Sepia Saturday 300: Images of the Deceased

Sepia Saturday - A weekly meme providing a visual prompt for participants to share their own photographs. (I'm going to share some poetry as well.)

It is thought that this image may be an example of a Post-Mortem photograph, where at least one of the individuals is deceased. An appropriate image as we are in the month of October and Halloween. The boy and man both look as if this might be the case.

I don't have any post-mortem photographs, but the feeling one gets seeing images of the dead reminds me of the images I saw in French Children of the Holocaust, by Serge Klarsfeld, 1996. (The book can be viewed online.)

A publication of Jewish children deported from France (very many of which were not French nationals, but earlier refugees from elsewhere in Europe). The book includes alphabetical lists of children by convoy, indicating surname, forename, birthdate, birthplace, assembly center, convoy number, deportation date, and last address in France, followed by a photographic section featuring portraits and other information on many of the children. There are two indexes, a general name index to the deportation lists and an name index to the photograph section.

Ida CANTKERT was born on October 14, 1927, in Paris (12th arr.). She lived at 20 rue Basfroi (11th arr.). She was deported on convoy 68 of February 10, 1944, with her sisters Frida, age 4, and Suzanne, 8, and her brother Paul, 10.

***

It is possible that I am related distantly to Ida and her siblings. My second great grandmother, Rose Cantkert Newmark, came from Warka, Poland, on the outskirts of Warsaw. The deportation lists indicate that Ida and her siblings were born in Paris. But there is no indication of where her parents were born.

Excerpt from: Mid-Term Break - by Seamus Heaney (1939-2013)

I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
At two o'clock our neighbours drove me home.

In the porch I met my father crying—
He had always taken funerals in his stride—
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.

The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
By old men standing up to shake my hand

And tell me they were 'sorry for my trouble'.
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest,
Away at school, as my mother held my hand

[full poem]

Central Database of Shoah Victims Names - Part II

Whenever looking at a document, it is important to consider how and why the document was made. This helps to figure out which parts of the document are more likely to be reliable.

For example: on a death certificate, the date, time, and cause of death are all likely to be reliable. Or at least as reliable as the medical profession was at the time. The reliability of the date and place of birth, or information such as the names of the deceased's parents, depends entirely on the informant.

The Central Database of Shoah Victims Names draws its names from three sources:

1.Pages of Testimony. These are one-page forms, submitted to Yad Vashem by survivors, remaining family members or friends in commemoration of people who perished in the Holocaust. The first 800,000 of them were collected in the 1950s, and the rest since. There are currently some 2,600,000 names on Pages of Testimony, written in about thirty languages and four alphabets.


2.Historical documentation from the archives, such as the correspondence of the Nazi bureaucrats and their counterparts throughout Europe; personal documents of the Jews such as letters, passports, diaries and memoirs, as well as the documentation of the Jewish organs and institutions; lists detailing confiscation of assets, deportation lists or lists of victims; legal documentation from proceedings against Nazi criminals and collaborators, and much more. The documentation is in all European languages.


3. Local commemoration projects: There are dozens of local initiatives to record the names of the Jews from a specific region, country, or camp. Yad Vashem has joined efforts with these projects, and their results are integrated into the central database. 

In my searches, most of the results appear to come from pages of testimony.  How reliable are these? Well, consider the circumstances. You are a survivor of the Holocaust. A decade, two, three, or four afterwards you feel compelled to memorialize the names of your relatives and fellow members of your community who perished. The names you are likely to remember well.  Names of parents? If its for a sibling, you will likely get that right. But for a cousin? It might depend upon how old you were at the time. Dates and Places of birth?

In some cases, all the record really provides for certainty is a name. But that is a name you can take to other websites such as JewishGen and see if you can find records to confirm the other pieces of information.

After looking at the records of Almasu/Varalmas I decided to do a search on some paternal ancestors. In particular, the Cantkerts (pronounced: Tsantkerts).

My second great grandparents Samuel and Rose (Cantkert) Newmark lived in Warka, Poland - on the outskirts of Warsaw.  They left Poland in 1893 and after spending 15 years in England, finally settled in America.  All I know for certain about Rose's parents are the names that appear on her death certificate: Hirsch and Bryna.  How well did her son recall the names of his grandparents?  He didn't get Rose's maiden name correct - he wrote it down as Sundberg. Luckily, the London birth records of his younger siblings led me to Cantkert. Are the first names correct?

