Tag Archives: Rothschild

Meier Rothschild’s son Theodor Rothschild and His Family: How and Where did They Survive the Holocaust? And Who Was Willie Weisbecker?

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Although it was hard to find much about the life of Berthold Rothschild and his family after the Nazis came to power in Germany, I was able to scratch together some basics: the death of his ex-wife in a Nazi-run hospital in Herborn, his death in South Africa, his profession (photographer), the marriage of his daughter Adelheid to Manson Samson at Westerbork, and the young couple’s survival of their time in Nazi concentration camps.

Turning to Berthold’s oldest sibling Theodor Rothschild and his family, my research was also less than complete. But I did find out a few things.

First, a file in the Arolsen Archives included the name of Theodor Rothschild.1 A translation of that file reveals its purpose:

To all German universities

Breslau, 12 February 1941

The following named persons have, on the basis of § 2 of the Law on the Revocation of Naturalizations and the Deprivation of German Citizenship of 14 July 1933, been declared to have forfeited German citizenship.

In view of this, the academic doctoral degrees awarded to them by the competent faculties of the University of Breslau have been revoked by resolution of the Dean’s Committee of the Silesian Friedrich-Wilhelms University of Breslau dated 5 February 1941.

The revocation becomes effective with this publication. No legal remedy is permitted.

Theodor Rothschild is listed as one of those whose degree was being revoked. He is grouped with those with a doctorate in dentistry and identified as follows: “Rothschild, Theodor, born 16 Mar. 1891 in Hof, district of Kassel, doctorate 26 Sept. 1929.” This meant that Theodor had lost his citizenship as well as his doctorate.

By doing a full-text search on FamilySearch, I found a letter written by someone named Willie Weisbecker to the US State Department on July 7, 1941, requesting the appropriate forms to apply for visas for eight different families. Theodore Rothschild and his wife and daughters were one of the listed families (#7), as was someone named  Berthold Rothschild and his wife Minna (#2). I learned that Willie Weisbecker was a German-born immigrant to the US who was an attorney and active in helping former German Jews recover compensation for property that was confiscated by the Nazis.2

“United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/
ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-V386-M93C-G?view=fullText : Feb 6, 2026), image 1058 of 1101;
United States. Department of State. Image Group Number: 008699970
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-V386-M93C-G?view=fullText

Although Theodore was described as a second cousin to Willie, Berthold was described as his brother-in-law. I have no record of Theodor’s brother Berthold being married to a woman named Minna, though we know that his first wife Sarah had died in 1937. I thus am not sure that the Berthold Rothschild listed was the same person as Theodor’s older brother Berthold. I did find a tree on JewishGen with a different Berthold Rothschild married to a woman named Minna Weisbecker, so assuming that is accurate, the Berthold Rothschild in Willie’s letter is not my relative.

That made me wonder whether the Theodor Rothschild in Willie’s letter was in fact the same Theodor Rothschild on my family tree. I spent a great deal of time down the rabbit hole without any luck, trying to figure out how Willie Weisbecker was a second cousin (or any cousin) to Theodore Rothschild or his wife Bettina Schiff. The fact that Willie listed Theodor as from Monaco and having two daughters supports the assumption that this was the same Theodor Rothschild who was the son of Meier Rothschild and thus my cousin because other documents (discussed below) revealed that Theodor did live in Monaco. And I knew that he did have two daughters, Doris and Ellen.

But if Theodor and Willie were second cousins, they would share great-grandparents; same if Theodor’s wife Bettina and Willie were second cousins. So far, however, I have not found any commonality in the ancestries of Theodor and Willie or Bettina and Willie. I have contacted a person who has an extensive Ancestry tree for the Weisbecker family to see if he can help me find a link.

In any event, the State Department responded to Willie’s letter, agreeing to send the required forms for all the people listed in the letter except for those still in Germany.

“United States records,” images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/
ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-V386-M97K-M?view=fullText : Feb 6, 2026), image 1060 of 1101;
United States. Department of State. Image Group Number: 008699970
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QHV-V386-M97K-M?view=fullText

I don’t know whether Theodor ever completed those forms and applied for a visa, but in any event I have no record of him or his family ever coming to the United States.

Rather, I found on MyHeritage references for the French naturalization for both Theodor and his daughter Ellen on May 27, 1949. 3 But I did not find any naturalization references for either Theodor’s wife Bettina or his older daughter Doris. Willie Weisbecker’s letter indicated that Monaco was part of the unoccupied territory of France in July 1941, and I don’t think that’s technically correct since Monaco has always been a separate sovereign country. But France did allow residents of Monaco to become French citizens by decree if certain conditions were met.4

Although I did not find a naturalization record for Theodor’s daughter Doris, I did find a French death record showing that she died in Saint-Gratien, Val-d’Oise, France, on February 13, 2017. She would have been 97 years old.5

For Theodor and Bettina, the only other references I could find are a FindAGrave memorial showing that they both died and are buried in Monaco. Theodor died in 1961, Bettina in 1982.6

I don’t know how accurate those memorials are, but those same dates and locations also appear in an Ancestry family tree that could be that of a descendant. I have written to the tree owner for more information, hoping she knows the story of Theodor and Bettina and their daughters. Her tree has more information about the daughters and their marriages, but I’d prefer to wait to learn more than to rely on a tree alone. For now, this is all I have records for about the lives of Theodor Rothschild and his family.

If and when I learn more, I will update the blog accordingly.

  1.  1 Incarceration Documents / 1.2 Miscellaneous / 1.2.1 Deportations and Transports /, Glatz (Lower Silesia): Minutes and correspondence concerning the collection of Jewish property, compulsory names, expatriation and deportation of the Jewish population (1938-1943), Reference Code 10007588 Creation Date 1938-12-06 – 1943-05-10 ↩
  2. “Willie Weisbecker, Lawyer and Writer,” The New York Times, December 4, 1955, p. 88 ↩
  3. Ellen ROTHSCHILD, Birth Mar 7 1929, Kassel, District de Kassel, Hesse, Allemagne, Naturalization May 27 1949, France, Notes Cette personne était un enfant mineur lorsque ses parents ont bénéficié d’un décret de Naturalisation, de Réintégration ou d’Admission sur lequel elle a été mentionnée, il est donc Français par EFFET COLLECTIF., Source Les naturalisations entre 1900 et 1963, Decree Number 12302-38, Reference Number H002-NAT1056319, Sources Journal Officiel, found at MyHeritage, https://www.myheritage.com/research/record-14015-409204/ellen-rothschild-in-france-naturalizations?s=OYYV67OZ5BWBQ5GHZXDK3ZTZXZLZYQY; Théodore ROTHSCHILD
    Birth Mar 16 1891, Hoof, Schauenburg, District de Kassel, Hesse, Allemagne
    Naturalization May 27 1949, France, Notes A l’origine cette personne était de nationalité étrangère, elle est devenue française en bénéficiant d’un décret de NATURALISATION. Le premier texte concernant les naturalisations d’étrangers en France est un arrêt du Parlement de Paris daté de 1515: “L’enfant né en France de parents étrangers est Français s’il choisit de se fixer définitivement en France”
    Source Les naturalisations entre 1900 et 1963, Decree Number 12302-38
    Reference Number H002-NAT1056334, Sources Journal Officiel, found at https://www.myheritage.com/research/record-14015-765667/theodore-rothschild-in-france-naturalizations ↩
  4. Ordonnance n° 45-2441, 19 oct. 1945 (Fr.), Code de la nationalité française art. 60–62 (1945). ↩
  5. Doris Rothschild, Gender femme (Female), Death Age 97, Birth Date févr. 1920 (Feb 1920), Birth Place Kassel, Allemagne (Germany), Death Date 13 févr. 2017 (13 Feb 2017), Death Place Saint-Gratien, Val-D”Oise (Val-d’Oise), France, Certificate Number 27, URL https://www.data.gouv.fr/fr/datasets/fichier-des-personnes-decedees/, Institut National de la Statistique et des Etudes Economiques (Insee); Paris, France; Fichier des personnes décédées; Roll #: deces-2017.txt, Ancestry.com. Web: France, Death Records, 1970-2021 ↩
  6. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/99379564/theodore-rothschild: accessed February 5, 2026), memorial page for Dr Theodore Rothschild (1891–1961), Find a Grave Memorial ID 99379564, citing Cimetière de Monaco and Columbarium, Monaco-Ville, Monaco; Maintained by: Find a Grave. ↩

Meier Rothschild, Part I: Marriage and Children and Grandchildren

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Returning to the Blumenfeld saga, I am now up to the youngest child of Gelle Blumenfeld and Simon Rothschild, their son Meier, born in Zimmersrode, Germany, on May 9, 1861.

Meier Rothschild birth record, Arcinsys Archives of Hesse, HHStAW Fonds 365 No 893, p. 32

On January 6, 1889, Meier married Bertha Lorge, the daughter of Salomon Lorge and Hannchen Eichenberg in Harmuthsachsen, Germany, where Bertha was born on April 14, 1863.

Meier Rothschild and Bertha Lorge marriage record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Bestand: 923, Year Range: 1889, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Marriages, 1849-1930

Meier and Bertha had five children, all of whom not only survived to adulthood but survived the Holocaust, just as their first cousins, the children of Meier’s sister Sarah, also survived the Holocaust. But unlike Sarah’s children, Meier’s did not all end up in the United States but spread throughout the world.

Unfortunately, the birth records for those children are not yet available online. I found their birth dates on their marriage records and/or elsewhere.

Their first child was Berthold; he was born on December 5, 1889, in Hoof, Germany. He married Sarah Adler on December 30, 1919, in Frankfurt. She was the daughter of Leo Adler and Adelheid Stern and was born on June 29, 1893, in Russelsheim, Germany.

Berthold Rothschild and Sarah Adler marriage record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Bestand: 903, Year Range: 1919, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Marriages, 1849-1930

Berthold and Sarah had one child, a daughter Adelheid Gertrud Rothschild, born on December 10, 1920.1

Meier and Bertha’s second child was another son, Theodor; he was born March 16, 1891, also in Hoof. He married Bettina Schiff on July 17, 1918, in Kassel, Germany. Bettina was born on February 25, 1893, in Gladenbach, Germany, to Isaak Schiff and Dora Strauss.

Theodor Rothschild and Bettina Schiff marriage record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Bestand: 910, Year Range: 1916-1918, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Marriages, 1849-1930

Theodor and Bettina had two children, a daughter named Doris, born in Kassel on February 6, 1920,2 and a daughter Ellen, born March 7, 1929, in Kassel.3

Meier and Bertha’s third child was a daughter, Gertrud Louise, born in Hoof on March 29, 1893. She married Gustav Neuhahn in Hoof on May 16, 1919. Gustav was the son of Selig Neuhahn and Bertha Marcussohn, and he was born on May 11, 1886, in Grebenstein, Germany. Gustav had been injured fighting for Germany during World War I.4

Gertrud Rothschild and Gustav Neuhahn marriage record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Signatur: 5258, Year Range: 1919, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Marriages, 1849-1930

Gertrud and Gustav had one child, a daughter Ruth born on March 18, 1920, in Kassel.5

A fourth child Siegfried Friedrich was born to Meier and Bertha in Hoof on September 11, 1895. He married Gisela Katz on June 11, 1924, in Nienburg, Germany. Gisela was the daughter of Salli Katz and Rosa Arenberg and was born in Nienburg  on August 12, 1902.

