1940 U.S. Census: Liebross Family

O.K. time's getting short for the Monday, April 2, 2012 release of the 1940 U.S. Census and I'm counting down. Time to get cracking on those Enumeration Districts I've not yet located.

In a prior post and one subsequent post to that, I discussed my maternal grandparents' home at 31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, NY.  They owned the two family home starting in 1929 and remained there through my grandmother's death in 1961. During part of their time there my grandmother's Liebross family (her father and mother, her two sisters, Celia and Rose, and her youngest brother, Irving) lived upstairs. Irving likely moved out 0f 31 Colin Place by 2 January 1944 when he married Lillian Ables. On his brother Jerry's 1948 death certificate, Irving was living at 919 Park Place, Brooklyn.

                                              Enumeration District

Celia, Rose, and Irving Liebross

1933  31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, New York[1]          24-1839

1946  31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, NY[2]                24-1839

Harry and Gertrude Bohrer Liebross

1933  760 E. 53rd Street, Apt 2, Brooklyn, NY [1]    24-167A

1942  313 E. 49th Street, Brooklyn, NY [3]           24-2207A

Joseph Jerome Liebross

1933  921 Montgomery Street, Brooklyn, NY [1]        24-2102B

1942  921 Montgomery Street, Brooklyn, NY [4]     or 24-2103

Max Liebross

1942  161 West 36th Street, New York, NY [5]         31-853

                                                  or 31-854

Ethel Hammer Liebross (widow of Simon)

1933  379 Hancock Street, Brooklyn, NY [1]           24-1981A

1947  278 Beach 138th Street, Rockaway Beach, NY [6] 41-1569

                                                  or 41-1570

Notes

1. R.L. Polk & Co.'s 1933-4 Brooklyn City Directory, (New York City, NY: R.L. Polk & Co., Inc., 1933), 1160, entry for "Liebross"; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 31 March 2012).

2. New York City Department of Health, death certificate 26589  (16 December 1946), Celia Liebross; New York City Municipal Archives, New York.

3. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 31 March 2012), card for Harry Liebross, no. U1150, Brooklyn, New York, citing United States Selective Service Registration Cards, World War II, Fourth registration, National Archives and records Administration microfilm publication M 1939.

4. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com, card for Dr. Joseph J. Liebross, no. U2725, Brooklyn, NY.

5. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com, card for Max Liebross, no. U4145, Brooklyn, NY.
6. New York City Department of Health, death certificate 14198 (10 July 1947), Ethel Liebross; New York City Municipal Archives, New York.

The URL for this post is: http://extrayad.blogspot.com/2012/03/1940-us-census-liebross-family.html

1940 U.S. Census: Finding the Garbers

I've been getting my Garber research organized so I'll be ready for the 1940 U.S. Census when it becomes available and is posted online by the National Archives and Records Administration at 9:00 AM (Eastern Time) on Monday, April 2, 2012.  Of course the challenge is that there will be no index available for six or more months while genealogists feverishly work to index the records. So, I've been searching my records and contacting relatives to try to nail down just where people lived on April 2, 1940 when the Census enumerators first started their rounds.

I've been researching the immediate descendants of patriarch Avram Garber who died in 1928 in New York, New York.  His wife (and their mother) Chana died sometime before he and his two youngest children (Feigah/Fannie and Aron/Eddie) emigrated in 1922. Two of his daughters, Perl and Sarah never left the Soviet Union. Perl's husband, Isseck Zabarsky, made his way to the USA in 1935.  Unfortunately he was unable to get the rest of his family out of the Soviet Union. Except for his son, Usher (who was serving in the Soviet army), the rest of Isseck's family perished in 1941 at the hands of the Nazis in Lubin. Sarah (or Sura) evacuated to the interior of the Soviet Union with her family before the Nazis arrived and she and her family lived out their lives in Troitsk.

Below, I have listed the U.S. residences found in the records closest in time to 1940. The enumeration districts (ED), determined by plotting the addresses on Google Maps and then entering nearby surrounding streets in the tutorial program on the SteveMorse.org website, are shown in blue.

