Showing posts with label Annopol. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Annopol. Show all posts

04 September 2022

Letters from Levi Yitzkhak Lederman, 2 December 1912

This post continues translation of letters and postcards in Yiddish (and, sometimes, Hebrew and a little bit of Russian) sent to Morris Lederman, who immigrated to the United States in 1910. Most of the correspondence, such as this one, were sent by Morris' father Levi Yitzkhak. For further background, see the first post in this series.

For links to other posts in this series, please scroll to the bottom.
 
Like the last post, this correspondence, as well, was a letter for which we do not have the original envelope. The letter was written on 2 December 1912 (Julian/Russian calendar) which was equivalent to 15 December 1912 on the Gregorian calendar, then (and now) in use in much of the world. So, this letter was written by Levi Yitzkhak four days after the one posted previously.
 
 
Translation

Translation by Esther Chanie Dushinsky.

[Notes in blue as well as those at the end of the post are mine. For ease of reading, I have added paragraph breaks in the translation. The underlined words in this letter are as written by Levi Yitzkhak.] 

 
[side 1]

 

Monday, Parshas Vayechi, 2/15 1912 Zhary forest [1] 

 

My beloved and dear son who sweetens my soul, Mr. Moshe Shalom Mordekhai should live.

 

I am writing this letter in the forest. It is Sunday evening, Parshas Vayechi, December 2 English December 15. Today the people traveled from the kantur [?] to Baranovka.[2] I gather that they will most likely bring back a letter or card for me, from you.

 

But right now, I am only writing a response to your earlier letter from 19 November English that you wrote. It arrived to me last week Sunday already. This is a calculation of 8 December English. Meaning, that from when you wrote it, until now is about 18-19 days.

 

You write in the letter that you met with Baruch Zharlitzer's [son].[3] You write about your happiness when you saw him and that he really did give you a truly warm greeting. Mother, indeed, told me that the entire time before he left, she asked him, told him that she should greet you and to give over. I, myself, did not see him before he left, as I was not home. Bottom line, my son, when we read something in you letters about your happiness, we feel a lot of pleasure. 

 

It's been a few times that you have written something that you will _____ _____ [travel to?]. But you don't  write why and when. What is this? What is this? You wrote to him and you still haven't received a response from him. All your words are obscure, you don't write details.

 

Can you believe how many times I have asked you in the letters that you should write something of "importance/purpose" - I say purpose - but by the way, I am of the opinion that a person, a human being don't know what purpose is. There is The One Who Created and runs the world, He does things with a purpose and that's what lasts forever. But my dear son, even so, a person can't always keep his hands in the pocket. A person must do and God will help. So my dear son, write something important. What are you thinking? What are you saying about the future. I want to know your opinion. 

 

From Zavel'n, the story is as follows: from the start, I understand that things were hard.[4] That's what I saw in his letters every time he wrote to us. He constantly complained that it was hard for him.

 

[side 2]

 

And by the way, Gedalya Eisenberg was here. From the start. The Gabbai is the son, Shmuel Eisenberg's [i.e., Shmuel Eisenberg's son].[5] He is currently the main manager [?]. Meaning, in Polin and ____ [forkshne or porkshne or similar] he is the organizer - he told me in the beginning that he isn't too impressed with Zavel'n.[6] Meaning, it would, he said, it would be very good if I would write to Zavel'n that he should be more devoted in the shop - you can understand that from what he said, I was already not calm. That's when I sent mother, should live, to be there. I have written about this to you. This still happened in the summer.

 

But now I was at Chona Eisenberg, and Gedalya was also home.[7] But happens to be he went down to the street then. I spoke about this again. From what Chona said, I understand they are happy with him now. He got used to the shop already. They said that it isn't surprising that a new person takes time to get used to the shop. A few minutes later, Gedalya arrived home and he said the same thing as Chona said.

