IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Blogger Compendium

The blogger population is a bit thin at this year's conference, but true to the pattern of the last few years, this post will collect and post links to all blogged content relating to the conference. Please check back daily for updates.

Bloggers, please send me a link to your first post on the conference and I will include you on the list. I understand that some of us (me included) are having issues with using the Blogger.com platform - which no longer supports use with iPads. So, unfortunately, some individual's posts may not be fully realized until the writers return home to their usual hardware. I will, as needed, continue to update this compendium for a week or so after the conference.

Lara Diamond - Lara's Jewnealogy
"IAJGS2018 - Part 1" https://larasgenealogy.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs2018-part-1.html 
"IAJGS2018 - Part 2" https://larasgenealogy.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs2018-part-2.html 
"IAJGS2018 - Part 3" https://larasgenealogy.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs2018-part-3.html 
"IAJGS2018 - Part 4 (JewishGen Updates)" https://larasgenealogy.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs2018-part-4-jewishgen-updates.html
 

Banai Feldstein - The Ginger Jewish Genealogist
"IAJGS Conference - Summer 2018 Trip, Part 2" http://idogenealogy.com/2018/08/18/iajgs-conference-summer-2018-trip-part-2/
Follow Banai as she journeys through Eastern Europe.
 
Emily Garber - Extra Yad
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Pre-Conference"  
https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsaw-conference-pre.html
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw - Day 1" https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsaw-conference-day-1.html
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Day 2" https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsaw-conference-day-2.html 
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Day 3" https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsaw-conference-day-3.html 
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Day 4" https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsaw-conference-day-4.html 
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Day 5" https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsaw-conference-day-5.html
"IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Day 6" https://extrayad.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-warsawconference-day-6.html

Harriet Levin Millan
"First Day in Poland" http://www.harrietlevinmillan.com/first-day-in-poland
"Poland/Ukraine Day 2" http://www.harrietlevinmillan.com/poland-ukraine-day-2
"3rd Day Poland/Ukraine" http://www.harrietlevinmillan.com/post-title3
"Poland/Ukraine Day 4" http://www.harrietlevinmillan.com/poland-ukraine-day-4 
Continue to follow Harriet as she journals about her roots trip through Ukraine.

Mary-Jane Roth - MemoryKeeper's Notebook
"IAJGS 2018 in Warsaw, Part one" https://memorykeepersnotebook.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-in-warsaw-part-one.html
"IAJGS 2018 in Warsaw - Part 2 Warsaw Outside the Conference" https://memorykeepersnotebook.blogspot.com/2018/08/iajgs-2018-in-warsaw-part-2-warsaw.html

Janette Silverman, Ancestry ProGenealogists - Relativatree
"It's Sunday in Warsaw - let the fun begin!" 
https://relativatree.wordpress.com/2018/08/05/its-sunday-in-warsaw-let-the-fun-begin/
"Shifting Time" https://relativatree.wordpress.com/2018/08/06/shifting-time/
"Tuesday, 7 Aug - last full day in Warsaw" https://relativatree.wordpress.com/2018/08/08/tuesday-7-aug-last-full-day-in-warsaw/ 
Continue to follow Janette as she and her team from Ancestry Pro-Genealogists travel throughout Eastern Europe.

Susan Weinberg - Layers of the Onion
"Phantom Presence: How Past Influences Present," https://sgweinberg.blogspot.com/2018/08/phantom-presence-how-past-influences.html
Continue to follow Susan as she visits ancestral community Radom, Poland.

IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Day 1

I usually stay close to the venue when attending IAJGS Conferences (this is my seventh) but having never been to Warsaw, I decided tomiss some of the morning sessions and  take one of the Taube Tours, "Jewish Warsaw from A-Z," on Sunday morning.

They piled us into a large van (or a short bus) and we started our journey at the south end of the WWII ghetto. I liked the technology they provided: small receivers with an earphone attachment so that no matter how softly the guide spoke, we heard him.

We began at one of the ghetto wall remnants where there is a map of the ghetto. The guide's presentation was chronological. It started with the establishment of the ghetto where much of Warsaw's Jews already lived. In this small area up to 300,000 people were interned. When the German's had removed all but 60,000, the stage was set by those who remained for the uprising. After all, what did they have to lose? We saw several monuments to those who suffered and died and those who rebelled. A sobering morning.

