Comparing Ancestors with 1950 Census Statistics - for Context

When the 1950 US Census is released in April, 2022, I won't just be looking at who and where--I'll be studying all the answers provided by my ancestors and comparing them to national statistics for the period. This puts my ancestors into context. Income is a good example.

National Statistics: Median US Income in 1949

According to the above map, based on results in the 1950 Census, the median income for 1949 reported by respondents to the Census was $2,619.

The map also shows the handful of states where median income was higher than this national average--and the many states where the median income was lower than this national average.

Many of my ancestors lived in New York in 1950, so I expect that if any were asked the supplemental questions about income, they will answer with above-average earnings. My husband's ancestors were in Ohio, which as a state also shows above-average earnings.

Were My Ancestors Above or Below the Median?

Based on my mother's recollections, my father's earnings in 1949 were well above this national median. If I'm lucky, he will have answered the supplemental questions asked of 20% of the US population in 1950, so I can compare with the median figure.

A self-employed travel agent, my father's business was doing very well during the post-war period. In fact, he could barely keep up with demand for train and plane tickets. Then again, his business was based in a luxury hotel across the street from the world-famous Plaza Hotel in New York City. Well-heeled guests sought out his services to arrange itineraries for trips near and far.

Want to read more about the 1950 Census? See the summary of my series on this page.

Census Day Bounced Around, and So Did Some Ancestors

From 1950 Census of Population: Vol. 2 (https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1953/dec/population-vol-02.html)

In 2020, Census Day will be April 1st. This is not April Fool!

But Census Day hasn't always been April 1st. I try to keep this in mind when looking for my ancestors in earlier Census years.

• As shown in the excerpt above, Census Day was originally not a fixed date but taken on the first Monday in August.
• In the mid-19th century, Census Day was changed to June 1.
• In 1910, Census Day became April 15.
• In 1920, Census Day became January 1.
• Only in 1930 was Census Day fixed as April 1, where it remains.

Because my great-grandpa Meyer Mahler died in January of 1910, my great-grandma Tillie Jacobs Mahler was enumerated as a widow on April 15th--a vital clue I needed to find his death cert. If Census Day had been January 1, however, it would have been more difficult for me to narrow down a possible death date for him.

Focus on 1950 Census

As the excerpt indicates, two-thirds of the US population was counted by mid-April in 1950. By month's end, 90% of the population was counted.

However, "unfavorable weather conditions" in some areas delayed enumeration as late as mid-May. Finally, by the end of June, 99% of the US population was counted. I'll be sure to check the enumeration date on each ancestor's record when the 1950 Census is released in April of 2022.

From a broader perspective, the 1950 Census reflected major post-war trends in population shifts. The map above shows that four states experienced population loss. All others increased population--with the greatest growth on the West Coast, plus Florida, Virginia, and Michigan.

As I chart my ancestors' whereabouts in the 1940s to prep for the 1950 release, I need to consider how many might have moved elsewhere after World War II. There are at least a few who went west to California. Dear ancestors, you can run, but you can't hide. I hope!

For more posts about the 1950 US Census, see my summary page here.

Extra Notations and Detailed Answers in 1950 US Census

 Excerpt from 1950
US Census
Enumerators'
Manual

This is my fourth post about understanding the 1950 US Census, to be released in April, 2022. (You can see other posts on my summary page here.)

Whether enumerators for the 1950 US Census actually followed the rules set forth in the instructions, I don't yet know. But if they did, we genealogists will be glad for their extra notations and detailed answers.

Some examples:

• If the enumerator can't get a specific, accurate age from a household respondent, he or she was instructed to "enter an estimate as the last resort, and footnote it as an estimate." Wonder whether my Great-grandma Tillie Jacobs Mahler told the truth about her age? She tended to fudge a year or two in either direction.

• If the enumerator thinks an answer is not truthful, he or she should footnote it and indicate what the truthful answer might be. Wouldn't that be interesting to see on a page with my ancestors? Looking at Great-grandma Tillie, would the enumerator believe she was, say, 98? I can't wait to find out.

• Asking about the respondent's occupation, enumerators are not to accept a general term like "agent" or "clerk" or "engineer" but must ask questions to obtain more specifics, such as "purchasing agent" or "aeronautical engineer." This would help me learn a bit more about ancestors whose work lives I know little about.

• Enumerators were to be specific about the county in which the respondent lived a year before. This will be really valuable to me, because instructions say not to accept merely "New York City" but ask about the specific borough of the city. If my ancestors moved from, say, Brooklyn to the Bronx in 1949-50, this question may reveal the move. I'm talking about you, Great-aunt Nellie Block! 

What Future Genealogists Will Learn from the 2020 US Census

Page 1 of the 2020 Census questionnaire

Attending a presentation by local representatives of the 2020 US Census, I learned that in the year 2092, when the records are publicly released, future genealogists will be able to see some very valuable pieces of information. (You can browse the entire 2020 questionnaire here.)

