism.

If everyone did just whatever he pleased and acted however he pleased and no two people thought alike, we would of course have diversity but without any unity this diversity would result in anarchy.

Only in a democracy can there be, in fact, must there be, both unity and diversity.

Today we see our democracy as a symphony, each of the groups an instrument, all blending together in a glorious harmony, and we all contribute to the richness of the music.

What can we as members of different [faiths] do to preserve and strengthen this God given ideal — from Him who is the Father of all of us.

As a Jew it is my most sacred duty to live up to the loftiest commandment of my faith “to love thy neighbor as myself”. As Christians it is your most sacred duty to live up to the same commandment as explained by your great Savior to mean “do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” The Hebrew Psalms say “Olam Chesed Yiboneh” — the world is founded upon love alone. [Psalms 89:3] Coleridge, my favorite poet, I think, said it best in these words

He Prayeth best who loveth best — All things both great and small — for the dear God who loveth us — He made and loveth us all.


Notes:

1) I had heard about the Symphony alternative to the Melting Pot, so I went in search of who first suggested it. It was Horace Kallen in an article for The Nation, Democracy Versus the Melting Pot, in 1915. It is sad that kids were still being taught the Melting Pot metaphor when I was a kid in the 80s, and there are still people promoting it today.

2) It is great to see my grandfather's evolution as a thinker and speech writer over the 12 years since the speech he wrote in 1946. It was also good to learn the name of at least one of his favorite poets. His bookshelves were rather large. As are mine. 

Saturday, January 30, 2021

The Professions of David Orel Kruvand (1805-?)

Below are some index records I found on Ancestry pertaining to my third great grandfather, David Orel Kruvand. I do not believe the original records are accessible anywhere online, yet. 

The first record is from 1840, and the second 1852. In those 12 years he went from being a Miller to being a Butcher. What caused this change of occupation? What happened to the mill? Nothing certain, but one can certainly imagine several hypotheses.  In the first record - a census - he was 35 years old, and the second 47. It seems rather late in life, in that era, for a career change. But it is possible the mill belonged to his father, and he was not successful in keeping it up.  Or one of a multitude of other possibilities.

I recently found both records in a search, but it is interesting to speculate what I, or another genealogist, might conclude if only one record had turned up. If one only knew about his job as a Miller, one might conclude the family was, if not wealthy, successful. The physical requirements of a mill probably limited the number of millers in a town, and limited competition. This is not necessarily the case for butchers. So his success as a butcher might have depended upon the amount of competition he had as well as his skills. 

Butcher is a slightly humorous occupation for him to have gone into. Why? I learned a few years ago that the Lithuanian word, "Kruvinas," means 'bloody," and the town Kruvandai was named after a particularly bloody war. Kruvandai is near Cekiske, and everyone in town would have known from where the family got their surname. But there would likely have been a slight chuckle among residents that someone with that surname was a butcher. Under Kosher dietary laws blood has to be drained from meat, so "Kruvand meat" might have had negative connotations, even if everyone understood the origin of the surname.

I don't know yet when David Orel Kruvand passed away. The next generation started immigrating to America in the 1870s and 1880s.


Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Finding Your Roots - Andy Cohen

This post has mostly been written in advance of the airing of Finding Your Roots - Season 7 - Episode 2 with Andy Cohen. Not sure whether or not I should say this, but the episode was recorded back in 2019. Andy is my fourth cousin, and information got shared. I kept quiet. I didn't want to get anyone in trouble. But the episode has now aired. I’ve made some edits as naturally not everything that got shared with Andy made the show. There wasn’t enough time.

I actually learned from his family that his genealogy was being researched when the research began, so I have an idea how long that research can take. It was long enough I wondered if they had given up on finding anything of interest. I'll leave it at that. I was not contacted in any way by any of the researchers during the research of the episode.