 

But from Zavel himself, I did not have any letters about this topic. There were no letters home either. I told G. with wonder - how is it that Zavel doesn't  come home this entire time? You think one would want to travel from such a shop? He told me - you should write the address. So I'm writing here. But I think it's better that you write him at our address and we send it to him. This is the address:

 

[in Russian:] 

Bumazhnovo Polyanskovo Frabrika [plant/factory]

To: Mr. Zeidel Liderman

station [railroad station] Krivin, Volinskava Gubernia [8]

 

Greetings to R'David _____ [Wallach?] in my name. Greet Yisrael Pesis [?], everyone we know, all my acquaintances should be sent regards.[9] We ask that if it's possible to do a favor, you should not forget about us. 

 

Greet Baruch Zharizher [?]'s boy in my name.

 

Your father that worries about you and is awaiting to see you with much nakhas.


Notes:

1. "2/15" was not February 15, but Levi Yitzkhak's way of recognizing the same day as designated on the two calendars: 2 December 1912 (Julian) and 15 December 1912 (Gregorian).

The Torah reading for Vayechi is Genesis 47:28 - 50:26. 

For information on the location of the Zhary forest, see note 1 in this earlier post. Levi Yitzkhak had been working for a private timber company in the Zhary forest.

2. The exact meaning of the transcribed word "kantur" is not clear. I think the word may actually have been "canton" - a small administrative division. This would make some sense as the Zhary forest was not close to any large communities. So, some people from the local area (or, perhaps, his company) traveled to Baranovka (where Levi Yitzkhak's family was living).

3. I have been unable to locate anyone with that surname or something similar. There are several issues. 

  1. There is no indication of Baruch's son's first name. And we do not know where he might have been living in the USA. Morris/Moshe was in Lynn, Massachusetts, at this time.

  2. The last name is transcribed with two different spellings in this letter (here and several paragraphs down): Zharlitzer and Zharizher. These renderings could be spelled several ways in Russian (including staring with letters that sound like Zh, Ch, Shch, and Ts). I have checked JewishGen's FamilyFinder and have located no researchers seeking similar surnames. 

  3. It is not clear from which community Zharlitzer lived in Ukraine. It could have been Annopol where Morris lived with his parents before he emigrated. Or, it could have been Baranovka where Morris' parents moved. I tried to located a similar name with the first name Borukh in 1906 and 1907 Voters Lists for Ostrog District (for Annopol) and Novograd Volinskiy district (for Baranovka). I found no similar listings. 

  4. I search for similar surnames in the Ellis Island manifest database using the Gold Form search box on SteveMorse.org. Similar searches of other immigration databases on Ancestry.com (specifying Jewish collections) were fruitless.

4. Zavel and Zeidel and names for the same person, Moshe's older brother.

5. A gabbai is the synagogue official who is in charge of finances - a treasurer or administrator.

6. So far, we have not been able to determine the meaning of the word forkshne or porkshne.

7. I have looked for Chona and Gedalya Eisenberg (Aizenberg) in Annopol, Baranovka and Polonne and have not found them in Voter's lists from 1906 and 1907.

8. Krivin appears to have been a rural area (just a train station) about halfway between Ostrog and Slavuta.

Thanks to Oleksiy Khrystuch and Nina Vinakovsky who responded to my post on the FaceBook page Genealogical Translations and helped decipher the Cyrillic handwriting.

9. I have not located people with these surnames in Lynn, MA, in the 1910 and 1920 census or the 1912 and 1913 Lynn city directories.

 

Posts in this Series 

 

"Letters from Levi Yitzkhak Lederman, 2 December 1912" 
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18 December 2021

Letters from Levi Yitzkhak Lederman, 19 March 1912

I am afraid I misread the date on this one when I was sorting them chronologically for posting in this blog. My last post was a postcard from April 1912. This one is from a few weeks earlier in March 1912. I should have posted it before the previous post.

This post continues translation of letters and postcards in Yiddish (and, sometimes, Hebrew and a little bit of Russian) sent to Morris Lederman, who immigrated to the United States in 1910. Most of the postcards, such as this one, were sent by Morris' father Levi Yitzkhak. For further background, see the first post in this series.

For links to other posts in this series, scroll to the bottom.
 

Translation is an art. Any comments or clarifications by Yiddish and/or Hebrew speakers/translators are welcome. Despite the best efforts by a talented translator, there are always places where the handwriting is challenging or the meaning confusing.