Page 2 of 2020 Census

One key piece of info is the month, day, and year of birth for each person in the household, to be entered on page 2 of the Census questionnaire.

Future genealogists will be able to look for a birth cert, compare with age shown on other documents, match someone to a marriage license or other vital record, and so on--with more confidence because they will have the complete birth date, not just "age" or birth month and year.

I was surprised but interested to learn that another question (on page 1) is about whether a person in the household (1) owns the residence clear and free of a mortgage, (2) has a mortgage, or (3) is not paying rent. Clues to seeking deeds, taxes, and other records!

2020 Census questions about usual residence
and relationship to head of household

Happily for future genealogists, the 2020 Census asks specific questions about whether each person usually lives in this residence AND about exactly how each person in the household is related to the head of household (Person 1).

Look at the many answer alternatives shown in the excerpt above! 

These two questions will elicit incredibly valuable information for future genealogists. Question #2 will point toward where the person's usual residence is (such as with another relative or in the military). Question #3 will tell, with great precision, how each person is related to the head of the household--clues to filling in gaps in the family tree!

Future genealogists, there may not be many questions on the 2020 Census form, but there will be several top-quality clues to be followed up. Yes, I'm going to answer the Census as fully and completely as possible. You'll be able to find me and my family in 72 years, I promise.

1950 US Census: "Think Like an Enumerator"

1950 US Census manual

Although the release of the 1950 US Census is more than two years away, I'm getting ready now.

My prep for this Census release includes understanding what the enumerators were instructed to do (and not do).

I'm browsing through the Urban & Rural Enumerator's Reference Manual so I can . . . "Think Like an Enumerator." (You can read the manual here.)

Enumerators were told, for example, that if no one was home at time of their visit and that household was expected to be away for some time, talk with a neighbor and record as much detail as possible. Then add the notation: "Information given by a neighbor."

Now, 72 years later, we should take such information with a grain of salt because it was not first-hand. How many neighbors can recite the proper age or birth year for anyone or everyone in my household? None. Same holds true for 1950, even though neighbors might have been living near each other for many years. But I'm happy that the Census will contain such notations to alert us to be cautious in accepting the information as factual.

Enumerator instructions on p. 10 of 1950 Census manual

Also I will be checking the pages before and after my ancestor's enumeration for members of the FAN club!

Be aware that 1950 Census enumerators were instructed to visit residences in a particular order and to ask neighbors where houses were located, so they wouldn't miss any. Read more on the U.S. National Archives blog here.

P.S.: I'm putting all of my 1950 Census blog posts into one summary page, with header found at top of my blog. The direct link is here. Thank you for reading!

Two Bracelets, Two Family Heirlooms

Daisy and Dorothy Schwartz, mid-1920s

Shown here in one of my favorite photos is Mom (Daisy Schwartz Burk, 1919-1981) and her twin sister (Dorothy Schwartz, 1919-2001), with matching Buster Brown haircuts and lacy dropped-waist dresses.

Look very carefully at the arm of the smiling twin on the right, and you can see a dainty pearl bracelet dangling from her wrist. No doubt both girls had identical bracelets, but only Mom's survives.

It's a tiny heirloom (see the ruler to see how tiny) that will be shared with Mom's descendants, along with the treasured studio photo of the twins.

Worn by Daisy Schwartz Burk

The second bracelet heirloom is this one from the late 1950s, a piece of Mom's costume jewelry with photos on both sides--photos of her twin daughters (Sis and me).

As with the pearl bracelet, this charm bracelet will be shared with Mom's descendants, along with memories of her and her twin sister, my Auntie Dorothy.

One of my 2020 goals is to finish a booklet about Daisy and Dorothy, with lots of photos to bring them alive for future generations who never had the opportunity to know them.

"Favorite photo" is this week's #52Ancestors prompt.

Who We Are and How We're Related

List of Larimer ancestors written by Brice Larimer McClure

"I am Brice McClure, a son of Margaret Larimer McClure and Wm. McClure," begins the scrap of family history above. It was written by my husband's maternal grandfather (Brice Larimer McClure, 1878-1970) in the first half of the twentieth century.

The family treasures this scrap of paper in Brice's handwriting, listing what he was told about his Larimer family's history. It also demonstrates Brice's pride in his family's background and his hope that these ancestors would be remembered for generations to come.

Brice set a wonderful example: He told descendants (1) exactly who he was and (2) exactly how he was related to his ancestors.

I've been putting my name and the date on every family history booklet I write. Now I realize that's not enough information about me.

When I wrote my most recent booklet about my late father-in-law's musical life, I added a longer note to the title page:

"Written by Marian Burk Wood, daughter-in-law of Edgar James Wood, in December, 2019."

In a decade or two, when some descendant pulls this dusty booklet off the shelf, he or she will see both my name and my relationship to this ancestor.

Although I could add even more info to explain how I fit into the family, I want to keep things simple and leave the spotlight on the featured ancestor in my booklet.

Now future generations will at least know my name, my relationship to the ancestor I'm writing about, and when I prepared the booklet.

