The Kaufmans of Baltimore-- and Raboldshausen, Germany

I wrote earlier about Kaufman Kaufman, one of my nieces' favorite "family tree stories."  He was the brother of their 4th great grandmother, Amelia Kaufman Schwerin.  The Kaufman family immigrated to Baltimore in 1853, and since my family all arrived in the 20th century, I've been fascinated with the research opportunities available for earlier immigrants.  But could I trace the family further back to Europe?

Kaufman Family Ship Manifest; February 1853

Always Check the Original

My sister-in-law's grandfather asked me if I could find out more information about his mother's mother.  He knew that his mother, Cecelia Resnick Miliman, had lost her mother at a young age, possibly in childbirth.  He wasn't sure of his grandmother's name or much else about her.  He did know that his grandfather, Louis Resnick, had remarried a woman named Anna who helped to raise Cecelia.

I was able to find Cecelia's birth certificate at the Maryland State Archives in Annapolis.  Apparently she didn't have an official first name until she was in her 60s!

Cecelia Resnick Birth Certificate; March 1901; Baltimore, MD

WWI's Impact to the Sincher Family--and Most of Russia's Jews

A few weeks ago, I'd found a branch of my Sanshuck family that came to the US, changed the family name to Sincher, and ended up in Denver as of 1922.  While initially I'd found two brothers, I've now found four, all of whom lived in Wyoming in the 1910s.  One brother, Morris (Meilach), came on the same boat as William/Velvel (and was pointed out by Susan Steeble on a comment to that prior post).  In his naturalization papers was the translation of a letter from his sister-in-law, Mindel.  Morris was in America earning money to bring over his wife, so I can't imagine what it was like to receive this letter.

Letter to Morris Meilach Sincher from Mindel Sincher, ~1921

Zubaty Family Overview

In multiple earlier posts, I've showed various revision lists with Zubaty families in Buki and Uman.  It seems like there are five distinct families here (likely all stemming from one couple 1-2 generations further back), with some of the notations on the census giving mention to connections between some of the families.  The following is what I've extracted from these records.  Information is from the revision lists of 1795, 1818, 1851 and 1858.

Zubaty Families from Buki & Uman areas

Funniest Census Record Ever

This past weekend, I did an Ancestry search for some version of Sanshuck.  I don't remember the exact search, but in the list of results was someone named "Purity Sincerity" in the 1940 census.  Although I knew she(?) wasn't related to me, I looked at the census record anyways--and found the best census record I've ever seen.

1940 US Census; New York City

RootsTech Update and Contest Winner

First of all, congratulations to my reader Vicki A. who won my giveaway for a free pass to RootsTech 2016!  But if you didn't win, it's not too late to register--the current "promo pricing" is only $169 for this 3+ day jam-packed conference.  Check below for a link to other Ambassadors' ongoing free pass giveaways!

The conference Thursday keynotes have been announced, and I'm really looking forward to hearing these speakers.

HIAS Follow-Ups

As mentioned earlier (here and here), the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), along with the Zuriff and Turk relatives, helped to bring my grandparents and great grandmother to America.  But even after April 1, 1947, when Sonia and Paul Diamond and Sheva Beitch arrived in New York, HIAS was still involved.

HIAS Letter Checking on Sheva Beitch; Summer 1947