From Cigars to Security, and Heartbreak and Heart Disease: The Family of Jacob Seligman

Posted on July 23, 2015 by Amy

The second child of Marx and Sarah Seligmann was Jacob. As I wrote in an earlier post, he married Mathilde Kerbs in 1881, and they had four sons and one daughter: Max (1882), Harry (1883), Louis (1885), Samuel (1888), and Beatrice (1902). Jacob was a cigar packer, and the family was living at 303 East 69^th Street in 1900. Max and Harry were both working as salesman, according to the 1900 census.



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The family suffered a terrible loss when Max died on November 25, 1903. He was only 21 years old. He died from typhoid fever and pneumonia.

Maxwell Seligman death certificate 1903

In 1905, the remaining members of the family were living at 212 East 40^th Street. Harry was a police officer, Louis an errand boy, and Samuel a stock keeper (I assume in a store). Their father Jacob was still a cigar packer.

On July 17, 1907, Samuel, the youngest son, married Frances Hooton, the daughter of William Proctor Hooton and Hannah Newman.

Marriage certificate of Samuel Seligman and Frances Hooton

William was born in England and was a shipping clerk; Hannah (usually referred to as Annie) was his second wife. His first wife Deborah Newman (perhaps Annie’s sister?) died in 1879, leaving him with four children. After having two children with Annie, including Frances in 1886, William lost his second wife Annie when she died on November 27, 1887. William himself died in 1901 when Frances was only fifteen, and she ended up living with one of her sisters, working as a dressmaker. [Thanks to the generosity of Chip Bennett, a relative of the Hootons, I am able to share some photographs of Frances Hooton Seligman and her children.] When Samuel and Frances married, he was only nineteen and she was 21.

Their first child Marion was born a year later in July, 1908.

Marion Seligman
photo courtesy of Chip Bennett

In February 1910, their second child Maxwell was born. According to the 1910 census, the family was living at 349 East 82^nd Street, and Samuel was working as a special officer for the Highway Department. A third child was born to Samuel and Frances in 1913; his name was William.

Frances Hooton Seligman with Max and Marion and her niece Ethel
Photo courtesy of Chip Bennett

Meanwhile, the other children of Jacob and Mathilde Seligman were still living with their parents in 1910. Jacob was still in the cigar business, and Harry was still working as a city police officer. Louis had no occupation listed, and Beatrice was only eight years old.

Harry married Rose Weis on March 24, 1912. Rose was the daughter of Joseph/Ignatz Weis and Henrietta Schoen, Hungarian immigrants. Her father was an upholsterer. As far as I can tell, Harry and Rose did not have any children. In 1915, Harry continued to work as a police officer. He and Rose were living at 349 East 84^th Street, according to the 1915 census.

Jacob Seligman died on December 16, 1915. He was 63 years old. His son Louis was married a year and a half later; he married Fannie Zinck on June 2, 1917. She was born in Alsace-Lorraine in about 1889 and immigrated to the US around 1902. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find any more about Fannie’s background. Louis and Fannie did not have any children.

According to his World War I draft registration, Louis was employed as a canvasser by his brother Samuel in 1918; according to Samuel’s registration, he was self-employed as a watchman. What would Louis have been doing as a canvasser for a watchman? They were living not far from each other, Louis and Fannie at 506 East 83^rd Street, Sam and Frances and their children at 242 East 85^th Street. Harry and Rose were also nearby—at 409 East 84^th Street; Harry (using the name Henry on his draft registration) was still a New York City patrolman. I found it interesting that all three brothers were in some aspect of the security business.

Their mother Mathilde Kerbs Seligman died on March 12, 1918; she was 54 years old. Beatrice, the youngest sibling, was only sixteen years old and orphaned. She moved in with her brother Louis and his wife Fannie, according to the 1920 census. They were then living at 307 East 78^th Street; Louis listed his occupation as special officer on night patrol, and Beatrice was a typist. In 1920, Harry and Rose continued to live at 409 East 84^th Street, and Harry continued to work as a police officer. Sam, Frances, and their three children were still living at 242 East 85^th Street, and Sam was still working as a night watchman.

Things remained pretty much the same in 1925. Louis, Fannie, and Beatrice were still living on 78^th Street. Louis was now working as a mechanic, according to the 1925 New York census; it looks like Beatrice’s occupation was a correspondent. I am not sure what that means. Samuel and his family were still on 85^th Street. Sam had his own business, and his two oldest children were working: Marion doing clerical work and Maxwell as a helper—perhaps in their father’s business? I have not been able to locate Harry and Rose on the 1925 New York census.

Marion Seligman as a young girl
photo courtesy of Chip Bennett

Samuel and Frances Seligman’s son Maxwell married Helene Sumner on August 25, 1927. Helene was the daughter of Edward Sumner and Priscilla nee McCarthy, who were English-born immigrants; her father was an engineer. Maxwell was only 17 years old when they married (although listed as 22 on the marriage record, all other records indicate he was born in 1910); Helene was listed as 17, but all her earlier records say she was born in 1912, making her only 15 in 1927. Given how young they were, I might have thought that Helene was pregnant (and maybe she was), but their first and only child, Joseph, was not born until 1929.

Maxwell Seligman as a young boy
Photo courtesy of Chip Bennett

The 1920s ended very sadly for the family. On March 9, 1929, Samuel Seligman died; he was only 40 years old and left behind his wife Frances and their three children. He died from angina pectoris and myocarditis—heart disease.

Samuel Seligman death certificate 1929

Marion was 21, Maxwell 19, and William only 16 years old when their father died. Frances remarried a man named Frank Mildrum on February 16, 1931, according to the records in the New York marriage index on Ancestry, although according to the 1930 census, she was already married to Frank, as she is listed as his wife and living with him and two of her children, Marion and William, in the Bronx. Frank also had a thirteen year old daughter Florence from his prior marriage. Frank was a private detective. Marion Seligman was working as an office clerk.

Louis Seligman did not live much longer than his brother Samuel. In 1930 he and Fannie as well as his sister Beatrice were still living at 308 East 78^th Street. Louis had his own business in protective alarms, and Beatrice was a clerk for an express company, according to the census. But on October 23, 1931, Louis died from luetic aortitis and chronic myocarditis at age 44. Heart disease had contributed to the death of yet another family member. Of the four sons born to Jacob and Mathilde Kerbs Seligman, only Harry was still alive.

Louis Seligman death certificate 1931

By 1930 Harry and his wife Rose had moved in with her parents and siblings in Brooklyn, and Harry was no longer working as a police officer, but instead as a clerk in a brokerage house. Harry was 49 years old; he had been working for the police force since at least 1905. Why would he and Rose have moved in with her family after all those years living on their own? Was Harry disabled? Had he reached eligibility for retirement? Did the police force even have a pension back then? According to this article from the official New York City website, there was some form of pension for police officers dating back to the 19th century.

I don’t know the answers to these questions, but I do know that Harry died just seven years later on March 6, 1937. He was fifty-six years old and died from “coronary thrombosis with cerebral and pulmonary emboli induced by generalized arteriosclerosis.” (The parents’ names on this certificate are clearly in error, but this is also clearly the correct Harry Seligman, son of Jacob and Mathilde.)

Harry (Henry) Seligman death certificate 1937

The New York Times March 7, 1937

Beatrice Seligman had been orphaned by the time she was sixteen, and now she had lost all of her siblings by time she was 35 years old. In 1940 she was living as a lodger on West 99^th Street and still working for the express company as a stenographer. She was single and 38 years old. After that, I cannot find her. I don’t know whether she ever married or what happened to her after 1940. I don’t know when she died.

Of the five children born to Jacob and Mathilde Seligman, only one, Samuel, had had any children. As noted above, Samuel and Frances Seligman’s son Maxwell married Helene Sumner as a teenager, and they had a son Joseph born in 1929. I saw on Ancestry that Joseph died when he was three years old in 1932. When I received the death certificate, I was shocked. Joseph had been hit by a car on 85th Street between Second and Third Avenue and had sustained a fractured skull. How could something like this happen to a three year old child?

It appears that the marriage between Maxwell and Helene did not survive the death of their son. In 1939, Maxwell traveled with his brother William to Key West, Florida. On the 1940 census Maxwell and William were both living with their mother Frances Hooton Seligman Mildrum, who had been widowed again when Frank Mildrum died in June, 1939. Frank’s daughter Florence was also living with them. Maxwell and William were both working as collectors for a detective agency; according to the 1940 census, both Maxwell and William had been living in the same house in 1935, suggesting that Maxwell’s marriage had ended by then.

William Seligman as a young boy
Photo courtesy of Chip Bennett

As for Marion, Samuel and Frances Seligman’s other child, she married Howard Fairweather on July 3, 1932. He was the son of Howard and Margaret (Duffy) Fairweather. This also appears to be a marriage that did not last. On the 1940 census, Howard and Marion were living on Undercliff Avenue in the Bronx. Although Marion was working as a secretary at Star Protection Company, Howard had no occupation listed.

Marion may have been more than a secretary; she may have been THE secretary of the company. According to an article from the New York Times dated January 27, 1940 about a labor strike at the company (Star Electric Protective Company, a burglar alarm company), Marion Fairweather was at that time the treasurer of the company.

Marion Fairweather burglar alarm strike

Marion and Howard had no children. In 1942 Howard was serving in the armed forces as a private and still listed his status as married. He reported that his occupation was as a non-public police officer, so I assume a private detective. After that I have no records for them together. Marion traveled alone several times in the 1950s. Perhaps they were still married, but I have no documentation for either of them until their deaths. Howard Fairweather died in Atlantic City in 1976; Marion Seligman Fairweather died July 27, 1988. Her last residence had been in New York City.

William had enlisted in the military on 1942. In July, 1953, he traveled to Bermuda. It appears that William never married. William P. Seligman is listed in the New York City telephone directory in 1959 and 1960, and there is a Max Seligman as well, but I don’t know if it is the correct Max since even within the family there were several Max Seligmans. William died on June 2, 1964. His death notice in the New York Times mentioned only his sister Marion Fairweather as a survivor so Max must have predeceased him. Unfortunately I cannot locate a death record or obituary for Max.