Fresh Start: New York's Cafe Monopol

The entrepreneurial Roth family, cousins to my Hungarian-born great-grandpa Moritz Farkas, sought a fresh start after leaving Hungary for opportunities in New York City at the turn of the 20th century.

Cafe Monopol on Second Avenue in NYC

Peter Roth (1872-1956) and his brother-in-law Peter Stern, with two other partners, owned and operated the Viennese-style restaurant Cafe Monopol at 145 Second Avenue in Manhattan.
They paid $5 to organize as a corporation in 1913 (shown at left).

Peter and his wife had put in $10,000 in funding during the previous year, according to incorporation documents. The incorporation process probably formalized family shares in the restaurant corporation.

Peter had headed the Cafe Monopol since at least 1910. That's the year he told the US Census he was the "keeper" of this restaurant, which was also listed in the 1910 New York city directory. He learned the business from the ground up, listing "waiter" as his occupation in the 1900 Census (when he lived only a few blocks from his future business).

I just found an ad for Cafe Monopol on November 21, 1908, saying "Hungarian music, Vienna Restaurant" at the 2d Avenue address. And other early ads in New York Evening Telegram for the Cafe Monopol said it featured "a concert every evening." The place must have been hopping at dinnertime!

A Cafe Monopol in Berlin and Another in New York

Reading the 2018 book, A Rich Brew: How Cafes Created Modern Jewish Culture by Shachar M. Pinsker, I was pleased to find the Roths' Cafe Monopol in New York briefly mentioned (p. 228). Much more space was devoted to the far better-known Cafe Monopol in Berlin, then a gathering place for Zionists (see pages 167+ of the book). Surely my Roth ancestors from Hungary would have been aware of the Berlin cafe's fame when naming their New York cafe.

In New York City, the entire Second Avenue neighborhood around Cafe Monopol was home to a rich brew of Jewish culture, including the Yiddish Art Theatre and the National Theatre. In the 1940s, a cousin of my Roth and Farkas ancestors acted in New York's Yiddish theater for a time!

A Star's Fresh Start at the Cafe Monopol

I just found out that a really big star got her fresh start at the Cafe Monopol more than a century ago.

Sonya Kalish, the star's original name, was a baby when her family settled in Hartford, CT after leaving Tulchin, Ukraine. She married Louis Tuck and was known as Sophie Tuck.

But Sophie was eager to sing, and so she took herself off to New York City to break into show business. Her money was running out when she approached the proprietor of Cafe Monopol and offered to (literally) sing for her supper.

When he asked her name, she made up a variation of her married name on the spot: Sophie Tucker. 

That's how Sonya Kalish became Sophie Tucker ("The last of the red-hot mamas"), and got a fresh start at the Cafe Monopol on Second Avenue in New York City!

(My sources: Sophie's biography, "Some of These Days," and the Museum of the City of New York.)

--

Many thanks to Amy Johnson Crow for this first #52Ancestors prompt of 2020.

Happy Family History New Year 2020

This pretty postal card was sent to my husband's uncle more than a century ago.

Let me wish you and your loved ones a very happy and healthy new year! It's a perfect time of year to share your own memories of holiday traditions as part of family history. (Actually, it's always the right time to share family history.)

I've reached a new blogging milestone: Never have I posted more entries than in 2019. Looking forward to more blogging in 2020, including Amy Johnson Crow's new #52Ancestors prompts.

Thank YOU to My Ancestors and Cousins

Ancestor collage - his & her family tree

In this last #52Ancestors post of 2019, I want to say a big thank YOU to my ancestors and their descendants.

Dear ancestors, if not for your courage, sacrifices, hopes, and dreams, I would not be here. I would not be discovering and saving your stories for future generations to know.

I've come to deeply appreciate the heritage you bequeathed to me, not to mention the strength and determination you showed in the lives you led.

It is my privilege and pleasure to get to know more about you, dear ancestors, through ongoing genealogical research. And to share your history with descendants near and far!

Dear cousins, my life has been truly enriched by being in touch with each and every one of you. Thank you so much!

To all of YOU, ancestors and descendants, I dedicate this post with sincere and heartfelt gratitude.

--

Amy Johnson Crow, thank you for another fun and rewarding year of #52Ancestors prompts. She just announced the entire year of 2020 prompts!

Holiday Wishes from Last Century

One hundred years ago, my husband's uncles in Cleveland, Ohio received these delightful Christmas postal cards from relatives.

Wishing you and yours a very happy holiday season!

What Did Ancestors Say in 1950 US Census?

Question #33 on 1950 Census

I vividly remember the morning of April 2, 2012, when the 1940 US Census was released to the public. Although volunteers were racing to index the names as quickly as possible, no name search was available for several weeks.

To start, the only way to find ancestors in 1940 records was by address. Specifically, by scrolling through page by page of Census records in various Enumeration Districts (EDs). It was slow but also exciting when I finally found the handwritten entries for ancestors in my tree and my husband's tree!