Siegfried F Rothschild and Gisela Katz marriage record, Stadt- und Kreisarchiv Nienburg; Nienburg, Deutschland; Personenstandsregister Heiratsregister; Signatur: Nbg H; Laufendenummer: 51, Year Range: 1924, Ancestry.com. Nienburg, Germany, Marriages, 1874-1937

Siegfried and Gisela had two children. I don’t have birth records for their two sons, Zeev and Gunther Michael, but established their relationship and birth dates from other records. What I have for Zeev is a death certificate that names his parents as Frederick Rotem (Rotem is presumed to be the surname Zeev adopted to replace Rothschild) and Gisela Katz. His death record indicates that he was born April 22, 1927, in Wesermunde (now Bremerhaven), Germany.6

I established Gunther Michael’s birth and relationship to Siegfried and Gisela through the Social Security Applications and Claims Index on Ancestry where he lists his parents as Sigfried F Rothschild and Gisela Katz and his birth date as March 11, 1931, in “Werezmunde, Germany.”7

The last child born to Meier Rothschild and Bertha Lorge was their daughter Anna. She was born on March 10, 1900, in Hoof. She married my third cousin, twice removed, Julius Hamberg, the son of Salomon Hamberg and Helena Blum, on February 26, 1921, in Hoof. Julius was the great-grandson of Samuel Hamberg, whose brother Moses Hamberg was my 3x-great-grandfather. Julius was born in Volksmarsen, Germany, on May 11, 1887.

Anna Rothschild and Julius Hamberg marriage record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Signatur: 5260, Year Range: 1921, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Marriages, 1849-1930

Anna and Julius had three children, all born in Volksmarsen in the 1920s: Alice, Hans Leo Eliezer, and Ernst. Alice was born on March 2, 1922, Hans Leo on April 19, 1923, and Ernst on July 19, 1926.8

So as of 1931, Meier Rothschild and Bertha Lorge had ten grandchildren. Unfortunately, Meier did not live to see the birth of the last grandchild, Gunther Michael, because Meier died on August 4, 1930, in Grebenstein, Germany.9

His widow Bertha died less than a year later on March 19, 1931, in Kassel, just eight days after the birth of Gunther Michael Rothschild, the last grandchild.

Berta Rothschild, Maiden Name Lorge, Gender weiblich (Female), Death Age 67, Birth Date 14 Apr 1863, Death Date 19 Mär 1931 (19 Mar 1931), Death Place Kassel, Hessen (Hesse), Deutschland (Germany), Civil Registration Office Kassel I, Certificate Number 280, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Personenstandsregister Sterberegister; Signatur: 5627; Laufende Nummer: 910, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Deaths, 1851-1958

Meier and Bertha were thus spared from living through the Nazi era, but miraculously all of their children survived it.

To be continued.

  1. Marriage record of Adelheid Rothschild and Manfred Samson, found at
    https://www.wiewaswie.nl/personen-zoeken/zoeken/document/srcid/111087321 ↩
  2.  Doris Sara Rothschild, Birth Date 06 Feb 1920 (6 Feb 1920), Birth Place Kassel
    Last Residence Kassel, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, DC; Name Index of Jews Whose German Nationality Was Annulled by the Nazi Regime (Berlin Documents Center); Record Group: 242, National Archives Collection of Foreign Records Seized, 1675 – 1958; Record Group ARC ID: 569; Publication Number: T355; Roll: 7, Mosbacher, Eduard – Schafranek, Bruno, Ancestry.com. Germany, Index of Jews Whose German Nationality was Annulled by Nazi Regime, 1935-1944 ↩
  3.  Ellen Gerda Sara Rothschild, Birth Date 07 Mär 1929 (7 Mar 1929), Birth Place Kassel, Last Residence Kassel, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA); Washington, DC; Name Index of Jews Whose German Nationality Was Annulled by the Nazi Regime (Berlin Documents Center); Record Group: 242, National Archives Collection of Foreign Records Seized, 1675 – 1958; Record Group ARC ID: 569; Publication Number: T355; Roll: 7, Mosbacher, Eduard – Schafranek, Bruno, Ancestry.com. Germany, Index of Jews Whose German Nationality was Annulled by Nazi Regime, 1935-1944 ↩
  4. Gustav Neuhahn, Residence Year 1914, Residence Country Deutschland (Germany), List Date 14 Mai 1918 (14 May 1918), List Number 1894, Volume 1918_XVI, Ancestry.com. Germany, World War I Casualty Lists, 1914-1919 ↩
  5.  Ruth Neumann, Nationality Israeli, Arrival Age 40, Birth Date 18 Mar 1920, Birth Place Kassel, Germany, Record Type Arrival, Arrival Date 2 May 1960, Arrival Place Miami, Florida, USA, Flight Number 150, Airline Guest Aerovias Mexico, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Series Title: Passenger and Crew Manifests of Airplanes Arriving At Miami, Florida.; NAI Number: A3995; Record Group Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; Record Group Number: 85, Ancestry.com. Florida, U.S., Arriving and Departing Passenger and Crew Lists, 1898-1963 ↩
  6. Zeev Rotem death certificate, Birth Circa 1927, Death Nov 20 1973, Vancouver, British Columbia, Age at death 46, Registration # 1973-09-016282, BCA microfilm # B13328, GSU microfilm # 2050141, Canada, British Columbia death records, found at https://www.myheritage.com/research/record-20459-596398/zeev-rotem-in-canada-british-columbia-deaths?s=OYYV67OZ5BWBQ5GHZXDK3ZTZXZLZYQY  It is unlikely Zeev Rotem was his birth name, but since the death certificate includes his parents’ names, I feel confident that this was their son. ↩
  7. Michael Rothschild, [Gunther Michael Rothschild], [G Rothschild], Gender Male
    Race White, Birth Date 11 Mar 1931, Birth Place Werezmunde, Federal Republic of Germany, Death Date 10 Oct 2007, Father Sigfried F Rothschild, Mother Giseca Katz
    SSN 078284849, Notes Aug 1952: Name Listed As Michael Rothschild; Nov 1952: Name Listed As Gunther Michael Rothschild; 21 Jun 2005: Name Listed As G Michael Rothschild; 22 Dec 2007: Name Listed As G M Rothschild, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  8. Their birth dates and places were all found on their Palestine immigration papers found at the Israel State Archives at https://www.archives.gov.il/ ↩
  9. Meier Rothschild, burial record, found at the Jewish Online Worldwide Burial Registry on JewishGen.org at https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/cemetery/jowbr.php?rec=J_GERMANY_0045635   I was unable to locate the death record for Meier in the Ancestry database for Hesse deaths or on JewishGen or elsewhere. ↩

Sarah Rothschild Adler’s Lost Grandchildren

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As we saw, by 1940 all of the eight surviving children of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler were out of Germany and living in the US, the five youngest all living in Chicago: Grete Caroline, Malchen, Emmi, David Theodore, and Betti Jenny. And all of Sara and Moses’ grandchildren were also safely out of Germany—except the children of David Theodore and their mother Emma Suss.

Remember that David Theodore came alone to the US in May, 1939, leaving behind his wife Emma and their two children Kurt and Lydia, presumably so he could get settled and send for them later. Unfortunately, World War II started in Europe on September 1, 1939, just four months later, and his family never got out of Europe. On his petition for naturalization in 1944, he wrote that his wife’s location was unknown and that she had never come to the US and that the residences of his children were unknown.

David Theodore Adler, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions For Naturalization, V· 1224, No· 305251-305500, Ca· 1943-1944, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991

In fact, all three had been murdered in the Holocaust. Emma, Kurt, and Lydia were all deported from Frankfurt on November 22, 1941, to Fort IX, Kaunas, Lithuania, and killed there on November 25, 1941. As described on Wikipedia, “During Nazi occupation, the Ninth Fort was a place of mass murder and 45,000 to 50,000 Jews, most from Kaunas and largely the Kovno Ghetto, were transported to the Ninth Fort and murdered by Nazis and Lithuanian collaborators in what became known as the Kaunas massacre.”

How utterly tragic that this small part of the family were the only ones who did not leave in time. If only they had left with David…

David, or now known as Theodore or Theo, however, did survive and carried on with his life. On March 8, 1946, he married Lea Speier, who was the sister of Robert Speier, the deceased husband of David Theodore’s sister Emma.1 Lea had immigrated with Emma and her two children in 1938. She was born on October 19, 1898, to Levi Speier and Minna Lange.2 In 1950, David (now listed as Theodore) and Lea were living in Chicago where Theodore was the manager of a grocery store and Lea operated an addressograph machine for a department store.3

Grete was the first of the “Chicago Adler siblings” to die; she died on January 22, 1966, and is buried in Cook County, Illinois.4 She was survived by her son Kurt, who died on September 16, 1988, in Cook County,5 and his wife and children.

Malchen and Betty both died in 1970, Malchen on August 23, 1970,6 and Betty on December 4, 1970,7 both in Cook County. Malchen had been preceded in death by her husband Fritz Apolant, who died on December 12, 19638. Betty, who had been a widow for almost thirty years, was survived by her daughter Lucie, who died in February 2011,9 and her son Eric, who died on May 14, 2010.10

David Theodore Adler died in Chicago on October 31, 1976.11 He was survived by his second wife Lea Speier Adler, who died on January 11, 1988.12

Finally, the last remaining child of Sara Rothschild was Emmi Adler Speier. She outlived all  her siblings including Louis, Sigmund, and Julius, the three who came to the US more than thirty years before Emmi and the other “Chicago Adler siblings.” Emmi, who had, like her sisters Malchen and Grete, been a widow for many years, died on October 4, 1979, in Chicago.13 She was survived by her two daughters, Senta, who died on October 24, 2009,14 and Elsie, who died on October 16, 2012.15 Isn’t it a bit eerie that all three died in the month of October?

That brings me to the end of the story of the family of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler. It was interesting to me that their three oldest children—Louis, Sigmund, and Julius—left home so early and lived such different and challenging lives in the US. But their four daughters and the youngest son—Grete, Malchen, Emmi, Betty, and David Theodore—all waited until the 1930s to leave Germany, after they had married and after their parents had died. But somewhat miraculously all eight of the children who survived to adulthood also survived the Holocaust and made lives in America. But for David Adler’s fateful decision to come to the US before his wife and children, I would have been able to say that none of Sara and Moses’ descendants were killed in the Holocaust.

Before I turn to the next and final child of Gelle Blumenfeld and Simon Rothschild, I have two updates on other branches of my family tree.

 

 

 

 

  1.  Theo Adler, Marriage Date 8 Mar 1946, Marriage Location Cook, Illinois, USA
    Spouse Lea Speier, Marriage license 1893235, File Number {4bca04a3-4e96-4840-8db8-32454e922980}, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, Il; Cook County Genealogy Records (Marriages), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 ↩
  2.  Lea Speier, Gender weiblich (Female), Birth Date 19 Okt 1898 (19 Oct 1898)
    Birth Place Guxhagen, Hessen (Hesse), Deutschland (Germany), Civil Registration Office Guxhagen, Father Levin Speier  Mother Mina Lange, Certificate Number 55, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Bestand: 920; Laufende Nummer: 2769, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Births, 1851-1901; Lea Speier, passenger manifest, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957; Microfilm Serial or NAID: T715; RG Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; RG: 85, Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957 ↩
  3. Theodore and Lea Adler, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 3239; Page: 9; Enumeration District: 103-575, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  4.  Greta Mandelstein, Death Date 22 Jan 1966, Death Place Cook, Illinois, USA
    File Number 602490, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Deaths), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 ↩
  5. Kurt Mandelstein, Gender Male, Race White, Birth Date 15 Jul 1916, Birth Place Federal Republic of Germany, Death Date 16 Sep 1988, Father Albert Mandelstein,
    Mother Greta Adler, SSN 360014041, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  6.  Molly Apolant, Death Date 23 Aug 1970, Death Place Cook, Illinois, USA, File Number 624932, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Deaths), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 ↩
  7.  Betty Jenny Reagan, Death Date 4 Dec 1970, Death Place Cook, Illinois, USA
    File Number 635509, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Deaths), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 ↩
  8.  Fritz Apolant, Death Date 12 Dec 1963, Death Place Cook, Illinois, USA, File Number 6231161, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Deaths), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 ↩
  9. “Lucie Sable Sandler,” Chicago Tribune, February 26, 2011. ↩
  10.  Eric S. Reagen, Social Security Number 328-30-0003, Birth Date 3 Mar 1926
    Issue year 1952-1954, Issue State Illinois, Last Residence 60659, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, Death Date 13 May 2010, Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 ↩
  11.  Theodore Adler, Death Date 31 Oct 1976, Death Place Cook, Illinois, USA
    File Number 625441, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Deaths), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 ↩
  12.  Lea Adler, Death Date 11 Jan 1988, Death Place Cook, Illinois, USA, File Number 6000709, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Deaths), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 ↩
  13.  Emmi Speier, Social Security Number 341-28-8417, Birth Date 4 Sep 1892, Issue year 1951-1952, Issue State Illinois, Last Residence 60640, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA, Last Benefit 60649, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA, Death Date Oct 1979
    Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014; Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/181674901/emmi-speier: accessed January 28, 2026), memorial page for Emmi Speier (4 Sep 1892–4 Oct 1979), Find a Grave Memorial ID 181674901, citing Oakridge-Glen Oak Cemetery, Hillside, Cook County, Illinois, USA; Maintained by Klast (contributor 50020942). ↩
  14.  Senta Ferda, Social Security Number 324-16-1544, Birth Date 7 Sep 1920, Issue year Before 1951, Issue State Illinois, Last Residence 60053, Morton Grove, Cook, Illinois, Last Benefit 60649, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, Death Date 24 Oct 2009
    Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 ↩
  15.  Elsie L Carreon, Social Security Number 319-26-0874, Birth Date 23 Aug 1931
    Issue year Before 1951, Issue State Illinois, Death Date 16 Oct 2012, Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014 ↩

Sara and Moses’ Chicago Five in the 1940s: Becoming US Citizens

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As of 1940, the five youngest of the eight surviving children of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler—Caroline Grete, Malchen, Emmi, Betty Jennie, and David Theodore— were all living in Chicago. The 1940s saw them become US citizens and saw many of their children marry.

