Another great conference, looking forward to next year.

Once again the IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy was a great success. With about 1000 people attending from all over the world, it was a wonderful opportunity to see old friends and to make new ones. The experience provided by researchers from all different

Seattle Pier

backgrounds provided  a wide variety of lectures and presentations. In addition, the local society, The Jewish Genealogical Society of Washington State did a wonderful job of showcasing their beautiful state.

Temple De Hirsch Sinai

As we leave Seattle with thanks to all those who shared their talents and skills with us, we also look forward to next years conference.
From the 23-28 of July in 2017, we will gather together again in Orlando, Florida for the 37th International Conference on Jewish Genealogy. Under the direction of the IAJGS and the local society, The Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando, once again we will all be rewarded for our attendance. I look forward to seeing you all there.

IAJGS 2016 - Seattle, One Month to Go

Just over one month till Jewish Genealogists from around the world gather in Seattle for a great week of sharing knowledge of our Jewish ancestors. Its not to late to join us, I look forward to seeing everyone there.

War of 1812 Pension Records

On 5 Nov 1796, Jacob Cohen, the son of Solomon Cohen was born in Georgetown, South Carolina.  In 1816 in Charleston he married Rachel Lopez, a native of Charleston. Jacob and Rachel had 2 children before Rachel died at the age of 39 in June of 1833.
 Later, Jacob married Sarah Barrett, who was born in 1809 in Charleston. To this marriage were born at least 4 children. Jacob Cohen died  on 13 June 1871 at the age of 75.
Early in his life Jacob enlisted and participated in the War of 1812. In an attempt to find more information about Jacob and his service I was able to search the War of 1812 Pension Application Files that are beginning to be made available from fold3.

In searching the fold3 website I was indeed able to find the War of 1812 Widow's Pension for Jacob Cohen alias John Cohen, who served as a Private in the Georgia Militia under Capt. Bullock.

The file included numerous documents, three of which provided great information as to his life. The first, shown below, is just a quick view of his service, and residence after the war. We now know that he enlisted on 22 Jan 1815 and was discharged on 23 Feb 1815. This record also provides us with the date of marriage to Sarah Barrett, as it shows that date was  22 Oct 1834.

The other 2 documents that provide  the most information are the Widow's Brief and the Summary of Proof. The first is a statement by the widow where she shares the information of why she feels she should be entitled to a pension and the second is the reply where the pension is either accepted or denied. The documents below provide her reasoning and in this case the acceptance of that claim including the record of his receiving 160 acres of land.

These records are being made available through fold3 because of the generosity of many groups. A project, the War of 1812 Pension Digitization Project, is under way to get these documents digitized so that they may all be available for the public to view. More information about how to help may be found at the Preserve the Pensions website. What a great opportunity to help preserve some wonderful records.

United States Headstone Applications for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1949

This upcoming Monday is Memorial Day in the United States, a time when many people will visit the graves of those you have passed. As part of this families will place flags on the graves of those who served the country in the Armed Forces. This event may be the first time that the younger members of families learn about their ancestors and hopefully they will be copying the information as a foundation of their own genealogical journey.
It is very timely that FamilySearch has recently updated a database that will help provide additional information to the headstone itself. That database, United States Headstone Applications for U.S. Military Veterans, 1925-1949, includes the images, which have been indexed, of over 621,000 applications. These applications were received by the Cemetery Division of the Quartermaster General and are now held at the National Archives.
The more recent applications, such as the one below for Maurice Cohen, tend to give a little more information than the earlier ones. However, because of the years involved it is possible to search for the families in the Federal Census records. While relationships are not given, the applicant is usually a family member. That combined with the address of the applicant and the name of the cemetery may help identify them in other records.

Below is the application, dated 14 Aug 1934 for Moses Cohen who died on 19 Feb 1934. This earlier application lacks a couple of pieces of information that are on the later applications. Both give the name, date of death and cemetery where the burial will be, however the earlier application is missing the date of birth and the date of enlistment.

These records can be a great way to find out more about our ancestors who served their country and the headstones provide a nice tribute to their service. May we all take a moment and remember our loved ones and their heroic service.

Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom Hashoah)

Thursday, May 5th is the date set aside as Holocaust Remembrance Day or Yom Hashoah. It is the day that we remember the over 6,000,000 who were murdered during the Holocaust. It is a time that we can bring our families together in hopes that the memories will never be lost.