 

 


Company name printed on address side [side 2] of the card: 

контора  Office

Жарской Лесной Дачи и Лесопильн Завода Zharskoy Forest Dacha and Sawmill

Addressed to:

America
 
Mr. M. Lederman
Lynn, Mass.
108 Blossm Street [Blossom Street]

Translation

Translation by Esther Chanie Dushinsky

[Notes in blue as well as those at the end of the post are mine. For ease of reading, I have added paragraph breaks in the translation.]

[side 1]

Zhary forest, which is close to Polonnoe, 20 verst, close to Baranovka, 16 verst [1]

 

Tuesday, Vayikra, 6/19 March 1912 [2] 

 

My dear and beloved son Mr. Moshe - Shalom - Mordekhai, should live. My dear and beloved son, I knew _____ _____ that holding back the fruits of my pen, it's because _____ but the honest truth is that I am not guilty. You know, my child, that I am here at a new job and there is a lot of work, from sun up, until evening. I am very busy and at night I have to write down the details of my job. So, since I came here, now that the way is clear, as it is spring, I am a bit more free. Not entirely, but at least I can take a break and write a card to you.

 

I don't have news to write. Thank God we are alive and in peace and may God help that we should hear from you in peace and tranquility, and calmness.

 

Zavil came home already.[3] Most likely they wrote to you about it from home. _____ my luck, I had to send him 15 once, and then 20 a second time. But I am thinking about bringing him here to me, in Zhary, in the forest as a bookkeeper. I happen to have an opportunity to give him a job here in the winter. But I wasn't sure whether he had a job there.But don't tell him this secret. He only wrote to me about his luck in the last while. That's when I sent him 20 and wrote to him that he should come. But now it's before Pesakh and the ways are very bad and the work here hasn't lessened, he sits at home meanwhile, in Annopol.

 

Moshe'le, most likely they wrote to you from home that the house sold for a decent amount and the Polish Rav bought it. And they had to give him the home, so they moved to the house of Gershon Vidro.[4]

 

[sideways]

The job is of course more pleasant than _____ in _____. And I get paid more. I will receive 40 a month, _____ _____. 


[side 2]

I plan to move after Pesakh to Baranovka.

 

My son, you asked me in the letter _____ that you wanted to send, and I didn't send it to you, because I thought that mother, should live, will write to you. And now, I also don't know _____ the mail. Meaning, to Polonnoe, or Baranovka, or Annopol for Pesakh. I will be home for Pesakh, and we will discuss it and write to you. Bless and wish us, my child, that whatever we will do should be with blessed luck and we should be well and strong. We should hear from you, and you should hear from us. I am wishing you and blessing you, my child, from the depths of my heart. Blessing you, your father that loves you _____ _____. 

 

Notes:

1. Levi Yitzkhak kindly told his son,Morris, where the Zhary forest, in which he was working, was located. A verst was a measure of length in the Russian Empire. It was equivalent to .66 miles or 1.1 kilometers. So, the forest was about 13.2 miles (22 kms) from Polonnoe and 10.6 miles (17.6 kms) from Baranovka. While Levi Yitzkhak did not specify the directions from the two communities, I noticed that there is a placed identified as Zhary on a current map (below). It seems to be in about the correct location. So, the forest must have been east of Baranovka and NNE of Polonnoe.

 

 

2. Levi Yitzkhak wrote both the Julian and Gregorian calendar dates here (6/19 March). He wrote the postcard on March 6 in the Julian/Russian calendar and March 19 in the Gregorian calendar already adopted in the United States and much of the world.  

 

Vayikra is the 24th weekly Torah portion read in the yearly Jewish cycle. It is in the first book of Leviticus 1:1-5:26.

 

3. Zavil (or Zanvel), Moshe's brother, had been trying to get work in Ekaterinaslav (today called Dnipro).


4. I have been transliterating and indexing several district Duma voters lists published in the Volinskiy Gubernskiy Vedomosti (a local newspaper) in 1906 and 1907. The 1906 Duma voters list for the Ostrog district included Gershko Vidra (entry 324), a homeowner in Annopol. I do not know if Gershon/Gershko was a relative.

 

I have not found Levi Yitzkhak Liderman in this same 1906 Duma list that includes homeowners from Annopol.

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