Grete’s son Kurt Mandelstein registered for the US draft on October 16, 1940, before he was even a US citizen. At the time he was working at Stop & Shop. His draft registration included the comment that he was unable to “use his left arm normally.”

Kurt Mandelstein World War II draft registration, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Illinois, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 1117, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947

Kurt became engaged to Lillian Greenberg in May 1942.

“Engagement,” Chicago Tribune, May 23, 1942, p. 169

They were married on September 22, 1942, in Chicago.1 Lillian was the daughter of Meyer Greenberg and Jeanette Brown and was born November 22, 1924, in Chicago.2 She and Kurt would have two children. Kurt became a US citizen in 1943.3 In 1950 he and his family were living in Chicago where Kurt owned a delicatessen.4

His mother Grete Adler Mandelstein became a US citizen on October 4, 1943.5 In 1950 she was living on her own in Chicago, working as a power sewing machine operator in a garment factory.6

Grete’s sister Malchen Adler Apolant became a US citizen on March 30, 1944;7 her husband Fritz Apolant had become a citizen the same day as Grete, October 4, 1943.8 In 1950 Malchen and her husband Fritz were living in Chicago where Fritz was working as a porter in a “food shop” and Molly was a self-employed private nurse.9

Emmi Adler Speier became a citizen on February 25, 1944.10 In 1950 she and her younger daughter Elsie were living in Chicago, and Emmi was working as a dress jobber doing needlework on children’s clothing. Elsie was a secretary in a mail order house.11

Emmi’s older daughter Senta married Eric Emanuel Ferda on September 6, 1944; he was the son of Otto and Rosa Ferda and was born in Cologne, Germany, on June 14, 1920.12 Eric served in the US Army during World War II.13 Senta and Eric had one child born in the 1940s. In 1950 they were living in Chicago, and Eric was working as a draftsman for a battery manufacturer.14

Emmi’s other daughter Elsie married  on April 28, 1951, in Chicago.15 Her husband may still be living. They had three children.

Betty Jenny Adler Regenstein, the youngest daughter of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler, became a US citizen on March 14, 1945. She was also using the surname Reagen, according to her petition for naturalization.16 On the 1950 census she is listed as Betty Reagan, living in Chicago and working in assembling for a machine manufacturer.17

Her daughter Lucie had married Ben Sable on October 1, 1940, when Lucie was only seventeen.18 Ben registered for the draft just two weeks later on October 16, 1940, in Chicago; he was working as a florist. Ben was born in Los Angeles, California, on December 2, 1916; he was the son of Louis Sable and Rose Lipman.19 Lucie and Ben had three children in the 1940s. In 1950 they were all living in Chicago where Ben and Lucie were both working in his florist shop.20

Betty’s son Eric, who also changed his surname to Reagen, enlisted in the US Army on April 18, 1944, and served until April 13, 1946.21 He married Ruth Lotte Levisohn on November 27, 1947, in Chicago. She was born in Hamburg, Germany, on February 15, 1928, and was, as far as I can determine, a child who came to England on the Kindertransport in 1939. She immigrated to the US from England after the war, arriving on May 13, 1946.22 In 1950 Eric and Ruth were living in Chicago, and Eric was a trucker for a trucking company and Ruth was a switchboard operator for a candy company. They would have one child in the 1950s.23

Thus, the four daughters of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler were all settled into life in Chicago during the 1940s, becoming US citizens, working hard at jobs often requiring manual labor, and seeing their children marry and start their own families. Life may have been hard, but they were all safe and alive.

Their brother David Theodore’s story is less uplifting. More on that in the next post.

 

  1. Kurt S Mandelstein, Marriage Date 22 Sep 1942, Marriage Location Cook, Illinois, USA, Spouse Lillian Greenberg Marriage license 1747023, File Number {0e18ea2e-86a0-4325-B39c-Ae75e71e7d4d}, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, Il; Cook County Genealogy Records (Marriages), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 ↩
  2. Lillian Greenberg, Birth Date 22 Nov 1924, Birth Place Cook, Illinois, USA
    File Number 6052650, Cook County Clerk; Cook County, IL; Cook County Genealogy Records (Births), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Birth Index, 1916-1935 ↩
  3. Kurt Siegfried Mandelstein, Age 27, Birth Year 1916, Naturalization Year 1943
    Naturalization Place Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA, Ancestry.com. Northern District, Illinois, U.S., Naturalization Index, 1926-1979 ↩
  4. Kurt Mandelstein and family, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 3239; Page: 15; Enumeration District: 103-582, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  5. Grete Caroline Mandelstein, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1079-1081, No· 268890-269400, 1942, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 ↩
  6. Grete Mandelstein, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 3238; Page: 11; Enumeration District: 103-517, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  7. Malchen Apolant, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1192-1195, No· 297765-298328, 1943, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 ↩
  8. Fritz David Apolant, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1192-1195, No· 297765-298328, 1943, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 ↩
  9. Fritz and Molly Apolant, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 3239; Page: 7; Enumeration District: 103-560, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  10. Emmi Adler Speier, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1180-1183, No· 295150-295735, 1943, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 ↩
  11. Emmi Speier, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 3239; Page: 74; Enumeration District: 103-554,Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  12.  Senta Speier, Marriage Date 6 Sep 1944, Marriage Location Cook, Illinois, USA
    Spouse Eric E. Ferda, Marriage license 1826963, File Number {A945cdff-9cae-4d9e-8589-71a339e706e1}, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, Il; Cook County Genealogy Records (Marriages), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960; Otto Ferda, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions For Naturalization, V· 1260, No· 313301-313500, Ca· 1944-1945, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 ↩
  13.  Eric E Ferda, Gender Male, Birth Date 14 Jun 1920, Death Date 2 Jun 1985
    SSN 327167843, Enlistment Branch Army, Enlistment Date 16 Jan 1943, Discharge Date 8 Feb 1946, Page number 4, U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs; United States; U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs Birls Death File, 1850-2022; URL: https://www.va.gov/, Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2020 ↩
  14. Eric Ferda and family, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 3239; Page: 4; Enumeration District: 103-560, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  15.  Elsie Lee Spere, Marriage Date 28 Apr 1951, Marriage Location Cook, Illinois, USA, Spouse Michael L. Carreon, Marriage license 2179652, File Number {71ad17b5-2c49-48ad-Beca-364cab2f0042}, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, Il; Cook County Genealogy Records (Marriages), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 ↩
  16. Betty Jenny Regenstein, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Description: Petitions, V· 1243-1245, No· 309401-309950, 1944, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991 ↩
  17. Betty Reagan, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 1910; Page: 5; Enumeration District: 103-4933, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  18.  Lucie J Regenstein, Marriage Date 1 Oct 1940, Marriage Location Cook, Illinois, USA, Spouse Benny Sable Marriage license 1657215 File Number {F9dc5d24-C011-4931-9897-5a41ad9780d4}, Cook County Clerk; Chicago, Il; Cook County Genealogy Records (Marriages), Ancestry.com. Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 ↩
  19.  Benny Sable, Birth Date 2 Dec 1916, Birth Place Los Angeles, California, USA
    Residence Place Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA, Registration Date 16 Oct 1940
    Registration Place Illinois, USA, Employer Self Florist, Next of Kin Lucie Sable
    Household Members (Name) Relationship, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Illinois, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 1560, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947; Benjamin Sable , Birth Date 2 Dec 1916, Gender Male, Mother’s Maiden Name Lipman, Birth County Los  Angeles, Birthdate: 2 Dec 1916; Birth County: Los Angeles, Ancestry.com. California Birth Index, 1905-1995 ↩
  20. Ben Sable and family, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 6251; Enumeration District: 103-4568, Enumeration District: 103-4568; Description: Chicago city – That part of Ward 47 (Tract 43-part) Bounded by W. Lawrence Ave.; N. Washtenaw Ave., W. Giddings, N. Virginia Ave.; W. Wilson Ave.; North Shore Channel (N. Branch of Chicago River). This Enumeration District consists of the following blocks: 7, 9, 18, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  21. Eric S Reagen, Gender Male, Birth Date 3 Mar 1927, Death Date 13 May 2010
    SSN 328300003, Enlistment Branch Army, Enlistment Date 18 Apr 1944, Discharge Date 13 Apr 1946, Page number 2, U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs; United States; U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs Birls Death File, 1850-2022; URL: https://www.va.gov/, Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2020 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. ↩
  22. Ruth Reagan, petition for naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1336-1338, No· 331235-331716, 1945, n
    Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991; Ruth Levisohn, Gender Female, Record Type Refugee List, Document Date 30 Jun 1939
    Document Place Berlin, Permit Number 6845,United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; Washington, D.C.; Series: Selected Records Relating to Kindertransports; Record Group: RG-59.075; File Number: mh55-704.00000125; Ancestry.com. UK, Selected Records Relating to Kindertransport, 1938-1939 (USHMM) ↩
  23. Eric Reagan, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: 4216; Page: 73; Enumeration District: 103-4474, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩

Sara and Moses Adler’s Younger Children: The Chicago Five

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As of 1933 when Hitler came to power in Germany, five of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler’s surviving children were still living in Germany: Caroline (Grete), Malchen, Emmi, David Theodore, and Betty. Their oldest three children—Louis, Sigmund, and Julius—had long ago emigrated to the United States. Fortunately, all five of those still in Germany were able to leave in time.

Interestingly, Betti, the youngest of those still in Germany, was the first to leave. She, her husband Marx Regenstein, and their two children Lucie and Erich sailed from Cherbourg, France, on April 29, 1936, and arrived in New York on May 6, 1936. Notice that all the first names were changed on the manifest. Marx became Max, Betti became Jenny, and Lucie was no longer Johanna, Erich no longer Siegfried. Max listed his occupation as a merchant on the ship manifest. They listed their destination as Leavenworth, Kansas, identifying Betti/Jenny’s brother Louis Adler as the person they were going to.

Regenstein family passenger manifest, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957; Microfilm Serial or NAID: T715; RG Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; RG: 85, Ship or Roll Number: Berengaria, Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957

Regenstein family passenger manifest p 2

I found it heartwarming to learn that Louis, who had left his family behind in 1900 when he was fifteen, was still in touch with his siblings back home. Just as he had taken in his brother Julius after Julius lost his first wife, Louis once again seemed to take on the role of assisting a sibling. In January 1938, when Betty declared her intention to become a US citizen, she and her family were still living in Leavenworth, Kansas.

