Amanuensis Monday: "I am your Pop (Ma is included in this)"

In 1943, when my Uncle Fred enlisted in WWII, the entire family geared up for a lively stream of correspondence to keep him company wherever he was posted. (The same steady stream of correspondence flowed to Fred's sister Dorothy Schwartz the WAC, and to Fred and Dorothy's first cousins in the service.)

Here's the second page of a letter to Fred from his "Pop" (my grandpa), Theodore Schwartz, written on November 9, 1944. Grandpa learned English after arriving in New York from Hungary as a teenager, and his spelling/punctuation weren't always perfect. He and my grandma ran a busy grocery store, which in wartime had the added burden of having to collect and sort ration coupons for many foods.

Instead of ending his letter to Fred by signing off with "love" as so many parents do today, he says something much more old fashioned: "With best wishes to you, I am your Pop" and adds: "Ma is included in this."

This letter reads:

Dear Fred,

Your 3 letters in a row at hand and been glad to hear that you, at last got what you wanted and also received the klippings [sic] describing in detail the work. It must be interesting, at least from the beginning. You will only have day work and nobody to rush you. There is not much news here. We are all well--just got a letter from Bobby F___ he is on the other side [meaning he's fighting in Europe]. Received a few letters from Dorothy, she is well, of course she does not get any steaks for every dinner but she is getting ours.

We had a nice [family] meeting at Ella's [Fred's uncle] Sunday. [Uncle] Albert's father-in-law, if you can remember him, celebrated his 50th wedding anniversary. I am slated for the next presidency in the family tree.*

With best wishes to you, I am your Pop
   Ma is included in this.


*The Farkas Family Tree was created during the 1930s, with members being the descendants of Moritz Farkas and Lena Kunstler Farkas, along with their spouses and kids. Grandma Hermina Farkas Schwartz was the oldest daughter of Moritz and Lena, and Grandpa Theodore's marriage to her made him eligible to serve as president of the tree, as he boasts in the final sentence of his letter to Fred. One of the fun rituals at each tree meeting was singing a family song written by one of Fred's aunts. More on this tree in future posts!

Happy Mother's Day! Three Generations in the Bronx

My mother, Daisy Schwartz, grew up in the Bronx, taking trolley cars and subways to get wherever she had to go, because the family had no car. My sisters and I were brought up in the Bronx, also experts in getting around by subway because our parents had no car.

The next generation started their families in the northeast Bronx (one sister) and in Brooklyn (the other sister) before moving away. These days, we all drive but also use our subway savvy when we go back to New York City for a visit.

Sibling Saturday: Lola, Brice, Lucille, and Hugh Benjamin McClure

Lucille McClure De Velde, John De Velde, Margaret Larimer McClure

Margaret Jane Larimer (1859-1913) and William Madison McClure (1849-1887) had four children, two of whom were entrepreneurial types.

• Lola A. McClure (1877-1948), born in Elkhart, Indiana. She married Edward A. Lower and had three children (Margaret, Edward Sherman, and Ross).
• Brice Larimer McClure (1878-1970), born in Little Traverse, Michigan. He married Floyda Mabel Steiner and they had one daughter, Marian (hubby's Mom).
• Lucille Ethel McClure (1880-1926), also born in Elkhart, who married John E. De Velde (no children). The tintype above shows Lucy, John, and Lucy's mom Margaret McClure, sometime before 1913.
• Hugh Benjamin McClure (1882-1960), born in Wabash, Indiana. His first wife was Olivet Van Roe (and they had a daughter together, Georgianna). His second wife was Rebekah Venice Wilt and their children were: Margaret Susan, Jean A., Marietta, and Virginia Rebekah.

Brice McClure ran his own shade shop in Cleveland, to supplement his income during the Depression. He was a crackerjack machinist for various companies, striking out on his own between jobs because his specialty was in high demand. Brice was nicknamed "The Old Gentleman" by his daughter and son-in-law, who cared for him when he was older. He wasn't the first Brice in the family, by the way. That honor belongs to Brice Smith (1756-1828), Brice McClure's g-g-g-grandpa, who married Eleanor Kenny (1762-1841).

Hugh Benjamin McClure founded the H.B. McClure Manufacturing Co. in Peoria, Ill, which produced office equipment. Hubby's parents visited Peoria to see the family and tour the factory during the 1960s and they kept in touch for some time.

PS This is my 400th genealogy blog post! Woo-hoo!

PPS: 2022 update: I found Hugh in the 1950 US Census, still listed as the manager of an office supply factory (Peoria, IL, ED 109-106, sheet 10, lines 17-18).

