Jewish Genealogy Bloggers Unite! (at IAJGS)

Last year at the International Association of Jewish Genealogy Societies conference in Boston I blogged about my experiences at the conference and posted  a compendium of other bloggers who were in attendance and blogging about the conference. I plan to do the same this year when IAJGS 2014 is held in Salt Lake City, Utah from 27 July - 1 August.

If you are a Jewish genealogy blogger and plan to attend the Salt Lake City conference, please let me know so I can be sure to include you in this year's posts. 

In addition, let me know if you would like to have a get-together with other friendly, like-minded bloggers during the conference. You may leave a comment on this post, or contact me via email at gilah(at sign)cox.net.

Hope to hear from you!

Ooops - The mail did not go through!

If anyone has tried to contact me via email using the Contact Me tab that I had on the upper right side of the blog, I just discovered that it has not been working (i.e., I have received no emails via that function even though I know some has been sent). 

I apologize if you sent me a note and I did not respond. It was purely because I never got the message.

I have removed the Contact Me page and placed my contact information on the About page.

Emily
contact me at  gilah(at sign)cox.net

Treasure Chest Thursday: 1905 NY Census, Rappaport and Ett

The earliest record I have for Clara Ett (my grandmother Tillie Liebross Wilson's first cousin) and her husband Adolph Rappaport is their New York City marriage license in 1903. Their next appearance in the records is in the 1905 New York State census. They lived at 299 Bushwick Avenue, Brooklyn with their son Max and Clara's sister Sarah Ett (enumerated as Sarah Att) who had just arrived in New York two years before.

1905 New York State Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Assembly District 15, Enumeration District 18, sheet 74, entries 8-11, Adolph Rappaport family and Sarah Att; digital image, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 8 July 2010), citing New York State Archives, Albany, New York.

Residence: 299 Bushwick Ave., Brooklyn, County of Kings, State of New York on June 1, 1905.
Rappaport, Adolph, head, white race, male, age 26, born in Austria, 5 yrs in USA, alien, occupation is tailor
Rappaport, Clara, wife, white, female, 23, Austria, 5 yrs in USA, alien, housework
Rappaport, Max, son, white, male, 3, born in US, citizen
Att, Sarah, sister-in-law, white, female, 19, Austria, 2 years in USA, alien, tailor
 
Two families before the Rappaport family, on the previous census page, the census enumerator recorded Clara and Sarah's uncle Louis Liebross (my great grandfather) and his family in the same building.[1]

Notes:
1. 1905 New York State Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Assembly District 15, Enumeration District 18, sheet 73, entries 41-50, Louis Lebros family; digital image, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 8 July 2010), citing New York State Archives, Albany, New York.

Tombstone Tuesday: Marvin Myers

It's never easy reporting a child's death. Marvin Myers was the son of Joseph and Rose Myers and died at the age of 7 months.

photo by Emily Garber, 7 September 2008

Here lies beloved

Mordechai Eliezer

Died 27 Av 5677

MARVIN L. MYERS

BORN JAN. 10, 1917

DIED AUG. 15,1917

Marvin also left behind his older sister Lillian. Nearly a year after Marvin's death, the family had another son, Eugene.

I have been unable to locate Marvin's death record (presumably) in New York City, so I have no clue regarding how or why he passed away.

His grave is at the back of the First Lubiner Progressive Benevolent Association plot at Block 89, Gate 159N, Montefiore Cemetery, Queens, New York. The cemetery does not list his grave in their online index.

Avrum's Women, Part 11: Garber Y-DNA = Lederman Y-DNA

From Wikipedia.org

Once upon a time there were four brothers who tried to avoid conscription in the Czar's army by taking different surnames. They believed that only-sons would not be taken and tried to hide their relationships. One kept the family surname: Utchenik. One took Garber; one Reznik; and one Lehman. Years later upon immigration to the United States, the Utchenik family headed west to settle in Michigan. The Garbers settled in New York and the Rezniks in New England. No one quite recalls what happened to the Lehmans. But, despite this subterfuge, they ultimately could not hide from their Y-DNA. 

