Southern Jewish Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky, 1-3 November 2024

 On November 1 of 2024, one of the finest conferences for finding your Jewish ancestors will convene in Louisville, Kentucky. It's not to late to register and join us there. More info can be found on the conference website, https://www.jewishsouth.org/upcoming-conference. I hope to see everyone there.

The Jews of Fordon (part 9)

 Over the course of the last 10-20 years I have posted many times about my search for the Jews of Fordon, Poland. Fordon, has at various times also been part of both Prussia and Germany. This small community is  very special to me as it is the birthplace of my own 2X Great Grandfather, Moses David Rosenbaum.

Now, thanks to the new available AI tools such as FamilySearch's Full Text Search, it is becoming easier to find the documents of our ancestors. Using simple search parameters I have been able to locate a few more important documents.

Rosa Meyer

On the 18th of February in 1904, Rosa Meyer died in Salt Lake City, Salt lake, Utah. Her will was probated on 1 April 1904, also in Salt Lake City. The probate document (shown below) has some incredible information. 

In addition to listing all her siblings, but also the children of those who were deceased, including their current residences. This was important because many of the community had been driven out of Fordon. This helps us bring the families back together. Also, on line 5 of the page above, she left $50 to the Jewish community of Fordon. She may have left but they were not forgotten.

Frederich Auerbach

The same search technique also shows us the will of Frederich Auerbach, whom I discussed in a previous post. He also left money to the Jewish community in Fordon as well as a few others who lived there. His will also remembered his family members from all parts of the world. An example of this can be found below:

It is very clear that with the new tools that are being developed for AI, the future discoveries in family history are going to open new doors for building and connecting families.

2025 IAJGS conference, Fort Wayne, Indiana 10-14 August 2025

 

Never to early to plan ahead for Fort Wayne in 2025. Looks to be another wonderful conference.