The New York Times, June 4, 1964

None of the children of Samuel Seligman had children, and Samuel was the only child of Jacob Seligman to have children, and thus the line of Jacob Seligman, son of Marx and Sarah Seligmann, ended when Marion Seligman Fairweather died in 1988. Looking back at their story, this seemed to be a family that was succeeding in America—three sons who were all involved in personal and property security in some form or another. But they were also three sons who died far too young in addition to the fourth son who died as a very young man. There was the tragedy of a three year old child killed by a car and the marriage between his two young parents that failed not long after that death. It is also a family that has no living descendants to carry on the names or the stories of these people.

Descendants of Jacob Seligman and Mathilde Kerbs

Gifts from My Cousin Steve

Posted on July 19, 2015 by Amy

How very lucky I have been in finding my Seligman cousins. Starting with my cousin Pete from Santa Fe, then my cousin Wolfgang in Germany, then my cousin Suzanne from Scranton, and now two more cousins: Lotte, a descendant of Hieronymous Seligmann, brother of my great-great-grandfather Bernard, and Steve, a descendant of Marx Seligman, brother of my three-times-great-grandfather Moritz. I will talk about Lotte in subsequent posts, but for now I will continue the story of Marx Seligman and his descendants.

Steve is a grandson of Sigmund Seligman, the oldest child of Marx and Sarah Seligman, and as I mentioned last time, he has generously shared with me many photographs of his family as well as personal anecdotes about them. All the photographs in this post are courtesy of Steve. I am filled with gratitude to him for bringing to life his father Leo, his aunt Mary, and his uncles Max and Albert.

In my earlier post about Marx and his descendants, I wrote that “Sigmund and Charlotte had five children between 1883 and 1896: Mary (1883), Max (1884), Leo (1891), Theresa (1894), and Albert (1896). Sigmund was employed in the insurance industry. In 1900, they were living at 304 East 117th Street.” As posted last time, here is a family photograph of Sigmund and Charlotte and their children from about that time, estimated to be taken in 1901.

Sigmund Seligman and family about 1901. Standing rear: Mary, Max. Sitting middle row: Sigmund, Albert, Leo, and Charlotte. In front: Theresa
Photo courtesy of Steve Seligman

Tragedy struck this happy family on September 27, 1902, when eight year old Theresa, the little girl seated in front, died from tubercular meningitis.

Theresa Seligman death certificate

In 1905, the remaining children were all still living with their parents at 89 East 121^st Street; Sigmund was a supervisor in an insurance company, Max was working as a bookkeeper, and the other boys were in school. Mary was home.

As noted last time, Mary married Joseph Brandenburg (later Brandt) in 1907. By 1910, her parents and brothers had moved to 275 East 123^rd Street. Sigmund was still working as a supervisor in the insurance company, now identified as Metropolitan Life. Both Max and Leo were working as clerks for American Pencil Company, and Albert was only fourteen and presumably in school.

In 1915, the family had relocated again to 60 West 129^th Street; Sigmund was still in the insurance business. The census does not report what businesses they were working in, but Max was working as an assistant manager, Leo as a salesman, and Albert as a stock clerk.

Sigmund Seligman and family 1915 NY census New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1915; Election District: 09; Assembly District: 21; City: New York; County: New York; Page: 35

Sigmund and Charlotte’s first grandchild, Jerrold Thurston Brandt, son of Joseph and Mary (Seligman) Brandt, was born on June 15, 1913.

On October 12, 1915, Max married Pauline Hirsch. Pauline’s father Samuel was a German immigrant working as a watchman; her mother had died in 1901. Pauline had been working as a bookkeeper for a clothing company in 1910. Pauline and Max had a daughter Theresa born August 15, 1916, presumably named for Max’s little sister Theresa, who had died in 1902.

Both Leo and Albert served in World War I. Leo served stateside near Jacksonville, Florida; Albert was sent overseas where he was gassed on the battlefields of France. According to his nephew Steve, Albert never fully regained his health, suffering from heart problems and pneumonia all his life.

Leo Seligman World War I courtesy of Steve Seligman

Albert Seligman World War I photo courtesy of Steve Seligman

By 1920 Sigmund had retired. He and Charlotte were still living with two of their sons, Leo and Albert, as well as a boarder. Home from the war, Leo was a salesman for a cloak company, and Albert was a merchant in ladies’ clothing.

On April 18, 1920, Leo married Jeanette Freundlich, the daughter of Morris and Martha Freundlich. Morris was an immigrant from the Austria-Hungary Empire, and according to his passport application, he was born in Krakow. Morris was a furrier and had his own business. According to the 1920 census, Jeanette and her brothers Julian and Edwin were all helping their father in his business. Jeanette and Leo had three children in the 1920s, Joan, my newly-found cousin Steven, and Edward.

Leo Seligman and his family

Joan Seligman

Edward, Joan and Steven Seligman

Edward and Steven Seligman about 1938

Joan Seligman, age 13

In 1920 Max was working as the assistant manager in the pencil company, and he and his family were living at 424 East 51^st Street.

Albert Seligman married Bella Heftler on November 20, 1921. Bella was the youngest of ten children of Max and Sarah Heftler, who were Hungarian immigrants. Max Heflter was supporting that large family as a tailor, with his two oldest daughters working in a shirt factory in 1900. By 1920, Max had died, and Bella was working as a bookkeeper, still living with her mother and five of her siblings. In 1923, Bella and Albert Seligman had a son Maxwell, named presumably for Bella’s father.

Albert Seligman courtesy of Steve Seligman

Bella Heftler Seligman courtesy of Steve Seligman

Maxwell Seligman courtesy of Steve Seligman

Sigmund Seligman died on June 15, 1924. He was 74 years old. His wife Charlotte survived him by ten years, dying on July 18, 1934. She was 75 years old.

Sigmund Seligman and Charlotte Koppel Seligman

As for their children, in 1930 Max was working as the manager of a movie theater and living with his family on West 97^th Street. Leo was living with his family on Cathedral Parkway (110^th Street) and working in coat manufacturing. Albert and his family were living on Jesup Avenue in the Bronx, and Albert was a salesman in the film industry. Mary and Joe Brandt were living with their son Jerrold at 23 West 73^rd Street, and Joe was one of the owners of what was now called Columbia Pictures.

By 1940, all three brothers were somehow connected to the film industry. Joe Brandt had left Columbia Pictures in 1932 and had died in 1939, but he somehow must have connected his three brothers-in-law to the movie industry. According to the 1940 census, Max Seligman was working as a purchasing agent for Columbia Pictures. His draft registration for World War II says that Columbia Pictures was his employer. Leo reported that he had his own office as a film distributor on the 1940 census, and on his World War II draft registration he said his employer was Max Seligman. According to Steve, his father distributed foreign films as well as children’s cartoons for a local movie theater. As for Albert, the 1940 census reports his occupation as a movie theater manager, but on his World War II draft registration he listed his employer as Columbia Pictures. Steve said that Albert was in the publicity department. Thus, by 1942 all three brothers appear to have been working in the film business.

Max (front left), Leo (rear on right), and Mary (front right) and two friends playing cards
Courtesy of Steve Seligman

Mary had also moved back from Hollywood to New York at some point after Joe died, and her nephew Steve remembers that she would often take him and his siblings to the movies. Steve wrote, “Aunt Mary would march up to the box office and demand to see the manager. When he came out she would come up with the same pitch. ‘My husband was President and co-founder of Columbia Pictures and this child and I would like to see this picture.’ I never remember being turned away.”

Mary Seligman Brandt
Photo courtesy of Steve Seligman

About his Uncle Max, Steve wrote, “Uncle Max had a habit of saying almost everything twice. When I would go and visit him and my Aunt Pauline, Uncle Max would invariably open the door and say, ‘Hello my boy, hello my boy, how are you, how are you.’ Even during conversations it would happen. I don’t know whether he thought we were hard of hearing or if he just wanted to emphasize what he said. Not everything was repeated, of course, but enough times for my brother Eddie and my cousin Maxwell to refer to him as Uncle Max, Uncle Max.”

Steve also wrote this loving tribute to his father, Leo Seligman, the middle brother:

One thing you could say about my father was that he was a lousy ballplayer. He couldn’t throw, he couldn’t catch, he didn’t even follow the baseball teams. When my brother Eddie and I would be in our room listening to a replay of the day’s games, my father would be in the living room reading the paper and surely not the sports page. But in other ways he managed to spend quality time with us. In the summer almost every Sunday we would go up to the roof of our apartment building with bridge chairs and hang out for a couple of hours. He would have contests between Eddie and me testing our spelling, math and memory skills. Eddie would always win the math contest but I managed to hold my own in the other games. I think whoever won would get a nickel, nothing to get crazy over but enough to tide us over in the candy store. In my early teens on Sundays in the spring he and I would rent bikes and go bike riding in Central Park. It’s amazing but I still remember the store. The owners name was Aug, it was on 81st St. and he charged a quarter an hour. That was fun. What my father lacked in ball playing he made up on a bike. One other thing; he never spanked us. When I misbehaved he would “flick” my ear, hard. It’s hard to describe what “flicking” an ear is but if you put your forefinger against your thumb and release it strongly, that’s flicking. It really didn’t hurt much but it didn’t matter, we knew we were being punished.

Leo Seligman

Leo and Jeanette (Freundlich) Seligman

All three brothers died within five years of each other. Albert, the youngest, died first on October 6, 1948. He was only 52 years old and had been plagued with poor health since his service during World War I. Leo died on January 1, 1952; he was just sixty years old. Max, the oldest of the three, died the following year on March 9, 1953; he was 68.

Mary Seligman Brandt, the oldest of the children of Sigmund and Charlotte Koppel Seligman, lived the longest. She died in February, 1977, at the age of 94.