I heard variations on this story (minus the DNA part) independently from my father, my uncle, and their first cousin. Many family historians have similarly apocryphal stories in their families. When I heard this one, I thought, "That's interesting," smiled knowingly and then cached it in the back of my brain in the unlikely event I might need it. Uh-oh.

During the last two years I've been working the angles with a reasonably exhaustive search through the records associated with the Greenfield/Lederman story. I started with just an unfamiliar name on a manifest and have been trying to determine how or if Feiga Liderman Grinfeld of Baranivka (aka Fannie Greenfield of Cincinnati) was related to my family (this is my tenth post in this series - see links, below).

In the last couple of posts regarding the Greenfields and Ledermans (here and here) I identified Fannie's brother as the Morris Lederman who:

• was born in about 1892-3 to Levi Yitzchak Liderman and Frieda Simberg
• married Rene Lewis-Cohen in New York City 1920;
• lived in Detroit with Rene and their three children: daughters Marvel and Zena and son S.;
• was buried in the Hebrew Memorial Park, Workmen's Circle, Turover Aid Section, Detroit, Michigan. He died 12 January 1954.

A helpful relative of Fannie's knew nothing of Ledermans. I  looked into possible Morris Lederman kin (but did not contact anyone) and, then, took a hiatus from this research. But, genealogy stops for no one. A few months ago, as a result of my blog posts I was contacted by another of Fannie's grandchildren who encouraged me by providing contact information for a Lederman cousin: Morris' son.

S. has been great. I learned a good deal more about Morris.  Immediately after World War I he was part of the Polar Bear Expedition in Archangel, Russia (that story deserves its own blog post!). He and Rene got together when he was in England recuperating from wounds and she was helping in the hospital. Fannie and Morris had another brother (Leon?) and sister (name unknown) who died in Europe. Morris' son shared some letters and post cards (written in excruciatingly small Yiddish script) from his grandfather (Levi Yitzchak) to his father. I was struck by the coincidence that my uncle Lenny Garber's Hebrew/Yiddish name was also Levi Yitzchak. But, best of all, S. agreed to do a cheek swab.

I already had a base for comparison with my Garber Y-DNA. I had convinced my brother J. and my father's first cousin, M., to collect samples for Y-DNA testing. Family Tree DNA placed both results in the T-M70 haplogroup - they, as expected, matched at 0 distance at 37 markers. The T-M70 Y-haplogroup is a relatively small group thus far in the Family Tree DNA test results population. In fact, J. and M. were each other's only exact matches. Other matches are only as close as 3 and 4 alleles distance (difference). Only one person matches at distance 3 and three at distance 4.

And S? As of this morning, J. and M. have another exact match on 37 markers: 0 distance. I now know that the Fannie Lederman Greenfield and Morris Lederman were Garber cousins. But, Lederman and Garber related along  fathers' lines? What goes on here?

The apocryphal story is starting to look better and better. I doubt the conscription aspect of the story - especially since the local Jewish community often selected those members of their community who would be taken for military service. Surely, just changing a surname would not fool many locals.  But it's reasonable to stay open to some aspects of family lore. While we may not be able to immediately document causation, we may be able to support evidence for surname changes.  

My father's first cousin, Sandra, seems to think that her grandfather, Avrum Garber, was the Garber sibling of the family story. If so, our further research needs to acknowledge that he was born about 1864 and Levi Yitzchak (whose daughter Feiga was born about 1878) was likely a bit older. Conscription rules and practices in effect during that time period will require additional research.