The 1950 Census has lots of questions that will fill in gaps in genealogy for us all. No wonder I can hardly wait for the release of these records in April of 2022. Here are a few specifics I'm really curious about.

What About Women in the Military?

Excerpt from 1950 Enumerator Instructions

I'll be interested to see how the enumerator handled my aunt's WWII military service (she was a WAC). As shown at top, question #33 indicates that males over age 14 are to be asked about their military service. At left, instructions to enumerators reiterates that "each male 14 years old and over" be asked about military service.

I guess the Census officials never heard of WACs, WAVES, or WASPs. Not to mention SPARs, women Marines, female military nurses, and . . . and . . . more than 300,000 women who were actively serving in WWII.

Will there be an answer shown on my aunt's line in the Census? Knowing her pride in having served, she would certainly want to answer. She would even insist on answering! But will the enumerator have put a check mark in one of the boxes for her line? That's a mystery until April of 2022.



How Much Money Did They Make?

Question #31 on 1950 Census

My mother used to say that 1950 was a peak year for my father's income as a self-employed travel agent. She named a dollar figure too.

Well, the 1950 Census asks how much money each person earned in 1949. See the excerpt from the Census questionnaire here.

I can't wait to see what the enumerator was told about how much Dad earned "in his own business," as the question is phrased. BTW, enumerators were instructed to write $10,000+ if the income was above 10 grand per year. That was a good deal of money back in the day!

And I'll see how much money other relatives made during 1949, a year that was, I now understand, not a time of growth but actually a recessionary period. (Genealogy has made me intensely interested in the historical context of my ancestors!)

Prepping for 1950: Addresses and Priorities

Steve Morse and Joel Weintraub have written a primer on prepping for the 1950 Census release, following the same general guidelines as for the 1940 Census. Also watch their video here.

If you are lucky enough to know the exact street address of an ancestor in 1950, you can easily find the Enumeration District via Morse's One-Step Page. If you don't know the address, Morse recommends checking old city directories, family address books, and other sources. Then use his one-step links to get the ED.

Until the 1950 Census is indexed (I bet it will be done faster than in 2012), my plan is to prioritize who to find first. I'll create a simple list of people and the address where I think or know each is likely to be found.

And of course, I'll use the Census to examine or update the FAN club--friends, associates, neighbors--of my ancestors. This is a great opportunity to look more closely at "family friends" who may turn out to be cousins or closer, in reality.

Back to the future in 2022!

P.S.: I'm gathering all my 1950 US Census posts into one summary page, shown at top of this blog header. Here's a direct link.

Window into Postwar America: 1950 US Census

It's not even 2020, and I can barely contain my excitement for April of 2022. That's when the 1950 U.S. Census will be released--an important window into the demographics of postwar America.

And of course a really important source of information for genealogists!

This is the first Census that will show my mother and father together as a married couple. Three of my four grandparents were still alive, and one of my great-grandparents. Not to mention a plethora of aunts, uncles, cousins and possible cousins that I'll be able to research in greater depth.

What Questions Were Asked?

The 1950 census form was highly detailed. Everyone in the household was listed by name and relationship to head of household. Race, sex, marital status, age, where born, whether naturalized. If I don't already have someone's naturalization papers, this will be a clue to go looking!

Below, a set of questions asked of people aged 14 and older. Working? Looking for Work? Number of hours worked? Type of work and industry? Private worker, government worker, or without pay on family farm/biz?

For all people at each address, there were lots of questions about "where" -- where were they living a year ago, by county and state or foreign country. And what country were his/her mom and dad born in?! A double-check on birthplaces--fabulous clues! Where living a year ago--I'll be able to look for city directories in those places.

Also asked were detailed questions about income and military service--with check boxes to indicate a person's service in WWI, WWII, or another military action. This will give me more clues to follow up for my family's military service.

All About the Census, 1790-2000

Download free from this link 

As part of my research for a new presentation, I downloaded the U.S. government's very useful free booklet explaining all the questions asked in each Census through 2000.

The booklet, Measuring America: The Decennial Censuses from 1790 to 2000, can be downloaded for free in pdf format from this link.

Importantly, this booklet shows the questions/forms plus the instructions given to enumerators for each census.

Now I know why some of my ancestors were listed specifically as "cloakmakers" in the 1900 Census, for instance (see excerpt from enumeration instructions, below). Is it any wonder I'm so excited about the 1950 Census?

Excerpt from 1900 enumerators' instructions

PS: I'm gathering all my 1950 Census posts into a single summary page, shown on the header at top of this blog. You can visit the page via this link.

Looking Back on 2019 and Ahead to 2020

It's time for a look back at this year's genealogical progress and a look ahead at my genealogical FUTURE (#52Ancestors style).

At the start of 2019, my genealogy goals were to connect with more cousins, network with other family-history researchers, continue my genealogy education, develop additional presentations, follow up on DNA clues to ancestors, and write new family-history booklets.

