In the past years, a wealth of 18th and 19th century Jewish genealogical resources have become available for Bohemia, the western half of Czechia (the new name for the Czech Republic, formerly Czechoslovakia). As a result, a large number of […]
Personal Journeys: Cousin Hillary Rodham Clinton
At my home, we refer to Hillary Rodham Clinton as Cousin Hillary. More precisely, the correct term would be step-cousin. Detailed research demonstrates that Hillary’s grandmother married my father’s fifth cousin. But let’s start at the beginning. In August 1999, […]
The Bohemian Origins of Justice Louis Brandeis
On the 100th anniversary of his appointment as the first Jewish Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, the Jewish Journal devoted four pages to the towering figure in American legal history, Louis D. Brandeis, recounting his unprecedented advocacy for free speech, […]
Personal Journeys: The Flayer and Razin Families of Shklov
Sitting on the passenger side of the coach, Reiza Flier swept her beady gray eyes over the family’s small home. At approximately 40 years old, this mother showed expressions of defiance and anticipation, even if she also felt sadness for […]
First Fruits of the ‘Reclaim the Records” Access Project Are Obtained!
As previously written about on Avotaynu Online (http://adam.learnpress.esy.es/2015/10/breaking-news-ny-municipal-archives-throws-in-the-towel-in-public-access-fight/) Brooke Schreier Ganz and Reclaim the Records were successful in their Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) case about obtaining the New York City indexes for 1908-1929 marriage licenses and affidavits. All but […]
Breaking News! NY Municipal Archives Throws In the Towel in Public Access Fight!
Reclaim the Records Won! Brooke Won! The Public won! Records Access won! In Early September I posted on Avotaynu Online about how one genealogist can make a difference-(see http://adam.learnpress.esy.es/2015/09/public-records-access-one-genealogist-can-make-a-difference/) when Brooke Schreier Ganz and Reclaim the Records filed a legal […]
Crypto-Jewish Conference Enjoys Record Attendance
Rave reviews continue to pour in from speakers and attendees of the 25th Anniversary Conference of the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies (SCJS) held in Miami, Florida in July 2105. The Society was formed over 25 years ago to help facilitate […]
Public Records Access: One Genealogist Can Make A Difference!
This past Thursday, September 3, 2015, a legal petition was filed at the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York. Brooke Schreier Ganz and ReclaimTheRecords.org [Petitioner] vs. New York City Department of Records and Information […]
Polygamy in the Jewish and Western Tradition: Religion, Culture and Class
Why Are We So Hung Up On Polygamy? In the March 2015 elections in Israel, two Muslim polygamists were elected to the Knesset on the United Arab list. Numerous news outlets reported this fact and questioned whether it would be […]
Book Review: The Synagogues of Central and Western Pennsylvania, by Julian H. Preisler
The Jewish communities of the United States have tended to be concentrated in major urban centers, such as New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles. Many books have been written about these and similar communities, but to get a fuller […]
Jewish Historical and Genealogical Resources in Delaware
Of the original 13 American colonies, Delaware was the second (after New York) to permit Jews to be admitted legally. The first Jews believed to come to Delaware were Isaac Israel and Isaac Cardozo, agents of the Dutch West Indies […]
Jewish Historical and Genealogical Resources in West Virginia
Since Jews first settled two centuries ago in the future state of West Virginia (a portion of Virginia that refused to secede the American Civil War), Jews involved themselves in all aspects of wholesaling and retailing. In most cities and […]
The Obermayers: A History of a Jewish Family in Germany and America, 1618—2009, by Kenneth Libo and Michael Feldberg
The Obermayers: A History of a Jewish Family in Germany and America, 1618—2009, by Kenneth Libo and Michael Feldberg. The book contains histories and genealogies of the Obermayer, Lehmann, Sinsheimer, and Oberndoerfer families from Creglingen, Augsburg, Furth, and other towns […]
Jewish Oklahomans
Considering that Jews constitute a mere one-tenth of one percent of Oklahoma’s population, their contribution to the state is staggering. As one native gentile business leader commented, “Without a doubt, per capita, the Jews have contributed overwhelmingly more to Oklahoma […]
U.S. Library of Congress: Researching Jewish Family History, by James Sweany with Peggy Pearlstein
Recently, a middle-aged woman came into the Local History and Genealogy Reading Room of the Library of Congress seeking to locate her father, whom she had never seen. A search through the city directories and telephone books of Greater New […]
Genealogical Resources at the U.S. National Archives
Despite the plethora of online genealogical resources available today, not all information is online, and sometimes essential and valuable bits of data still can be found only in archives and libraries. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and […]
Jewish Agricultural Colonies in Kansas
This article is adapted from a presentation at the IAJGS conference in Los Angeles, July 2010.—Ed. I had the record of his New York 1881 arrival from Russia. The New York City directories clearly listed Jacob Warschawski as a printer; […]
“I Was You”: A True Story
One day back in the 1950s, Irving Spierer, the sole Holocaust survivor of his Hungarian family, was walking down a street in Brooklyn, New York, when a complete stranger—let’s call him Saul Rabinowitz (not his real name), another […]
Genealogical Gems in U.S. State Archives and Historical Societies
Each of the 50 United States has a designated archive or a set of archives that serves as repositories for its respective state, county, and city governmental historical records. Sometimes called a state archive or state historical society, these repositories […]
Locating Living Americans: Selected Resources
Family historians often seek descendants of relatives who live in the United States whose exact location is unknown. Frequently, all that is known are surname and approximate age. Such problems may be resolved by using a combination of the resources […]
Little Man in A Big Hurry: The Life of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, Uranium King and Art Collector, by Gene Hirshhorn LePere
Little Man in A Big Hurry: The Life of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, Uranium King and Art Collector, by Gene Hirshhorn LePere. This is the remarkable story of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, who donated the largest private art collection ever accumulated to […]
From Popelnya to Pittsburgh: The Deaktor Family
From Popelnya to Pittsburgh: The Deaktor Family, by Susan Glickman Davis and Alan Steinfeld. This book covers the years 1830 to 2009 and traces the history of the Deaktor family from its beginnings in Ukraine and Romania through its emigration […]
An American Experience: Adeline Moses Loeb (1876–1953) and Her Early American Jewish Ancestors.
An American Experience: Adeline Moses Loeb (1876–1953) and Her Early American Jewish Ancestors. Contributors are John L. Loeb, Jr., Kathy L. Plotkin, Margaret Loeb Kempner, and Judith E. Endelman, with an introduction by Eli N. Evans. Hardcover, large format, full […]
WANTED! U.S. Criminal Records Sources & Research Methodology, by Ron Arons
WANTED! U.S. Criminal Records Sources & Research Methodology, by Ron Arons, Criminal Research Press. 385 pp. Softcover. $54.00. Many of us have family members who participated in the dark side of society, but, I suspect, few have thought to find […]
Connecting with California Cousins: The Joke Is on Me
When I asked my Uncle Frank about the places where his parents, my grandparents, had lived before they immigrated to the United States, he responded with a twinkle in his eye, “From Pinsk to Minsk.” When I asked my Uncle […]