I will say, though it won't be mentioned in the episode, unless they went back and recorded an extra scene [which didn’t happen] that Andy's bout with Covid this year gave me a personal scare. We may not be close cousins genetically, but we went to school together a year apart, and our families are close.

How are we related? Those who watched the episode and have been followers of my blog may have recognized the surname I have often spelled (C/K)r(u/oo)van(t/d). Almost every conceivable permutation exists on at least one branch of the family. The family surname comes from the town of Kruvandai in Lithuania. The town's name comes from the Lithuanian word for 'bloody' and was named for a bloody battle. My second great grandfather, Moshe Leyb Cruvant, and Andy's second great grandfather, Samuel (Simon) Cruvand, were brothers.

Here's some links to a few past blog posts that touch upon some of the same people, places, and events from the show.

I believe the only post I’ve made since the recording of the episode which referenced Cekiske, and the Cruvant family in Lithuania, was the one I made a couple weeks ago about the synagogue in Burlington, Vermont. There will be more.



Monday, January 25, 2021

Amanuensis Monday: Melvin Newmark's Speech to the Samaritan Methodist Church 1946

Amanuensis: A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another. I continue my project to transcribe family letters, journals, newspaper articles, audiotapes, and other historical artifacts. Not only do the documents contain genealogical information, the words breathe life into kin - some I never met - others I see a time in their life before I knew them.

Today I share a speech my grandfather gave to the Samaritan Methodist Church of St. Louis in October of 1946. He would have been 34 years old at the time. My grandfather was active in interfaith organizations such as the National Conference of Christians and Jews. He had spoken at the church in February, probably in connection with National Brotherhood Week, and was invited back in October by the pastor, so apparently had made a good impression.

October 10, 1946

Rev G.F. Tipton [Samaritan Methodist Church]
4118 Cook Ave
St. Louis, Missouri

Dear Rev. Tipton:

It was certainly good to hear from you and to receive your kind invitation to be with you at your vesper services on October 27.

I shall certainly do everything in my power to be with you that evening. If there is any particular subject that you would like me to choose, I would appreciate your advising me.

Thanks again for your invitation, and be assured that I am looking forward to being with you and your congregation on October 27.

Sincerely yours,

Melvin L. Newmark

***

Recently I received one of the nicest compliments ever paid me — Rev. Tipton’s kind invitation to meet again with you good people — having stood on this pulpit only eight months ago, I was at first reluctant to accept for fear I would, “so to speak”, “Wear out my welcome”— but the happy prospect of enjoying your friendliness was too much to resist — so in spite of the qualms that are inherent in repetition I came again to enjoy one of your most inspirational services — perhaps too, my return is the result of coincidental timing. Some time ago my office, and in particular my senior associate, Victor Packman, was retained with Henry Espy to represent a group of negro train porters — very likely the case is familiar to all or most of you — the issue involved is heart-rending; it is typical of the sort of problem we are encountering, but it stands out because of the inhumane boldness of the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen — a lily-white organization. For years the Frisco railroad has employed negroes in the dual capacity of brakemen and porters. But only so with the reluctant approval of the Brotherhood.. This year when the time came to renegotiate the various labor contracts involved, the brotherhood decreed that hereafter negroes would no longer be permitted to engage in that capacity, and in accordance with the agreement made, the Railroad served notice on the negro employees involved that they would be fired — fired outright, mind you, in spite of the fact that most of these men had 15, 20, 25 years of valuable seniority with the company. Our job was to get the Federal Court here in St. Louis to enjoin the railroad from firing those negro employees who were fired only — and for no other reason than — that they were Negroes. We won the first round with the aid of the Lord, and a temporary injunction was issued. Round two came up a few weeks ago and a decision is expected shortly after the first of the year. If necessary we will continue fighting until the United States Supreme Court itself has had the opportunity to pass on it. But that case itself is not the basis for my discussion this evening, though well it might be.