So how much genealogical progress have I made this year? A lot, even as I look ahead to the FUTURE:

• Through a DNA match, I connected with a paternal 2d cousin in Canada and shared 1940s photos of his grandfather! At least eight other solid DNA matches haven't responded to my outreach efforts, but I'll try again soon (FUTURE). I've also asked several more cousins to consider testing...and I hope they will agree. It's not an easy sell these days, with people concerned about privacy and what happens to their DNA results. 

• Presenting lectures at the inaugural Family Tree Live in London gave me a chance to meet really lovely genealogy folks I previously knew only through social media. I came home with great tips about UK genealogy research, wonderful memories of a rewarding conference, and new genie friends. 

• Participating in Twitter chats like #AncestryHour (2 pm EST on Tuesdays) and #GenChat (10 pm EST on alternate Fridays) has been fun as well as highly educational. I'm grateful for the opportunity to serve as a "guest expert" during a #GenChat in 2020 (FUTURE)! 

• "Attending" the virtual conference of the Virtual Genealogical Association in November triggered lots of new ideas. I've also found their webinars both practical and informative (with great handouts). I'm excited about presenting a webinar for the VGA in November, 2020 (FUTURE)!

• I created or heavily revised several presentations, including a new "intermediate" talk on cousin bait, a revised "all levels" talk on curating family-history materials, and a new "beginners" talk on US/state censuses (with a 1950 preview). In addition, I'm starting to develop a talk about Northeastern ancestors catching Ohio Fever (FUTURE) and a full talk about prepping for the 1950 Census. My 2020 speaking schedule has several programs booked, with return dates held for other groups (FUTURE).

• Through more than 135 blog posts, I wrote about ancestors and discussed new-to-me resources and methodologies. Again in 2019, I participated in Amy Johnson Crow's #52Ancestors genealogy prompt challenge, and was truly honored that she highlighted several of my posts in her recap emails. Blogging is fun, a first draft of family history, and excellent cousin bait. More blogging is in my FUTURE!

Not originally planned but done! I completed a booklet about three of my husband's ancestors (Denning, Larimer, McClure) who, caught up in Ohio Fever, became pioneers on the frontier along the Ohio River. This booklet began as a series of blog posts--a rough draft of family history that I  enhanced with more historical context and personal specifics of each ancestor's life.

Not originally planned but done! I also finished an 11-page illustrated booklet about the musical life of my late Dad-in-law, Edgar James Wood. It's going to descendants, along with his "fake book" of musical standards. I wrote the story behind his learning to play piano, playing with college jazz bands in the Roaring Twenties, and playing nights and weekends as a professional musician when his day job was insurance adjustor.

Planned but not done! For the past year, I've been slowly gathering photos, documents, and info to write a booklet about my Mom (Daisy Schwartz Burk) and her twin sister (Dorothy Helen Schwartz). My Sis says she will do this with me in 2020. Thanks, Sis, I really appreciate the help in the FUTURE.

Lots to look forward to in 2020!

Now there's only one more prompt to go in Amy Johnson Crow's #52Ancestors series for 2019.

Writing Ed's Musical Family History

Page 2 of illustrations to accompany "Music in the Life of Edgar James Wood"

In the previous episode of "obsessed family historian," I said I was going to write a brief biographical booklet introducing the sheet music fake book created by my late father-in-law, Edgar James Wood (1903-1986).

Brief? Good grief. My original estimate was a couple of pages. Once I got going, I found more and more to say and show.

To create a narrative about Ed's musical life, as an intro to the fake book being given to his grandchildren this holiday season, here's what I did, step by step.

Start with the Research

What do I know about Ed and his piano-playing? I have a great deal of info on his life. Some of the sources I consulted included:

• My paper files on Ed (including his copyright documents, passports, etc.)
• My trees on Ancestry and MyHeritage (to check what happened when and locate passenger lists and other documents) 
• A new Google search for his songs, which turned up published copyright notices like the one above!
• My digitized photos of Ed's life (ranging from his Roaring Twenties period to the year before he died)
• My archival boxes, which held treasures such as Ed's photo album from his 1926 European tour with the Dick Bowers Band and Ed's album of negatives (with captions!!) from his 1928 European tour, again crossing the Atlantic on Cunard's R.M.S. Berengaria.
• Interviews with Ed conducted by my husband in the mid-1980s and later transcribed (easy to search for key words).

I typed out a few notes from these sources, showed them to my husband to get his recollections and any corrections. Then I arranged my notes in rough chronological order.

Create a Time Line


Next, before I began to write, I put together a simple two-column table of years on the left and events on the right. This timeline kept me on track and forced me to expand my research and add notes when I had little or nothing for a particular period.

Also, the time line revealed a conflict between what Ed remembered when interviewed in 1984/5 and what Ed's passenger lists revealed from my research. How did I resolve this conflict? I opened one of the archival boxes where I store Ed's photo albums. There, in his own handwriting, were captions dated 1926 for the trip I was referencing. It's not surprising that Ed was a year off when trying to recall events from nearly 60 years earlier, is it?