In the afternoon (from 3-5 PM), I served Romania Special Interest Group (SIG)  at their table in the Share Fair. Usually I work for Ukraine SIG, but this year I moved to Romania. The Share Fair room, as usual, was crowded and somewhat loud, but I managed to help (I hope) several people with their research. I also managed to eat some chocolates provided to all by the conference.

Nearly all repaired to the Ballroom for the conference opening. Ken Bravo, IAJGS president, welcomed us and then gave way to Rabbi Michael Schudrich, Chief Rabbi of Poland. Mark Halpern of Jewish Records Indexing - Poland, one of the conference sponsors, and Dr. Wojciech Wozniak, General Director of the Polish State Archives extolled their long-term agreement that has, as of now, resulted in about 5.5 million indexed Jewish Records on JRI-P. The agreement started with Stan Diamond in 1997. We have all benefitted from Stan's and PSA's foresight and inspiration.

Mark's and Dr. Wozniak's words were followed by Dr. Antony Polansky, an historian and scholar inresidence for the conference. Among his other laurels, he is professor emeritus at Brandeis University. He discussed the thought that history and genealogy are a continuum with history elucidating the context of the events and experiences in our ancestor's lives. Then Professor Dariusz Stola, who was the Director of the Polin Museum of the History of Polish Jews when it opened in 2014, spoke of the museum's success: 1.4 million people have seen the core exhibit thus far. The museum has been recognized with several awards for its design and exhibits.

Last we heard from Holocaust survivor and Chairman of the Board of the Polin Museum, Marian Turski. His passion for his subject was clear and movng. It is truly wonderful that he has been able to guide such a lasting remembrance and legacy. The thought occurred to me that seeing the large ballroom filled with hundreds of genealogists whose passion is remembering and reconstructing lost family must have been a moving thing for Mr. Turski, as well.

I did not stay for the final event of the evening: a performance of Chelm stories. Dinner called and we made our way to a Polish restaurant called Folk Gospoda. The restaurant is but a few blocks from the hotel and others from the conference seemed to have the same idea. A Rohatyn group treked in. A group from Ancestry ProGenealogists made an appearance, as well. Genealogists fairly filled the outside patio. The pirogi and beer were quite good and filling.

IAJGS 2018 Warsaw Conference - Pre-conference

We arrived in Warsaw late Friday, August 3rd. Our bags however decided to enjoy a layover in Amsterdam. They did finally arrived Saturday night in time to keep annoyance from escalating to distress. Before we knew for sure they would make an appearance, we used the 100 Euro promise from KLM to get some clean clothes at the mall within walking distance of the Hilton. Much needed showers and clean clothes improved our outlook.

On Saturday morning after a hearty breakfast, we walked the 1.2 miles to the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, which opened in 2014. The museum is an impressive undertaking. We visited the core exhibit and rented the audio program, which includes 60 stops on two floors. The exhibit takes one from the year 965, when Jews are first documented in Poland, through today. We were in the exhibit for about three hours.

I had heard about the wooden synagogue roof/ceiling construction when the museum was being built. But no description can really do it justice. I think we tend to think about the past in black and white and our ancestors lives in muted, dismal tones. Not this place! I do not know much about wooden synagogues (although I was certainly impressed with old wooden churches when I visited Ukraine five years ago). I was struck not only by the vibrant colors, but also the surprising imagery: zodiac signs and all sorts of animals. [I am having technial diffculties posting from my ipad app. I have been trying to add photos but to no avail. I will add them when I get home, I guess, when I have access to my laptop.]

Samosas, chicken tikka masala and naan from an Indian restaurant close to the hotel rounded out a pleasant day. Also pleasant: our bags arrived shortly afer 8 PM.

IAJGS registration was a cinch. And I think I acquired enough ribbons(!). The ribbons include:
SPEAKER
MENTOR
JGS PRESIDENT
JewishGen
Ukraine SIG
Romania SIG
JewishGen Kehilalinks
Professional Genealogist

I could have added a few more including one that said "Volunteer," but that seemed understood.

