50th Anniversary Conference of the Southern Jewish Historical Society Atlanta, Georgia

 Registration is now open for the 50 Anniversary of this great conference. This year the conference will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, and I'm sure it will be another great event. To find more information on registering, go to the link below.

SJHS2026 Conference Signup – Join us in Atlanta!

IAJGS 2027

 The official date has been set for the 2027 virtual conference. Please plan to join us for this event.

Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) 2026

 On this day as I read the names of my family who were murdered, I promise to never forget them.

May none ever be forgotten.

Minnesota. Death Certificates 1887-2001

 

In the last few weeks FamilySearch has added more records to a collection perfect for Jewish families in Minnesota. The collection is Minnesota, Deaths, 1887-2001. The collection is indexed and includes records held by the Minnesota Historical Society.

This database helped me find more information on the life of Harry Cohen, who I knew was living in Minnesota since a little before the 1930 United States Census. 

In the 1930 census (shown below), he was married to Alice, with whom he had been married a little over one year. He worked in the Iron Metal business, living in Hennepin, Minnesota.

I also knew from the census record that he was born in New Jersey. I had not been able to find him in the 1940 census and believed it was likely he had died before then. So I turned the death records. It was in this collection that I found the 1938 death of Harry Cohen, the President of a Metal Company, who was born in New Jersey and was survived by his wife Alice.

The death certificate also provides additional information about his parents, Sam Cohen and Fannie Bearson. Thank you to the Minnesota Historical Society for access to these records.

Jews of Montana

 The history of the Jewish people in Montana begins about in 1862, when the Jews began arriving. These first Jews were drawn by the discovery of gold in Bannock and Virginia City. They worked in the mines, ran hotels and saloons, were merchants and leaders in the community.

The oldest Jewish settlement in Montana was in Helena, home to newly arrived Jewish merchants. The first synagogue, Temple Emanu-El was built in 1891. There were also a synagogue in Butte, it's synagogue was built in 1904. The state has never had a large community, perhaps never more than 2,000 or so, but the Jewish influence has been felt. Even before statehood came in 1889, Jews held political offices in various cities, and many were leading citizens. 

One early leader was Jacob Feldberg, an early member of the Virginia City town council. The marriage license and certificate (shown here) are for Belle Feldberg, the daughter of Jacob Feldberg and Emma Hyman. She was married, by Rabbi Jacob Millziner, to Alfred K. Wertheimer on 17 January 1902.

This record (FHL Film #00435167 item 4) is part of the Marriage License, Lewis and Clark County Collection at FamilySearch.org.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Today, January 27th is International  Holocaust Remembrance Day. Established in 2005 by the United Nations to honor the memory of the over 6,000,000 souls murdered by the Nazis. This is also the 81st anniversary of  the liberation of the Auschwitz - Birkenau camp, the largest of the Nazi death camps.

Recently, I was able to visit the New Orleans  Holocaust Memorial (image at left) and my thoughts were quickly taken back to my visit to Auschwitz- Birkenau. It was very emotional for me to look around and to think of my own family members who were murdered there. I did not know any of them personally, but as I stood there and thought of their names, I made a promise to myself to never forget them and to make sure my own family did not forget them. 

My GGreat Grandfather, Morris David Rosenbaum (above), left his home in Fordon, Poland in 1850. He arrived in the United States and built a life here. However, most of his six siters and their families staid in Fordon, and years later were murdered for being Jewish. On this day I remember all of them, the Rosenbaum family, the Auerbach family, the Oser family, and all those who were part of the fabric of life in Fordon.

May We Never Forget

International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS) 2026 conference

 

SAVE THE DATE

The date for the 2026 International Conference on Jewish Genealogy has been announced. It will be held on 18-20 October 2026. This year will be a virtual conference. Further information will be available soon.

IAJGS 2025 conference in Ft. Wayne

 

Beth Israel Congregation, Portland, Oregon

 

  Congregation Beth Israel (House of Israel), was first established in Portland in 1858. This was not yet a state but was still part of the Oregon Territory. A small congregation, affiliated withe the Reform movement,  it's first services were held in a room above a livery stable. A year later, in 1859 the congregation was able to move their first synagogue.

The second Synagogue was a good home for the congregation, before it also became to small for its needs. A new Synagogue was then built nearby in 1889. 

A city directory of Portland from 1893, lists the synagogue, with Jacob Bloch serving as the Rabbi. In 1923, 34 years after being built, the second Synagogue was destroyed by fire. The current synagogue, built in the Byzantine style is shown above, was completed in 1928. The congregation continues to grow and over time has added to its campus. A religious school and art room for young artists are some of the features of the additional space.

In addition, a short distance from the synagogue is the Beth Israel Cemetery.

Over the next few years, they will be celebrated the 170th anniversary of its founding and the 100th anniversary of the completion of the synagogue. 

RootsTech 2025

 The time is fast approaching for Rootstech 2025. Whether you want to attend in person or join millions of your closest friends in a virtual environment, the time to register is here.

More information can be found at https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/  I hope to see everyone there.