                                                                                                                Enumeration District

Nathan & Yetta Garber

1933   2172 E. 7th Street, Brooklyn, NY [1]     ED 24-388   

1942   2172 E. 7th Street, Brooklyn, NY [2]    

Max & Mary Garber

1935   1948 E. 12th Street, Brooklyn, NY [3]    ED 24-355

1942   1949 E. 4th Street, Brooklyn, NY [4]     ED 24-1836

 

Jack & Dora Garber

1942   922 Avenue O, Brooklyn, NY [5]           ED 24-346 

Fannie & Max Buchman

1938/9 1262 Boynton Avenue, Bronx, NY [6]       ED 3-956

 

Eddie & Esther Garber

1938   386 Prospect Place, Brooklyn, NY [7]     ED 24-1191

<1952  706 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn, NY [7]  ED 24-1190

Isseck Zabarsky

1942   2212 E. 7th Street, Brooklyn, NY [8]     ED 24-388

While I expect to find Nathan and Yetta (who stayed at the same house) and Fannie and Max (who lived at their address until about 1952), finding any others in these Enumeration Districts will be a pleasant surprise.  If these addresses do not match the real 1940 addresses, I will likely have to wait until the indices are completed for New York State.

Of course, my search will be ever so much easier once indices are available for the 1940 U.S. Census. Join this massive volunteer effort at 1940 U.S. Census project website.

---------------------------

Notes

1. R.L. Polk & Co.'s 1933-4 Brooklyn City Directory, (New York City, NY: R.L. Pllk & Co., Inc., 1933), 760, entry for "Garber, Nathan"; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 25 March 2012).

2. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 25 March 2012), card for Nathan Garber, no. U2645, Brooklyn, New York, citing United States Selective Service Registration Cards, World War II, Fourth registration, National Archives and records Administration microfilm publication M 1939.

3. "Petition for Naturalization of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, 1865-1937," digital images, Fold3.com (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 25 March 2012), Petition for Naturalization No. 209101, Max Garber, 28 October 1935; citing National Archives and records Administration microfilm publication M1879.

4. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com, card for Max Garber, no. U1452, Brooklyn, NY.

5. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com, card for Jacob Garber, no. U467, Brooklyn, NY.

6. Sandra Bizenov to Emily Garber, e-mail, 19 March 2012.

7. Annette Garber to Emily Garber, e-mail, 19 March 2012.

8. "U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942," digital images, Ancestry.com, card for Isseck Zabarsky, no. U945, Brooklyn, NY.

The URL for this post is: http://extrayad.blogspot.com/2012/03/1940-census-finding-garbers.html

Genealogy featured in nation-wide newspaper magazine today

Genealogy is the cover story for this weekend's USA Weekend magazine (in many Sunday newspapers around the country). One may view the content online at usaweekend.com.  The article features Brandford Marsalis and Harry Connick, Jr.

Gen Podcasts: BackStory Radio (and the 1940 Census!)

An occasional blog series identifying online locations of genealogical knowledge in both audio and video podcasts with an emphasis on (Jewish) genealogy.  

BackStory Radio– The American History Guys (Ed Ayres, Peter Onuf and Brian Balough), hosts

This is not a genealogy show, but the topics covered may provide wonderful context for your research. I have listened to nearly all of their shows available on iTunes regardless of their applicability to my research and found them all entertaining and educational. Of particular interest, considering the imminent release of the 1940 U.S. Census, is their December 2010 show (see below) about the History of the U.S. Census. 

Format:  This (approximately) monthly public radio show/podcast may be heard on selected public radio stations around the country and as a pre-recorded podcast. The show has been on the air since June 2008, but is currently on short hiatus as the team prepares to relaunch during the summer as a weekly radio show. In each episode the three hosts take a current topic of interest and examine it through the lens of history: looking back at issues affecting us today. They have delved into many topics including the national debt, the Civil War, immigration and border issues, the history of courtship, the history of work, July 4th and Thanksgiving. 

All three men are historians of some gravitas: Ayres is President of and History Professor at the University of Richmond and Onuf and Balough are Professors at the University of Virgina. Their conversations are insightful, amusing and always entertaining. 

The show generally runs about an hour and often involves interviews with historians specializing in the episode's topic, re-creations of historic speeches and written insights, and call-ins with listeners. 

Episodes with  Genealogy content: 

“Aliens in America” - 13 October 2008 [54:16]

This show may be accessed via the Archives tab on the show's website or via iTunes U (not in the podcast area of iTunes).