Betti Jenny Regenstein Declaration of Intention, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1243-1245, No· 309401-309950, 1944, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991

But two years later in 1940, Betti (now listed as Jennie), Marx (now Max), and their children Lucie and Eric were living in Covert, Michigan, where Max was working as a farmer. I don’t know what drew them to that location. In 1935 they’d been living in Chicago, according to the census report. At first I thought it was Betti/Jenny’s brother Sigmund who had drawn them to Michigan since at one point he had been living in Ishpeming, Michigan, but that is very distant from Covert, and besides, by 1940 Sigmund was living in Connecticut.

Regenstein family, 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Covert, Van Buren, Michigan; Roll: m-t0627-01822; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 80-13, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census

The next Adler siblings to leave Germany were Caroline Grete and Malchen. They sailed together from Cherbourg on April 14, 1937, with Malchen (Mally)’s husband Fritz Apolant and Caroline (Karoline) Grete’s son Kurt. Caroline’s husband Albert Mandelstein had died on October 20, 1934, in Grebenstein; he was 79.1 Fritz listed his occupation as a manufacturer’s agent, and Kurt Mandelstein, who was twenty, listed his as a merchant. Like Betti before them, they all listed Leavenworth, Kansas, as their destination, and Louis Adler as the person to whom they were going.

Mandelstein and Apolant passenger manifest, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957; Microfilm Serial or NAID: T715; RG Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; RG: 85, Ship or Roll Number: Queen Mary, Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957

I have to confess that until I saw this ship manifest, I’d had no idea that Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler had a daughter named Caroline Grete. Somehow in my initial search for their children, Caroline had eluded me. It was only when I saw her listed on that ship manifest that I realized I’d missed a child and went back and found her records.

I don’t know whether or not Caroline or Malchen ever actually went to or lived in Leavenworth, Kansas. When Caroline filed her declaration of intention on October 20, 1937, just six months after arriving in New York on April 19, 1937, she and her son Kurt were living in Chicago, Illinois.

Similarly, when Malchen’s husband Fritz Apolant filed his declaration of intention on October 14, 1937, they were living in Chicago.

Fritz David Apolant declaration of intention, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21
Petitions, V· 1079-1081, No· 268890-269400, 1942, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991

I don’t know what drew them to Chicago, but I did notice that one of the witnesses on Malchen’s naturalization papers was a man named Benjamin “Nandelstein.” Perhaps that was really Mandelstein, as the signature appears to be, and this was a relative of her sister Caroline’s deceased husband Albert Mandelstein.

Affidavit of Witnesses for Malchen Apolant naturalization, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21, Petitions, V· 1192-1195, No· 297765-298328, 1943, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991

In any event, in 1940, Fritz, Malchen (Mally), Caroline (Grete now), and Kurt were all living together in Chicago, and all four were working. Fritz was an egg salesman, Mally a nurse for a private patient, Grete a cook in a private home, and Kurt a clerk in a retail grocery store.

Apolant and Mandelstein on 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: m-t0627-00929; Page: 1A; Enumeration District: 103-268, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census

The next sibling to arrive in the US was Emmi Adler Speier. Like her older sister Caroline Grete, Emmi was a widow when she immigrated to the US. Her husband Robert Speier had died on May 15, 1937, in Guxhagen, Germany; he was only 47 when he died.2 Emmi and her two children, Ilse/Elsie and Senta, and her sister-in-law Lea Speier all sailed from Easthampton, England, on June 29, 1938. They arrived in New York on July 4, 1938, an auspicious date to arrive in the US. Like her other sisters, Emmi listed her brother Louis as the person she was going to and Leavenworth, Kansas, as her destination. She listed her brother T. [Theodore] Adler as the person she left behind.

Speier family passenger manifest, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957; Microfilm Serial or NAID: T715; RG Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; RG: 85, Ship or Roll Number: Queen Mary, Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957

But Emmi and her children also did not end up in Leavenworth for long, if at all. By November 19, 1938, she also was living in Chicago, as were her two daughters.

Emmi Adler Speier declaration of intention, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21
Petitions, V· 1180-1183, No· 295150-295735, 1943, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991

In 1940, Emmi was living in Chicago with Ilse and Senta, along with three lodgers. Ilse was working as a dressmaker.3

Finally, the last sibling to arrive was the remaining son of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler, their son David Theodore Adler. He sailed without his wife Emma on April 30, 1939, arriving in New York on May 8, 1939. He listed his wife Emma as the person he had left behind and his brother Louis Adler in Leavenworth, Texas, as the person he was heading to; his occupation was a dealer.4 David did in fact go to Leavenworth, where on September 29, 1939, he filed his declaration of intention. He listed his occupation as a farmer.

David Theodore Adler declaration of intention, National Archives at Chicago; Chicago, Illinois; ARC Title: Petitions For Naturalization, 1906-1991; NAI Number: M1285; Record Group Title: Records of District Courts of the United States, 1685-2009; Record Group Number: Rg 21
Petitions For Naturalization, V· 1224, No· 305251-305500, Ca· 1943-1944, Ancestry.com. Illinois, U.S., Federal Naturalization Records, 1856-1991

But in 1940, like his other siblings Grete (Caroline), Malchen, Emmi, and Betty, David Theodore (now just using Theodore) was living in Chicago, working as a laborer doing odd jobs.5

All five of the younger children of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler were reunited in one city. What would their lives in America bring for them and their children?

To be continued.

 

  1. Albert Mandelstein, Gender männlich (Male), Death Age 79, Birth Date abt 1855
    Death Date 20 Okt 1934 (20 Oct 1934), Death Place Grebenstein, Hessen (Hesse), Deutschland​​​ (Germany), Civil Registration Office Grebenstein, Spouse Grete
    Certificate Number 27, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Personenstandsregister Sterberegister; Signatur: 3080; Laufende Nummer: 909, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Deaths, 1851-1958 ↩
  2. Robert Speier, Death Age 48[sic], Birth Date 15 Sept 1889, Death Date 15 Mai 1937 (15 May 1937), Death Place Guxhagen, Hessen (Hesse), Deutschland (Germany, Civil Registration Office Guxhagen, Certificate Number 12, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Personenstandsregister Sterberegister; Bestand: 2869; Laufende Nummer: 920, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Deaths, 1851-1958 ↩
  3. Emmi Speier, 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: m-t0627-00929; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 103-267, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census ↩
  4. David Adler, passenger manifest, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC, USA; Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1897-1957; Microfilm Serial or NAID: T715; RG Title: Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, 1787-2004; RG: 85, Ship or Roll Number: New York, Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957 ↩
  5. Theodore Adler, 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Chicago, Cook, Illinois; Roll: m-t0627-00930; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 103-303, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census ↩

Julius Adler, Part IV: Did I Have the Wrong Guy or Not? More Confusion!

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As we saw in the last post, the 1940s saw all the children of Julius Adler married except for one, Julius’ second child with his first wife Edith, his daughter Chrystal. Chrystal married Oliver Kenneth Boyd on October 20, 1955, according to one tree on Ancestry, and they had one child.1

While Chrystal was beginning married life, her brother Roland’s marriage to Verna Pataky seems to have ended sometime after 1957. At some point later, Roland married his second wife, Auda Marie Randle. Auda was born in Shannon County, Missouri, to Fred Randle and Wilbur Mae Widener on May 9 or 10, 1932.2 I cannot locate a marriage record for Roland and Auda. Auda had several children from an earlier marriage who took the Adler surname. I don’t know whether Roland officially adopted those children or when he married Auda. Lots of unanswered questions…

Minnie Hankins Adler, second wife of Julius Adler from whom he appears to have been separated for many years, died on April 15, 1970, in St. Louis; she is buried at Our Redeemer Cemetery in St. Louis.3 Notice that her death certificate lists Julius Adler as her surviving spouse, but her informant was her adopted son Ronald Adler.

Minnie Hankins Adler death certificate,Certificate Number 18131 URL https://s1.sos.mo.gov/records/Archives/ArchivesMvc/DeathCertificates#searchDB,  Missouri Office of the Secretary of State; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1971, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1971

Julius Adler died three years later on June 4, 1873, also in St. Louis. Although he is also buried in St. Louis, he is not buried with Minnie. He is buried at Mt. Hope Cemetery.4 His death certificate lists his marital status as widowed, not divorced. And interestingly it lists his parents as Martin Adler and Marie Rotich.

WHO?? Did I have the wrong person all along? Was this not the son of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler and the brother of Louis and Sigmund Adler? I searched and searched for a Martin Adler and for a Marie Rotich. I didn’t find anything that seemed relevant. Could Julius have forgotten his parents’ names or disassociated from them? Julius did not identify himself as Jewish as far as I can tell and he is buried in a Catholic cemetery, so names like Moses and Sara might have given away his Jewish parentage. He might have changed Martin from Moses and Sara to Marie. And “Rotich” could be a confused spelling of Rothschild. I will keep looking for Martin and Marie, but for now I am convinced that Julius was the son of Moses Adler and Sara Rothschild based on (1) the fact that he was born on the same day as their son named Joseph (and had a middle initial “J”) and (2) he was clearly the brother of Louis Adler, identified as such on the 1920 census. But I am open to hearing the doubts and questions of my readers.

Joseph Adler birth record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Bestand: 909; Signatur: 7413, Year Range: 1887, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Births, 1851-1901

Louis Adler 1920 US census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Leavenworth Ward 6, Leavenworth, Kansas; Roll: T625_537; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 109,
Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census

Julius was survived by his six children, three born to his first wife Edith: Roland, Chrystal, and Irene. And three by his second wife Minnie: Milton, Alice Marjorie, and Warren.

The three younger children all predeceased their three older half-siblings. Milton died on October 4, 1984, in Missouri; he was only 63.5 His brother Warren was 69 when he died on January 20, 1994, in St. Louis.6 Interestingly Warren’s obituary described him as the father of Ronald Adler, the son who’d been adopted by Minnie, Warren’s mother, and as the grandfather of Ronald’s daughter.7 Milton and Warren’s full sister Alice Marjorie died almost two years after Warren on December 5, 1995, in Phoenix; she was 73.8

Julius’ three children with his first wife Edith had greater longevity than their younger half-siblings. Roland died on May 6, 1999, in St. Louis, Missouri; he was 87.9 Irene died a year later on June 6, 2000, in St. Louis; she was 84.10 Chrystal was 90 when she died in St. Louis on June 1, 2004.11 In addition, Ronald Adler, the child adopted by Minnie Hankins Adler and also identified as the son of Warren Adler, died at age 81 on January 3, 2021, St. Peters, Missouri.12

Born Joseph Adler in 1887 in Germany, Julius Adler came to the US as a teenager and lived in Wisconsin, working as a baker, before moving with his three young children to Leavenworth, Kansas, to live with his older brother Louis after his first wife Edith died in 1919. He then married his second wife Minnie in 1920 and had three more children. He and Minnie and the six children bounced around quite a bit among different cities in Kansas and Missouri during the 1920s and 1930s before finally separating sometime before 1940. Neither ever remarried, but it also appears that they never reconciled. It must not have been an easy life for Julius, but he has many descendants who carry on the Adler name.