"FORGETTING THEM MEANS LETTING THEM DIE AGAIN"
                                                                   Elie Wiesel
 While the murders did indeed take place in Europe, there may not have been any place on earth that

Marriage of Meyer/Wittkowski

was not influenced by the Holocaust. This year I will remember some of my own family members, people such as Philip Myer and his wife Mabel Wittkowski.
Philip and Mabel were married on  7 Dec 1889 in Berlin, Germany (doc at left). Philip was born in Fordon, Poland the son of Gumpel Meyer and his wife Rosa Auerbach. At the time of this wedding both of his parents were living in Salt Lake City, where the family was involved with the Auerbach Department Stores. Mabel was born in Ballaart, Australia, the daughter of the late Isidor and his wife Lina Kronfeld.
Philip had spent time back in Utah prior to his wedding, he was the architect of one of the first synagogues in Utah, however he lived with his bride in Berlin. During the war, Philip and Mabel were taken to the Theresienstadt Concentration Camp, were their murders were recorded in Oct of 1943.


This year I will also remember those who lost their lives as they fought to free people from the hands of evil. Many of the soldiers who died had never been to Europe before but volunteered because they knew what was happening was not right, and that everyone should have the right to worship as they wanted. I will remember Deyon Frantz Knowles, a Naval Seaman 2nd Class, who died when his ship went down in the Atlantic Ocean in Nov 1943. 
Seaman Deyon Frantz Knowles was my uncle and because of his bravery and service I was never able to meet him, and I refuse to forget him.  His memory is recorded in the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, which is located within the grounds of the former Fort William McKinley, in Manila, Philippines.

 
We may not be able to reverse what happened during the Holocaust, but we can help our families remember those who were murdered and those who died trying to help. By doing so we may be able to keep their memories alive, that it may never happen again.



 

Happy Passover

To all those who will be celebrating, I wish you all a very HAPPY PESACH.

Knowles Collection Updated.

The Knowles Collection is a collection of 6 databases that contain genealogical records of the Jewish people. The collection has continued to experience tremendous growth, both from new record sources being added as well as the donation of private family records. Because of the growth, the databases have been updated on the FamilySearch website. The collection now contains the records of over 1.3 million people.

The databases and the total number of people included is listed below.

Jews of the British Isles     224,008

Jews of North America     573,891

Jews of Europe     441.007

Jews of Africa, Orient and Middle East    40,457

Jews of South America and Caribbean     21,829

Jews of South Pacific     21,528

The Knowles Collection is available to search for free at Familysearch.org. About a year ago I posted in this blog the easiest way to access the collection. That post can be found by following this link.

 I am very greatful to all those who have played a part in the continued growth of the collection.

Jewish Cemeteries of Glasgow, Scotland

The history of the Jewish people in Scotland may date back to  the late 1600's when there were records of Jews applying to take up residence in the country. However the first Jewish community in Scotland, located in Edinburgh, was officially established in 1816. There were Jews in Edinburgh before 1816,  but this was the date on which the community was established.
The time frame from the mid 1700's to the beginning of the following century was  a time of great growth within Scotland. This growth had a great impact upon the Jews of Scotland. In Glasgow,  the population went up over 400% during those fifty years, which led to the arrival of a large amount of Jews, who

Garnet Hill Synagogue

began to arrive in about 1820.
The Jewish community in Glasgow continue to grow and by 1870 included over 1000 people.  This growth led the community to decide in 1875 to build a  synagogue. This would be the first permanent synagogue built in Scotland. At a special meeting in 1875 it was decided that the new synagogue would be built at the corner of Garnet Street and Hill Street and was called the Garnet Hill Synagogue. The foundation stone was laid by Benjamin Simon two years later. The new synagogue was consecrated  on the 9th of September in 1879 by Rabbi Hermann Adler. The Garnet Hill Synagogue was opened just as the Jews from Eastern Europe fleeing from poverty and constant persecution began to arrive.
As a result of the growth of the community, it became necessary to establish cemeteries for the burial of those who passed. The majority of the Jews were buried in one of three cemeteries. These cemeteries, Glenduffhill Jewish Cemetery, Riddrie Cemetery and Sandymount Cemetery, are the final resting place for some 10,000 members of the community. Over time the cemeteries have fallen into a state that now requires restoration. Under the direction of the Glasgow Hebrew Burial Society, restoration work has now begun. A wonderful article on the project can be found on the Jewish Heritage Europe website.
The Burial Society in Glasgow has always been very helpful to those looking for their families. The records they hold are now included in Glasgow Hebrew Burial Society Database, which is available through the JCR-UK website. As helpful as they have been it is now time for others to help them. Please take a moment and read the article and see how you can be of service to the Burial Society. A few years ago I visited Glasgow and enjoyed the beauty of the city, now hopefully we can help return the cemeteries to that same beauty.