Thank you once again to my cousin Steve Seligman for sharing his photographs and his stories with me. I am so pleased that we have found each other. These new contacts and the pleasure they bring me continue to be the most meaningful benefits I get from doing genealogy and writing this blog. Here are some additional photographs of Steve’s family:

Steve’s brother Eddie Seligman

Steve’s wife Arline

Joan Seligman’s husband Bennett Pollard

Steve and Arline Seligman

Nancy (nee Seligman) and Barry Buzzuro

Steve and Arline Seligman and daughter Nancy

Jane Brenwasser Jacobs, great-granddaughter of Sigmund Seligman

I Could Have Been A Contender*

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Amy

The original CBC Film Sales logo used from 1919 through 1924 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As I continued to research the descendants of my four-times-great-uncle Marx Seligman, one thing kept bothering me. I had not yet confirmed one of the facts asserted in the second handwritten tree discovered by my cousin Wolfgang. That second handwritten tree, which had led me to Marx and his family, claimed (1) that Marx had remarried and moved to New York. That was true about the Marx I was following—he had married Sara Koppel and moved to New York City.

The creator of that second tree also claimed that (2) Marx and Sara had had a son who (also) married a woman whose surname was Koppel (or Coppel). That also proved to be true of the Marx I was following: his son Sigmund had married a woman named Charlotte Koppel, born in Germany (and likely related to Sigmund’s mother).

But there was one more specific fact that the tree had mentioned that I had not yet confirmed: (3) that the son had had a daughter who married a film agent. As I researched up to 1900, I had not yet uncovered anyone involved in the film industry who was related to Marx. Being a big movie fan, I was disappointed not to find a connection to Hollywood.

But then I entered the 20^th century in my research. While researching the children of Sigmund Seligman as they entered adulthood, I found the answer. According to another family tree I found on Ancestry owned by Sharon Bolton, Sigmund and Charlotte’s first child, Mary, married a man named Joseph Brandt, who was born on July 20, 1882, in Troy, New York. I am always very reluctant to rely on anyone else’s tree, having seen so many that are unsourced and clearly carelessly done, but this one seemed very thorough and included many photographs as well as personal stories by Sigmund’s grandson, Steve. (I am now in touch with both Sharon and Steve, and they generously shared wonderful photographs and stories about Sigmund’s family. I will post more photographs in a subsequent post.)

Sigmund Seligman and family about 1901. Standing rear: Mary, Max. Sitting middle row: Sigmund, Albert, Leo, and Charlotte. In front: Theresa
Photo courtesy of Steve Seligman

According to Joseph Brandt’s record on the 1920 census, his father was born in Russia and spoke Yiddish; his mother was born in Germany.

Joseph Brandt and family 1920 census
Source Citation
Year: 1920; Census Place: Manhattan Assembly District 23, New York, New York; Roll: T625_1227; Page: 38B; Enumeration District: 1506; Image: 543

I could not find Joseph on any census before or after 1920, and I could not find anything else about his parents or family. (Sharon also had nothing about his background on her tree.) Based on his birth date and birth place as recorded on Sharon’s family tree, the only other official records I could find for him were his 1913 passport application, his 1918 World War I draft registration card, and several ship manifests for his travels with Mary.

But his draft registration corroborated that third missing fact from the handwritten family tree. According to his 1918 draft registration card, Joseph was then employed as an attorney and assistant treasurer for Universal Film Manufacturing Company. Now I had evidence that the Marx Seligman I had been following was the same man discussed in the handwritten family tree: Marx’s son Sigmund had married a woman named Koppel; they had had a daughter (Mary) who married a “film agent.”

Registration State: New York; Registration County: New York; Roll: 1787086; Draft Board: 170

Of course, Joe Brandt was more than a film agent. In fact, he was much, much more. Once I saw that he was in fact involved in the film industry, I googled his name and learned more. From Wikipedia and his obituary in the New York Times on February 23, 1939, p.28, I learned that Joe Brandt was one of the founders and the first president of Columbia Pictures. Joe had graduated from NYU Law School in 1906 and had worked in the advertising industry for several years before being hired in 1912 by Carl Laemmle, the founder of Universal Film Manufacturing, today known as Universal Studios. In 1919 he and two brothers he had known at Universal,, Harry and Jack Cohn, formed their own film production company, known first as C.B.C. Film Sales (for Cohn Brandt Cohn) and later known as Columbia Pictures.

Christmas ad in The Film Daily December 1920 p 1484

Joe sold his interest in Columbia Pictures in 1932 and then became president of two other film companies before retiring due to poor health in 1935. Joe died at the age of 56 on February 22, 1939. Joe and Mary had had one child, a son named Jerrold Thurston Brandt, who would also enter the movie industry.

Joe Brandt obit NYTimes February 23, 1939

But why couldn’t I find out anything about Joe’s background before entering the film industry other than his birth in Troy, New York, in 1882? From a link in the Wikipedia entry, I found this little snippet about him from a journal called Moving Picture World dated April 6, 1912:

Joe had changed his name from Brandenburg to Brandt. There is also a reference to his name change in this article from the February 1, 1913 edition of Motography:

Once I knew his original name, I had no trouble locating his parents and his siblings. Joseph Brandenburg was the son of Daniel and Rosa Brandenburg. Daniel was born in 1846 in Russia, and according to the 1900 census, had arrived in the United States in 1870. His wife Rosa was born in Prussia in 1847 and had immigrated to the US in 1865, according to the 1900 census. Daniel and Rosa had married in 1871, and by 1880 they were living in Troy, New York, where Daniel was working as a tailor. They had three children by that time: Albert, Lilly, and Anna. Joseph was their youngest child, born in 1882. At some point the family must have moved to New York City because the article reprinted above from Motography states that Joe was educated in the NYC public schools. On the 1900 census, Daniel and Rosa were living in New York City with all of their children, including Joe, who was already a lawyer, according to the census report. Daniel was still working as a tailor. Joe was still living with his parents as of the 1905 New York census and was still listed as a lawyer on that census record.

On October 20, 1907, Joseph Brandenburg married Mary Seligman in New York City.

New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24HY-X9K : accessed 15 July 2015), Joseph Brandenburg and Mary Seligman, 20 Oct 1907; citing Marriage, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York City Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm .

He was still using the Brandenburg surname as of 1910, when according to the census, he was working in advertising for Billboard magazine. He and Mary were living at 3161 Broadway in NYC. Sometime between 1910 and 1913 when he applied for a passport, Joe changed his surname to Brandt, as that is how he appears on every document thereafter.

Joseph Brandt passport application 1913 National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; NARA Series: Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 - March 31, 1925; Roll #: 194; Volume #: Roll 0194 - Certificates: 14182-15185, 07 Aug 1913-30 Aug 1913

Joe Brandt passport application 1913
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington D.C.; NARA Series: Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 – March 31, 1925; Roll #: 194; Volume #: Roll 0194 – Certificates: 14182-15185, 07 Aug 1913-30 Aug 1913

Joe Brandt’s story is another one of those remarkable American dreams come true. The son of a Russian Jewish immigrant who worked as a tailor, Joe not only went to college and law school. He became a major figure in the burgeoning American film industry of the early 20th century and an extremely wealthy man, according to his nephew Steve. In fact, if I hadn’t found the facts myself, I’d say it was just a Hollywood story made to perpetuate the myth of the American dream. But it is in fact a real story.

Mary Seligman Brandt, my second cousin, three times removed
Photo courtesy of Steve Seligman

Moving Picture World July-September 1913, p. 728 http://archive.org/stream/movingpicturewor17newy#page/727/mode/1up

————-

* From On the Waterfront, a Columbia Pictures film

The Case of the Disappearing Twin: Edith and Lucie Cain

Posted on July 14, 2015 by Amy

In my last post, I wrote about the family of Marx and Sarah Seligman. One of their daughters, Charlotte, had married Max Schlesinger, who worked in the tie industry, and they had had four children, including a daughter Harriet, born 1875. Harriet had married George Cain in 1897, and on the 1900 census, George and Harriet had one daughter, Edith, born in May, 1900, just a month before the census was taken in June. George’s sister Lucie was also living with them.

Cain family 1900 census Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1119; Page: 16A; Enumeration District: 0852; FHL microfilm: 1241119

When I found Harriet and George on the 1910 census, I was bewildered. There were now two daughters, Lucy [sic], aged nine, and Ethel, age eight.

Cain Family 1910 US census
Year: 1910; Census Place: Manhattan Ward 12, New York, New York; Roll: T624_1022; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0533; FHL microfilm: 1375035

What had happened to Edith? At first I thought the census taker had just listed Edith by the wrong name. But then the ages didn’t make sense. Then I thought Lucie was born in 1901, a year after Edith, and then Ethel in 1902. But where was Edith? Had Edith died? Plus on the 1900 census Harriet reported that she had had one child and one alive, and on the 1910 census she reported that she’d had two children, and two were alive.

I searched on both Ancestry and on FamilySearch, and I didn’t find any death certificates for a child named Edith Cain between 1900 and 1910. But I did turn up something strange. FamilySearch had two New York City birth records for daughters born to Harriet Schlesinger and George Cain on the same day, May 28, 1900, one named Edith, one named Lucie.

So where was Lucie in 1900? Maybe she had been sick and in a hospital when the census was taken? But then where was Edith in 1910? Had there been twins? Had Edith died? What really puzzled me was that both records had the same certificate number. Usually if there were twins, there would be two separate certificates each with its own unique number.

But all FamilySearch had were these summaries of the certificates, not images of the actual certificates. I turned to the New York City Genealogy group on Facebook for some insights. People there were just as mystified, but one group member, Jim Murray, offered to help. He was going to the NYC archives two days later and offered to look up and transcribe the two certificates.

What Jim found was that the two certificates were the same as described on FamilySearch, and in addition they had different home addresses for the family. The one for Edith had 166 W. 122nd St. as the father’s address; the one for Lucie had 202 W. 123rd St. as the father’s address. I went back to the 1900 census and found that the family was living at 166 W. 122^nd Street on June 9, 1900, when the census was taken, just twelve days after the baby or babies were born.

I asked Jim if he had noticed the dates that each certificate was filed, and he said he would go back and check. In the meantime, I had a brainstorm. What had happened to Lucie, George’s sister, between 1900 and 1910? Had she married? She was no longer living with George and Harriet. A few more clicks on Ancestry, and I found out why. Lucie had died on June 26, 1900, just a few weeks after the 1900 census and less than a month after Harriet and George’s baby or babies were born. Had Harriet and George changed their baby’s name in memory of her aunt Lucie?