Write and Insert Subheads

I wanted to tell Ed's musical story chronologically, a sneaky way of spoon-feeding some of his family's history. But too much text can be daunting. To break up the pages, I inserted subheads that guide the reader through each stage of the story--and lead to the eventual reason for this musical bio, Ed's fake book:

• Playing [piano] at home and at school
• Playing at college
• Playing all summer
• Playing after college
• Playing for Gershwin
• Playing for his wife and his family
• Playing from the fake book

Include Lots of Illustrations

Younger relatives, in particular, always enjoy illustrations. I had some they'd never seen! I scanned Ed's photo albums from the 1920s to show him with the band on the Lido in Venice, in Paris, on board the S.S. Rotterdam and the R.M.S. Berengaria.

I also included his passport, some news clippings about his musical exploits, and copyright publications. I arranged the illustrations with captions as shown in the sample page at top. Page one is a title page with a large, full-color photo of Ed playing piano for family caroling on Christmas, 1985. These pages all include a touch of color, and I'll have them color-laser-printed at the local copy shop, to catch the eye of younger descendants.

Present in an Easy-to-Keep Format

All pages (bio and sheet music) will be three-hole punched and inserted into a small loose-leaf binder, ready to be saved for posterity. Of course I'll use my trusty label-maker to add the title "The Musical Life of Edgar James Wood" on the front and "Ed Wood's Fake Book" on the spine. The binder is easy to flip through and easy to store on a bookshelf.

In all, the brief booklet I envisioned as a couple of pages turned out to be eleven pages: four pages of text, two pages of time line, and five pages of illustrations. But because I did this little by little over the course of a couple of weeks, it was fairly easy and very satisfying.

I can't wait for the family to open their fake books this holiday season and peek into their ancestor's musical life!

Edgar Wood's Untraditional Fake Book

Edgar J. Wood's untraditional fake book--created from scratch!

My late dad-in-law Edgar James Wood (1903-1986) played piano to pay for his college education at Tufts.

He also played piano with college jazz bands to pay for summer trips to/from Europe during the Roaring Twenties.

Impressing Gershwin

After leaving college one course short of graduation, Ed tried to break through as a professional musician in New York City.

However, he felt like a little fish in a big musical pond, he told his son 50 years later. So he returned home to Cleveland, Ohio, with the hope of being a bigger fish in a smaller musical pond.

In 1934, Ed won a prestigious songwriting contest judged by George Gershwin. The newspaper headline read: "Gershwin Winner Plays for Meals." Even though he was talented, Ed simply couldn't make a living playing piano during the Depression.

Fortunately, Ed landed a job as an insurance adjustor, and stayed with the same company for 30 years. During that time, he married, had a family, and still got to play piano professionally on weekends and holidays. He liked the extra income--and he really loved to play.

An Untraditional Fake Book

Performing with bands at dances, weddings, bar mitzvahs, and other social events, Ed needed a wide-ranging repertoire. That's where his untraditional fake book comes in. ("Fake" because even if the musicians didn't know the song very well, they could fake it by following the basic melody--and fake because the real composers didn't get royalties on these non-officially-published versions.)

Edgar J. Wood (1903-1986) playing Christmas
carols on his Steinway Baby Grand Piano

Fifty years ago, Ed wrote out the musical notes by hand and typed in lyrics for dozens of old-time standards like The Sidewalks of New York, Deep in My Heart, and Silent Night. 

Today, commercial fake books are widely available--but back then, Ed chose the unconventional route of creating his own from scratch. He assembled all the songs he wanted into a loose-leaf binder to take when playing for an audience.

Flipping through the fake book, Ed could quickly read the notes and chords (and cue the guitarist or bassist) for nearly any song the band planned to play or was asked to play. Each song was on one side of the page, for his convenience, with chord changes noted here and there.

Sharing the Story Along with the Heirloom

The fake book has been in the family for a long time, but now it's about to have a new home. The original is being gifted to one of his grandchildren, along with a booklet telling the story of Ed's musical career (with photos, of course). I've scanned every page and created a replica fake book for other descendants to save, complete with the story of Ed's musical training and career.

Thanks to Amy Johnson Crow for this week's #52Ancestors prompt of "Tradition." Only two more prompts left in this year's challenge!

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Surname Word-Cloud

Randy Seaver's challenge this week is to make a Surname Christmas Tree. A fun idea--one that I adapted for my own genealogical situation.

There are more than 80 surnames in my Jewish family tree. So I made a word-cloud in the shape of a heart rather than a tree.

Following Randy's how-to explanation, I first listed the names in a Word document and then sorted alphabetically, on the theory that a word-cloud generator would randomly assign names to different places in the shape.

Next, I selected one of the free word-cloud generation sites, chose the color theme, chose the shape (a heart, loosely interpreted as you can see), and set the gap between names at 2 spaces.

Then I uploaded my names, looked at the result, and played with a few of the settings (the font, for instance) until I liked the way the whole thing looked.