 

  1. That tree appears to belong to a great-granddaughter of Julius Adler and Minnie Hankins so I am hoping it is reliable. https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/person/tree/182652840/person/222372786688/facts  I also found a news story that reported that Chrystal and Oliver took out a marriage license in October 1955. “Marriage Licenses,” St. Louis Globe-Democrat, October 20, 1955, p. 19. ↩
  2. One source says she was born on March 9, 1932:  Auda Marie Randall [sic], Birth Date 9 Mar 1932, Birth Place Missouri, USA, Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Birth Index, 1920-1999, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Birth Registers, 1847-2003. Her obituary says she was born on March 10, 1932; Auda Marie Adler
    [Auda Marie Randle], Gender Female, Death Age 88, Birth Date 10 Mar 1932
    Birth Place Mountain View, Missouri, Residence Place Carthage, Missouri, Death Date 6 Jun 2020, Death Place Joplin, Missouri, Obituary Date 9 Jun 2020, Father
    Fred Randle, Publication Date: 9/ Jun/ 2020; Publication Place: Neosho, Missouri, USA; URL: https://www.clarkfuneralhomes.com/obituary/auda-adler, Ancestry.com. U.S., Cemetery and Funeral Home Collection, 1847-Current. See also Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/74726264/wilbur_mae-randle: accessed January 2, 2026), memorial page for Wilbur Mae Widener Randle (1895–1981), Find a Grave Memorial ID 74726264, citing Greenlawn Memorial Gardens, Springfield, Greene County, Missouri, USA; Maintained by Lyle and Marsha (contributor 47442725). ↩
  3. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/90763021/minnie_jewel-adler: accessed January 2, 2026), memorial page for Minnie Jewel Hankins Adler (18 Jun 1897–15 Apr 1970), Find a Grave Memorial ID 90763021, citing Our Redeemer Cemetery, Affton, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA; Maintained by Susan Ing (contributor 47043987). ↩
  4. Julius J Adler, Death Date 4 Jun 1973, Death Place Missouri, USA, Missouri Dept. of Health & Senior Services; Jefferson City, Missouri; Missouri Death Index, 1968 – 2015, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Death Records, 1968-2015; Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/96084314/julius_john-adler: accessed January 2, 2026), memorial page for Julius John Adler (28 Jul 1887–4 Jun 1973), Find a Grave Memorial ID 96084314, citing Mount Hope Cemetery Mausoleum and Crematory, Lemay, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA; Maintained by Carol Beck (contributor 47592652). ↩
  5. Milton T Adler, Death Date 4 Oct 1984, Death Place Missouri, USA, Missouri Dept. of Health & Senior Services; Jefferson City, Missouri; Missouri Death Index, 1968 – 2015, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Death Records, 1968-2015; Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/14579954/milton_theadore-adler: accessed January 2, 2026), memorial page for Milton Theadore Adler (15 Apr 1921–4 Oct 1984), Find a Grave Memorial ID 14579954, citing Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, Lemay Township, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA; Maintained by Mark Utley (contributor 47178748). ↩
  6. Warren Fred Adler, [Warren F Adler], Gender Male, Race White, Birth Date 31 Mar 1924, Birth Place Girad, Kansas, Death Date 17 Jan 1994, Father Julius J Adler
    Mother Minnie J Hankins, SSN 500186534, Death Certificate Number 721 Kutis 7723000, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  7. “Adler, Warren F.,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 20, 1994, p. 14. ↩
  8. Marjorie Alice Adler, [Marjorie A Williamson], [Marjorie Ocamb], Gender Female
    Race White, Birth Date 26 Aug 1922, Birth Place Kansas City, Missouri, Death Date 5 Dec 1995, Father Julius J Adler, Mother Minnie J Hankins, SSN 496187036, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007; Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/214870624/alice_margaret-ocamb: accessed January 2, 2026), memorial page for Alice Margaret “Marj” Adler Ocamb (26 Aug 1922–5 Dec 1995), Find a Grave Memorial ID 214870624, citing Greenwood Memory Lawn Cemetery, Phoenix, Maricopa County, Arizona, USA; Maintained by Fred Jorgensen (contributor 46797466). ↩
  9. Roland George Adler, Gender Male, Race White, Birth Date 22 Feb 1912
    Birth Place Stevenspoint, Wisconsin, Death Date 6 May 1999, Father Julius J Adler
    Mother Edith Richelt, SSN 488109582, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  10. Irene Jeanette Kohring, [Irene Jeanette Adler], Gender Female, Race White
    Birth Date 12 Sep 1915, Birth Place Minneapolis, Minnesota, Death Date 6 Jun 2000
    Father Julius J Adler, Mother Edith Reichelt, SSN 489071723, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  11. Chrystal Lorraine Adler, [Chrystal Lor Boyd] [Chrystal Boyd], Gender Female,
    Race White, Birth Date 30 Jan 1914, Birth Place Stevens Point, Wisconsin, Death Date 1 Jun 2004, Father Julius Adler, Mother Edith Reichelt, SSN 494035530, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  12. See obituary at https://www.baue.com/obituaries/ronald-ron-l-adler ↩

Julius Adler, Part III: Were He and Minnie Still Married in the 1940s??

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We saw at the end of the last blog post that in 1940 Julius Adler and his wife Minnie were living almost 300 miles apart—-Julius on a farm in Leavenworth, Kansas, and Minnie in St. Louis with their three children. Two of Julius’ children from his first marriage—Roland and Irene—were married and living with their spouses, also in St. Louis. I could not locate Chrystal, the third child from Julius’ first marriage on the 1940 census or anywhere else between 1930 and 1940.

So why was Julius living so far apart from his wife Minnie and his children in 1940? Was it just economics, or was there a problem with the marriage?

When Julius registered for the World War II draft in 1942, he was back in St. Louis, working at a bakery, but interestingly he listed his son Roland as his contact person, not his wife Minnie. Notice also that Julius listed his birth date as July 27, 1887, which lines up with the birth record I found for Joseph Adler, son of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler. But notice also that this document lists his birthplace as St. Louis, Missouri, not Germany.

Julius J Adler World War II draft registration, National Archives at St. Louis; St Louis, MO, USA; World War II Draft Cards (Fourth Registration) For the State of Missouri; Record Group Title: Records of the Selective Service System; Record Group Number: 147; Box or Roll Number: 754, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942

Minnie and Julius were still not living at the same address in 1942, as Julius was living in Sappington, Missouri, and Minnie, according to their son Milton’s draft registration, was living 2857 Pestalozzi Street in St. Louis, or about 14 miles apart.

Milton Adler World War II draft registration, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Missouri, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 2, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947

Milton enlisted in the US Army on March 11, 1943, and served until January 21, 1946. He identified himself as single on the enlistment record. He served in Central Europe and the Rhineland and was awarded Bronze Stars for his service in those campaigns.1

Milton T. Adler, Enlisted Record and Report of Separation, Honorable Discharge, found at Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/14579954/milton_theadore-adler: accessed December 26, 2025), memorial page for Milton Theadore Adler (15 Apr 1921–4 Oct 1984), Find a Grave Memorial ID 14579954, citing Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, Lemay Township, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA; Maintained by Mark Utley (contributor 47178748).

Sometime after 1940, Milton married Mary Virginia Piper, who was born on March 31, 1924, in Missouri, to Daniel W. Piper and Norien Klepper.2 I could not locate a marriage record for Milton and Mary Virginia (she seemed to use both names). In 1950 he and his wife and their two children were living in St. Louis, and Milton was working as a real estate salesman.”3 Milton and Mary Virginia would have two more children in the 1950s.

Julius and Minnie’s daughter Marjorie Alice (or Alice Marjorie) also married in the 1940s. She married Adrian Pettus Williamson on July 14, 1946, in St. Louis. Adrian, then serving as a gunner’s mate in the US Navy, was born on April 9, 1924, in Eagletown, Oklahoma, to Harry Claret Williamson and Swayne Pettus.4 I found it interesting that the article about the wedding gave one address for Julius and Minnie and described the reception for the wedding as taking place at the home of the “bride’s parents.” So perhaps Julius and Minnie were back living under one roof at the time?

“Alice Marjorie Adler Is Married At Church,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 4, 1946, p. 60.

The article also stated that the bridegroom would be returning to Brooklyn where he was stationed after the honeymoon, but that the bride would be returning to St. Louis.

Adrian and Alice seem to have had a second marriage ceremony a year later on September 11, 1947, in Coconino, Arizona:

Marriage record of Alice Marjorie Adler and Adrian Williamson in Arizona, Description: Marriage Certificates/Licenses – Books 11, 12, 13, 1941-1948, Ancestry.com. Arizona, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1865-1972

I have no idea why—perhaps to have a second celebration in Arizona where Adrian’s family lived?

Adrian and Alice did not have any children together. In fact, the marriage did not last very long, and on September 10, 1951, Alice married Eugene Ocamb in Pinal, Arizona. Eugene was the son of Joseph Wesley Ocamb and Irene Emma Van Bach; he was born on September 20, 1908, in Kansas City, Kansas.5 On the 1950 census, they had already listed themselves as married, living in Phoenix, Arizona, where Eugene was the owner of a retail auto parts store and Alice was a cashier in a jewelry store.6

Alice Marjorie Adler Williamson marriage to Eugene Ocamb, Licenses – Marriage, 1949 – 1954
Ancestry.com. Arizona, U.S., County Marriage Records, 1865-1972

Alice and Eugene would have two children together.

Thus, by 1950 four of Julius Adler’s six children were married: Roland, Irene, Milton, and Alice. I could not locate Roland on the 1950 census, but Irene was living in St. Louis with her husband John, who was an inspector and auditor for the National Guard.7 Milton was in St. Louis and Alice was in Phoenix with their respective spouses, as noted above.

Julius Adler was living with his oldest daughter Chrystal in St. Louis. Julius was working as a baker, and Chrystal was working as a clerical worker for a petroleum pipeline company. Julius listed his marital status as a widower, and Chrystal was single.8

Despite Julius claiming to be a widower, Minnie was not dead; she was living in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1950 with a ten-year-old boy she identified as her son; his name was Ronald Adler, and he was born on August 8, 1939, in St. Louis.9 According to his obituary, he was adopted by Minnie shortly after he was born.10 Minnie continued to list her marital status as married on the census. I assume that Minnie moved to Phoenix to be closer to her daughter Alice Marjorie.

Minnie Adler 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Phoenix, Maricopa, Arizona; Roll: 577; Page: 8; Enumeration District: 15-75, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census

The sixth child of Julius Adler, his son Warren, had enlisted in the US Army on March 3, 1943, and was discharged on February 16, 1946.11 In 1950 he was living as a lodger with a family in St. Louis, working as an office clerk in the accounting department of a railroad company. He was single and 26 years old.12 As far as I’ve been able to determine, Warren never married.

My next post will wind up the story of the family of Julius Adler before I move on to the remaining children of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler, the three who did not come to the US before the rise of Hitler in Germany.

My next post will be in 2026. Happy New Year, everyone!

 

 

  1. Milton T. Adler enlistment records, National Archives at College Park; College Park, Maryland, USA; Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946; NAID: 1263923; Record Group Title: Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, 1789-ca. 2007; Record Group: 64; Box Number: 12376; Reel: 3, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 ↩
  2. Mary Virginia Piper, Birth Date 31 Mar 1924, Birth Place Missouri, USA, Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Birth Index, 1920-1999, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Birth Registers, 1847-2003; Daniel Piper and family, 1930 US census, Year: 1930; Census Place: St Louis, St. Louis (Independent City), Missouri; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 0519; FHL microfilm: 2340977, Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census; Norien Klepper Piper death certificate, Missouri Office of the Secretary of State; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1969,
    Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1971 ↩
  3. Milton T. Adler and family, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: St Louis, St Louis, Missouri; Roll: 1016; Page: 9; Enumeration District: 96-755, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  4. Adrian Pettus Williamson, Gender Male, Race White, Birth Date 9 Apr 1924, Birth Place Eagletown, Oklahoma, Death Date Mar 1977, Father Harry C Williamson, Mother Swayne Pettis, SSN 527141202, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  5. Eugene Ocamb death certificate, Arizona Department of Health Services; Phoenix, AZ; Arizona Genealogy Birth and Death Certificates, Description County: 8703_B1010744, Ancestry.com. Arizona, U.S., Death Records, 1887-1968. One source says his birthdate was August 20, not September 20, 1908. ↩
  6. Eugene Ocamb, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Phoenix, Maricopa, Arizona; Roll: 576; Page: 74; Enumeration District: 15-69, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  7. John and Irene Kohring, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Manhattan, Riley, Kansas; Roll: 1251; Page: P82; Enumeration District: 81-26, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  8. Julius Adler, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: St Louis, St Louis, Missouri; Roll: 125; Page: 16; Enumeration District: 96-991, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  9. Ronald Lee Adler, Gender Male, Birth Date 8 Aug 1939, Birth Place St. Louis, Missouri, Residence Place St. Louis, Missouri, Industry Roosevelt High School
    Occupation Student Draft Registration Date 8 Aug 1957, Draft Registration Place St. Louis, Missouri, Draft Location Missouri, USA, Weight 170, Height 6 Ft., Hair Color Brown, Eye Color Blue, Complexion Medium, Next of Kin Name Warren F Adler
    Next of Kin Residence Place St. Louis, Missouri, Next of Kin Relationship Brother
    Draft Registration Number 2310739209, Box Number 170, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 1926–1975; Record Group Number: 147; Series: Post-WWII through Vietnam Era Selective Service Records, Missouri; Series Number: 147-76-0298, Ancestry.com. U.S., Korean War Era Draft Cards, 1948-1959 ↩
  10. Obituary found at https://www.baue.com/obituaries/ronald-ron-l-adler ↩
  11. Ronald Adler, U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs; United States; U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs Birls Death File, 1850-2022; URL: https://www.va.gov/
    Ancestry.com. U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2020 ↩
  12. Ronald Adler, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Glendale, St Louis, Missouri; Roll: 6189; Page: 86; Enumeration District: 95-138, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩

Julius Adler, Part II: Another Restless Brother

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Relying on the assumption that Julius Adler was in fact the brother of Louis and Sigmund Adler and was born Joseph Adler, I will now continue to tell the story of his life from 1920 to 1940. We know that in 1920 Julius was living in Leavenworth, Kansas, with his older brother Louis, that he was a widower, and that he had three young children, Roland, Chrystal, and Irene. We also know that he was a baker.