Since it is a matter that at this very moment is pending before the court, propriety prevents me from discussing it in any greater detail than I already have. But it was the occasion of this case pending in my office, and the pitiful things I learned, and the tearful experiences encountered in working on the case that made me welcome so much the opportunity to talk to you again, as I did eight months ago on the unholiness and evilness of prejudice, hatred and bigotry.

How many times, since the end of the war, has each of you asked — either to yourself or to others — did we really win what we were fighting for? Is the war really over—Is Fascism really ended? On the occasion of the hanging of the 10 Nazi leaders a few weeks back, those questions were especially in everyone’s mind. The two great newspapers in St. Louis had a good deal to say about those questions — Let me read a few lines from each of the editorials that were printed.

“The gallows at Nuremberg ended a regime; It could not kill the ghastly, corrupt and inhuman impulses which created the regime. Hitler, Goering and the rest have returned to the dust, but the things they stood for live everywhere in the minds of other men, and the world must be on guard lest Fascism — once supreme in Germany, Italy and Japan — should again become triumphant.”

And a few days before the Post said that, the Star-Times on Friday October 18, said:

“Naziism was the repudiation of liberty, of equality of fraternity. You do not kill that philosophy when you have done no more than hang a few men or watch a few others gurgle their way to an ignominious death. Nazism lives in every man who denies democracy. It lives in every man who would erect barriers of economic or social, or racial or credal caste in the nation. It lives in every sword-rattling jingo, every war-mongering nationalist. Sometimes it is called the Ku Klux Klan, and sometimes it is called the Order of the Silver Shirts, and sometimes it is called by more respectable names. But always it is the same, and always it is a dread threat to man’s dignity — IT STILL LIVES.”

Yes, unfortunately, the newspapers are right — Fascism is not dead — not yet are we able to say — we won the war — we won what we were fighting for — we can not say we won the war if the Frisco Railroad can fire those trusted employees only because they were negroes — nor when Gerald KKK Smith is afforded the dignity of our great municipal auditorium to spread his nasty lies of hate — Nor when a situation can develop like that at Columbia, Tennessee. Now when — after working in my office Mr. Espy and Mr. Houston (Mr. Houston is a negro lawyer from Wash. D.C., who came here to help us on the Howard cause — perhaps some of you know him — he happens to be one of the leading members of the American Bar — White or Colored — the former dean of Howard University, a graduate of Amherst, Howard and Columbia, a citizen all America can and should be proud of—) As I started to say — you can not say we won the war when after working in my office with those two men we can not find a restaurant downtown where we can even have lunch together!!

We can not say the we have won the war when a certain US Senator — you know who I mean — can write this letter,

“If Jews of your type don’t quit sponsoring and fraternizing with the negro race you are going to arouse so much opposition to all of you that they will get a very strong invitation to pack up and resettle in Palestine, the homeland of the Jews, just as we propose to provide for the voluntary resettlement of the American Negro in West Africa, their fatherland” —

Except for the signature I would swear that Hitler himself wrote that letter — and not a US Senator — let me read you a passage from Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” and you’ll see what I mean.

“From time to time it is demonstrated to the German that for the first time here or there a Negro has become a lawyer, teacher, clergy, or even a leading opera tenor or something of that kind. It is a sin against the will of the eternal Creator to let his most talented beings degenerate while Hottentots are trained for intellectual vocations. The Jew knows very slyly how to construe from this a new proof of the correctness of his theory of the equality of men which he means to instill into the nations.”

But the question in our minds is — What can we do about it? The answer is — Plenty — as long as we live in a democracy.

First of all, we must learn — and re-learn — what Democracy is. What does it mean? What is its value? Some of you may be thinking — we know what Democracy is — but do you? Does Mr. American Citizen know what Democracy is? How many of you know what the Bill of Rights is? Its contents? If you are average, 79% of you will have to admit that you don’t know. The National Opinion Research Center of the University of Denver recently completed a nationwide survey on that very question. Only 21% had a reasonably accurate idea of the Bill of Rights contents.