Those Places Thursday: Sis Sees the Supremes at the Copacabana

J and Sis, recreating their memorable Prom Night

It was the Age of Aquarius. Sis was graduating from Christopher Columbus HS in the Bronx and going to the prom with future husband J. 

After the prom, some of her classmates cruised on the Circle Line boat around Manhattan, while others went to home parties. Not Sis and her friends. She booked a table at the Copacabana night club in New York City to see the Supremes!

This is a guest post by Sis about a very special place and time in her life.

For prom night, I saved up from my part-time jobs to buy a beautiful floor-length, sleeveless scoop-neck white lace sheath with matching coat. My outfit included pointy, white peau de soie high heels and a pearly purse just large enough for my house key, lipstick, eyelash glue, and a few dollar bills. J rented a white dinner jacket to match.

On the day of the prom, I had my hair done in a gorgeous, picture-perfect bouffant flip, sprayed stiff to stay put (as was the style back then). Then I put on my makeup: Cleopatra eyeliner, false eyelashes, blush, and pale icy pink lipstick. When J came to pick me up, he brought me a gardenia wrist corsage and I put a carnation in his lapel.

No one took a limo to the prom in those days. We double-dated with our friend Glenn, who borrowed his father's station wagon for the evening. At the prom, we danced the Swim, the Pony, the Twist, the Frug, the Mashed Potato, and everything else as a live band played every hit song we requested--Gloria, Mustang Sally, I Feel Good...of course, slipping in a slow dance like Sixteen Candles after every four or five songs.

When the prom was winding down, Glenn drove us downtown to the Copa (at 60th Street, just off Fifth Avenue) for the 11 pm show. There were six of us at a tiny bistro table in the second row from the stage, plus lots of other high school prom-goers packed in like sardines around the room. We didn't complain--we were there to see the world-famous Supremes.

I couldn't take my eyes off the Supremes, they were so incredibly glamorous as they sang You Can't Hurry Love and other hits during a one-hour set that included a costume change. (We didn't think to bring a camera; no one knew it was going to be historic!)

After one set and an expensive order of mediocre food from the overpriced menu, the Copa shuffled us out so they could get the next audience seated. A Copa napkin was my only souvenir. By 1 am, we were on our way back to the Bronx in Glenn's station wagon, watching the skyline glitter as he drove.

After graduation, Sis went on to Lehman College, where she and her friends started a new sorority--THE Sorority.

Tuesday's Tip: Discuss Conflicting Info with Relatives

Paula Schwartz

This photo sent shivers up my spine and I had to share why.

Five years ago, I found my maternal grandfather's sister Paula Schwartz listed in the Yad Vashem central database of Holocaust victims, names submitted by relatives or neighbors so that victims would be remembered.

The "testimony" page, below, shows that Paula was the daughter of Herman and Hana (Simonowitz) Schwartz. The person who submitted the testimony in 1996 is Viola Schwartz W____r--Paula's daughter. (See my Schwartz ancestor landing page for more info.)

My newfound cousin from Philly questioned me about Viola W___. Why? Because on cards and photos sent to my grandpa, Paula Schwartz's daughter is named Ibolyka, which is often translated as Violet. I thought we were looking for a survivor named Violet W___, even though the testimony is signed by Viola ___.

My Philly Cuz urged me to rethink the Violet/Viola discrepancy. I went back to the testimony page to see whether any more info had been added since I last looked in 2008. The answer is yes.

Now there's a photo uploaded next to the testimony--the photo I show in this post. You can compare with the two ladies in hats at the center top of my blog's masthead. It's undoubtedly OUR family's Paula Schwartz!

This photo wasn't available online in 2008. And not long afterward, we found this survivor. Sadly, she confirmed that many Schwartz ancestors who remained in Ungvar did not survive the Holocaust. 

Monday Memories of Little Sister

This week, my sister Harriet (named after my paternal grandmother, Henrietta Mahler), would have been 58 years old. We miss her!

She once framed dozens of old family photos to create a wall of "dead people" as a living reminder of our family history. Her favorite perfume was Elizabeth Arden's Blue Grass, because that had been our mother's signature fragrance. Rest in peace, little sis.

Genealogy by the States: McClures, Steiners, and Rineharts in the Buckeye State

Benjamin McClure (1812-1896)

Hubby has many ancestors in the Buckeye State of Ohio! I've been researching his 2d great-grandpa, Benjamin McClure (1812-1896), who is also the subject of my Facebook genealogy experiment. Benjamin was born in Adams County, Ohio, and although he later moved to Indiana, some of his descendants returned to Ohio for farming, carpentry, and other pursuits.