I waited for Jim’s answer and also waited to receive electronic copies of the actual birth certificates for Edith and Lucie and of the death certificate for George’s sister Lucie. What I then learned seemed to confirm my theory—that the baby was named Edith at first, but then renamed Lucie after George’s sister died. The first certificate for Edith was filed by the doctor on June 9, 1900; the second certificate with the name Lucie was filed by her mother Harriet on July 6, 1900. I also noticed that the second certificate had both the old address and new address on it with the old address as the place of birth. I was convinced that the baby born Edith was renamed Lucie after her aunt died.

Somehow the city allowed Harriet to file the second certificate without rescinding the first one so two birth certificates are still on file 115 years later for one baby, born Edith, but then renamed Lucie.

Her aunt Lucie, for whom she’d been renamed, had died at age 38 of chronic nephritis. (Notice that the doctor who signed the death certificate is the same one who filled out the first birth certificate for Edith-Lucie.)

Death certificate for Lucie Cain, George Cain’s sister

It must have been a time of such emotional turmoil for George and his family—the joy (and strain) of having a newborn baby mixed with the heartbreak of losing his sister at such a young age. Perhaps the bureaucrat at City Hall had acted out of sympathy, not carelessness, in allowing this second certificate to be filed. And by allowing the first to stay on file, the story of how George honored his sister was there to be discovered 115 years later.

Marx Seligmann, My Four-Times Great-Uncle: His American Family

Posted on July 12, 2015 by Amy



Embed from Getty Images

Genealogy research is like peeling an onion. You peel back a layer, study that layer, and feel a good degree of sweet satisfaction, but there are always more layers, and if you are as lucky as I have been with my Seligmann family, you can keep peeling back more and more layers. Sometimes a new layer brings new tears, sometimes it brings more joy. The two handwritten family trees that Wolfgang and his mother found in their suitcase revealed several new layers of the Seligmann and Schoenfeld families, including the names of all the siblings of my three-times great-grandparents Moritz Seligmann and Babetta Schoenfeld.

One of those siblings was a younger brother of Moritz named Marx Seligmann. From the handwritten trees I knew that Marx had married Rosina Loeser and had two daughters with her, Mathilde and Sophie. I also knew that Marx and Rosina had divorced about ten years after they married or in 1849. I don’t believe I had seen any evidence of a divorce that far back in time in my family, and I assume that divorce was probably pretty unusual back then, or at least not as common as it is now.

The first tree had a confusing comment about someone coming later to America, but it wasn’t clear whether that was Marx or his ex-wife or his daughters. The second handwritten tree was more explicit: Marx had remarried and had gone to New York . The tree seemed to suggest that he’d had a son who married a woman with the birth name Coppel, and that they’d had a daughter who married a film agent. I searched for Marx based on those assumptions and found the record I posted last time.

Assuming that this is the same Marx Seligmann, he had himself married a woman named Sara Koppel, and they had had a daughter named Charlotte. Charlotte had married someone named Max Schlesinger. From that one record, I was able to research further and put together a more complete picture of Marx Seligmann and his descendants.

It appears that Marx and Sara had married not long after Marx’s divorce from Rosina and before leaving Germany because they sailed together as Marx and Sara Seligmann and arrived in New York on August 18, 1849. Marx was 39, Sara 27, and Marx listed his occupation as a merchant. (They are the third and fourth entries from the bottom on the document shown here.)

Marx and Sara Seligmann passenger manifest

Source: Year: 1849; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: M237, 1820-1897; Microfilm Roll: Roll 082; Line: 49; List Number: 1146

A year later according to the census taken on August 26, 1850, they were living in New York City and had a four month old son Siegmund (later Sigmund), so Sara must have been just pregnant when they arrived in New York. Marx was working as a cigar maker. They were living in the 13^th Ward or the Lower East Side, which then had a large population of German immigrants.

Marx and Sara Seligman 1855 US censusSource Citation Year: 1850; Census Place: New York Ward 13, New York, New York; Roll: M432_550; Page: 200A; Image: 148

Marx filed a declaration of intent to become a US citizen on November 25, 1850.

By 1860, Marx and Sara had three more children: Jacob, born in 1852; Charlotte, born in 1855; and Mary, born in 1856. The family was still living in the 13^th Ward, and Marx was still employed as a cigar maker. The only thing that disturbs me about this census record is that it reports that both Marx and Sara were born in Darmstadt. I assume that Marx, like his siblings, was born in Gaulsheim. However, given how unreliable census records can be, I am willing to put that aside.

Year: 1860; Census Place: New York Ward 13 District 2, New York, New York; Roll: M653_803; Page: 418; Image: 422; Family History Library Film: 803803

By 1870, it appears that Marx had died. He is not listed with his family on the 1870 census, and in the 1872 NYC directory, Sara is listed as a widow. I contacted the cemetery where Sara was later buried, but they had no listing for a Marx or Max Seligmann.

According to the 1870 census, Sarah (now spelled with the H) was the head of household. Sigmund, now 20, was working as a clerk. Jacob, 17, was working in a cigar store, perhaps following in his father’s footsteps. Charlotte was 16 and at home, and Mary was 14 and a dressmaker. They were now living in the 17^th Ward, also in the Lower East Side in a neighborhood inhabited by mostly German immigrants.

Year: 1870; Census Place: New York Ward 17 District 20, New York, New York; Roll: M593_999; Page: 188A; Image: 377; Family History Library Film: 552498

The first of the children of Marx and Sarah to marry was their youngest child, Mary. She married Oscar Kornfeld on September 11, 1873, when she was only seventeen years old. Oscar was only twenty. Oscar was the son of Charles and Julia Kornfeld, who were born in Austria, according to the 1860 and 1880 census, or Baden, according to the 1870 census. Oscar’s father was a cigar maker like Mary’s father had been, so I wonder if they had met through their fathers. Oscar also followed his father into the cigar business.

By 1880, Mary and Oscar had three children. Their first child, born in 1874, was named Marx, presumably for his grandfather. In 1877, Rose was born, and then Carrie was born in 1879. In addition, Mary’s mother Sarah and her brother Sigmund were living with them at 239 East 51^st Street in New York. Both Sigmund and Oscar were working as cigar packers.

Mary and Oscar Kornfeld 1880 census Year: 1880; Census Place: New York City, New York, New York; Roll: 893; Family History Film: 1254893; Page: 358B; Enumeration District: 557; Image: 0720

Mary and Oscar had another daughter, Lillian, in 1882. According to the 1892 New York State census, Mary and Oscar and their family were living in Long Island City in Queens, where Oscar continued to work in the cigar business.

Mary Seligmann and Oscar Kornfeld 1892 NY census Ancestry.com. New York, State Census, 1892 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: New York State Education Department, Office of Cultural Education. 1892 New York State Census. Albany, NY: New York State Library.

By 1900 they were living at 1883 Madison Avenue, and Oscar was still working in the cigar business. Their three daughters were still living with them, Rose doing housework, Carrie doing office work, and Lillian working as a cashier. Their son Marx (later Max) married Emma Pisko on April 1, 1900. I cannot locate them on the 1900 census—perhaps they were away on their honeymoon?

Oscar and Mary Kornfeld 1900 US census
Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1119; Enumeration District: 0849; FHL microfilm: 1241119

As seen in the first record above, Charlotte Seligmann was the second child of Marx and Sarah Seligmann to marry; she married Max Schlesinger in 1874. According to the 1880 census, Max Schleslinger was born in Berlin and was working in 1880 as a supervisor in a tie factory, and by 1880 he and Charlotte had three children: Hattie (or Harriet), born in 1875; Arthur, born in 1876; and Lena, born in 1877.

Max Schlesinger and Charlotte Seligman 1880 US census Year: 1880; Census Place: New York City, New York, New York; Roll: 894; Family History Film: 1254894; Page: 52C; Enumeration District: 564; Image: 0096

I found a card for Max in the ancestry.com database for U.S. Naturalization Record Indexes indicating that he became a citizen on October 5, 1877, and was living at 315 East 56^th Street, not too far from where Charlotte’s mother and siblings were living at that time. In 1884, they had a fourth child, Louis.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, D.C.; Soundex Index to Petitions for Naturalizations Filed in Federal, State, and Local Courts in New York City, 1792-1906 (M1674); Microfilm Serial: M1674; Microfilm Roll: 251

In 1900, Charlotte and Max were living at 202 East 123^rd Street with just their two youngest children, Lena (listed here as Lillie) and Louis. Max was still employed in tie manufacturing. Their daughter Hattie (or Harriet) had married George Cain in 1897. George was a banker, and in 1900, they had a daughter Edith, just born that year. They also were living with George’s sister Lucie.

Max Schlesinger and Charlotte Seligman 1900 census Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1119; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 0854; FHL microfilm: 1241119

I unfortunately have had no luck locating Max and Charlotte’s son Arthur on the 1900 census or elsewhere. The name Arthur Schlesinger is more common than you’d think (and that doesn’t include the famous historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. or his father, with whom there is no apparent tie), so I’ve not been able to figure out (yet) whether any of the men with that name in New York is the correct one.

Jacob was the next child of Marx and Sarah Seligmann to marry. He married Mathilde Kerbs on April 3, 1881, in New York City.[1] Mathilde was a German immigrant, and at the time of the 1880 census she was living with her siblings in New York City. Both of her brothers were in the cigar business as was Jacob, and so once again I think this was a connection made through the family ties to the cigar industry. Between 1882 and 1888, Jacob and Mathilde had four sons. The first, Max (presumably for his grandfather Marx), was born in 1882, then came Harry (1883), Louis (1885), and Samuel (1888). In 1900, Jacob was still a cigar packer, and the family was living at 303 East 69^th Street. They would have one more child, Beatrice, in 1902.

Jacob Seligman and Mathilde Kerbs 1900 census Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1112; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 0700; FHL microfilm: 1241112

Sigmund, the oldest child of Marx and Sarah Seligmann, was the last to marry. According to the 1900 census, he married his wife Charlotte in 1882. From a death notice I found for Sigmund in the New York Times, I learned that Charlotte’s birth name was Koppel.

