Adventures in genealogy . . . learning new methodology, finding out about ancestors, and connecting with cousins! On Twitter as @MarianBWood, on Mastodon as @MarianBWood@genealysis.social
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Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Wordless Wednesday: Grandma Climbs a Tree
My maternal grandma, Hermina Farkas Schwartz, had this photo in one of her (sparsely-filled) photo books. She had come to New York City in her teens, but tried to escape the heat every summer with a week or two upstate. My guess is that's where this photo was taken, right around the time of her marriage to Theodore (Tivador) Schwartz. See their wedding photo at top right of the blog's masthead!
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Sentimental Sunday: Remembering "Little" Sister
My younger sister Harriet was named for Henrietta Mahler Burk, our paternal grandma.
Here's Harriet's grade-school graduation photo, freckles and all. Thinking of her on the eve of her birthday...tomorrow she would have been 57. RIP.
Here's Harriet's grade-school graduation photo, freckles and all. Thinking of her on the eve of her birthday...tomorrow she would have been 57. RIP.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Wordless Wednesday (almost): Identifying the Twins
Most of the time, my mother (Daisy Schwartz Burk) didn't bother to mark photos to identify which of her twin daughters was which, since she could tell us apart. Luckily there are a few photos where we're identified.
Here, I'm on the left and my sis is on the right. We're sitting on the uncomfortable empire-style couch in the Bronx apartment of our Grandma, Daisy's mother, Hermina Farkas Schwartz.
Grandma had long hair rolled into a bun, pinned at the back of her neck. I believe she crocheted the antimaccassar shown here. (Don't see those any more, huh?!)
Here, I'm on the left and my sis is on the right. We're sitting on the uncomfortable empire-style couch in the Bronx apartment of our Grandma, Daisy's mother, Hermina Farkas Schwartz.
Grandma had long hair rolled into a bun, pinned at the back of her neck. I believe she crocheted the antimaccassar shown here. (Don't see those any more, huh?!)
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Surname Saturday: Birk or Birck from Lithuania (later: Burk)
Isaac Burk, my grandfather, was a carpenter/machinist who left Lithuania to live and work first in Canada and then in New York. According to his petition for naturalization, his original name was Itzchok Birck but I've also seen it listed as Birk or Berk on some documents. His declaration of intention (1939) included the above photo and signature. The two witnesses listed on Isaac's 1942 petition for naturalization were Ida Mahler Volk, his sister-in-law, and Ida's husband Louis Volk.
Exactly when and where Isaac was born is a mystery. He listed his birth date on the naturalization documents as June 5, 1881, but he told the WWI draft board that he was born on April 10, 1881 and he told the WWII draft board that he was born on June 5, 1882. On his marriage record, Isaac lists his father as Elias Burk and his mother as Necke Burk--but both names have been written over with some corrections, so the exact spelling isn't known.
When Isaac entered the United States in May 1904, he said his last permanent residence had been Gerst. My guess is this was a mangled version of Gorsk, known in Lithuanian as Gargzdai. This is 11 miles east of the Baltic port of Klaipeda, Lithuania. Before World War I, Gorsk was in Russia, Kovno province, Telsiai district.
Isaac and his wife Henrietta Mahler went back and forth between New York City (where they were married in 1906) and Montreal until about 1915, when they settled in the Bronx to raise their four children: Mildred, Harold (my Dad!), Miriam, and Sidney.
PS: I found Isaac and Henrietta in the 1940 Census, right where they should have been: 3044 Valentine Avenue in the Bronx. Both of their sons, Harold (age 30) and Sidney (age 25), were living with them. Isaac's occupation was "manufacturer, dress forms" and son Harold's occupation was "clerk, baggage room." Now here's an interesting detail: Isaac's 1939 income had been ZERO but Harold's had been $1,000 and Sidney's had been $600. I have a suspicion that when Harold and Sidney went into the Army for WWII, they had their pay sent home to Isaac and Henrietta, who had no other income that I know of.
Exactly when and where Isaac was born is a mystery. He listed his birth date on the naturalization documents as June 5, 1881, but he told the WWI draft board that he was born on April 10, 1881 and he told the WWII draft board that he was born on June 5, 1882. On his marriage record, Isaac lists his father as Elias Burk and his mother as Necke Burk--but both names have been written over with some corrections, so the exact spelling isn't known.
When Isaac entered the United States in May 1904, he said his last permanent residence had been Gerst. My guess is this was a mangled version of Gorsk, known in Lithuanian as Gargzdai. This is 11 miles east of the Baltic port of Klaipeda, Lithuania. Before World War I, Gorsk was in Russia, Kovno province, Telsiai district.
Isaac and his wife Henrietta Mahler went back and forth between New York City (where they were married in 1906) and Montreal until about 1915, when they settled in the Bronx to raise their four children: Mildred, Harold (my Dad!), Miriam, and Sidney.
