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

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.