Sigmund Seligman death notice NYT June 1924

Ancestry.com. Historical Newspapers, Birth, Marriage, & Death Announcements, 1851-2003 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006. Original data: The New York Times. New York, NY, USA: The New York Times, 1851-2001.

Thus, the story posted about Marx on the second handwritten tree—that one of his sons had married someone whose birth name was Koppel (or Coppel, as spelled there) —was in fact true. Both Marx and his son Sigmund married women with that surname. My guess is that Charlotte Koppel was a relative of Sarah Koppel, Sigmund’s mother. That guess is supported by two clues: one, Sarah’s mother’s first name was also Charlotte, according to Sarah’s death record, and two, Sigmund’s grandson posted a story on Ancestry.com saying that Sigmund had gone back to Germany to marry Charlotte and suggesting that it had been an arranged marriage.

Death Certificate for Sarah Koppel Seligman, wife of Sigmund

Death Certificate for Sarah Koppel Seligman, wife of Marx

Sigmund and Charlotte had five children between 1883 and 1896: Mary (1883), Max (1884) (another namesake for Marx or perhaps for Sarah’s father Max Koppel?), Leo (1891), Theresa (1894), and Albert (1896). Sigmund was employed in the insurance industry. In 1900, they were living at 304 East 117^th Street.

Sigmund and Sarah Seligman 1900 US census Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1123; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 0933; FHL microfilm: 1241123

Sigmund and Charlotte Seligman 1900 US census
Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1123; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 0933; FHL microfilm: 1241123

Thus, by 1900, Marx Seligmann had not only four grown children surviving him in the United States (plus the two daughters born of his first marriage); there were also eighteen grandchildren and one great-grandchild to follow him in the United States, including several named Max or Marx in his honor. Sometimes it amazes me to see just how many descendants one person can have. As I follow the descendants of Marx Seligmann into the 20^th century in my next post, I cannot help but think about all the potential lives that were lost for every person whose life was cut short.

[1] I cannot find Jacob on the 1880 US census.

The Last Chapter of the Nusbaum Story: The Hano Brothers

Posted on April 15, 2015 by Amy



I have finally reached the last twig on the last branch of the Nusbaum family tree.  This final chapter concerns Fanny Nusbaum, who married Jacob L. Hano.  Fanny was the daughter of Ernst Nusbaum and Clarissa Arnold, the granddaughter of Amson Nusbaum and Voegele Welsch, my four-times great-grandparents.

You might recall that my family tree is doubly connected to the Hano family tree. First, I learned that Jacob Weil had married Flora Cohen, the daughter of Louise Lydia Hano and Samuel Cohen. Jacob was the son of Rachel Cohen Weil, my great-grandfather’s sister. (Samuel Cohen was not related to Rachel Cohen or any of my Cohens, however.)

Louise Lydia Hano was the sister of Jacob L. Hano, who married Fanny Nusbaum, first cousin of my great-great-grandmother Frances Nusbaum. So one Hano married a Nusbaum, and another Hano married a Cohen. Talk about an endogamous group!

Jacob Hano and Fanny Nusbaum had married on February 28, 1877, and had moved to Youngstown, Ohio, where their first two children, Louis and Ernest, were born. They had returned to Philadelphia by 1884, when their third son Samuel was born. Samuel died just fourteen days later on August 21, 1884, from inflammation of his kidneys. He died in Atlantic City, and was buried at Mt. Sinai cemetery in Philadelphia.

“Pennsylvania, Philadelphia City Death Certificates, 1803-1915,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J6S5-2N5 : accessed 14 April 2015), Samuel Hano, 21 Aug 1884; citing , Philadelphia City Archives and Historical Society of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; FHL microfilm 2,069,818

A fourth son, Myer Arnold, was born in Boston in 1885, so the family must have relocated again after Samuel’s death. And then by 1890 the family had moved to New York City, where they would have two more sons, Alfred (1890) and Clarence (1891). Their second oldest son Ernest served in the US Army in the Spanish American War in 1898; according to his nephew Arnold, Ernest was gassed while serving in the war and as a result suffered heart damage that affected him for the remainder of his life.

Indexes to the Carded Records of Soldiers Who Served in Volunteer Organizations During the Spanish-American War, compiled 1899 – 1927, documenting the period 1898 – 1903

Jacob Hano had been in the printing business on his own, but in 1892 he joined with his younger brother Philip in the printing business instead of competing with him, as discussed in the ad below.

The American Stationer, Volume 31 p. 93

I love the comment here that this reduction in competition would not result in rising prices, just better service.

As of 1900 the Hano family was living at 205 West 134^th Street in Manhattan. Louis, now 22, was working as a salesman, and the other four sons were at home. Unfortunately, the family was to lose another son early in the 20^th century. On April 10, 1902, Myer Arnold Hano died at age seventeen from typhoid fever. This was the second son that Jacob and Fanny lost far too early.

In 1905, the family was still living at the same address on West 134^th Street, and now Ernest (25) was also working as a salesman. Alfred (15) and Clarence (13) were still in school. Jacob was in the “manifold business,” as stated in the advertisement above. From what I can gather, a manifold book is a type of form book used by businesses.

Source Citation
New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1905; Election District: A.D. 23 E.D. 13; City: Manhattan; County: New York; Page: 44

Louis, the oldest son, was not listed with the family on the 1905 census, nor can I find him elsewhere. However, by 1910, he was back living in the household with his parents and brothers. The family was now living at 344 St. Nicholas Avenue, and both Jacob and his son Louis were in the business of manufacturing “cravats.” Clarence was a salesman for the company, and Alfred was not employed. Alfred must have been in school because by 1910, he was employed as a lawyer.

Year: 1910; Census Place: Manhattan Ward 12, New York, New York; Roll: T624_1022; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 0560; FHL microfilm: 1375035

Ernest, the second oldest son, was not living with his family in 1910, but was living as a lodger in the household of Madeleine McGlone at 325 West 141^st Street. There were two other lodgers living there as well. Ernest was a neckwear salesman, presumably those made by his father since his father and brothers were manufacturing and selling cravats. Madeleine McGlone, his landlady, was listed as married for 14 years, but there was no husband in the household. A little research revealed that Madeleine was born Madeleine Constance Barnard in Ontario, Canada, and had married George A. McGlone in 1896; however, in 1910, George McGlone was living in the Bronx and listing himself as a widower, so it would seem that the marriage between Madeleine and George had ended. At any rate, I mention this because, as we will see, Madeleine would end up being much more than Ernest’s landlady, and perhaps already was by 1910.

Year: 1910; Census Place: Manhattan Ward 12, New York, New York; Roll: T624_1027; Page: 11A; Enumeration District: 0706; FHL microfilm: 1375040

In 1915, Jacob and Fanny still had three of their sons at home, Louis, Alfred, and Clarence, and the family had relocated to Queens. Jacob, Louis (37), and Clarence (23) listed their occupations as salesmen, and Alfred (25) was a lawyer. Ernest, meanwhile, had moved to the Bronx, where he was still listed as a boarder living in Madeleine McGlone’s household along with her mother. Ernest, now 36, listed his occupation as a collector (bills? Stamps? Coins?).

The next five years brought lots of changes, in particular, the year 1917. On June 3, 1917, Clarence, the youngest of the brothers, became the first to marry. He married Mathilda Kutes, the daughter of a Russian immigrant and an Austrian immigrant. Mathilda was born in New York in April 1897, and although she was living with her parents in 1900 in New York, by 1910 when she was not yet 13 years old, she was living as a “relative” in a household of people named Hertz of Hungarian background. I cannot seem to locate Mathilda’s parents or her siblings on the 1910 census.

Just four and a half months after Clarence married, Alfred Hano married Clara Millhauser on October 25, 1917. Clara was the daughter of Isaac Millhauser, a police officer, and Bertha Silverberg, and was a native New Yorker. According to the 1915 New York census, Clara had been working as a typist before she married Alfred.

Unfortunately, 1917 ended on an unhappy note. Fanny Nusbaum Hano, my first cousin four times removed, died on December 25, 1917, from cancer. She was 61 years old. She was the second of the Nusbaum children to predecease her mother Clarissa.

The World War I draft registrations for the Hano sons give more information about where they were in 1917-1918. Louis, now 40 years old, was living with his father Jacob in Manhattan. He was a salesman for Anathan & Co. Ernest, now 38, was living in Brooklyn, and was self-employed as a kennel owner. Both Louis and Ernest were single. Alfred was a lawyer, living in Manhattan with his wife Clara. He claimed an exemption from service based on “dependents—physical disability.” He also indicated that he had previously served as a private in the infantry for a month. It appears that instead Alfred served in the NY Guard. Finally, Clarence was living in Manhattan with Matilda and was employed as a salesman for Berg Brothers.

Registration State: New York; Registration County: New York; Roll: 1786680; Draft Board: 145

Registration State: New York; Roll: 1754135; Draft Board: 23

Registration State: New York; Registration County: New York; Roll: 1786806; Draft Board: 147

New York State Archives; Albany, New York; Collection: New York, New York Guard Service Cards and Enlistment Records, 1906-1918, 1940-1948; Series: B2000; Film Number: 10

Registration State: New York; Registration County: New York; Roll: 1786806; Draft Board: 147

Both Alfred and Clarence had sons born in 1918, named Alfred and Richard, respectively.

In 1920, Jacob, now a widower and working again as a printer, was living with Clarence, Matilda, and their son Richard in Hempstead, Long Island. Clarence was a dry goods buyer. Louis was living alone at 168 West 74^th Street and working as a ladies’ neckwear salesman. Alfred and his wife and son were living on Edgecomb Avenue in Manhattan, and Alfred was working as a lawyer. Ernest was continuing to live with Madeleine McGlone. Ernest was listed as Madeleine’s “cousin” on the census. Hmmm… Madeleine and Ernest both described their occupations as dog breeders. From my cousin Arnold, I now know that they were very successful breeders of Boston terriers.



Embed from Getty Images

Year: 1920; Census Place: Bronx Assembly District 8, Bronx, New York; Roll: T625_1143; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 462; Image: 438

In the next two years, both Alfred and Clarence again had sons, named Arnold and Edwin, respectively. That made four grandsons after six sons for Jacob and Fanny Hano.