How have we regarded new-comers? Who gets to stay? The Guys interview: 

• Mae Ngai, Columbia University, about immigration up to the 1920s 
• Frank Morris, Center for Immigration Studies, about opposition to immigration
• Stanton Braverman, immigration attorney, about his challenges representing those trying to stay

"Beyond Numbers: A History of the U.S. Census" - 22 December 2010 [52:01]
The Guys take a fascinating look at the origins of the U.S. Census and the way it and its role have changed over the years. They examine when and why certain questions have been added and changed. Of greatest interest to genealogists, they interview Al Marquart, an enumerator for the 1940 U.S. Census in Kingston, New York. Al was just out of high school and enumerated in some of the poorest areas of Kingston. The show's website in the Archives section contains an extended interview with Mr. Marquart.

Special Feature: The Archives tab on the BackStory Radio website provides additional information and opportunities to learn more.  The index provided, however, is rather limited. Once in the Archives areas, either select a general topic or, if one knows the date of the podcast, select the month and year.  One may listen to the full recorded show, find a full transcript of the show, and view further reading about the topic of the show. In addition, one may find extended interviews with selected guests under "Features and Highlights."

Access: 

• live via select public radio stations (check the stations in your area)
• via iTunes: search for Backstory Radio. Different lists of past shows may be found in iTunes podcast section and in iTunes U section. One may download individual episodes or subscribe to the show from either or both iTunes areas.  The most recent show is usually available immediately after the live show airs. If you subscribe, new episodes will automatically be delivered to your iTunes podcast folder. 
• via BackStoryRadio.org . 

The URL for this post is http://extrayad.blogspot.com/2012/03/gen-podcasts-backstory-radio.html

1940 Census: "Records of 1940 US Census documenting Great Depression to be released online for 1st time"

The 1940 U.S. Census release is making the big time.  The Associated Press is carrying the following story:

http://www.startribune.com/nation/143097686.html

If you haven't done so already, there's no time like the present to sign up as a volunteer to index the 1940 U.S. Census.  The more people indexing, the sooner we'll all be able to see the results. To see the digitized, but unindexed, records, on April 2, 2012 starting at 9:00 A.M. (Eastern Time Zone) go to the National Archives and Records Administration 1940 Census webpage. In the meantime, one can watch the videos they've provided.

Corned Beef (hold the cabbage!)

Just thinking about a New York Jewish delicatessen makes me salivate. Corned beef. Nice and lean and piled high on rye with stone-ground mustard (don't even consider that abomination: yellow mustard).  Add a nice full sour pickle and some potato salad and I'm off to nirvana.

Of course this is a bit of a different attitude than I had when I was a child.  Back then, my mother would pickle and cook her own corned beef and I wouldn't have any part of it. For some reason I couldn't stand the odor of cooking corned beef.  I have memories of purposely leaving the house for the three  hours of cooking.

Lucky for me, I got over that and was able to enjoy what I think of as one of my mother's signature dishes.

Corned beef (a brisket cured in brine) is a staple of several cuisines.  And of course, as St. Patrick's Day draws near, many people are contemplating eating traditional (Irish American) corned beef and cabbage on March 17. Googling "corned beef history" returns numerous sometimes contradictory accounts of the relationship of the Irish to corned beef. Some say that corned beef was never a traditional dish in Ireland and only became an "St. Patrick's Day" tradition when Irish and Jewish immigrants lived in close quarters in U.S. cities. Others beg to differ. I don't have any idea whom to believe on this so I invite you to do your own research and draw your own conclusions.

Using my mother's recipe, I put some brisket to "pickle" last Tuesday. Planning ahead is critical since the process takes 10-14 days for pickling. Make sure you have a non-reactive pot. My mother had an enamel pot. I have one of stainless steel. You'll also need to clean out your refrigerator to make sure you have room for the pot for the duration its pickling.

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Norma’s Corned Beef Brisket

3 lb. brisket – trimmed of fat

coarse (Kosher) salt

*saltpeter [optional – this is what makes corned beef red, I usually leave it out] –

1 teaspoon mixed with 1 cup water & 1 tablespoon sugar)

Pickling spices

Several cloves of fresh garlic peeled and split

3-4 whole cloves

Water

1. Coat the brisket with salt.
2. Put brisket, a handful of pickling spices, garlic, (saltpeter mixture) & cloves into non-reactive pot (i.e., use stainless steel or enamel, don’t use aluminum or cast iron). Add water to cover.  Put a plate on top of brisket to keep it submerged. Cover and put in the refrigerator.
3. After a day or two remove the plate, add more salt to the brine and turn the brisket over.  Repeat this operation every day or two.
4. Brisket will be ready to cook in 10 to 14 days from start.