Jewish History of Puerto Rico

Like so many of its Caribbean neighbors, the history of the Jewish community in Puerto Rico dates to the 15th century. Many of these early Jews were Crypto Jews, those who had fled the Spanish Inquisition. However when they arrived in Puerto Rico they found that Judaism could not be practiced openly as it was also prohibited under the rules of the Spanish Inquisition. This prohibition caused many of the community to flee to the mountains, far away from the populated area around San Juan. Here they could continue to practice Judaism.  

Luis de Torres is widely believed to be the first Jew to arrive in Puerto Rico. He did so as the interrupter for Christopher Columbus on his journey to the New World. He was part of the second voyage, arriving in November of 1493. 

It wasn't for another 450 years before large numbers of Jews settled in Puerto Rico. These were refugees fleeing the German occupation of Europe.

The next large group of Jews arriving in Puerto Rico came in the 1950's. They to were refugees, this time fleeing Cuba as Fidel Castro came to power. The majority of the Jews from Cuba migrated to Miami, Florida but good amount did move to Puerto Rico. This was most likely because of the fact that the island of Puerto Rico was very similar to that of Cuba and to many it felt like the home they had left. Today, Puerto Rico has one of the largest Jewish community's in the Caribbean, over 2500 people.

FamilySearch has a growing number of collections that can help people find their Puerto Rican ancestors. These can be found by looking under the search tab, under Records.

California, Walnut Creek, Oak Hills Park Chapel, Funeral Records, 1962-2018

 

Yesterday, on October 23, 2024, FamilySearch  updated a very unique collection. The funeral records of the Oak Park Chapel in Walnut Creek, Contra Costa, California. This collection is unique in that it is for a very specific area, Walnut Creek, and for a very modern time frame (1962-2018).

However, this group of records provides incredible information for the development of a family tree. I did a basic search for the name Cohen and it retrieved 204 results. One of those was for Miriam Pearl Cohen, who died on 14 June 1987, in Walnut Creek.

The entry provides two ways to view the record. The first is the indexed version which provides the names and locations of others listed on the document (shown below). 

The second way to view the record is to look at look at the original document. Simply click on the box which says VIEW ORIGINAL RECORD on the indexed page and the original document can be viewed, (see below).

For the most part, these records tend to place the people into the census records, which can continue to build the trees. It's a wonderful way to connect to our ancestors.

Rosh Hashanah

 

May the year ahead, be one of peace and joy for Jewish families everywhere.

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.

South Africa, Western Capetown, Deceased Estate Files, 1951-1958

 

Familysearch has updated a collection that could be very helpful for all with South African Jewish heritage. That collection, South Africa, Western Cape, Deceased Estate Files, is a collection of death notices. The originals are kept at the offices of the Western Cape Archive in Cape Town, South Africa.

This Historical Records Collection, has almost 500,000 records, which may contain very important family information. This includes the deceased name, the name of the spouse, birth dates, marriage dates and on some occassions, marriage records. The collectis name searchable to quite easy to use. By following the link above, a search box will appear.

The person I am looking for is Barnett Samuel Cohen, who is from the Province of Pretoria, South Africa. I believe he was born in the early 1920's. I enter that information into the search box and get the result for Barnett Samuel Cohen, born in 1921. Additionally, I also get the names of his parents and his wife.

In order to see the original documents, I click on the camera icon, which is on the far right of the results page. The original documents include some additional information. While the information on the results page lists his wife as Natalie Cohen, the original marriage certificate (shown below) lists  her maiden name as Natalie Janse Van Rensburg, born on 18th of May of 1923, in Parow, Cape, South Africa. They were married on 9 December 1948 in Cape Town.

Other documents included in the file also gave more valuable family information, such as th names of their children from his will (shown below). They are a daughter Rene and a son Manuel.

This is wonderful information for anyone to start building s family history. 

International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS) Conference 2024

It's never to early to prepare for the annual conference of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Socities (IAJGS). This years conference, the 44th will take place in Philadelphia, from the 18th to the 22nd of August, 2024. This should be an incredible conference, held in one of the greatest cities in the world. There are multiple ways to get more information, including the following;

1. International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies conference site iajgs2024.org
2. Jewish Genealogical and Archival Society of Greater Philadelphia jgasgp.org
3. Conference Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/731063418430848/

 I hope to see everyone there.

New Mexico Deaths, 1889-1945

FamilySearch has added to a collection that should interest those with Jewish ancestry in the American southwest. That collection, New Mexico Deaths, 1889-1945, is part of the Historical Records Collections at FamilySearch.org. the collection includes over 175,000 records. Statewide registration of vital records didn't begin until 1920, however there are records in the collection that go back as far as 1889. These records came from institutions that were not health related, such as counties and churches.  

By following the link in the paragraph above, searches can be completed in the search box (below). A search of the name Cohen yields 226 records.

The search results page (below) is very easy to use. Simply click on the name and it will take to the view record bar.

Clicking on the View Record link will take you to the actual death certificate.

Jewish Genealogy Society of Cleveland (JGS Cleveland)

 For anyone wanting to know more about Using FamilySearch for Jewish research, please join me on September 6th. More info can be found at jgscleveland.org/event-5351672.