Louis Adler 1920 US census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Leavenworth Ward 6, Leavenworth, Kansas; Roll: T625_537; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 109,
Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census

On June 26, 1920, not long after the enumeration of the 1920 census, Julius married his second wife, Minnie Hankins, in Kansas City, Missouri. Minnie was a Missouri native, born on June 18, 1897, to Charles Love Hankins and Martha Meirhaftz.1

Julius Adler and Minnie Hankin marriage record, Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm], Year or Year Range: 1920, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002

Julius and Minnie would have three more children together in the 1920s: Milton Theodore, born on April 15, 1921, in Kansas City, Kansas2; Marjorie Alice (sometimes Alice Marjorie), born on August 26, 1922, in Kansas City, Missouri3; and Warren Frederick, born on March 31, 1924, in Girard, Kansas.4

Unfortunately, Julius got into some trouble when he was involved in a physical altercation with his employer on December 19, 1921. Guy Moll, the owner of the bakery where Julius was employed, got into an argument with Julius when Julius refused to clean out the mixer. Julius picked up a “stove lifter” or poker and threatened Moll, who then punched Julius in the mouth, knocking out two teeth.5 Julius, at the suggestion, if not urging, of his litigious brother Louis, sued Moll for $10,000, even though Moll had apologized and offered to pay his dentist bill. The case went to the jury, which rendered a verdict in Julius’ favor, but for only $285, not $10,000. One news story about the case mentioned that Louis had just won a case against the railroad, as discussed here, so perhaps Louis saw an opportunity for his brother also to win a large judgment.

“Jurors to Start Deliberations in Moll Case Today,” The Leavenworth (KS) Times, February 18, 1922, p. 10

This dispute may explain why Julius and Minnie’s next child Warren was born in 1924 in Girard, Kansas, 146 miles from Leavenworth. Julius may have decided (or been forced to decide) to relocate since I assume Moll no longer employed him. The family was still living in Girard in 1925 when the Kansas census for that year was enumerated, and Julius was still working as a baker.6

In 1927 Julius and Minnie were listed in the Topeka, Kansas, city directory, and Julius was again working in a bakery.7 But he ran a “situation wanted” ad that year seeking a bakery job “preferably in a small town.”

Kansas City (MO) Star, October 5, 1927, p. 22

In 1930, Julius, Minnie, and the six children (the three Julius had had with his first wife Edith and the three he’d had with Minnie) were living in Chapman, Kansas, and Julius was continuing to work as a baker. His oldest son Roland was a deliveryman for a dairy.8 At first I thought Roland might have been working for his uncle Louis, but since Chapman is 133 miles from Leavenworth where Louis lived, that seems not to be possible.

Obviously Julius was moving from place to place for all those years—from Wisconsin to Minnesota and then to several different places in Kansas. He was not involved in as many legal disputes as his brother Louis, but he seemed to have a different kind of restlessness.

Two of Julius’ children married in the 1930s. His oldest child Roland Adler took out a license to marry Verna Pataky in Edwardsville, Illinois, in November 1933.9 Verna was the daughter of Andrew Pataky and Theresa Kaldi and was born in Illinois on September 12, 1910.10 I don’t have a marriage record for Roland and Verna, but in 1940 they were living in St. Louis, Missouri, where Roland was working as a baker, just like his father Julius.11 Roland and Verna would have one child together.

Roland’s younger sister Irene also married in the 1930s. She and John Robert Kohring were married on September 17, 1936 at Emmaus Lutheran Church in St. Louis, Missouri.12 John was born in St. Louis on March 13, 1914,13 and was the son of John Henry Kohring and Evelyn Kercheval.14 In 1940 Irene and John were living in St. Louis, John was working as a chauffeur for a private family and Irene was a waitress in a cafeteria.15 They did not and would not have any children.

Chrystal, the middle child of Julius and his first wife Edith, did not marry during the 1930s, nor could I locate her on the 1940 census or find any records or articles revealing where she was at that time or any time from 1930 and 1940. She would reappear, however, in later records.

As for Julius Adler and his second wife Minnie Hankins, the 1940 census lists them in different locations. Minnie was living in St. Louis with their three younger children, Milton, Marjorie, and Warren, all now teenagers. Milton listed his occupation as “new worker,” and Marjorie gave hers as a factory worker in a paper factory.

Minnie Adler and family 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Louis, St Louis City, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02195; Page: 8B; Enumeration District: 96-355, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census

On the other hand, Julius was enumerated back in Leavenworth County, Kansas, the census report indicating that Julius was a caretaker of a farm and country grocery at that location, earning his rent by taking care of the farm. Since his brother Louis was also in Leavenworth County in 1940 and listed his occupation as “farmer,” I wonder whether Julius was working with Louis or even living and working on Louis’ farm.16

Although they were enumerated in different places that were 281 miles apart, both Julius and Minnie listed their marital status as married. Yet both census records, enumerated in different states by different enumerators, have the same strange mark over the M for marital status.

Minnie Adler marital status 1940 census

Julius Adler marital status 1940 census

Is that a D for divorced? An S for separated? It looked more like a seven or a two or a Z to me. I googled “1940 census marital status marks” and learned, lo and behold, that M 7 meant that the person was married but did not have their spouse living with them.

I thought perhaps Julius and Minnie were living separately because of economic reasons; perhaps Julius could not find work as a baker during the Depression. Or maybe Minnie was just tired of moving from place to place as Julius looked for work as a baker.

To be continued in the next post.

  1. Minnie Jewel Hankins Adler death certificate, Missouri Office of the Secretary of State; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Death Certificates, 1910-1971, Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Death Certificates, 1910-1971; Minnie Hankins, 1900 US census, Year: 1900; Census Place: Shoal Creek, Barry, Missouri; Roll: 838; Page: 11; Enumeration District: 0015, Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census; Charles L Hankins, Age 24, Birth Date abt 1871, Marriage Date 23 Mar 1895, Marriage Place Barry, Missouri, USA, Spouse Martha Meirhaftz, Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm], Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002 ↩
  2. Milton Theodore Adler, World War II draft registration, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Missouri, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 2,
    Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947 ↩
  3. Alice Marjorie Adler, Birth Date 26 Aug 1922, Birth Place Missouri, USA, Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Birth Index, 1920-1999; Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Birth Registers, 1847-2003; Ancestry.com. U.S., Marjorie Alice Adler
    [Marjorie A Williamson], [Marjorie Ocamb], Gender Female Race White, Birth Date 26 Aug 1922, Birth Place Kansas City, Missouri, Death Date 5 Dec 1995, Father
    Julius J Adler, Mother, Minnie J Hankins, SSN 496187036, Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  4. Warren Fred Adler, Gender Male Race White, Birth Date 31 Mar 1924, Birth Place Girard, Kansas, Death Date 17 Jan 1994, Father Julius J Adler, Mother Minnie J Hankins, SSN 500186534, Death Certificate Number 721 Kutis 772300, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  5. “Moll Shows Adler Had Stove Lifter When He Was Hit,” Leavenworth Times, February 17, 1922, p. 1. ↩
  6. Julius Adler and family, 1925 Kansas census, Kansas State Historical Society; Topeka, Kansas; 1925 Kansas Territory Census; Roll: KS1925_32; Line: 16, Description Township or Location: Girard, Ancestry.com. Kansas, U.S., State Census Collection, 1855-1925 ↩
  7. Julius Adler, Gender Male, Residence Year 1927, Residence Place Topeka, Kansas, USA, Occupation Baker, Spouse Minnie Adler, Publication Title Topeka, Kansas, City Directory, 1927, Ancestry.com. U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 ↩
  8. Julius Adler and family, 1930 US census, Year: 1930; Census Place: Chapman, Dickinson, Kansas; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 0032; FHL microfilm: 2340435,
    Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census ↩
  9. The Edwardsville (Il) Intelligencer, November 25, 1933, p. 5. ↩
  10. Verna Adler, Social Security Number 488-10-9705, Birth Date 12 Sep 1910
    Issue year Before 1951, Issue State Missouri, Last Residence 33931, Fort Myers Beach, Lee, Florida, USA, Last Benefit 33931, Fort Myers Beach, Lee, Florida, USA
    Death Date Oct 1979, Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014; Verna Pataky, 1920 US census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Granite Ward 5, Madison, Illinois; Roll: T625_390; Page: 4B; Enumeration District: 84, Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census ↩
  11. Roland Adler, 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Louis, St Louis City, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02205; Page: 6A; Enumeration District: 96-579, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census ↩
  12. Marriage record of Irene Adler and John Henry Kohring, Concordia Historical Institute; St Louis, MO, USA; Lutheran Church Records, Missouri Synod, U.S., Lutheran Church records, 1851-1973 ↩
  13. John R Kohring, Gender Male, Birth Date 13 Mar 1914, Death Date 23 Jul 2000
    Claim Date 16 Dec 1975, SSN 500189141, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007; John Kohring, World War II draft card, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Missouri, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 182, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947 ↩
  14. John H. Kohring and family, 1920 US census, Year: 1920; Census Place: St Louis Ward 20, St Louis (Independent City), Missouri; Roll: T625_957; Page: 13A; Enumeration District: 393,Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census; John H. Kohring and Evelyn Kercheval marriage record, Missouri State Archives; Jefferson City, MO, USA; Missouri Marriage Records [Microfilm], Ancestry.com. Missouri, U.S., Marriage Records, 1805-2002 ↩
  15. John R. Kohring and family 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: St Louis, St Louis City, Missouri; Roll: m-t0627-02195; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 96-350, Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census ↩
  16. Julius Adler, 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Delaware, Leavenworth, Kansas; Roll: m-t0627-01240; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 52-2A,
    Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census ↩

Julius J. Adler, Part I: Was His Birth Name Joseph?

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The third son of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler, Joseph, was born on July 28, 1887, in Niedermeiser, Germany, and as I mentioned in my first post about Sara’s family, I could not find any further documentation of the existence of this son other than his birth record:

Joseph Adler birth record, Hessisches Hauptstaatsarchiv; Wiesbaden, Deutschland; Bestand: 909; Signatur: 7413, Year Range: 1887, Ancestry.com. Hesse, Germany, Births, 1851-1901

I searched for a Joseph Adler in US and German records but failed to come up with anyone who was a definite or even a likely match. (The name was quite common.)

And then, when I was researching Louis Adler, as I mentioned in my first post about Louis, I saw that on the 1920 US census, Louis Adler’s household in Leavenworth, Kansas, included a brother named Julius as well as three children of Julius: Roland, C(h)rystal, and Irene. Julius was 32 years old, so likely born in 1887 or 1888. He was a widower and a baker. I wondered whether Julius Adler could be the same person as Joseph Adler, who was born in 1887.

Louis Adler 1920 US census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Leavenworth Ward 6, Leavenworth, Kansas; Roll: T625_537; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 109,
Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census

That led me to search for Julius Adler and his three children. The 1920 census is hard to read, but it looks like Julius arrived in the US in either 1901 or 1907 and was naturalized in 1911. According to this census record, his three children were all born in Wisconsin, so American-born. Roland was seven, Crystal five, and Irene three and a half. With those clues, I went to look for Julius Adler in Wisconsin on the 1900 and 1910 census records as well as on immigration and naturalization records.