I conducted a search at the Central Database for anyone with the name Cantkert.  There were only slightly over 60 results, and I created an Excel spreadsheet of information from the records. Here's a table:

Surname	First Name	Maiden	Father	Mother	DOB	POB	Spouse	Submitter	Relationship
Cantker	Feiga	Holtzman	Nisan	Pesa	1913	Siedlce Poland	Mendel	Yeshayahu Holtzman	Brother
Cantker	Noakh		Menashe	Braindel	1910	Warka, Poland	None	Yekhiel Vafel	Cousin
Cantkert	Fayga				1895	Warsaw, Poland		Deportation List
Cantkert	Frida				1939	Paris, France		Deportation List
Cantkert	Ita				1927	Paris, France		Deportation List
Cantkert	Paul				1933	Paris, France		Deportation List
Cantkert	Suzanne				1935	Paris, France		Deportation List
Cantkier	Yankiel		Meir	Hudes	1905	Warka, Poland	Tauba	George Cantkier	Son
Cantkier	Symcha				1919	Wolomin, Poland	Teiblum	Yerakhmiel Zholt	Cousin
Cantkier	Leja	Teblum	Leib	Ester	1919	Wegrow, Poland	Simkha	Yerakhmiel Zhulti	Cousin
Cantkier	Unknown		Symcha	Leja	1939	Wolomin, Poland		Yerakhmiel Zholt	Cousin
Feder	Reizl	Tzantker	Hersh	Breina	1885	Warka, Poland	Mordekhai	Tzipora Haus	Niece
Tantker	Josif		Shmuel	Riza	1921	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Sara		Hersh	Breina	1918	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Bronia		Khaim	Reizil	1913	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Khaim		Hersh	Breina	1892	Warsaw, Poland	Khaia	Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Tzipora		Hersh	Breina	1920	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Neha		Khaim Shmuel	Khaia	1917	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Sofia		Khaim Shmuel	Khaia Roza	1915	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Yokheved				1910	Warsaw, Poland	Yaakov	Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Yitzhak		Hersh	Breina	1914	Warsaw, Poland		Tzafrir	Cousin
Tantker	Yaakov		Hersh	Breina	1875	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Yaakov		Hersh	Breina	1910	Warsaw, Poland	Yokheved	Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Reizl		Hersh	Breina	1923	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Zelig		Khaim Shmuel	Khaia Roza	1919	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Khaia Reizl				1897	Warsaw, Poland	Khaim Shmuel	Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Tantker	Zelda		Khaim Shmuel	Khaia Roza	1912	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Zantker	Frida		Khaim Shmuel	Khaia	1918	Warsaw, Poland		Tzipora Haus	Cousin
Zantker	Sara	Lange	Khaim Barukh	Tzina		Bialobrzegi, Poland		Efraim Shafranski	Nephew
Zantker	Wolf					Bialobrzegi, Poland	Sara Lange	Efraim Shafranski	Relative
Zantker	Abraham					Warka, Poland		Efraim Shafranski	Acquaintance
Zantker	Nukha		Wolf	Sara	1930	Bialobrzegi, Poland		Efraim Shafranski
Tzandker	Yisrael		Yosef	Miriam	1907	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh	Brother
Tzandker	Ester		Beniamin	Khava	1906	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Khaia Sara		Yosef	Miriam	1908	Wolomin, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Dvora		Yosef	Miriam	1923	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Asher		Yosef	Miriam	1920	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Meier		Yosef	Miriam	1900	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh	Sister
Tzandker	Tzipora		Yosef	Miriam	1900	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh	Sister
Tzandker	Sabina				1915	Warsaw, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh	Sister-in-Law
Tzandker	Simkha		Yosef	Miriam	1923	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Miriam		Khaim David	Rivka Matilda	1880	Stanislawow, Poland		Hendel Ishlakh	Daughter
Tzandker	Khana		Asher		14			Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	David			Tzipora	15			Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Yoel			Tzipora	13			Hendel Ishlakh
Tzandker	Khaia			Tzipora	10			Hendel Ishlakh
Tzantker	Malka				30	Poland	Shalom	Beniamin Tzantker	Son
Tzantker	Shalom					Poland	Malka	Beniamin Tzantker	Son
Tzantker	Sara Khaia		Asher	Feiga	1927	Wyszkow, Poland		Ester Shmit	Sister
Tzantker	Miriam Doba		Yosef		60	Wyszkow, Poland		Ester Shmit	Granddaughter
Tzantker	Yisrael		Yosef Leib	Miriam Doba	50	Warsaw, Poland		Ester Shmit	Niece
Tzantker	Dvora		Yosef Leib	Miriam Doba		Warsaw, Poland		Ester Shmit	Niece
Tzantker	Asher		Yosef Leib	Miriam Doba	1890	Wyszkow, Poland	Feiga Vengosh	Ester Shmit	Daughter
Tzantker	Beila		Shalom	Malka	7	Poland		Beniamin Tzantker	Brother
Tzantker	Sara Khaia		Yosef Leib	Marise Doba		Warsaw, Poland		Ester Shmit	Aunt
Tzantker	Meir Yekhiel		Yosef	Miriam Doba		Wolomin, Poland		Ester Shmit	Niece
Tzantker	Simkha		Yosef Leib	Miriam Doba		Warsaw, Poland		Ester Shmit	Niece
Tzantker	Khana Lea		Asher	Feiga	1920	Vishkov, Poland		Ester Shmit	Sister
Tzantker	Levi				1907	Otwock, Poland	Tzipora Zilbershtein	Ofra Shaltiel	Daughter
Tzantker					1890	Otwock, Poland		Ofra Shaltiel	Granddaughter
Tzantker	Asher		Yosef	Miriam	1897	Stanislawow, Poland	Feiga Vengosh	Ester Shmit	Daughter
Tzantker	Sara Khaia		Asher	Feiga	1921	Wyszkow, Poland		Shmuel Shmit	Sister
Tzantker	Khana Lea		Asher	Feiga	1918	Wyszkow, Poland		Ester Shmit	Sister