Several areas to be pursued:

• Research 19th Century Jewish conscription practices. I know they were not uniform over time. Could they have been associated with family Jewish name changes?
• I have ordered an autosomal (FamilyFinder) test for S. and already have test results for M. and me. Our results, according to Family Tree DNA, are consistent for first cousins. The test may provide information relevant to the closeness of our relationship with S. (I hope to see the results of his test in the next week or so).
• Exhaust the possibilities of records in eastern Europe. It's unlikely there are relevant records for this Russian Empire part of Volhynia Gubernia in today's Ukraine. But, never say never. The Routes to Roots website, which documents archival collections for a variety of communities in eastern Europe, indicates that there are several collections that include Baranivka records. None relate to the time period that I really need: about 1870s to 1920. But, I will be going after whatever I can find for both Baranivka and the Garber shtetl of Labun. I have traced Utcheniks to Zhvil (Novograd Volynsky) and Polonnoye. I need records from those places, as well.
• Find Utcheniks to test. I have already researched the Utchenik family who settled in Detroit. This is an unusual surname and other Utcheniks who settled in other areas of the USA are likely related to them. I contacted a couple of Utchenik researchers a few years ago. They knew of no similar story. But, now, I think I need to find someone for a Y-DNA and autosomal test.

Of course there could be other explanations for why these related men bear different surnames. Perhaps there was what we euphemistically call a "non-paternal event." Or perhaps it may be explained by the procedures by which Jewish families in this area of the Russian Empire acquired their surnames at the beginning of the nineteenth century. I will examine those alternatives in a future post.

In the meantime, I'm starting to believe in fairy tales!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Posts in this series:

Avrum's Women, Part 2: Feiga Grinfeld
Avrum's Women, Part 3: Following Feiga (and Raya)
Avrum's Women, Part 4: The Trouble with Harry
Avrum's Women, Part 5: Finding Feiga 
Avrum's Women, Part 6: Added Confirmation
Avrum's Women, Part 7: Feiga's Family
Avrum's Women, Part 8: Fannie's Story  
Avrum's Women, Part 9: Fannie's Brother Morris

Avrum's Women: Part 10, Morris Lederman - Who's Your Mama?

Avrum's Women, Part 12: Finding Family with Family Finder  
Avrum's Women, Part 13: Bond of Brothers  

Treasure Chest Thursday: Sarah Cohn's Naturalization Petition

While Sarah Ett arrived in New York in December 1903 as Sali Ett, she did not naturalize until 30 September 1941.[1]

Sarah Cohn petition for naturalization (1941), petition number 291380, Eastern District of New York; Records of the District Courts of the United States, Record Group 21; National Archives - Northeast Region, New York City.

[Items in red will be discussed further, below.]

To the Honorable the U.S. District Court of Eastern District of Brooklyn, N.Y.
This petition for naturalization hereby made and filed, respectfully shows:
(1) My full name is SARAH COHN
(2) My place of residence is 949 East 12th St., Bklyn, NY
(3) My occupation is Housewife
(4) I was born at Silaschicka, Poland on Sept. 26, 1887
(5) My nationality is Poland
(6) My race is Hebrew 
[item 7 is crossed out]
(8) I am married. The name of my wife or husband is Louis; he now resides at 949 E. 12th St., Bklyn, NY; we were married on August 5, 1907 at Brooklyn, NY; he was born at Poland on December 12, 1884; entered the United States at New York, NY on May 1903 for permanent residence therein; was naturalized on June 13, 1924 at Brooklyn, NY certificate No. 2025748
(9) I have 6 children, and the name, date, and place of birth and place of residence of each of said children are as follows:
Jack, April 9, 1908; Dorothy, Dec. 13, 1910; Pauline, Sept. 13, 1912; Blanche, Oct. 5, 1914; Rose, Sept. 26, 1919; Ira, Dec. 12, 1920. All born and reside in Bklyn, NY
(10) My last foreign residence was Silaschicka. I emigrated to the United States of America from Bremen, Germany. My lawful entry (arrival) for permanent residence in the United States was at New York, NY under the name of Sarah Ett on December 1903 on the vessel S.S. Brendon.
...