PS: I found Isaac and Henrietta in the 1940 Census, right where they should have been: 3044 Valentine Avenue in the Bronx. Both of their sons, Harold (age 30) and Sidney (age 25), were living with them. Isaac's occupation was "manufacturer, dress forms" and son Harold's occupation was "clerk, baggage room." Now here's an interesting detail: Isaac's 1939 income had been ZERO but Harold's had been $1,000 and Sidney's had been $600. I have a suspicion that when Harold and Sidney went into the Army for WWII, they had their pay sent home to Isaac and Henrietta, who had no other income that I know of.
2022 update: Isaac was no longer alive for 1950 US Census but Henrietta, his widow, was alive and living with one of her sons, Sidney, in the Bronx. She died in 1954.
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Sunday's Obituary: Sarah McClure, July 28, 1888
Hubby's g-grandma, Sarah Deming (or Denning) McClure, died on July 28, 1888, at age 76. She had been one of the earliest settlers of Wabash County, Indiana, and was the mother of 13 (according to her husband's obit). Her grave is in Wabash, Indiana's Falls Memorial Gardens. The obituary that appeared in the Wabash Times on August 3, 1888 (at left) was brief and focused on Sarah's religious life:
Mrs. Sarah McClure, wife of Benjamin McClure, died at her home four miles north of this city [Wabash] at an early hour last Saturday, July 28, of a spinal trouble of which she has been ill for several weeks. The funeral services were held at the late home of the deceased on Sunday afternoon at one o’clock and were very largely attended. The services were conducted by her pastor, Rev. Charles Little, who chose for his text the words, “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” which was the text preached from when Mrs. McClure was converted at the age of eleven years. The burial took place at Falls Cemetery.
Mrs. McClure was seventy years old [actually, she was 76] and leaves a husband, three sons and four daughters. She was noted for her devotion to the church and the cause of her Master. She was a firm believer in the Bible, and very fond of reading the good book. Consistent, sympathetic, and tender-hearted, she won the admiration of a wide circle of friends, and was to them a most worthy example.
Mr. and Mrs. McClure were pioneers in Presbyterianism here in Wabash. They were among the little band which organized the old school church here, the edifice standing on the site of the present magnificent church building.
Mrs. Sarah McClure, wife of Benjamin McClure, died at her home four miles north of this city [Wabash] at an early hour last Saturday, July 28, of a spinal trouble of which she has been ill for several weeks. The funeral services were held at the late home of the deceased on Sunday afternoon at one o’clock and were very largely attended. The services were conducted by her pastor, Rev. Charles Little, who chose for his text the words, “Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” which was the text preached from when Mrs. McClure was converted at the age of eleven years. The burial took place at Falls Cemetery.
Mrs. McClure was seventy years old [actually, she was 76] and leaves a husband, three sons and four daughters. She was noted for her devotion to the church and the cause of her Master. She was a firm believer in the Bible, and very fond of reading the good book. Consistent, sympathetic, and tender-hearted, she won the admiration of a wide circle of friends, and was to them a most worthy example.
Mr. and Mrs. McClure were pioneers in Presbyterianism here in Wabash. They were among the little band which organized the old school church here, the edifice standing on the site of the present magnificent church building.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Society Saturday: Speaking to the Westchester County Genealogical Society
Photos by my sis :) |
This society maintains a surname database with more than 1,000 member queries, publishes a monthly newsletter, and has a very active meeting schedule featuring all kinds of speakers. Last month, I attended the society's Irish-American genealogy meeting and heard an excellent presentation by Joe Buggy.
During today's presentation, I listed the following resources for genealogical message boards and blogs. How many do you use? (updated 2022 to remove links that no longer function--and note I spoke to this group a couple of weeks ago, almost exactly a decade after first speaking to them.)
·
GenForum message boards on Genealogy.com
Friday, April 13, 2012
No Titanic for My Ancestors
The anniversary of the Titanic tragedy got me thinking about the ships my ancestors sailed from the Old World to the New World. |
SS Moltke of Hamburg America Line |
Teddy's older brother, Samuel Schwartz, arrived in New York aboard the S.S. Pretoria from Cuxhaven in 1904 (below). The manifest indicates he was a 20-year-old printer (an occupation he continued in Connecticut) and he was joining his brother Teodor (Theodore), living at 941 Second Avenue in New York City.
SS Pretoria of Hamburg America Line |
Sadly, their two other sisters, Etel and Paula, remained in Hungary, along with their mother, Hana Simonowitz Schwartz. Etel and Paula (2022 update), with other siblings, were killed in the Holocaust. Herman Schwartz, Teddy's dad, had died in Hungary sometime earlier.
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