I could not find him on any passenger ship manifest, but I did find him on the 1910 census in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He was then 22 and a baker, so that fit with the facts reported on the 1920 census. He was not yet married. On this census he reported that he had arrived in the US in 1906.1

Since his son Roland was seven in 1920, I assumed he was born in 1912-1913 in Wisconsin, so I searched for a birth record and found one for a George Rolland Adler born February 12, 1912.2 Searching further for Roland, I found a Roland George Adler born February 12, 1912, in Stevens Point, Wisconsin in the Social Security Applications and Claims Index on Ancestry. His parents were Julius J. Adler and Edith Richelt.3 I also found Chrystal Adler on the SSACI, and she was born in Stevens Point to Julius and Edith on January 30, 1914.4

Knowing the name of the mother of Roland and Chrystal was Edith Reichelt or Richelt led me to a marriage record for Julius. He married “Ida Richelt” on May 11, 1911, in Portage County, Wisconsin.5 I then found a news article about their wedding:

“Adler-Richelt,” Stevens Point (WI) Journal, May 12, 1911, p. 1

It appears that Ida was also known as Edith and that her birth surname was also sometimes spelled Reichelt.

In any event, all of this was interesting, but it didn’t definitively tie Julius Adler to the Joseph Adler born to Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler.

But the fact that Julius was in Wisconsin in 1910, the same state where Sigmund Adler was living and going to school at that time, seemed likely to have been more than coincidental and made me think it was very likely that Julius was in fact the same person as Joseph Adler. This little article in the March 16, 1916, Leavenworth, Kansas, newspaper also buttressed the ties between Louis, Sigmund, and Julius:

“Looking for Brother,” The Leavenworth (KS) Times, March 16, 1916, p. 5

Notice that Louis knew that Julius had been in Beloit, Wisconsin four years earlier in 1912. Sigmund went to Beloit College in Beloit before attending the University of Wisconsin in Madison and finishing his education there. Had Julius been drawn to Beloit, Wisconsin by Sigmund or perhaps vice versa? By 1916 when Louis was searching for Julius, Sigmund had left Wisconsin and was in Michigan. Perhaps that’s when Louis lost touch with Julius.

I knew that Julius’ children Roland and Chrystal were both born in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, but Irene, the youngest of the three, was born September 12, 1915, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.6 So sometime between 1914 and 1915, Julius and his family had relocated to Minneapolis. I also knew from the 1920 census that Julius was a widower by 1920, so sometime between September 12, 1915, and the taking of the 1920 census, his wife Edith/Ida must have passed away.

I found this obituary for Edith, and it filled in some of these holes:

“Mrs. Julius Adler,” Stevens Point (WI) Journal, September 3, 1919, p. 5

Edith was only thirty years old, and her children were only seven, five, and three, when she died from tuberculosis on August 28, 1919. She was buried back in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, where she was raised and where she’d married Julius just eight years before.

And then Julius appeared on the 1920 census, living with his older brother Louis in Leavenworth, Kansas. For all his legal troubles, Louis came through for his younger brother. He looked for him and obviously when he learned that his wife had died, he welcomed Julius and his young children into his home. Louis and his wife Edna had no children of their own, so it must have been quite an adjustment having Julius and three young children move in with them.

Of course, I still had no absolute proof that Julius was the same person as the Joseph Adler born on July 28, 1887 to Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler, just circumstantial evidence: the 1920 census listing him as Louis Adler’s brother, the fact that he had lived in Beloit, Wisconsin, around the same time that Sigmund Adler was in school there, and the fact that he was born in Germany in around 1887. But for me that circumstantial evidence was strong enough to conclude unless proven otherwise that Julius must have been the secular name adopted by Sara and Moses for the third-born son Joseph. And so based on that assumption, I will continue in my next post to tell the story of Joseph/Julius Adler and his family.

What do you think? Have I persuaded you that Julius Adler was the son named on the 1887 birth record as Joseph, son of Sara and Moses?

To those celebrating Hanukkah (and everyone else), I hope you are finding some light, some hope, in these very dark days. It seems like just one tragedy after another since the weekend: Brown, Bondi Beach, Rob Reiner, an MIT professor, teens at a sweet sixteen party in Brooklyn. Everywhere we turn, we see the results of violence and hatred and guns. I am searching for the light and the hope, but it just keeps getting harder.

Be safe, everyone, and be kind.

  1. Julius J Adler, Age in 1910 22, Birth Date 1888, Birthplace Germany, Home in 1910 Menomonee Falls, Waukesha, Wisconsin, USA, Sheet Number 14a, Street Fond Du Loc St, Race White, Gender Male, Immigration Year 1906, Relation to Head of House Baker, Marital Status Single, Father’s Birthplace Germany, Mother’s Birthplace Germany, Native Tongue English, Occupation Baker, Industry Bakery
    Employer, Employee or Other Wage Earner, Naturalization Status Alien, Able to read Yes Able to Write Yes, Enumeration District Number 0163, Out of Work N, Number of Weeks Out of Work 0, Enumerated Year 1910, Year: 1910; Census Place: Menomonee Falls, Waukesha, Wisconsin; Roll: T624_1741; Page: 14a; Enumeration District: 0163; FHL microfilm: 1375754, Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census ↩
  2. George Rolland Adler, Birth Date 22 Feb 1912, Birth County Portage, Wisconsin, USA, Wisconsin Department of Health Services; Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Birth Records, Ancestry.com. Wisconsin, U.S., Birth Records, 1812-1921 ↩
  3. Roland George Adler [Roland Edward Adler] [Roland Adler] Gender Male, Race White, Birth Date 22 Feb 1912, Birth Place Stevenspoint, Wisconsin, Death Date 6 May 1999, Father Julius J Adler Mother Edith Richelt SSN 488109582, Notes Nov 1936: Name Listed As Roland George Adler; Sep 1964: Name Listed As Roland Edward Adler; 12 May 1999: Name Listed As Roland E Adler, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  4. Chrystal Lorraine Adler, [Chrystal Lor Boyd] [Chrystal Boyd] Gender Female
    Race White, Birth Date 30 Jan 1914, Birth Place Stevens Point, Wisconsin, Death Date 1 Jun 2004, Father Julius Adler, Mother Edith Reichelt, SSN 494035530
    Notes Dec 1936: Name Listed As Chrystal Lorraine Adler; Nov 1955: Name Listed As Chrystal Lor Boyd; 05 Jun 2004: Name Listed As Chrystal L Boyd, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  5. Julius Adler, Marriage Date 11 May 1911, Marriage County Portage, Wisconsin, USA, Spouse Ida Reichelt, Wisconsin Historical Society; Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Marriage Records 1907-1939, Ancestry.com. Wisconsin, U.S., Marriage Records, 1820-2004 ↩
  6. Irene Jeanette Kohring, [Irene J Kohring] [Irene Jeanette Adler] Gender Female
    Race White, Birth Date 12 Sep 1915, Birth Place Minneapolis, Minnesota, Death Date 6 Jun 2000, Father Julius J Adler, Mother Edith Reichelt, SSN 489071723, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩

Sigmund Adler, A Life Dedicated to the Young

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Compared to the rather tumultuous life of his older brother Louis, the life of Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler’s second child Sigmund seems relatively uneventful, but not without its own drama. And it started even earlier in Sigmund’s life. He was sent off at the age of twelve to live with an uncle in the United States; he arrived even earlier than his older brother Louis. As with Louis, who also immigrated as a teenager, I am very curious as to what would lead a parent to allow a child to leave home and cross the ocean at such a young age. But I don’t have an answer.

Sigmund was born on March 10, 1886, and immigrated to the US in 1898, according to numerous census records including the 1900 census taken just two years later. On that census Sigmund was living in Lexington, Kentucky with his uncle Louis Adler, his father’s brother (not Sigmund’s own same-named brother), a shoe merchant. Sigmund was in school and had been listed as an honor student the year before at the Dudley Public School in Lexington.1

Sigmund Adler 1900 US census, Year: 1900; Census Place: Lexington Ward 4, Fayette, Kentucky; Roll: 519; Page: 10; Enumeration District: 0022, Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census

By 1910, Sigmund had left his uncle’s home and Lexington, Kentucky, behind and was living in Madison, Wisconsin. He was living as a lodger with an unrelated family and listed no occupation. I was puzzled as to what had brought him to Wisconsin so looked for him in the newspapers.com database to see if there were any articles that shed light on that question.2

I found several articles that provided the answer. Sigmund had left Kentucky to attend Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin, and then the University of Wisconsin, which is in Madison, Wisconsin. After graduating he was hired by the YMCA in Kenosha, Wisconsin, to be the Assistant Secretary and Boys’ Secretary; as described in the paper, he would be in charge of clerical matters, but primarily responsible for programming for boys at the Y.3 The article below (click and zoom in to read) discusses Sigmund’s involvement in and commitment to programming for boys at the Y during his time at the university.

“To Boost Boy’s Work, Kenosha (WI) News, February 16, 1911, p. 2

A later article further detailed Sigmund’s expected responsibilities. “There will be meetings for boys at which interesting topics will be discussed and an effort will be made to have the boys take up natural history with long walks into the country to follow up on this work. Secretary Adler is full of enthusiasm and full of plans for the boys and it is pretty certain that the directors will give him free rein to carry out these plans.”4

In February 1912, Sigmund spoke at a local church; his talk was titled, “The Foreigners within our Gates.” The newspaper commented that “Mr. Adler came to this country as an emmigrant [sic] when he was fifteen years of age [actually twelve]. He worked hard and earned enough money to pay his way through the University of Wisconsin and now holds a responsible position.”5

Six months later Sigmund announced that he would be leaving the Kenosha YMCA for a similar position in Richmond, Virginia. The local paper bemoaned his impending departure, commenting on all the good work he had done:6

[H]is work for boys in this city has attracted attention among association men all over the country. No more popular leader of boys ever came to Kenosha. His work has made the YMCA the social headquarters for the boys of the city and he has brought a big interest in this work to the boys.

The article then listed numerous projects that Sigmund had successfully initiated and led. It also pointed out that Sigmund would have preferred staying in Kenosha, but because of plans for building a new building, “there is grave doubt as to whether or not this work can be continued during the coming year….”7  There was even a farewell dinner for Sigmund attended by a hundred boys.8

Sigmund was still affiliated with the Richmond YMCA in March 1913 when he came to Ishpeming, Michigan, to speak at a boys’ conference there.9 But not long afterward he must have taken a job at the Y in Ishpeming because when he married Ethel Farrill of Kenosha on August 14, 1913, the newspaper story about their wedding noted that Sigmund was now “in charge of YMCA work” in Ishpeming, Michigan.10

Ethel Farrill was the daughter of Reverend Edgar Thomas Farrill and Mary Alice Fenner of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; she was born in Hopkinton, New Hampshire, on April 28, 1885.11 Ethel was a graduate of Smith College and had been teaching in the schools in Kenosha, Wisconsin.12

Sigmund and Ethel had a baby boy named Edgar Farrill Adler on August 27, 1914, in Ishpeming, Michigan, but sadly the baby died a month later on September 28, 1914, from congenital heart disease. Although the name on the death record is Randall Adler and at first I thought Sigmund and Ethel lost two babies born on August 27, 1914, I could find no birth record for Randall and no death record for Edgar. A newspaper article mentioned only one baby. So either Sigmund and Ethel changed the baby’s name (unlikely) or the person filling out the death certificate misheard the baby’s name. 13

Edgar Farrill Adler birth record, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services; Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan Birth Records, 1867-1920, Reference Number: 1-316, Michigan, U.S., Birth Records, 1867-1914

Death record for son of Sigmund Adler and Ethel Farrill, Michigan Department of Community Health, Division for Vital Records and Health Statistics; Lansing, Michigan; Death Records
 199: Lenawee-Missaukee, 1914, Ancestry.com. Michigan, U.S., Death Records, 1867-1952

Sigmund and Ethel later adopted a baby boy and named him Edgar Thomas Adler. He was born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, on April 3, 1917.14

Sigmund registered for the World War I draft on September 12, 1918, in Ishpeming, Michigan. He listed his occupation as “social welfare” for the Cleveland-Cliffs Mining Company.