Survivor, Tzipora Haus, remembered several cousins with parents named Hersh and Breina. However, the birth years ranged from 1875 to 1923.  This is unlikely, unless there were at least two couples with the same names.  This isn't impossible. My second great grandmother is thought to have been born in 1865, so only Yaakov (1875) is a likely sibling. [And Tzipora submitted two pages of testimony for a Yaakov son of Hersh and Breina. The other had him born in 1910. Which recollection of hers was correct, or were there two Yaakovs?]

One thing this search revealed is that most of the names don't have a final 't'.  Even though I conducted the search on "Cantkert" the database was smart enough to realize that "Cantker" and its phonetic variants were synonyms.

When I checked at JewishGen I learned their search engine wasn't that flexible, and a search on Cantker revealed a few more entries my earlier searches missed.  Including a Rajzla (Rose?) Cantker born in Warka in 1870.  If my second great grandmother was actually born in 1870, she would only have been 13 when her eldest child was said to have been born in 1883. That borders on the unlikely, but we don't have a birth certificate for her eldest child. Her second child is supposed to have been born three years later in 1886, and her third child is supposed to have been born in 1889. There is certainly some flexibility here to allow for an 1870 birth.  [Especially if that's just an 1870 registration of birth, and the family waited to register her, as was sometimes the case.] So this is a record I am definitely going to try to obtain.

Surname Saturday: Cantkert

Discuss a surname and mention its origins, its geographical location(s) and how it fits into your genealogy research.

Cantkert is a surname for which I am uncertain of its origin. I believe it to be the maiden name of my great-great grandmother, Rose.  She married Samuel Newmark in Poland in the late 19th century. The last Polish town of record I have for the Newmark family is Warka, Poland, and JewishGen lists Cantkert in their Warka Surname List.  However, my great great grandmother's surname has appeared differently in several documents. The names of her parents are known only through her death certificate.

I am uncertain if there is any relationship to Ida Cantkert, or her siblings, memorialized in Serge Klarsfeld's French Children of the Holocaust.

The numbering below follows the d'Aboville system. The first digit represents the order surnames make their first appearance on my ahnentafel.  The information in the first two generations is based on some records I have found online and some assumptions noted below.

I've emboldened my direct ancestors.

9. Szmul Cantkert (? - 1894)

9.1 Hirsch Cantkert (?-?) married Bryn __
9.2 Manas Cantkert
9.3 Szmerek Cantkert

9.1.1 Rose Cantkert (1865-1943) married Samuel Newmark (1862-1940)

Follow the descent of Rose and Samuel at 1.1.

My number is 9.1.1.2.1.1.3


Research Notes

In the 1907 Warka voter lists (available on both JewishGen and Ancestry) there were three apparent Cantkert brothers: Hersz, Manas, and Szmerek - all listed with the father Szmul.  The first two generations above are based on the good possibility that Hersz was the father of my great great grandmother, though it is not certain.  It appears to be an uncommon surname, and a small village, so the matching given name is a good indicator.

Records in the JewishGen databases for which I have recently contacted the Polish State Archives seeking copies:

• 1894 death record from Warka for a Szmul Josek Cantkert
• 1893 marriage record for a Manas Cantkert to a Brandla Siniawer
• 1860 birth record for a Szmerek Cantkert
• 1887 marriage record for a Szmerka Cantkert to an Ajdla Wortman

Women's History Month: Give Their Face A Place

The word prompt for the 21st Edition of Smile For The Camera is "Give Their Face A Place." March is Women's History month and you are asked to picture women back into history. The unknown, known and unsung women who are often the foundation of our family history. Give their face a place.

(click to enlarge)

From left to right:
Myrtle (Van Every) Deutsch - 1900-1951 (my mother's mother)
Margaret (Denyer) Van Every - 1868-1923 (my mother's mother's mother)
Helen (Lichtman) Deutsch - 1881-1958 (my mother's father's mother)
Bertha (Cruvant) Newmark - 1886-1978 (my father's father's mother)
Minnie (Mojsabovski) Cruvant - 1863-1924 (my father's father's mother's mother)
Rose (Cantkert) Newmark - 1865-1943 (my father's father's father's mother)
Annie (Blatt) Feinstein - 1889-1965 (my father's mother's mother)
Sissie (Feinstein) Newmark - 1914-2002 (my father's mother)

These are the eight female ancestors for whom I currently have photographs.