Other key ancestors in Ohio are the Steiners (Jacob S. Steiner, one of hubby's 2d great-granddads, was a long-time resident of Tod, Crawford county, Ohio) and the Rineharts (Joseph W. Rinehart was another of hubby's 2d great-grandpas, also a long-time resident of Tod). More about the Steiners and Rineharts can be found in the ancestor landing page on the tabs below my blog's title.

My next genealogical step on some of these ancestors is to check local courthouses for probate and deed records. This week I contacted the Wabash County Clerk's Office in Indiana to find out whether Benjamin McClure left a will. Guess what? There are 8 pages of estate info in the clerk's office! And for one buck a page, I can have photocopies sent by mail. By this time next week, I hope to know what Benji left and who his heirs were.

* Genealogy by the States is a weekly prompt started by Jim Sanders. Thanks, Jim!

Wisdom Wednesday: Listen to the "Backstory"

One of my favorite podcasts is a series called "Backstory with the American History Guys."

It stars three historians, each an expert on a particular century (18th, 19th, and 20th of course).

Every episode gives me some new insight into how things were in my ancestors' time. The topics range from women's rights and the history of taxation to immigration and concepts of time. The "guys" interview experts about how key cultural, political, technological, and social changes affected America and Americans, both new and old.

That's how I learned that my hubby's ancestors in Wabash no doubt were gathered around the courthouse on the day when its electric lights were first switched on, making the town the first in the nation (possibly the world) to take this step. And it all came about, according to the History Guys, because two fellas from the Wabash Plain Dealer thought this would put the town on the map. And so it has, as you can see from the official seal of Wabash.

I encourage you to check out Backstory's podcasts (on its site or on iTunes) and enjoy!

Genealogy by the States: Maggie Steiner Moves to Tennessee

This is Week 16 of the Genealogy by the States series started by Jim Sanders, and the topic is Tennessee. (Congrats to Jim for being named one of Family Tree's Top 40 blogs!)

The only family connection to Tennessee is through Margaret Mary Steiner (1861-1913), hubby's great-aunt. Born in Nevada, Ohio, to Edward George Steiner and Elizabeth Jane Rinehart, Maggie married Elroy Dayton Post (1858-1929) in September, 1883.

The couple moved several times for Elroy's work, with Union Pacific RR among other employers. Then they settled in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he worked as a sign painter. Maggie died in Knoxville in 1913 and was buried in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, where many in the Steiner family were buried.

Elroy remarried and his second wife, Merida, gave birth to their only child, Margaret, in 1918. Was this daughter named after Elroy's first wife, Maggie Steiner?

NOTE: If you're looking for Climbing My Family Tree by Jennifer--another of Family Tree's top 40 blogs--please click here. Congrats to Jen!

Workday Wednesday: The Family Pitches in for the War Effort

During 1943, my family was doing a lot to fight WWII. Not quite single-handedly, of course, but they were in the service AND in defense industries. For example, my Auntie Dorothy Schwartz, shown above, was a WAC and during 1943, her service training took her to Daytona Beach, FL, Ft. Oglethorpe, GA, Camp Polk, LA, and Ft. Devens, MA. She ended the year in Scotland.

Dorothy's first cousins were in the Army Air Corps, in the Army, and stationed around the country and around the world. Family members visited sons, daughters, and siblings whenever they could. The family regularly bought War Bonds (and those who had stores, including my grandparents Teddy Schwartz and Minnie Farkas, also sold War Bonds to customers). One of my great-aunts was also a "Rosie the Riveter," working at an aircraft factory during the war.

To lighten the mood, the family's newsletter of 1943 doings says that the military members of the family "still have time to gain one of these titles: Corporal Punishment, Major Calamity or General Nuisance."

In 1944, according to family tree newsletters, Sgt. Dorothy Schwartz was temporarily assigned to Oxford, England for a week's training at Oxford U. By 1945, Sgt. Schwartz was in Belgium and she wrote about celebrating V-E Day.

Meanwhile, my father Harold Burk (left) and his brother, Sidney Burk (the taller brother), were in Europe with the U.S. Army. Harold was with the Signal Corps, in a support role behind the lines in the European theater.

Harold and Sidney were in Europe on assignment when their father, Isaac Burk, died suddenly of a heart attack in 1943. They weren't able to return for the funeral, which must have made things even sadder for their mother, Henrietta Mahler Burk.