To cook:

1. Remove about ½ the brine and replace with fresh water.
2. Bring to a boil and then lower heat and simmer for 3 hours.

 

When done (meat should pull apart when tested with a fork), rinse meat under cold running water to remove some of the salt.

*As noted above, I usually leave out the saltpeter (potassium nitrate).  The saltpeter is used to turn the corned beef that familiar red color.  If you leave it out the meat is gray but completely tasty (!). 

Bon appetit!

The URL for this post is: 
http://extrayad.blogspot.com/2012/03/corned-beef-hold-cabbage.html

31 Colin Place - Memories

In my last post, I related some memories of my visits to my grandparents' (Tillie Liebross and Joe Wilson) home at 31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, NY. I've received the following email reminiscence from Larry Liebross (their nephew). He has given me permission to post it.

"I don't blog so I'm just going to respond conventionally. 

"I used to spend some fun evenings at Colin Place. The men always played "gin" (Joe, Irving, sometimes your grandfather's brother Ben [Wilson], and a neighbor or two). Tillie and your mother [Norma Wilson Garber] always made a fuss over me. Tillie would take me into the dining room and give me the most delicious strudel I ever ate (even my mother, who was pretty demanding in a social setting, said that Tillie was a great hostess and her strudel was the best). Your dad [Bernard Garber] always went out of his way to "clown around" with me and your grandfather and my father [Irving] were always talking about the trotters at Yonkers and Roosevelt Raceway. 

Strudel: This blog has a great many pastry pictures - now I recall why

"From what I recall, one entered the house to the right and there was a parlor room where Joe was always found in this big stuffed chair. There was a sun room off to the left that faced Colin Place. If you walked straight head, you got to the kitchen, on the left, and there was a room to the right (opposite the kitchen) which was either the dining room or breakfast room. The bedrooms were in the back. I was a little kid so I can't be certain about the floor plan but, I can be certain about the love and the strudel. Keep those cards and letters coming. Stay well."
------------------------------------------
Well, Larry, now you've blogged. Allow me to repeat Larry's encouragement:  keep those cards and letters coming! It is this type of response that I was hoping for when I started this family history/genealogy blog. If this has jogged some family memories, send me a message either using the box below or via email. I'd love to hear from you. - - Emily

1940 U.S. Census: 31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, New York

I know where I'll look first in the 1940 U.S. Census when it becomes available to the public on 2 April 2012 - and I know who'll be shown living there. The two-family home on a 32 X 10o foot lot at 31 Colin Place in the Flatbush (Gravesend) section of Brooklyn was built in 1920 and purchased on 15 July 1929 by my mother's parents, Tillie Liebross Wilson and Joseph Wilson, and sold by my grandfather on 30 January 1962 after my grandmother had passed away. The Wilson family lived on the first floor.[1]

31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, NY in 1941 [4]

In the 1930 U.S. Federal Census taken on 4 April 1930, Joseph and Tillie Wilson owned the home and lived there with their children Ira (age 11) and Norma (age 8). The elementary school (PS-215) that Ira and Norma attended was just down the street. My grandfather owned a sweater factory and had, apparently, done fairly well. The home was valued at $16,500. The Samuel and Lillian Dietch family with 4 children lived at 31 Colin Place, too, presumably in the second floor. They paid $80 rent each month for the privilege.[2]

On 26 September 1930, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle carried a classified advertisement in the Real Estate section for an unfurnished apartment on the top floor of a two family house at 31 Colin Place.  The apartment had 6 rooms, one bath and an open porch.[3]

I do not know if my grandparents acquired a renter in 1930, but I do know that the 1933 Brooklyn Directory indicates that several of Tillie Wilson's Liebross family members resided there: her parents Louis (Eliezer) and Bertha (Breina) and three of Tillie's siblings (Celia, Rose and Irving). [5]

Louis died in 1935 and Bertha in 1937.  So, by 1940, I expect to see that Celia, Rose and Irving are living upstairs. My grandmother's home was a welcoming place and the house was a hub of family activity for the Liebross clan. Tillie's brother Jerry and his son Stanford spent a great deal of time there. Tillie's cousins David and Bessie Ett would play cards frequently at 31 Colin Place.[6] [7]

By 1940, my mother Norma and my uncle Ira were both students at New York University. My mother majored in English with the thought of becoming a teacher and my uncle eventually got a law degree.