AFFIDAVITS OF WITNESSES

I, Louis Cohn, occupation Metal supply dealer residing at 949 East 12th St., Bklyn, NY, and 

I, Dorothy Brown, occupation Housewife residing at 146 Amherst St. Bklyn, NY

each being severally, duly, and respectively sworn, depose and say: I am a citizen of the United States of America; I have known and have been acquainted in the United States with SARAH COHN, the petitioner above mentioned since January 1, 1913 and that to my personal knowledge the petitioner has resided in the United States continuously preceding the date of filing this petition, of which this affidavit is part, to wit, since the date last mentioned at Brooklyn, NY on the County of Kings, State of New York continuously since Jan. 1, 1913 ...

I do swear (affirm) that the statements of fact I have made in this affidavit of this petition for naturalization subscribed by me are true to the best of my knowledge
/s/ Louis Cohn                              /s/ Dorothy Brown

(signature of witness)                                                 (signature of witness)

Subscribed and sworn to before me by the above-named petitioner and witnesses in the respective forms of oath shown above in the office of Clerk of said Court at Brooklyn, NY this 9th day of September, Anno Domini 1940 ...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sarah identified her place of birth as "Silaschicka, Poland." The community was actually Zaleszczyki (today Zalishchyky, Ukraine). When Sarah was born it was within the boundaries of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Between World Wars, it was within Poland. Thus, Sarah's identification of the community as in Poland is a reflection of her knowledge of the contemporary situation of the town.

If Sarah and Louis were married in Brooklyn on 5 August 1907, their marriage certificate has not been indexed. I have not been able to find it within the ItalianGen.org index for New York City marriages. I have tried Cohn and Cohen; several possible first names; and kept the date flexible - no certificate.

Louis, Sarah's husband, sailed from Hamburg on 25 May 1903 and landed in New York on 8 June 1903. So, he entered the United States in June 1903, not May.[2]

Sarah's name on her manifest was not actually "Sarah Ett," but "Sali Et." The ship she arrive on was not the "Brendon," but the S.S. Brandenburg.

Both of Sarah's witnesses were family members. Louis was her husband and Dorothy Brown, her eldest daughter. 

I have not yet determined the significance of the 1 January 1913 date mentioned as the date by which she'd permanently resided in the United States and Brooklyn, N.Y. If Louis and Sarah married in 1907 and Dorothy was born in 1910, then they were familiar with Sarah and her whereabouts several years before 1913. The earliest census enumeration I have located for the the Louis and Sarah Cohn family is the 1915 New York State census record in Brooklyn.[3] In 1905, Sarah is living in Brooklyn with her sister Clara Rappaport and Clara's family.[4] If the 1 January 1913 date has some legal significance for Sarah's naturalization, I do not yet know what that might have been.
Notes:
1. "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 22 November 2013), manifest, S.S. Brandenburg, Bremen to New York, arriving 26 December 1903, List 10, number 19, Sali Ett; citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, microfilm roll 423.
2. "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 22 November 2013), manifest, S.S. Batavia, Hamburg to New York, arriving 8 June 1903, List 31, number 13, Lewys Kohn; citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, microfilm roll 423.
3. 1915 New York State Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Assembly District 6, Enumeration District 6, page 24, entries 35-40, Alexander and Sadie Cohen family; digital image, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 21 July 2013), citing New York State Archives, Albany, New York.
4. 1905 New York State Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Assembly District 15, Enumeration District 18, sheet 74, entries 8-11, Adolph Rappaport family and Sarah Att; digital image, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 8 July 2010), citing New York State Archives, Albany, New York.

Tombstone Tuesday: Louis and Sarah Ett Cohn

Sarah Ett, daughter of Hersch Leib Ett and Perl Wenkert Ett, was born 26 September 1887 in Zaleszczyki, Galicia, Austrian Empire (now Ukraine).[1] She arrived in New York in 1903. 

Louis Cohn landed in New York a few months before Sarah in June 1903.[2] He initially worked as a tinsmith but later owned his own sheet metal supply business and did quite well. Louis and Sarah married in Brooklyn on 5 August 1907 - at least that's what Sarah wrote on her naturalization petition. I have not yet located their marriage certificate.