Jacob Hano died on September 5, 1922. He was 72 years old and died from kidney and heart disease.

In 1925, Louis was living alone on West 73^rd Street, working as a salesman. Ernest was living on Pelham Parkway in the Bronx with Madeleine McGlone, now listed as her “partner” in the dog breeding business. Alfred was also living in the Bronx on Montgomery Avenue with his wife and two sons, and he was still practicing law. Clarence was living in Inwood on Long Island with his wife and two sons, and he was still a salesman.

New York State Archives; Albany, New York; State Population Census Schedules, 1925; Election District: 32; Assembly District: 06; City: New York; County: Bronx; Page: 14

Ernest finally married his former “landlady/cousin/partner” on December 28, 1927. He was 47, and she was 51, and they had been living with each other since at least 1910. Things did not change much for the other brothers between 1925 and 1930. According to the 1930 census, Louis was still living alone in Manhattan, now on West 86^th Street, and selling sportswear. Alfred was still living in the Bronx, but had changed occupations; he was now in the printing business as his father Jacob had once been. According to his son Arnold, Alfred joined his uncle Philip Hano’s printing business after he closed his law practice. Clarence was still living on Long Island, now a sales manager for a millinery business.

Sometime between 1930 and 1940, Louis Hano married a woman named Blanche, who had a son named Lewis. Blanche is listed as his wife on the 1940 census, and Lewis, 22 years old, is listed as his son. Since Louis was single in 1920 and 1930, I was fairly certain that Lewis was not his biological child. After much research, I concluded that Blanche had previously been married to Maurice Tobias and that Lewis was his biological child. After Blanche married Louis, Lewis Bertram Tobias became Lewis Bertram Hano. Whether or not he was legally adopted I cannot determine. I am in touch with a descendant of Lewis, and we are trying to learn more. At any rate, Louis F. Hano (note the different spelling of Louis and Lewis) became a husband and father for the first time some time in his fifties. Louis was a salesman for a knit goods business, and Lewis was engaged in purchasing for a specialty shop. They were living in Queens.

Year: 1940; Census Place: New York, Queens, New York; Roll: T627_2729; Page: 62B; Enumeration District: 41-449

While Louis had moved out of Manhattan by 1940, two of his brothers had moved back to Manhattan. Alfred Hano was living at 41 West 83^rd Street with his wife and sons in 1940, and he was working as a salesman for an industrial company, according to the census. His son Alfred, now 21, was working as a salesman for a tonsorial equipment company, i.e., barbershop supplies.

Occupations of Alfred Hano and his son Alfred on the 1940 census
Year: 1940; Census Place: New York, New York, New York; Roll: T627_2642; Page: 17A; Enumeration District: 31-801

Clarence Hano also moved back to Manhattan by 1940. He and his family were living at 465 West 65^th Street. Clarence was still selling millinery; his wife Mathilda was working as a manager for a publishing company. Their sons Richard and Edwin were both working as stock clerks, one for a thread company and the other for a button company.

I cannot locate Ernest and his wife Madeleine on the 1940 census, but he and Madeleine are listed in the 1938 directory for Claremont, New Hampshire, described as “retired” and living at “Blink Cottage” on Lake Avenue. There is an identical listing in the 1942 Claremont directory, so I assume that that is where they were in 1940 as well. On the other hand, Ernest’s 1942 draft registration lists his residence as 1422 Pelham Parkway in the Bronx, so perhaps they had both a city home and a country home during this period. The draft registration confirmed that he was retired and married to Madeleine Hano.

The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; State Headquarters: New York

Louis’ World War II draft registration showed him living with Blanche in Elmhurst, Queens, and employed by the Elgin Knit Sportswear Company. He was now 64 years old. His adopted son Lewis Bertram Hano married Marion Fitz on September 20, 1942, and Lewis served in the US Navy for much of World War II.

The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; State Headquarters: New York

According to his World War II draft registration, Clarence Hano was living at 25 West 68^th Street and employed by the American Straw Goods Company. He was 50 years old. His son Richard enlisted in the US Army on May 14, 1941, before the US had entered World War II. Edwin Hano also served in the US Army during the war.

The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; State Headquarters: New York

Alfred Hano was living at 41 West 83^rd Street at the time of his draft registration in 1942. He was employed by the United Autographic Register Company at that time. He was 52 years old. Both of his sons also served in World War II. His younger son Arnold enlisted in the US Army on October 16, 1942, and served in the Pacific Theater during the war.

The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; State Headquarters: New York

Alfred’s older son, Alfred, had enlisted six months before his younger brother on April 10, 1942. He served in the Army Air Corps in Europe. Tragically, Alfred was killed when his plane was shot down over Germany in March, 1944. He was only 25 years old.

Publication Title: Missing Air Crew Reports (MACRs) of the U.S. Army Air Forces, 1942-1947
Publisher: NARA
National Archives Catalog ID: 305256
National Archives Catalog Title: Missing Air Crew Reports (MACRs), compiled 1942 – 1947

The 1940s must have been very painful, heart-breaking years for the extended Hano family. Not only did they lose Alfred in the war and see four other young men put their lives on the line, they also lost two of the Hano brothers within just months of each other. On August 8, 1847, Ernest Nusbaum Hano died in Sunapee, New Hampshire; he was 67 years old. His wife Madeleine survived him by sixteen years, dying March 6, 1963, in Greenwich, Connecticut, where she had relocated after Ernest’s death. Then on November 30, 1947, Louis F. Hano died in Queens; he was seventy years old. His wife Blanche lived until April 2, 1965.

As for the other two brothers, Clarence died in April, 1960. He was 69 years old. His wife Mathilda died in 1976 when she was 79 years old. Both of their sons died before they were sixty years old, Edwin in 1970 and Richard in 1977.

Alfred Hano was the last surviving Hano brother. His wife Clara had died in 1953, and Alfred lived until May, 1967. He was 76 when he died. He was survived by his son Arnold, who is a very well-known and well-regarded sportswriter. His book about one game of the 1954 World Series, A Day in the Bleachers, is considered a baseball classic and innovative in the way he described in detail the play by play of the entire game. It was in that game that Willie Mays made his historic catch, captured in this video:

He has also written a number of biographies as well as a number of novels. I recently had the great pleasure of speaking with Arnold, who is now 93 years old. It was an absolutely delightful conversation in which we discussed everything from the Bronx, baseball, war, children, careers, and family. I have already added his books to my reading list for the summer. There is a documentary currently being made about my cousin Arnold, and although Arnold himself questions why anyone would be interested in his life, I know that I will be very excited to see this film when it is completed.

And so that brings me to the end of the story of not only the Hano family, and not only to the end of story of the descendants of Ernst Nusbaum, but to the end of the story of all the children and grandchildren of Amson Nusbaum and Voegele Welsch,[1] my four-times great-grandparents from Schopfloch, Germany.

[1] Voegele was most likely the person for whom all those girls named Fanny, Flora, Florence, and Frances were named for in the Nusbaum/Dreyfuss/Dinkelspiel family. I still need to find out more about the Welsch line of my family.

Thank you, Dayton, Ohio, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Annapolis, Maryland, and TTT on Facebook

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Amy

Dayton-ohio-skyline (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In my post about the descendants of Leopold Nusbaum, one of the unanswered questions was what happened to Cora Frank Lehman and her daughter Dorothy Gattman after Cora’s second husband Joseph Lehman died in 1959. I could not find any answers—until I looked to Dayton, Ohio, for help.

First, some background: Cora Frank was the third child of Francis Nusbaum Frank, the only child of Leopold Nusbaum to survive to adulthood. Cora had married Jacques Gattman in Philadelphia in 1903 and had had one child, Dorothy, in 1905. Then in 1906, Jacques died at age 31 from a stroke. Cora had married her second husband, Joseph Lehman of Dayton, Ohio, in 1913, and then moved with him to Dayton. Dorothy grew up and went to high school in Dayton, but I had no luck finding any record for her after 1925, when she was listed in the Dayton, Ohio, directory as a student.

Cora and Joseph were still living in Dayton at the time of the 1930 census and the 1940 census and were listed in Dayton directories in the 1950s.

I was able to find Joseph Lehman’s death in 1959 on the Ohio Deaths database on ancestry.com, but I could not find his burial place. I was also unable to find any record for Cora after the 1959 Dayton directory. I thought she must have left Dayton after Joseph died, but I had no idea where she went. She was not in the Pennsylvania database for death certificates, which runs through 1963, nor was she in the Ohio Deaths database, which runs until 2007. I thus thought she had left Ohio and either lived past 1963 in Pennsylvania, where she’d been born and raised, or gone wherever her daughter Dorothy had gone.

But where had Dorothy gone? Since I had no marriage record for her, I had no surname. I tried searching every way I could to find her, but had no luck.

That’s when I decided to look for assistance in Dayton. I contacted the Jewish Genealogical Society of Dayton for some information, and two women there, Marcia and Molly, co-presidents of the society, helped me locate where Joseph and Cora were buried—in the cemetery for Temple Israel in Dayton, one of three Jewish cemeteries in Dayton. Molly also found in the cemetery records Cora’s date of death—April 14, 1967. But unfortunately they were not able to find an obituary or any other document that revealed where Cora died or what happened to her daughter Dorothy.

But Molly gave me one other piece of invaluable advice. She suggested I contact Ellen at Temple Israel. I emailed Ellen, and she emailed me back first with information about where Joseph and Cora were buried in the cemetery and, most importantly, Cora’s address when she died in 1967: the Beaux Arts Hotel in New York City. I was so excited and immediately tried locating Cora and Dorothy in New York City. But I had no luck since I still didn’t know Dorothy’s surname.

But while I was having no luck, Ellen had continued to search, and forty minutes after her first email, I received an email saying that she had found Cora Lehman’s obituary:

Cora Frank Gattman Lehman obituary

And there it was: Mrs. Albert Rosenstein! That had to be Dorothy. And now I knew that at least in 1967, she was living in New York City at the Beaux Art Hotel at 310 East 44^th Street.