Finally, I downloaded the word-cloud as a .jpg and here it is!

Thanks, Randy, for this excellent holiday idea.

P.S.: I'm also listing all the surnames here as cousin bait:

ADELMAN

ASH

BARTH

BERGER

BERK

BERKMAN

BIRK

BLAUMAN

BLOCK

BOURSTEIN

BROWNSTEIN

BURK

BURKE

CAPLAN

CASSON

CHAZAN

DIAMOND

EMERMAN

ETSCHEL

EZRATI

FARBER

FARKAS

FESTINGER

GAFFIN

GARFIELD

GELBMAN

GENNIS

GOLDBERG

GOLDMAN

GOODFRIEND

GROSSMAN

GUTFRIED

HARRIS

HARTFIELD

HORWICH

JACOBS

KATZ

KLEIN

KOBLER

KRAUS

KUBA

KUNSTLER

LANG

LEBOWITZ

LETHERMAN

LEVINE

LEVY

LIPSON

LURIA

MAHLER

MANDEL

MANDEL

MARKELL

MARKS

MITAV

PITLER

POMPIONSKY

RETHY

RIGOROFSKY

ROSEN

ROTH

SALKOWITZ

SCHWARTZ

SEGAL

SHUHAM

SIMON

SIMONOWITZ

SMITH

SNYDERMAN

SOLOMON

STEINBERGER

STERN

VINOKUR

VOLK

WAJMAN

WALDMAN

WEIMAN

WEISS

WHITELAW

WIRTSCHAFTER

WOLF

ZUDECK 

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Artsy-Craftsy Marian Jane McClure Wood

Ceramic sculptures by Marian Jane McClure Wood, 1950s

Aren't these lively little creatures? They were all sculpted by my late mom-in-law, Marian Jane McClure Wood (1909-1983), the beloved only daughter of Brice Larimer McClure (1878-1970) and Floyda Mabel Steiner McClure (1878-1948). Marian married my dad-in-law Edgar James Wood (1903-1986) in 1935.

When her children were in high school, Marian began studying ceramic art with a world-famous sculptor, Edris Eckhardt, who--like Marian--was born and raised in Cleveland. Edris was in the vanguard of glass sculpture, inventing new processes and making a name with her innovative techniques.

My mom-in-law found joy and satisfaction in learning from Edris how to depict the animal world through careful crafting. She studied proportions and anatomy, trying different sizes, shapes, and colors to create lifelike ceramic animals with a touch of personality.

Marian was so serious about her ceramic art that her husband and father build a kiln in the basement of the Wood family home in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. They had to install special wiring to operate the kiln. This enabled Marian to fire pieces at home, at her convenience.

To share the story of these sculptures with descendants, I've written a brief booklet liberally illustrated with photos of Marian's sculptures. Each of Marian's great-grandchildren will inherit one of these sculptures, along with the story, at some future time.

My goal is to write a page or two about every family heirloom, so the next generation understands why these items have been so treasured. This way, they'll inherit the provenance and the backstory along with the heirloom itself.

Thanks to Amy Johnson Crow for this week's #52Ancestors prompt of "craft."

Remembering the Twins' Centenary

Dorothy and Daisy Schwartz, circa 1921

One hundred years ago today, my mother and her twin sister were born, at home, at 651 Fox Street in the South Bronx, New York. My aunt Dorothy Schwartz (1919-2001) was older than my Mom, Daisy Schwartz Burk (1919-1981), by four minutes.

Their birth on December 4th was exactly six months after the U.S. Senate passed the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, granting women the right to vote--a right my mother and her sister exercised regularly once they were old enough to go to the polls. 

1920 Census for 651 Fox St., Bronx, NY - Schwartz family

When the 1920 Census was taken in their neighborhood, as of January 1st but actually enumerated on January 15th, the twins were listed as 0/12 years old (see above excerpt from Census).

Thinking of these beloved family members and missing them, still, on the 100th anniversary of their birth. I've been collecting photos, documents, and memories for a booklet about the twins--a project I'll complete and give to relatives in 2020. I want to tell their stories so future generations have a sense of who they were and what they did!

Chasing the Elusive Nellie Block

Great Aunt Nellie Block's residence in 1950

Nellie Block (?-1950) was the oldest sister of my paternal grandfather Isaac Burk (1882-1943).

I've been chasing her backstory for a long time. Thanks to records I found from 1904, 1905, 1910, and 1950, I know a bit about Nellie. Now I thought I would get some good clues from her death certificate.

At the time of her death, my great aunt was living in this tenement in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn, New York. I searched the NYC Municipal Archives tax photos to see what her building looked like then, and it looks very much the same today.

Unfortunately, this was the most concrete piece of evidence I gleaned from Nellie's death cert.

Ordering Nellie's Death Certificate

Technically, only relatives can see a New York City death certificate from 1950. I therefore explained on the order form that I am Nellie's grand-niece, and included what I know about her. I sent $15 and a self-addressed, stamped envelope (an SASE, remember?).