Photo courtesy of Richard & Barbara Brown

Levi Yitzchak son of Yisrael Iser HaKohen

Died 15 Shevat 5727

LOUIS COHN

BELOVED HUSBAND

FATHER AND GRANDFATHER

DIED FEB. 8, 1966

AGE 80 YEARS

Photo courtesy of Richard & Barbara Brown

Sarah daughter of Hersch Leib

Died 17 Shevat 5731

SARAH COHN

BELOVED WIFE

MOTHER AND GRANDMOTHER

DIED FEB. 12, 1971

AGE 83 YEARS 

Louis and Sarah had six children: Jack Cohn (9 April 1908 - 8 July 1998), Dorothy Cohn Brown (14 December 1909 - 13 May 2000), Pauline Cohn Pollack (13 September 1911 - 31 October 1994), Blanche Cohn Schwartzstein (5 October 1914 - 12 March 1999), Rose Cohn Weintraub (26 September 1919 - 4 August 1976), and Ira Cohn (13 December 1920 - 23 July 1983).

Death notices for both Louis and Sarah show that they were well-connected and active in several religious and fraternal organizations. They were members of Temple Beth-El of Rockaway Park (Louis was a Trustee) and the Jewish Community Center of Flatbush (Sarah was past President of the Sisterhood and Louis, Honorary President).[3] Louis was also the former long-time treasurer of the Metal and Roofing Distributers Association, Inc. and a Mason (Life Member of Compass Lodge, no. 1019, F. & A.M.).[4]

Sarah and Louis are buried in Mount Carmel Cemetery, Glendale, Queens, New York: Jewish Community Center of Flatbush plot, Section 2, Block 2, Map 6, Lot 38, graves 6 and 7.

Notes:  

1. Sarah Cohn, petition for naturalization (1940), vol. 1051, no. 291380, Eastern District of New York, National Archives - Northeast Region, New York, New York.

2. "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 22 November 2013), manifest, S.S. Batavia, Hamburg to New York, arriving 8 June 1903, List 31, number 13, Lewys Kohn; citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, microfilm roll 423.
3. "Louis Cohn," New York Times, 9 February 1966, p. 39; digital image, Proquest Historical Newspapers (http://obituaries.proquest.com/ : accessed 11 November 2013 online via public library home access).
"Sarah Cohn," New York Times, 13 February 1971, p. 30;
digital image, Proquest Historical Newspapers (http://obituaries.proquest.com/ : accessed 16 June 2014 online via public library home access).
4. "Louis Cohn," New York Times, 10 February 1966, p.37; digital image, Proquest Historical Newspapers (http://obituaries.proquest.com/ : accessed 16 June 2014 online via public library home access).

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: What did Bernie (Sonny) Garber like to do?

Randy Seaver, prolific blogger at the Genea-Musings blog, has suggested a blogging topic for this evening: what did your father love to do? It took me about 1/2 a second to figure that one out: bowling. My father, Bernie Garber, was a long-time bowler and bowled with the B'nai B'rith Bowling League for many years.

Bowling was what my parents did on their first date. My mother's winning bowling score on that occasion was a topic of discussion for years to come.

Bernie Nemiroff who lived two house away on our cul-de-sac was my father's constant companion in the bowling league. Sam Lotto, who lived across the street would sometimes come out for the league. And Joe Brenner, another long-time friend was also often there.

But, as the years went on, most of my father's friends moved on. Several moved to Florida from New York; others moved to be closer to children and grandchildren. My parents stayed put in the Long Island house they'd owned since 1952 and my father made new bowling friends. 

In the last few years of his life my father would bowl twice a week: once with the league and once on Sunday mornings with friends. 

When my father passed on about a month after by-pass surgery in July 2002, my brother and I tried to contact relatives and acquaintances about his death. 

Unfortunately, both my brother and I had moved away and were not familiar with most of his more recent bowling companions. I still regret not being able to contact them to tell them about my father.