In other words, only one person out of five knows that the American Bill of Rights consists of the first 10 amendments to the Federal Constitution. Only one person out of five knows that these amendments protect the basic liberties of the individual citizen from encroachment by the government. Only one person out of five can identify the very heart and center — the well-spring of American Democracy.  Let me urge you first then to learn what Democracy is.

Secondly, you must learn what Fascism is — and how to recognize it. Here too, you might say — We know what Fascism is. But do you? And even more important, do you know how to recognize Fascism when you see it? Can you see behind its sugar coatings and its false fronts? Do you recognize Jim Crow, and anti-Semitisms and discriminations against foreign born — discrimination against all minorities — as tools of fascism. Our general knowledge of Fascism is weak — we need to be informed. The Library of Congress is now preparing a report for the American people to the end that they may recognize Fascism and be armed against it. When that report comes out, study it; Knowledge is your only weapon.

Thirdly, by actual participation in our government, if you fail to vote in a primary or election or if you use your vote carelessly, you are doing yourself a grave injustice. The most valuable right that you have is your right to vote; don’t waste it or squander it. And don’t just stop with voting. If a candidate is running who has proven by his past record that he is worthy of support, get out and work for him — let him know it — and when he gets elected let him know how you feel on important issues. Yes, influence him if you will, on those issues that spell success for democracy. And at this point I wonder if it would bee all fright for me to say something in my heart — I happen to know Congressman John Sullivan personally — I can tell you honestly that he is your friend — but you don’t need me to tell it to you — his wonderful record speaks for itself — I think you owe it to yourself and your children to see that he is reelected —

But actual participation in government means more than voting — it means democracy in action — it means taking advantage of every law and statute — and instituting legal action where necessary — to protect and maintain your freedom — Legal action is one of your finest weapons — and under our system your surest guaranty of freedom. Court action is not only a means of testing a statute or enforcing it — it can also build community sentiment, get the people aroused, not exclusively on the particular case at issue, but on broad principles. So that even if the case itself is lost, the principle involved becomes important and.later legislation may be proposed that will put into the statute books the issue that was lost in the courtroom. Legal action of this sort is most important. The suits that have been filed to eliminate restrictions in deeds is a good example, as is the case against the railroad I talked about earlier and others that you are all familiar with —

These things can be done — and many others — so take hope in the future. The will to live a better life for ourselves and our children lies in our own hands. With an unswerving faith in God we will not fail.


Notes:

1) Genealogically there is little here except that my grandfather was involved with NCCJ, which is confirmed by some letters back and forth that were retained with the speech text. But having a written document containing my grandfather’s thoughts on Fascism, racism, and bigotry as a young man following his participation in WW2 is marvelous. Especially since they are thoughts I can unequivocally be proud about.

2) My grandfather stated his law firm was ready to take the court case he mentioned all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary. It was. They won in 1952.

3) The US Senator who wrote the horrific letter described was Mississippi Senator Theodore Bilbo. Pete Seeger recorded the song, Listen, Mr. Bilbo in the same year that my grandfather gave this speech.

4) A next step a historian might take might be to find the editorials that are quoted in part within the speech to see what they said in whole. They might be found in online newspaper archives. However, that is unnecessary as my grandfather retained clippings of the sources for his speeches in the same folder.

5) My grandfather’s speech folder doesn’t contain a copy of the speech he gave in February 1946, but it does have a short summary. I suspect he didn’t save a copy, and perhaps wrote the summary in October from memory. There aren’t a lot of speeches in the folder, so he was selective. I believe this is the earliest speech of his that he saved, but there are some undated ones. A speech he gave 12 years later in connection with National Brotherhood Week is also in the folder, and I will share it next week. National Brotherhood Week was the third week of February, though it ceased being observed in the 1980s. Perhaps we need its return.