After waiting six weeks, I got back a note asking for additional info: date of birth, place of birth, name of funeral home, name of cemetery. In other words, I had to tell the NYC Municipal Archives details that would prove I was her great niece--details that would, of course, be on her death cert.

Luckily, I knew enough about her that I was able to convince authorities to send me her death cert after another wait of six weeks. The cert arrived exactly four months after my original request. I ripped it open as soon as it arrived...hoping to learn some new news. I was encouraged to see that the informant was one of her younger brothers, Meyer Berg (1883-1981). Yes!

New News About Nellie 

Meyer told authorities that his sister Nellie was widowed. What? This was news to me. (But I have some ideas I can follow up...)

Nellie's occupation was "house wife." She worked in the fur trade when she first arrived, according to Census records. That was long before Social Security, so I'm not surprised she had no Social Security number. How was she making ends meet so many years later?

Nellie was born in Russia* and was still a citizen of Russia at the time of her death. Supposedly, she was living in New York City for 60 years, as you can see in this excerpt from the cert.

So no naturalization papers to find, no Social Security application to request. Another issue: I doubt she was in America as early as 1890.

The best guess, from info on Census records, is that she arrived between 1893 and 1899. She was the first of her siblings to arrive in North America, based on what I've found out about her brothers and sister.

This early arrival would, in my mind, lend credence to the idea of her being married already when she arrived in New York City. So far, I haven't been able to find her name on a passenger list for either Castle Garden or Ellis Island. Possibly she came through Canada, which is where two of her brothers arrived. I'll have to explore further.

Confusion Instead of Clues

According to Nellie's brother, the informant on this cert, her father was "Sholam Block" and her mother was "Norma Block." I definitely recognize these first names.

However, if Nellie was widowed after being married to a man named BLOCK, why would her parents be shown with the surname of BLOCK?

Or was BLOCK her maiden name, a sound-alike for the surnames used by her siblings--Burk/Berg/Birk/Burke? Why would she be using her maiden name if she was widowed? No wonder I'm confused.

Nellie's brother estimated her age as 85, and that's the age shown on her gravestone. He supplied NO birth date. The physician attending her death, however, estimated her age as 87. Yet Nellie herself claimed to be far younger than that. In the 1905 NY Census, she said she was 27 years old. In the 1910 US Census, she said she was 31 years old. That would mean she was in her 70s when she died in 1950.

Based on Nellie's own statements, her estimated birth year would be 1878 or 1879. If I believe her brother, Nellie's birth year was 1865 (making her 18 years his senior). If I believe the attending physician at Kings County Hospital, her birth year was 1863.

Since Nellie's youngest sibling was born in 1891, and the oldest sibling I can document was born in 1877, I hesitate to fix her birth year as early as 1863-5. Even knowing that ladies often say they are younger than they really are, it seems more reasonable to guesstimate Nellie's birth year as being in the 1870s.

To be continued as I continue my research!

*Actually, she was born in what is now Lithuania, but was then part of Russia.

Happy Thanksgiving - Hubby's 5 Mayflower Ancestors

Penny postal card sent to Wallis W. Wood, circa 1910

Happy Thanksgiving!

As I do every year, I'm honoring the memory of my husband's five Mayflower ancestors. Thank you to cousin Larry, the family genealogist, for uncovering these connections to the Puritans.

• Francis Cooke 
• Degory Priest
• Isaac Allerton
• Mary Norris Allerton
• Mary Allerton

Young Mary Allerton later married Thomas Cushman of the Fortune. She was the last of the original Mayflower passengers to die, on November 28, 1699, exactly 320 years ago.

Steal My Family Photos--Please

Woodcut of hubby's ancestor, "stolen" by 13 other people for their family trees!

Dear cousins and possible cousins:

"Steal my family photos--please!"

And post them on your family trees so I can connect with you. Cousin bait!

Family photo of Tillie Rose Jacobs Mahler, "stolen" by others for their family trees!

If you save my publicly-posted family photos to your tree (whether it's hubby's 2d great-grandpa Benjamin McClure or my great-grandma Tillie Rose Jacobs Mahler), I can click on your profile photo, see whether we are a DNA match, look at your tree, and find out whether (and how) we're related.

Sure, some people who are not related have mistakenly claimed my photos of dead ancestors for their trees. Either I'll send a gentle private message questioning the connection or I'll post a politely-worded public comment on the photo on that tree.

You don't need my permission to "steal" a publicly-posted photo for your tree. And I don't expect you to ask permission.*

Please, just go ahead and steal my family photos . . . and lead me to our cousin connection!

This week's #52Ancestors prompt is "Thief."

*John Tew recently wrote that while he agrees with me, he also would like those who "borrow" his photos to give credit to his grandmother who so carefully and thoughtfully preserved these photos for future generations to enjoy. A lovely idea...and I do hope some of his distant relatives will do that. I'm just happy anyone saves any of my photos so I can follow the bread crumbs and find our cousin connection.

#CousinBait #Genealogy #FamilyHistory