In clearing out my father's things from the house, the prized possession for both my brother and me were Dad's bowling shirts. We each took a couple to keep.

Avrum's Women: Part 10, Morris Lederman - Who's your Mama?

It's been quite a while since I last discussed my research on Fannie Greenfield and her relationship to my family. I first encountered Fannie (aka Feiga Grinfeld) on Ellis Island manifests associated with my Garber family. The question is: how was she related to my family? 

I was able to track her in the United States, despite a name change and migration from New York to Cincinnati. When I found that I could not determine how or if she is related to the Garbers from her information alone, I began searching for her brother Morris Liderman. 

In my last post in this saga, I asked the following questions about one of two Morris Ledermans of Detroit who, I thought, was likely Fannie's brother. What was his mother's name? What was her maiden name? Was Morris from Baranovka? When did he come to the United States?

Before we go any further in addressing the first two questions, readers might want to review previous posts in this series:

Avrum's Women, Part 2: Feiga Grinfeld
Avrum's Women, Part 3: Following Feiga (and Raya)
Avrum's Women, Part 4: The Trouble with Harry
Avrum's Women, Part 5: Finding Feiga 
Avrum's Women, Part 6: Added Confirmation
Avrum's Women, Part 7: Feiga's Family
Avrum's Women, Part 8: Fannie's Story  
Avrum's Women, Part 9: Fannie's Brother Morris 

In Review

In the last post I'd located Morris and his wife Rene's graves and found that Morris' father's first name had been Yitzchak.[1] Fannie's father was Levi Yitzchak.[2]  

It is usual for Jewish men to have two Hebrew/Yiddish names and to use them together or individually from time to time. So, Levi Yitzchak and Yitzchak could be the same person. I would need additional information to confirm Fannie and Morris' sibling relationship.

I knew from Fannie's manifest and her death certificate that her mother's name had been Frieda Liderman.[3] If I could find a record from this Morris with a matching mother's name, I'd know he was the correct Morris Lederman. Additionally, since I did not know if Fannie Greenfield was related to the Garber's on her mother's or father's side, her mother's maiden name could be useful for further research.

First Comes Marriage

While I'd located U.S. Census records 1920 through 1940 for Morris and Rene and their family, I'd not located some of the basic genealogically useful records for Morris: marriage certificate, death certificate, naturalization and manifest.[4]

The 1930 U.S. Census indicated that Rene, age 30, had been born in England, came to the United States about the age of 20 and married at 20.[5] I'd located Morris as an unmarried boarder living at 313 Erskine Street, Detroit in the 1920 U.S. Census, so it was a good bet that Morris and Rene had married sometime after the record date of the Census: 1 January 1920.[6]  

I determined that if I knew Rene's maiden name I might be able to locate her manifest, where she might have headed after arrival and where Morris and Rene married.

To find Rene's maiden name, I checked on marriage records for her daughter, Zena Lederman. She'd married Murray E. Moss in Montana in 1943.[7] While Zena's father's name was listed, her mother's name was not provided. But, an obituary for Zena Moss of Flint, Michigan provided Rene's maiden name: Cohen.[8]

Ordinarily, Cohen, such a common name, would have made sorting through manifest records almost impossible. But, Rene is an unusual name. I found her manifest: Rene Lewis-Cohen arrived from Liverpool on the S.S. Baltic on 27 August 1920.[9] Twenty-year-old Rene was headed for her fiance, Maurice Lederman of 313 Erskine Street, Detroit, Michigan.

I think it must have been Leah Greenfield Saltzman's marriage in New York City that gave me the inspiration to check New York City marriage records. I suppose I might have been successful locating Morris and Rene's marriage certificate without finding Rene's manifest record, but before seeing that she'd come to the United States already planning to marry Morris, New York didn't seem like an option.