Rose Liebross and Nathan Bernstein, DDS

My mother had two Liebross aunts, sisters Rose and Celia, who'd never married or had children. Or at least that's what I thought when I started my research. I did not know either of them. Younger sister Celia died on 16 December 1946 and Rose passed away on 24 November 1955.[1]

My brother, who was quite young when Rose died, recalls her as unassuming and quiet. We never heard much about Rose or Celia from my mother - although it was clear that she was fond of all her Liebross aunts and uncles, most of whom lived upstairs in her parents' two-family house. I do recall that my mother said that her wedding party on 9 February 1947 was kept small and reserved in keeping with the fact that the family was still in mourning for Celia who had died just two months before.

So, I was surprised when I found that Rose had been married and divorced. She had married Nathan Judas Bernstein, a dentist, on 14 November 1926 at 144 Beach - 74th Street in Rockaway Beach, Queens. This was the home of Rose's uncle and aunt Simon and Ethel Liebross.[2] Rose and Nathan divorced in Hamilton County, Florida in 1931.

According to Nathan's marriage record, he was the son of Aaron and Rebecca Bernstein and was an immigrant from the Russian Empire. The 1925 New York State census found him living with widow Rose Goldberg and her family as her "adopted son."[3] They resided at 1170 Walton Avenue, Bronx, NY.

Nathan (Nochem, age 6) arrived in New York in June 1897 with his sister Hinde (age 15) and brothers Isser (age 11) and Hersch (age 3). Their surname was Dubnozowa.[4] Nathan's naturalization in 1914 indicates he was born in Slutsk (now in Belarus) and that his former surname was Dubnitska.[5] 

I do not know how, when, or why Nathan was "adopted" by the Goldberg's, but I have found him living with the family in census enumerations in 1910, 1915, 1920 and 1925.[6] Rose Goldberg's husband Morris died in about 1905. In 1910 Nathan was working as a telegraph messenger. In 1915, as a Chemist. By 1920, he was studying dentistry.

More recently I found that Rose Liebross and Nathan Bernstein actually did have a child together. Ira Howard Bernstein was born on 12 September 1928. He lived but a few months and died of bronchitis on 3 January 1929.[7]

Thus far, I have not been able to find much specific information on Rose's and Nathan's Florida divorce. We cannot discount the pain and stress on a relationship that loss of a child might cause. But subsequent events may shed some light on Nathan's character.[8]

Nathan remarried on 2 August 1936 to Frances Hirschcoff.[9] On 22 June 1937, the following article appeared in the New York Post:

Dentist Drilled Into Her Cash, Wife Testifies

----------

Heart Was Won Through Her Teeth. She Tells Court - Asks Alimony

     
     Love blossomed into matrimony during the five years Dr. Nathan J. Bernstein tenderly ministered to his third wife's dental ills, but when, after their marriage, he started drilling into her bank account, she hollered "Ouch!"
     And, in the Supreme Court today, Mrs. Frances Bernstein asked Justice Louis A. Valente to administer novocaine in the form of alimony and counsel fees.
     The dentist, whose clintele includes a number of Park Avenue elite, moved into her apartment after their marriage ten months ago, she told the judge, and spent only $20 on her during the whole time they lived together.
     After he had extracted $4,000 of her savings and continued his "grasping, money-crazy attitude," she said, she left her no choice but the courts.[10]

----------

Apparently, this case was resolved prematurely when Nathan died on 6 November 1937.[11] An autopsy was ordered. The medical examiner reported that Nathan was found unconscious, frothing at the mouth and had suffered respiratory distress. There was an odor of cyanide. Letters had been left in Nathan's office suggesting death via suicide.

Nathan was 5' 4" in height and weighted about 150 pounds. He had thinning brown hair flecked with gray. While Nathan had suffered from heart disease, chemical analysis of this stomach contents indicated that cyanide was present in large amounts.[12]

Nathan seems to have had an interesting life - and death. Considering his suicide and the information in the Post newspaper article, it appears that Nathan may have been a troubled person - or, at least a person who would bring trouble.

Additional records (among these the court cases in Bronx County, the Florida divorce case, any records of Frances Bernstein's case, info on Nathan's other wife, and possible probate records) are yet to be acquired. Further information about the Goldbergs and any possible information about Nathan's biological brothers and sister may be useful.