Now that I had Dorothy’s married name, I was able to find Dorothy and Albert Rosenstein on the 1930 census. This was clearly the right Dorothy—right age (27), right birthplace (Pennsylvania), and right birthplaces for her parents (Pennsylvania and Mississippi). Dorothy and Albert were living in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and further research revealed that Albert was born and raised in Lancaster, had graduated from the US Naval Academy at Annapolis, and was in the art wares business.



Embed from Getty Images

Ellen at Temple Israel in Dayton was also able to find this photograph of Dorothy’s confirmation class. We could not figure out from the list of names on the back which one is Dorothy. If anyone has any clue as to whether this list is in any order that would help identify Dorothy, please let me know.

1919 Confirmation Class of Temple Israel, Dayton, Ohio, courtesy of Temple Israel

But I was not yet done. I didn’t know whether Albert and Dorothy had had any children. I had to find them on the 1940 census. Once again I hit a roadblock. I could not find them. Although I found entries for them in the Lancaster directories up through 1939, there was no 1940 directory on line, and they did not appear in the 1941 directory. Where had they gone?

Using the address listed in both the 1930 US census and the 1939 Lancaster directory, 71 Spencer Street, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, I searched for that address on the 1940 census. There were Rosensteins living at that address, but not Albert and Dorothy. Instead, Albert’s parents Morris and Sara Rosenstein were living at 71 Spencer Street. Where were Albert and Dorothy? Why were his parents living in the house that Albert and Dorothy had owned in 1930 and lived in just a year earlier? Morris and Sara had lived at a different address in 1930.

Although I found an Albert Rosenstein living at 162 West 56^th Street in the 1940 New York City telephone book, there was no Albert Rosenstein living at that address in the 1940 US census report. I did find one Albert Rosenstein in New York City on the 1940 census, but he was single, born in New York, about four years younger than my Albert would have been in 1940, and a dress salesman. On the other hand, he was living at 162 West 55^th Street, just one digit off from the address where an Albert Rosenstein was listed in the 1940 telephone book. So…was this a different Albert Rosenstein from my Albert Rosenstein? I think so, but then where were my Albert and Dorothy Rosenstein in 1940? I still am not 100% sure.

I was, however, able to find death records for both Dorothy and Albert. Dorothy died on January 12, 1975, and Albert died on June 25, 1979. They are buried at Forest Lawn Gardens Memorial Park in Pompano Beach, Florida. I was able to locate a photograph of their headstone on FindAGrave:

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=115252930&ref=acom

I had no idea who Phyllis Rosenstein was. She was eleven years younger than Albert, five years younger than Dorothy, so clearly not their child. There was no sister named Phyllis living with Albert’s parents in 1920 or 1930, so I did not think she was his sister. His only brother, Louis, was married to a woman named Blanche. So who could Phyllis have been?

With the help of the Tracing the Tribe group on Facebook, I learned that Phyllis was Albert’s second wife. He married her on February 10, 1976, when he was 77 years old. I have to say that I am not sure Dorothy would be so thrilled having Albert’s second wife buried with them under the same headstone, but maybe I am just old fashioned.

I called the cemetery to see if perhaps they had any obituaries or other relevant records, but they did not. Thus, there were still some loose ends here. Where were Dorothy and Albert between 1939 and 1975? Did they have any children?

The Tracing the Tribe group on Facebook again provided me with some great assistance. One of the TTT members found a 2014 bulletin from Congregation Shaarei Shomayim in Lancaster which listed Dorothy G. Rosenstein and Albert Rosenstein on its January yahrzeit list. (A yahrzeit is the anniversary of a death on the Jewish calendar when relatives light a candle and say kaddish in memory of the deceased.) I checked a Jewish calendar, and while Dorothy’s yahrzeit could fall in January, Albert’s would not. I emailed the synagogue, and another helpful person, Martha, responded telling me that both Albert and Dorothy had yarhzeit plaques there (though the January yahrzeit was for Albert’s uncle with the same name, there was a separate one of my Albert). Martha, however, had no record indicating who had paid for those plaques or whether there were any children or other descendants of Albert and Dorothy.

I still did not know if Albert and Dorothy had had children, though it now seemed unlikely. Then the TTT group helped me again. Since Albert was a 1922 graduate of the Naval Academy, I had thought perhaps he’d been sent overseas in 1940. Although the US had not entered World War II as of 1940, I did find a military record indicating that Albert had been activated in 1932 and was discharged in 1959. At the suggestion of a TTT member, I wrote to the US Naval Academy Alumni Association to see if they had any records. Last night I received an email from the US Naval Academy Alumni Association, Memorial Affairs representative which included two items: the obituary for Captain Albert Rosenstein and his photograph and biography from the yearbook from 1922, the year he graduated from the Academy.

US Naval Academy alumni magazine Shipmate, October 1979

It does seem that my hunch was correct—that Albert was serving in the Navy during World War II and thereafter for many years. I am now searching for more information about his military record. And the obituary also answered one more question. It does not appear that he and Dorothy had any children, or at least none who survived him.

It’s amazing to me how much I was eventually able to learn about Dorothy and Albert when just a week ago I thought I never would find out anything about her. I would never have gotten this far without the generous assistance of those three women in Dayton, Ohio: Ellen, Molly, and Marcia. Thank you all very much! And thank you as well to Timothy from the USNA Alumni Association, Martha from Congregation Shaarei Shomayim, and to my many wonderful colleagues at the Tracing the Tribe Facebook group. Once again—it took a village.

Ellen from Temple Israel in Dayton also sent me these photos of the headstones of Joseph and Cora Frank Lehman.

UPDATE: Here are the death certificates for Dorothy and Albert. Dorothy’s confirms that she was in fact the daughter of Cora Frank.

Thank You, Grandpa, for the Gift of My New Cousins

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Amy

It was about three years ago that I first started wondering more about my grandfather Isadore Goldschlager. I knew almost nothing about his life before he came to the US in 1904 from Iasi, Romania. I didn’t know too much about his life when he got to the US either. It was my interest in his life in particular that first prompted me to go on ancestry.com and start searching for answers. I soon hit a wall and gave up, only returning to ancestry a year later and starting my search for my Brotman relatives instead.

Then I returned to my grandfather again, a somewhat more experienced researcher, and this time I had better luck. In fact, as I have written, I found not only his parents—I found his mother’s siblings Gustav and Tillie and Zusi Rosenzweig, and then I found their children and many of their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I was able to piece together a better picture of my grandfather’s extended family and even figured out how he met my grandmother Gussie, who happened to be living down the street from his Rosenzweig cousins in 1915 on Pacific Street in Brooklyn.

Last night I got to meet some of my Rosenzweig cousins for the very first time. Four of the great-great-grandchildren of David and Esther Rosenzweig were there—Gerry, Ron, Michael and me. Gerry, Ron and Michael are all the great-grandsons of Gustave Rosenzweig, the brother of my great-grandmother Ghitla/Gussie Rosenzweig Goldschlager. Gerry is the grandson of Abraham Rosenzweig, and Michael and Ron are the grandsons of Joe Rosenzweig, the brother of Abraham.

Here is a picture of Abraham, Joe and Jack Rosenzweig:

Abraham Joseph and John (Jack) Rosenzweig

And here is a picture of their first cousin Isadore Goldschlager, my grandfather.

Isadore Goldschlager

It was a wonderful evening. Even though many of us had never, ever met before, we quickly connected and found common bonds—all having grown up in greater New York, all enjoying a good laugh, all loving dogs and our grandchildren (not in that order), and all being unable to digest raw onions. It was a great time, and even if we never knew each other as children, there was definitely a feeling of family.

Here we all are with our spouses. Thanks to the lovely newlywed couple who not only put up with our noisy conversations, but also graciously offered to take this picture (on about five different smartphones).

So keep looking for your cousins—you will never know how much joy you can experience.

2014 in review: Thanks and Happy New Year!

Posted on December 31, 2014 by Amy

As 2014 draws to a close, I look back with gratitude for all the wonderful things I have experienced this year.

First and foremost, on June 5, 2014, my grandson Remy Brandon Fischer was born. He is now almost seven months old, sitting up, playing with toys, and enchanting all of us with his calm nature and sweet disposition. Remy and Nate continue to be constant sources of joy in my life.

My family has grown in other ways as well. Not only have there been new babies across my family lines, I have found more and more new cousins. This was a year when in April, we had an amazing reunion of the Brotman cousins in New York City. I got to meet several of my second cousins for the first time as well as their significant others and some of their children. It was definitely a major highlight of 2014 for me. I am hoping we can do it again soon, and I am also beginning to think about a reunion for the Rosenzweig/Goldschlager cousins also.

Ten of Joseph and Bessie's great-grandchildren on the Lower East Side

Ten of the great-grandchildren of Joseph and Bessie Brotman having lunch on the Lower East Side

On the Rosenzweig/Goldschlager side, I had a great time having lunch with my cousin Linda and her husband Harvey in Boston.

I have also been blessed with many other new cousins whom I have yet to meet in person, but with whom I have skyped, talked on the phone, or emailed. My cousin Pete has been a wonderful friend and colleague as we shared the adventures of learning about our Seligman ancestors. Gracias, mi primo, for it all. Talking to my cousin Marjorie was a special treat, as was skyping with my cousin Richard in Australia, talking to my cousin Jean in Georgia, my cousin Barry in Florida, my cousin Lois and her brother Paul, my Selinger cousins,my Kohl cousins, my Cole cousins, my Bacharach cousins, and my Cohen cousins! Thanks also to Lou for the wonderful photos of my Cohen relatives. All of these conversations and email exchanges have made this year meaningful and interesting.

In addition, I have been blessed by the help and friendship of so many genealogy researchers this year. I cannot list them all, but special thanks to my fellow bloggers Wendy, Su, Leslie (Pancho), Luanne, Alex, Stephen, Jana, Mary Anne, Charles, and all the other bloggers who have read and commented on the blog and also provided me with useful tips and research insights. And thanks to all those who have helped through JewishGen or ancestry or Facebook like Dorothee, Beate, Walter, Ralph, Ned, Renee, Matthias, and many, many others who have helped me in my search. I apologize for any names I haven’t mentioned, but the list is so long that my aging brain cells cannot retain all the names.