Morris Lederman and Rene L. Cohen married at the Municipal Building in Manhattan on 27 August 1920.[10] Morris Lederman's parents were Louis (an anglicized version of Levy or Leib) and Frieda Simberg. Now I know that Morris was indeed Fannie Greenfield's brother. And their mother's maiden name was Simberg - a new surname for my family history research.

To be continued.... 

Notes:
1. Morris Lederman gravestone, Hebrew Memorial Park, Detroit, Michigan, Workmen's Circle, Turover Aid Society, Lot 7, Grave 15.
2. Fannie Greenfield gravestone, Adath Israel Cemetery, Cincinnati, Ohio; digital image, Jewish Cemeteries of Greater Cincinnati (http://www.jcemcin.org : accessed 31 October 2011).
3. "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 8 March 2008), manifest, Aquitania, Southhampton to New York, arriving 4 November 1922, list 4, Feiga Grinfeld, citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, roll 3215. 
"Ohio, Deaths, 1908-1953," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/XZP6-FVZ : accessed 31 October 2011), Fannie Greenfield, 1942; citing reference fn 69916, Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, Ohio.
4. I'd requested a death record from the City of Detroit and been told they did not have one. I have not yet requested a search of Michigan death records.
5. 1930 U.S. Census, Wayne County, Michigan, Detroit, Enumeration District 82-368, sheet 15A (handwritten), page 74 (stamped), dwelling 11, family 11, Morris Leiderman; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 November 2011), citing National Archives microfilm publication T626, roll 1046.
6. 1920 U.S. Census, Wayne County, Michgan, Detroit, Enumeration District 166, sheet 6B, dwelling 40, family 111, Morris Liederman; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 12 November 2011), citing National Archives mcrofilm publication T626, roll .
7. Cascade County, Montana, marriage record no. 20303, Great Falls, reel 44, Murray E. Moss and Zena Lila Lederman (24 March 1943); digital image, "Montana, County Marriages, 1865-1950," FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 11 September 2012).
8. "Moss, Zena," The Flint Journal, Michigan, 2 August 1999, page C3; digital image, Genealogy Bank (http://www.genealogybank.com : accessed 1 September 2012).
9. "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 22 February 2014), manifest, S.S. Baltic,Liverpool to New York, arriving 27 August 1920, list 4, passenger 11, Rene Lewis-Cohen, citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, roll 2822.
10. New York County, New York, marriage certificate no. 34414, Manhattan, Morris Lederman and Rene L. Cohen (27 Aug 1920), Municipal Archives, New York City. 
-------------------
The next posts in this series are: 
Avrum's Women, Part 11: Garber Y-DNA = Lederman Y-DNA
Avrum's Women, Part 12: Finding Family with Family Finder  
Avrum's Women, Part 13: Bond of Brothers  


 

Treasure Chest Thursday: Sarah Ett Cohn's Manifest

Sarah Ett Cohn was the second Ett sibling to journey to the United States. Her elder sister Chaitza (anglicized to Clara) arrived sometime before June 1903 when she married Chaim (Adolph) Rappaport. Thus far, I have been unable to locate Chaitza's manifest.  I believe she and her husband likely did not naturalize. So, after Clara and Adolph's marriage certificate, Sarah's manifest is the first indication I have of the Etts in New York City.

"New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 22 November 2013), manifest, S.S. Brandenburg, Bremen to New York, arriving 26 December 1903, List 10, number 19, Sali Ett; citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, microfilm roll 423.

Sali Ett is listed at number 19 on the page. She arrived on 26 December 1903 on the S.S. Brandenburg, which had sailed from Bremen, Germany on 12 December 1903.

Detail of Sali Ett manifest record (left side)

[Items in red will be discussed further, below.]
 