In the 1920s and 1930s, divorce was considered shameful. So, I am not surprised that the Liebross clan did not talk about my great aunt Rose's failed marriage. In addition, painful episodes, such as the death of a baby, were often left to silence. In my research I have found several family lines where small children died and were, essentially, forgotten in time through family silence. To me, that's the greater shame.


Notes:
1. New York County, New York, death certificate no. 26589 (1946), Celia Liebross, 16 December 1946; Municipal Archives, New York City.
2. Queens County, New York, death certificate no. 5951 (1927), Simon Liebross, 18 November 1927; Municipal Archives, New York City.
3. 1925 New York State Census, Bronx Co., NY, enumeration of inhabitants, the Bronx, assembly district 2, election district 30, p. 32, entry 44, Nathan J. Bernstein
4. Manifest, S.S. Veendam, 7 June 1897, line 144, Nochem Dubnozowa, age 6; images, "New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 21 July 2018).

5. The "...ska" ending in a Russian surname is for a female. Nathan's surname was, likely Dubnitsky. "New York, County Naturalization Records, 1791-1980," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9M8-VHS1?cc=1999177&wc=MDSY-SZ9%3A326209701%2C329551201 : 21 May 2014), New York > Petitions for naturalization and petition evidence 1914 vol 179, no 44101-44350 > image 190 of 630; citing Supreme Court, New York County, New York, entry for Nathan J. Bernstein, naturalization, 1914, petition 44169 (17 December 1914). 

6. Nathan was not with the Goldberg family in 1900 and I have not yet located a 1905 New York State Census that shows him or them.
7. Ira Howard was also the first and second name of my mother's brother, Ira Wilson, Rose Liebross' nephew. Kings County, New York, death certificate no. 361 (1929), Ira Howard Bernstein, 3 January 1929; Municipal Archives, New York City.
8. There are a couple of court cases filed by Nathan J. Bernstein (plaintiff) in Bronx County in 1931 and 1933. I have not yet ordered copies of those records.
9. New York County, New York, marriage certificate no. 19086 (1936), Nathan J. Bernstein and Frances Hirschoff, 2 August 1936; Municipal Archives, New York City. Apparently, this was his third marriage. More research will be required to determine the additional earlier marriage.
10. "Dentist Drilled Into Her Cash, Wife Testifies," New York Post (New York, NY), 22 June 1937, p. 3; images, Fulton History (http://fultonhistory.com/Fulton.html : accessed 19 may 2015).
11. New York County, New York, death certificate no. 23977 (1937), Nathan J. Bernstein, 6 November 1937; Municipal Archives, New York City.
12. New York County, New York, Office of the Chief medical Examiner, case no. 6034, Nathan J. Bernstein, 6 November 1937; Municipal Archives, New York City.

"When It Takes a Village: Applying Cluster Research Techniques," SCGS Webinar

Join me for my presentation, "When It Takes a Village: Applying Cluster Research Techniques," this Wednesday evening, March 21 (6 PM Pacific; 7 PM Mountain; 8 PM Central; and 9 PM Eastern Time). The talk is part of the Southern California Genealogical Society's 2018 Jamboree Webinar Extension Series. Listening and viewing the presentation live is free to all. After the live presentation, the webinar will be available to SCGS members behind their pay wall.

It is best to sign up in advance. To do so, go to: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/4442554029597179137

"When It Takes a Village" broadly covers the concept of cluster research, also known as the FAN principle: following your target person's friends/family, acquaintances and neighbors to make the most of the clues their records may provide.

Cluster research is a best practice in genealogy. Cluster research techniques are evident in nearly every article in the National Genealogical Quarterly.

My presentation includes a case study chronicling my search for Feiga Grinfeld, who accompanied my great grandfather, Avrum Garber, when he arrived at Ellis Island in 1922. My search for Feiga took me from New York City, to Kentucky, to Ohio, and to Detroit. It involved following possible townspeople, relatives, and in-laws of relatives. To track Feiga and determine her relationship to my great grandfather, involved use of passenger manifests; state and federal census records; city directories; newspapers; death records; marriage records in Ohio, New York and Montana; tombstones; postcards; interviews with relatives; and both Y-DNA and autosomal DNA testing.

This will be the first time I am doing a webinar for the Southern California Genealogical Society and I am very excited about the opportunity. I hope you will join me.

In addition, please note upcoming webinars in their series. There are quite a few excellent speakers.