Happy Mother's Day, L2a1l2a!

Happy Mother's Day to my late mother Norma, grandmother Tillie, great grandmother Bertha and my great great grandmother Reisel!

Bertha Wenkert Liebross

I do not know the maiden name of my great great grandmother Reisel Wenkert from the Zaleszczyki area of today's Ukraine but among her children was my great grandmother, Breindel Wenkert, born about 1868. 

I know Breindel had one elder sister, Perl Wenkert Ett, who died in Skole, Austria in 1895. Perl had five daughters, all of whom bore daughters, as well (she also had a son, but that information is not helpful for following out MtDNA results). Beyond Perl and Breindel, I do not yet know of any other siblings.

Breindel married Eliezer (Leiser) Liebross. They resided in Radautz, Austrian Empire (now Radauti, Romania) and had eight children. 

Leiser and Breindel  immigrated in 1897 and 1898, respectively, and became Louis and Bertha Liebross in New York City.

Tillie Liebross Wilson

Their eldest child was my grandmother Tillie (born about 1888 in Radautz). Tillie attended school through the eighth grade. She married Joseph Wilson in 1917 in New York City. Of Louis and Bertha's three daughters, Tillie was the only one to bear children who lived to adulthood.

Tillie was not the stereo-typical white-haired grandmother. While she was doting and a superb cook, she dyed her hair to match her former auburn locks. She was ten when she became an immigrant and in later years did not have an accent from the Old Country. I think this photo (at left) really shows her as stylish woman.

Joe and Tillie's second child was my mother Norma Circe Wilson, born in Brooklyn in 1921. The Wilson's did well financially and purchased their two-family home in Brooklyn at 31 Colin Place. 

Me and my mother Norma Wilson Garber (about 1977)

Both Norma and her brother Ira attended Lincoln High School and then New York University. Norma graduated in 1941. She worked as a bookkeeper for a few years before marrying Bernard Garber in 1947. She became a home-maker after my brother Jim was born.

Our maternal line mitochondrial DNA haplogroup is L2a1l2a. Unfortunately, our haplogroup is an exact match with 25 other people who have tested with Family Tree DNA. Thus far, there does not appear to be any discernible common ancestor among us.