Name: Sali Ett
Age: 19
Sex: f
Married or Single: s
Calling or Occupation: maid servant
Able to Read: yes
Able to Write: yes
Nationality: Austria
Race or people: Hebrew
Last residence: Zaleszczyki
Final Destination: N.Y.
Whether having a ticket to destination: yes

Detail of Sali Ett manifest record (right side)

By whom was passage paid: self
Whether in possession of $50: $1
Whether ever before in the United States: No
Whether going to join a relative or friend: 
          uncle Lebenhauss Leizer 
          Bushwick Ave 299 Brooklyn

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In light of what I have already learned about Sarah's brother David Ett's manifest, it is interesting that Sarah traveled under her father's surname. In 1913, David traveled under his mother's maiden name, Wenkert, and changed it back to Ett upon immigration.

Sarah indicated that her last residence was in Zaleszczyki. Sarah's mother, Perl died in 1895 in Skole. Zaleszczyki had been the town (in today's Ukraine) where Perl Wenkert and her husband Hersch Leib Ett were registered. Other records, such as David Ett's manifest, indicate that some of the Ett children were born in towns, such as Uscieczko and Torskie, that are geographically close to Zaleszczyki. We do not know when, but sometime between Perl's death and Sarah's departure, the family moved back to the Zaleszczyki area.

Sarah reported on her manifest record that she would be heading to her uncle's home at 299 Bushwick Avenue. The handwritten name looks like Leizer Lebenhauss (or Leberhaus). In fact, Sarah's uncle was my great grandfather Leiser (Louis) Liebross. This is supported by the 1905 New York State census showing Louis and his family living at 299 Bushwick Avenue, Brooklyn.[1] The 1905 census also shows Sarah"Att" living with her sister Clara and her family in the same building.[2]

The small X to the left of Sarah's name on the manifest indicates that she was detained by immigration officials. Unaccompanied women immigrants were usually held until a relative could come to claim them and vouch for their welfare. Detention pages are usually found near the end of the ship's manifest pages.

Detail: "New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com: accessed 22 November 2013), manifest, S.S. Brandenburg, Bremen to New York, arriving 26 December 1903, Record of Detained Alien Passengers, 42 (stamped), number 23, Sali Ett; citing National Archives Microfilm Serial T715, microfilm roll 423.

 Sali Ett was met, not by her uncle, but by her new brother-in-law. His name is listed as "Alter Applrot" - an interesting take on the name Rappaport. Clara and her husband were living at 406 Bushwick Avenue in December 1903.

Notes:
1. 1905 New York State Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Assembly District 15, Enumeration District 18, sheet 73, entries 41-50, Louis Lebros family; digital image, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 8 July 2010), citing New York State Archives, Albany, New York.
2. 1905 New York State Census, Kings County, New York, population schedule, Brooklyn, Assembly District 15, Enumeration District 18, sheet 74, entries 8-11, Adolph Rappaport family and Sarah Att; digital image, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 8 July 2010), citing New York State Archives, Albany, New York.

Tombstone Tuesday: Fanny Liebross

I know next to nothing about Fanny Liebross. I did not even know she existed until I had visited the Workmen's Circle plot at Mount Lebanon Cemetery in Queens, New York. And I have been unable to locate any other records about her thus far.
  

Here lies

Feiga daughter of David

FANNY

LIEBROSS

BELOVED WIFE

DIED MAR. 4, 1949

AGE 53 YEARS

--------

  

Apparently memory of her suffered due to the man with whom she associated, her husband Max Liebross. Max was the black sheep of the Liebross family and I doubt that Max and Fanny, his second wife, were invited to many family gatherings.

I have not located any marriage record for Fanny and Max and I have not found Max in the 1940 Census or 1940 New York City directories. One record I likely could acquire would be Fanny's death certificate - if she died in New York City. Her death certificate would likely confirm that Max was her husband and perhaps provide some information about her parents' names and her original surname. 

Since the 1949 certificates are still held by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygeine (as opposed to the Municipal Archives), there is no online index and the certificates are not as easily acquired as those at the Archives. I will check Family History Library microfilm to see if Fanny's certificate has been indexed in New York City.

Fanny Liebross is buried in Mount Lebanon Cemetery, Glendale, Queens, New York in the Workmen's Circle plot Section 2, Line 7, Grave 7.