In New York, Minnie worked during the day at a tie factory owned by an in-law and went to school at night to learn English. At the end of every week, Minnie and her siblings handed their unopened pay packets to their mother, who doled out carfare to each adult child and kept the rest for household expenses.
Minnie met her future husband Theodore "Teddy" Schwartz (1887-1965) in a Hungarian deli. Despite resistance from her parents, she married him in October, 1911. From then on, Minnie would not just help Teddy in the store, she would also raise three children AND sew clothing for her siblings, nieces, and nephews AND cook Hungarian specialties for family meals. She worked long and hard for decades.
Only after Minnie and Teddy sold their small dairy store in the 1950s did they have time and money to take a honeymoon! Minnie had happy moments, but as the years passed, she was disillusioned and disappointed because her life did not play out like the rosy future she had dreamed of when she arrived in 1901 as a hopeful immigrant teenager. The more I research her and talk with older relatives who knew her well, the better I understand why she was not "warm and fuzzy" although she was a responsible grandma who pitched in when needed.
Noting Minnie's age changes
On their marriage certificate (shown at top), both Minnie and Teddy are shown as 24 years old. That might be one of the last times Minnie told the truth about her age.
In the 1920 US Census, she was supposedly 30 (actually she was 34). In the 1925 NY Census, she was supposedly 35 (actually 38). In the 1930 US Census, she was supposedly 40 (actually 44). In the 1940 US Census, she was supposedly 52 (actually 53). In the 1950 US Census, she was shown as 63--correct age!
When Grandma Minnie died of heart problems on March 20, 1964, it was the end of an era for the entire Farkas family. Disheartened, and with his health deteriorating, Grandpa sadly passed away 14 months later.
Remembering Grandma Minnie with affection during Women's History Month.
Age fibs! I love that. My grandmother shaved 12 years off her age in the 1940 census. So, when we find earlier ancestors in the census with ages that were way off base - I wonder how many people were guilty of "age fibs" vs. those who didn't know for sure how old they were?
ReplyDeleteI wonder if maybe someone else in the household told the enumerator whatever age numbers popped into their brain! Ancestors might have not known their exact birth day or even year but who would miss their own actual age by 5 or 10 years?! LOL
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