Thanks to all my followers and readers, whether you comment or not, whether you read once a year or every post. Although I like to think I am writing for posterity—for the future generations who cannot even read yet, it means a lot and makes doing this more fulfilling knowing that there are people out there who are reading what I write. Special thanks to my brother Ira aka my medical consultant and to Laurel aka my consultant on matters of crime and mystery and to my cousin Jody, who found my aunt’s notes on the Brotman family trees and sent me all the old family photographs from her basement.

Family Tree drawn by Elaine Goldschlager Lehbraum

And extra special thanks to my parents, who read every post, answer every question, listen to every boring detail, and support everything I do as they always have.

My daughters may not read every post, or even most posts, but I continue to hope that someday in the future they will be interested in knowing more about their family history and will have this resource to turn to for answers. My daughters are in my head and in my heart with every word I write, every document I find, and every photo I share. This is ultimately for them whether they know it or not.

And finally, for Harvey. Thank you for putting up with my obsession, for supporting it, for listening and hearing, for sharing in the journey, and for taking joy in knowing that this is something that gives me great joy and satisfaction. As with everything in our lives, I could not do this without your love and support.

Luna

The year did, of course, have its sad moments. For me, the loss of my beloved cat Luna still makes my heart ache, but those sad moments just make me that much more grateful for all the happy times that far outweigh the sad times. In addition to my genealogy adventures, I got to go to the Florida Keys twice this year and spent a great summer on the Cape. I retired from a job I loved with no regrets, and I am now able to spend my days choosing what to do and when to do it. I’ve found some meaningful volunteer activities and more time, of course, to research and blog. I’ve even started writing a novel, something I’ve always dreamed of doing.

So it’s been an amazing year in many ways, and I look forward to another productive and fascinating year ahead in 2015. Coming soon—a big breakthrough on my Brotman line! And more about the Nusbaums, and then on to my father’s maternal lines.

I close with this annual report prepared by the WordPress.com people. Thank you one and all, and happy New Year! May this be a year of happiness, health, fulfillment, and love for you all.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 22,000 times in 2014. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 8 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

The Mystery of Fanny Wiler, Part II: Answers and Questions

Posted on December 22, 2014 by Amy

With limited internet access, I am hampered, but here is Part II.

In Part I, I presented the mystery of my cousin Fanny Wiler. Was she the Fanny Wyler who married Max Michaelis in 1774? Was that Max Michaelis the man who set the awful fire that killed not only him but his daughter Rose in 1884?

Despite hours and hours of searching, I still did not know for certain that the 1874 wedding was that of my cousin Fanny Wiler. But I was feeling pretty certain. I thought my Fanny had married Max Michaels, the one who was laborer, who had died sometime before 1890 and who had lived at 2133 East Thompson Street. I was even pretty sure that this was the Max Michaels who killed himself and little Rose in the fire. But then where were Fanny and Max in 1880? I felt I was getting close. But not close enough. After the mistakes I made in my assumptions about Milton Josephs, I knew I needed to be more certain before I could reach any conclusions.

I had to find Max on that 1880 census. I felt that if I found him with a wife named Fanny and a daughter Isabella and one more child (since Rose would not have been born yet in 1882), I’d be at least one step closer. I once again tried every trick I knew to try and find who was living at 2133 East Thompson Street on the 1880 census. And then I got smart. I turned to the genealogy village. There is a Facebook group for Philadelphia genealogy. Certainly someone there would know something about Philadelphia geography and perhaps be able to help me?

You see, East Thompson Street is a very, very long street that runs many miles through Philadelphia. There were probably a hundred EDs that included some portion of East Thompson Street. Steve Morse’s site had given me about ten that were supposed to include the address of 2133, and I’d spent hours reading through those and never saw one address close to 2133. Maybe someone in the Facebook group could help?

Sure enough, within ten minutes of posting my question, Ann, a member of that group had an answer. And it wasn’t simply an answer to the geography question. She had located the family living at 2133 East Thompson Street on the 1880 census. And their names? Mex Mcles is how it was indexed on ancestry.com. Mex?? Mcles?? Sigh. No wonder I hadn’t found it.

Max, Fanny, Isabella and Charles Michaels 1880 census Year: 1880; Census Place: Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Roll: 1184; Family History Film: 1255184; Page: 52A; Enumeration District: 521; Image: 0106

Anyway, I was elated. I had the family. Max worked in a glue factory and was 36 years old, thus born in 1844, so a bit younger than the Max on the marriage record and the Max who set the fire in 1884, but given the address, this was the same Max from the directories. His wife was Fannie, aged 32, so born in 1848. Close enough to my Fanny. Isabella was five, so born in 1874-1875. And there was the other child. Charles was three years old, so born in 1876 or 1877. This was the family of the man who set the fire. I was pretty certain of that. The only curveball? The census said both Max and Fannie were born in Germany. My Fanny was born in Pennsylvania. The Fanny on the marriage record was born in Switzerland, not Germany.

My elation was soon tempered with that feeling of uncertainty. OK, this was the Max Michaels who lived on East Thompson, who married a woman named Fanny, who had a daughter named Isabella. This was the same Fanny and Isabella who lived at 918 Hutchinson Street when Isabella died in 1890. But was this my Fanny? Was this the Max who died in the 1884 fire? Did I yet have enough proof?

No. But I had a new person to search. Charles Michaels. The son. The child who was three in 1880. And that opened up some new doors. But they did not give me the answers. Or at least not the answers I wanted.

Searching for Charles Michaels led me to an entry on the 1900 census. In New York City. Not Philadelphia. The Charles Michaels on that census was born in July, 1877, in Pennsylvania. That certainly was a possible match. The listing has Charles living with his mother Fanny Michaels, born November 1846. That certainly could be my Fanny. But born in Switzerland. Hmmm. Like the Fanny Wyler on the marriage record, but not like my Fanny. The Fanny on the 1900 census reported that she had had three children, but only one was alive. That made sense. Rosa had died in the fire, Isabella had died in 1890. Only Charles was alive. I was pretty certain that this was the Fanny Michaels who had lived in Philadelphia and whose husband Max had killed himself and their daughter Rose in a fire.

Except for one problem.

Also listed living with Fanny and Charles in 1900 in New York City? Max Michaels. Born in Germany in 1841. A laborer. That sure sounds like the Max who married Fanny Wyler in 1874 and who lived at 2133 East Thompson Street. But he was supposed to be dead! Fanny had listed herself as a widow on those directories in Philadelphia. I had a death certificate for a Max Michaels who burned himself to death. How could Max be alive? Would the census taker have included Fanny’s long dead husband? By 1900 he had been dead at least ten years, according to the Philadelphia directories, or 16 years if he was the Max who killed himself in the fire. I was mystified. Confused.

Max, Fanny and Charles Michaels on 1900 census
Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1085; Page: 12A; Enumeration District: 0098; FHL microfilm: 1241085

But I continued on. And I found Fanny Michaels on the 1910 census in NYC. A widow. Living as a boarder with someone named Nettie Rutlinger, also a widow. Both listed their place of birth as Switzerland. Fanny’s age lined up with my Fanny, more or less. It said she was 60, meaning born in 1850. In between the age of my Fanny and the age of the Fanny Wyler on the marriage record. And now Max was dead. If he wasn’t already dead before. I didn’t find a Max Michaels in the NYC death records between 1900 and 1910 or in the Pennsylvania death records for that period. I think the 1900 census taker had just made an error. Perhaps Fanny was asked for her husband’s information and provided it without saying he was dead. I don’t know, but I am 99% sure that the 1900 Fanny is the same Fanny whose husband and daughter died in the fire in 1884.

I could not find Fanny on the 1920 census, so I searched for a death record through the IGG site and found this:

298

Michaels

Fanny

67 y

Jan

1913

502 (1913)

Kings

1845 – 1846

1324260

That sounded like it could be the right Fanny, the wife of Max, mother of Isabella, Charles, and maybe Rosa. I decided to search for a death notice and found this one through the Fulton History website, a collection of old newspapers, mostly from NYC:

Fanny Michaels death notice Brooklyn Eagle 1913

Fanny Michaels death notice Brooklyn Standard Union January 6, 1913 p. 3

So this seemed pretty conclusive. The Fanny who died in 1913 was born in Switzerland. Nettie was her sister, also born in Switzerland. This was NOT my Fanny. It, however, does seem that this Fanny was the one who married Max Michaels in Philadelphia in 1874. She had only come to America a year before. She had been the mother of Isabella and Charles. And maybe Rose. I still don’t know. I still don’t know whether that Fanny was married to the Max Michaels who killed himself and his daughter Rose. But I think so. Except for the fact that he seemed to be alive in 1900.

But I need not look any further because I am now convinced that whoever she was, that Fanny Michaels was not my cousin. She was Fanny Wyler, born in Switzerland, not in Pennsylvania. She, not my Fanny, married Max Michaelis, who was perhaps the same Max Michaels who killed himself and his daughter Rose in a fire.

What do you think?

And meanwhile, where is MY Fanny Wiler? Was she the one working as a servant in 1880? Where was she in 1870 when the rest of her family was living together in Philadelphia?

I have no idea.

For all that work, I am back where I started. I have no idea what happened to my cousin Fanny Wiler. But at least it was an intriguing and challenging ride while it lasted.

But how can I find the real Fanny Wiler? HELP!

Brotmanblog: A Family Journey

Adventures in Genealogy

Tag Archives: New York City

From Cigars to Security, and Heartbreak and Heart Disease: The Family of Jacob Seligman

Gifts from My Cousin Steve

I Could Have Been A Contender*

The Case of the Disappearing Twin: Edith and Lucie Cain

Marx Seligmann, My Four-Times Great-Uncle: His American Family

The Last Chapter of the Nusbaum Story: The Hano Brothers

Thank you, Dayton, Ohio, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Annapolis, Maryland, and TTT on Facebook

Thank You, Grandpa, for the Gift of My New Cousins

2014 in review: Thanks and Happy New Year!

The Mystery of Fanny Wiler, Part II: Answers and Questions

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