The property stayed in the family until my grandmother's death. I was young at the time and I have vague memories of the lower floor where my grandparents' lived. There were two bedrooms toward the back of the house and an enclosed porch in front. When there were four living in the house, my mother's bedroom was one of the back bedrooms and my uncle's room was in the enclosed porch area. My recollection of the kitchen was that it had a lot of white tile. Tillie was an excellent cook and particularly excelled at baking. I remember watching my grandmother braid challah - a skill I have yet to master. There was a breakfast area just off the kitchen and I recall sitting there eating delicious hamburgers off of glass plates. Later in life when I needed new plates, I purchased blue glass ones in my grandmother's honor. My brother tells me that my grandmother's hamburgers were so special because of the secret ingredient: chicken fat. The stuff from which memories are made!

When the 1940 United States Federal Census becomes available for the first time on 2 April 2012 after 72 years of storage, it will not be easy to find 31 Colin Place, Brooklyn, NY.  Unlike its previously released online brethren, the 1940 Census will not yet have been indexed by name. Estimates are that with a good volunteer effort, a full index may be online within six months. With a great volunteer indexing effort, the wait may be shorter. The 1940 US Census Community Project aims to recruit, train and enable volunteer indexers to create an index for the Census that will be free online. I have signed up and I have been indexing other records to prepare for the arrival of the 1940 U.S. Census.

In the mean time, my genealogy plans are to search out 31 Colin Place using the current tools at my disposal.  Thanks (once again) to SteveMorse.org for creating several tools to help us locate our families in the 1940 U.S. Federal Census even before an index is available. Since I know the address and the Census Enumeration District in the 1930 Census (E.D. 24-1932, found in the upper right corner of the census page), I was able to short-cut the process slightly. Using the "Unified 1940 Census ED Finder" I was able to enter:

• State: New York
• ED: 24 (Kings) - 1932
• Press "Get 1940 ED numbers" and
• Locate E.D. 24-1839

One might alternatively use the "1880-1940 Census E.D. Finder"

• Select State: New York
• Select City: Brooklyn (Kings Co)
• Select a Street: Colin Pl

The One Step tool then provides the following: "The ED you want is 24-1839."

So, I'm ready to add to my family history for the Joseph and Tillie Wilson family and several of their Liebross kin in 1940. Once the images are online, even without an index, I'll be able to enter the E.D. number, quickly sort through the sheets in that Enumeration District, and find my family at 31 Colin Place. This one will be easy, because I know where they will be.  For most of my relatives, however, an index will be critical for finding them in the 1940 U.S.Census.  Let's get this done in record time! You should sign up for indexing, too.

----------------------------------------------------

Notes:

1. Kings County, New York, 1961 probate file, Tillie Wilson; Surrogate Court, Kings County, Brooklyn.

2. 1930 U.S. Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Enumeration District (ED) 24-1932, sheet 7-A, dwelling 82, family 107, Joseph Wilson; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 1 March 2012), citing Family History Library Microfilm 2341260.

3. The Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, NY), Sunday, 26 September 1930, page 32, column 2; digital images, Old Fulton, New York Postcards (http://www.fultonhistory.com: accessed 1 March 2012).

4. "Block 6681, Lot 95," 1940 Tax Photographs, New York City Department of Records, Municipal Archives, New York, New York.
5. R.L. Polk & Co's 1933 Brooklyn City Directory (Brooklyn, New York: R.L. Polk & Co., 1933), 1160, entry for "Liebross"; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 29 February 2012).

6. New York City Department of Health, death certificate 14091 (29 June 1935), Louis Liebross; New York City Municipal Archives, New York.
7. New York City Department of Health, death certificate 10976 (11 May 1937), Bertha Liebross; New York City Municipal Archives, New York.

The URL for this post is: http://extrayad.blogspot.com/2012/03/1940-us-census-31-colin-place-brooklyn.html

See another post about 31 Colin Place: http://extrayad.blogspot.com/2012/03/31-colin-place-memories.html