Sigmund Adler World War I draft registration, Registration State: Michigan; Registration County: Marquette County, Draft Card: A, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918

By 1920, however, Sigmund and his family had relocated again, this time to Hartford, Connecticut, where Sigmund was once again working for the YMCA.15 He finally became a naturalized citizen of the United States on October 25, 1921.16 And appropriately enough his job with the Hartford Y was the secretary of Americanization. Sigmund gave many speeches on the subject and also supervised a program where local volunteers would go into the factories to teach employees about the process of “Americanization.”17

Sigmund returned to working with young people by 1925 when he was a teacher and a guidance counselor in the public high school in Hartford.18 On the 1930 US census, he listed his occupation as a public school teacher; he and Ethel and Edgar were living in Rocky Hill, Connecticut.19 They were still living in Rocky Hill in 1940, and Sigmund continued to teach at a public school.20

Their son Edgar, now 23, was working as a laborer in 1940.21 His World War II draft registration filed later that year revealed that Edgar was working for the Royal Typewriter Company in Hartford and was living at home in Rocky Hill. He enlisted on February 12, 1941, and was discharged with the rank of captain in the US Army on December 26, 1945.22 He served with the Fifth Army in Italy during World War II, earning a Bronze Star and the European African Middle Eastern Service Medal.23

Edgar Adler World War II draft registration, National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; Wwii Draft Registration Cards For Connecticut, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 2, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947

Edgar married Edith Constance Gilbert on July 3, 1943, in Augusta, Georgia.23 She was born in September 6, 1923, in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, to Harry Gilbert and Gertrude Codaire.24 They would have two children born in the 1940s. Edgar at some point earned a degree from Wesleyan University in Connecticut.

Sadly, Ethel Farrill Adler died on June 12,1944, in Rocky Hill, before she would know her grandchildren. She was 59 years old.25

Sigmund remarried the following year on February 12, 1945, in Bangor, Maine. His second wife was Alice Jennison,26 born on December 15, 1894, in Bangor, to William Jennison and Florence Whitney.27 She had been previously married and was employed as a secretary to an attorney in Bangor.28

In 1950 Sigmund and Alice were living in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, and neither listed an occupation on the census record. Sigmund was now 64 years old and had retired.29 His son Edgar was also living in Rocky Hill in 1950 with his wife Edith and their children; Edgar was working as the manager of a concrete plant.30

Sigmund Adler died on March 10, 1968, in Rocky Hill, Connecticut. His obituary identified him as “the first guidance counselor of the state,” having served as a guidance counselor at Hartford High School for 27 years, retiring in 1948. He was also active in several civic organizations and in 1962 had been named Man of the Year by B’nai Brith, which surprised me because nothing in Sigmund’s life in the US indicated any connection to Judaism. In fact, his memorial service was at the Rocky Hill Congregational Church.31 Sigmund’s second wife Alice survived him by 26 years. She died at the age of 99 on May 10, 1994, in Rocky Hill.32

Sigmund’s son Edgar died on March 22, 2005, in Hyannis, Massachusetts, not far from where I now live. He was 87 years old. According to his obituary, “[h]e was employed as a boat captain in the charter fishing industry for 25 years prior to retiring in 1979.”33 His wife Edith died twelve years later on January 15, 2017. She was 93 and had been a registered nurse.34 Edgar and Edith were survived by their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Sigmund Adler’s story stands in stark contrast to that of his older brother Louis, despite the fact that both came as boys to America without their parents. Louis had a life filled with conflict, but like Sigmund, had a long marriage. Sigmund, on the other hand, lived a life that was based on education and service, and although he moved around a lot early on, he lived most of adult life in Rocky Hill, Connecticut, teaching and helping young people find a successful path in life.

As with Louis, I will always wonder why Sara Rothschild and Moses Adler sent Sigmund off to the United States when he was so young. Perhaps in this case they saw his intelligence and his potential and believed his opportunity for success would be greater in the United States than it would have been in a small town in Germany. He certainly found that success.

And now we turn to the third son of Sara and Moses, who also came to the United States when he was quite young. Let’s see what paths his life took. Would they be more like that of his brother Louis or that of his brother Sigmund?

 

  1. “Honors for February,” Lexington (KY) Herald-Leader, February 22, 1899, p. 2. ↩
  2. Sigmund Adler, 1910 US census, Year: 1910; Census Place: Madison Ward 5, Dane, Wisconsin; Roll: T624_1708; Page: 3a; Enumeration District: 0061; FHL microfilm: 1375721, Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census ↩
  3. “To Boost Boy’s Work,” Kenosha (WI) News, February 16, 1911, p. 2. ↩
  4. “Will Keep Boys Busy,” Kenosha (WI) News, February 21, 1911, p. 1. ↩
  5. “Speaks at Church,” The Journal Times (Racine, WI), February 26, 1912, p. 7. ↩
  6. “Going to Richmond,” Kenosha (WI) News, August 27, 1912, p. 4. ↩
  7. Ibid. ↩
  8. Kenosha (WI) News, September 4, 1912, p. 5. ↩
  9. “Delegates Leave Friday to Attend Boys’ Meet,” The Calumet (MI) News, March 26, 1913, p. 5. ↩
  10. “Miss Farrill Weds,” Kenosha (WI) News, August 15, 1913, p. 5. See also Sigmund Adler, Marriage Date 14 Aug 1913, Marriage County Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, Spouse, Ethel A Farrill, Wisconsin Historical Society; Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Marriage Records 1907-1939, Ancestry.com. Wisconsin, U.S., Marriage Records, 1820-2004 ↩
  11. Ethel Alice, Gender, Female, Race White Birth Date 28 Apr 1885 Birth Place
    Hopkinton, New Hampshire, USA, Father Edgar T Farrell. Mother M Farrell, Birth Certificates, 1631-1919; Archive: New Hampshire Department of State; Location: Concord, New Hampshire; Credit: The Original Document May Be Seen At the New Hampshire Department of State; Ancestry.com. New Hampshire, U.S., Birth Records, 1631-1920 ↩
  12. See Note 10, supra. ↩
  13. See images above. Kenosha (WI) News, September 30, 1914, p. 5 (news report of the death of Edgar Farrill Adler). ↩
  14. See Edgar Adler on the 1920 US census, where he is described as their adopted son. Year: 1920; Census Place: Hartford Ward 10, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: T625_184; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 124, Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census. Edgar Thomas Adler [Edgar T Adler], Gender Male, Race White, Birth Date 3 Apr 1917, Birth Place Fondulac, Wisconsin, Death Date 22 Mar 2005, Father Sigmund Adler, Mother Ethel Farrill, SSN 049015785, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007 ↩
  15. Sigmund Adler and family, 1920 US census, Year: 1920; Census Place: Hartford Ward 10, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: T625_184; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 124, Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census ↩
  16. Sigmund Adler, Naturalization Age 35, Record Type Naturalization, Birth Date 10 Mar 1886, Birth Place Germany, Naturalization Date 25 Oct 1921, The National Archives in Washington, DC; Washington, DC; Indexes to Naturalization Petitons For United States District Courts, Connecticut, 1851-1992 (M2081); Microfilm Serial: M2081; Microfilm Roll: 1, Ancestry.com. U.S., Naturalization Record Indexes, 1791-1992 (Indexed in World Archives Project) ↩
  17. “YMCA Planning to Educate Aliens in City Factories,” Hartford (CT) Courant, September 11, 1919, p. 16. ↩
  18. “Older Girls Hold Annual Conference,” Hartford (CT) Courant, April 18, 1925, p. 9. ↩
  19. Sigmund Adler, 1930 US census, Year: 1930; Census Place: Rocky Hill, Hartford, Connecticut; Page: 18A; Enumeration District: 0207; FHL microfilm: 2340003, Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census ↩
  20. Sigmund Adler, 1940 US census, Year: 1940; Census Place: Rocky Hill, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: m-t0627-00506; Page: 12A; Enumeration District: 2-199,
    Ancestry.com. 1940 United States Federal Census ↩
  21. See Note 20, supra. ↩
  22. Edgar T. Adler, National Archives at College Park; College Park, Maryland, USA; Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938-1946; NAID: 1263923; Record Group Title: Records of the National Archives and Records Administration, 1789-ca. 2007; Record Group: 64; Box Number: 03303; Reel: 52, Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 ↩
  23. “Adler-Gilbert,” Hartford (CT) Courant, July 30, 1943, p. 11. ↩ ↩
  24. Edith C Adler, Death Age 93, Birth Date 6 Sep 1923, Death Date 15 Jan 2017
    Interment Place Bourne, Massachusetts, USA, Massachusetts National Cemetery
    Section D, Row 2, Plot D30, National Cemetery Administration; U.S. Veterans’ Gravesites, National Cemetery Administration. U.S., Veterans’ Gravesites, ca. 1775-2019; Edith Adler, 1930 US Census, Year: 1930; Census Place: Rocky Hill, Hartford, Connecticut; Page: 22A; Enumeration District: 0207; FHL microfilm: 2340003, Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census ↩
  25. Ethel Adler, Death Date 12 Jun 1944, Death Place Rocky Hill, Connecticut, USA, Connecticut Department of Public Health; Hartford, Connecticut, USA, Ancestry.com. Connecticut, U.S., Death Index, 1917-2017 ↩
  26. Sigmund Adler, Gender Male, Residence Rocky Hill, CT, Spouse’s Name Alice Jennison, Spouse’s Gender Female, Spouse’s Residence Bangor, ME, Marriage Date 5 Oct 1945, Marriage Place Maine, USA, Ancestry.com. Maine, U.S., Marriage Index, 1892-1996, Original data: Maine State Archives. Maine Marriages 1892-1996 (except 1967 to 1976). ↩
  27. Alice Jennison, Gender Female Birth Date 15 Dec 1895 Birth Place Bangor, Penobscot, Maine, USA, Father William A Jennison. Mother Florence Whitney, Maine State Archives; Cultural Building, 84 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0084; 1892-1907 Vital Records; Roll Number: 29, Ancestry.com. Maine, U.S., Birth Records, 1715-1922 ↩
  28. Alice Jennison, Gender Female, Age 27, Birth Date abt 1894, Birth Place Bangor, Marriage Date 5 Nov 1921, Marriage Place Bangor, Kennebec, Maine, USA
    Father William A Jennison, Mother Florence Whitney, Spouse Miles F Ham, Maine State Archives; Cultural Building, 84 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0084; 1908-1922 Vital Records; Roll Number: 24, Ancestry.com. Maine, U.S., Marriage Records, 1713-1922 ↩
  29. Sigmund Adler, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Rocky Hill, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: 3568; Page: 19; Enumeration District: 2-205, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  30. Edgar T. Adler, 1950 US census, National Archives at Washington, DC; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Year: 1950; Census Place: Rocky Hill, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: 3568; Page: 14; Enumeration District: 2-206, Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census ↩
  31. Sigmund Adler, Gender Male, Birth Date 10 Mar 1886, Death Date 15 Mar 1968
    Claim Date 20 Dec 1965, SSN 048362456, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007; “Sigmund Adler Dies; Guidance Counselor,” Hartford (CT) Courant, March 11, 1968, p. 8. ↩
  32. Alice Adler death notice, Hartford (CT) Courant, May 12, 1994, p. 90. ↩
  33. Edgar T. Adler, Social Security Number 049-01-5785, Birth Date 3 Apr 1917
    Issue year Before 1951, Issue State Connecticut, Last Residence 02675, Yarmouth Port, Barnstable, Massachusetts, Death Date 22 Mar 2005, Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014; Edgar T. Adler, The Barnstable (MA) Patriot, April 1, 2005, found at https://www.barnstablepatriot.com/story/news/2005/03/31/obituaries-4-1-05/33017465007/ ↩
  34. Edith Constance Adler obituary, found at https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/sandwich-ma/edith-adler-7253066 ↩