My story is a little different >from other recent messages re Russian army records >from world war one, but SIG members may find it of interest.

My uncle Leizer (Lazarus) BLATT was born in Dvinsk, Russia (later known as Denenburg, now Daugavpils, Latvia) in January 1898. When he was six months old his mother travelled to London with four children to join her husband who had come earlier. Four more children were born in London, with my late mother being the youngest.

During 1917, Britain and Russia agreed to a convention involving the introduction of conscription of Russian aliens in Britain. With the passage of an Act for the Conscripting of Friendly Aliens those Jews who were called up to the British Army were given the alternative of returning to Russia to serve in the Russian Army. Nineteen-year-old Leizer chose this option; he did not return to England, and the family presumed that he had been killed in action.

I would be doubtful (but ecstatic) if any record could be found of his service and/or his fate.

Beverley Davis
Melbourne, Australia

My story is a little different >from other recent messages re Russian army records >from world war one, but SIG members may find it of interest.

My uncle Leizer (Lazarus) BLATT was born in Dvinsk, Russia (later known as Denenburg, now Daugavpils, Latvia) in January 1898. When he was six months old his mother travelled to London with four children to join her husband who had come earlier. Four more children were born in London, with my late mother being the youngest.

During 1917, Britain and Russia agreed to a convention involving the introduction of conscription of Russian aliens in Britain. With the passage of an Act for the Conscripting of Friendly Aliens those Jews who were called up to the British Army were given the alternative of returning to Russia to serve in the Russian Army. Nineteen-year-old Leizer chose this option; he did not return to England, and the family presumed that he had been killed in action.

I would be doubtful (but ecstatic) if any record could be found of his service and/or his fate.

Beverley Davis
Melbourne, Australia

Although the conference seems many, many months away, the organizers =
want to receive proposals for sessions and luncheon speakers by November =
27. I have already heard >from two researchers who have presented in the =
past and will be proposing sessions for San Diego. I would appreciate =
other suggestions. Please don=E2=80=99t suggest topics! I need ideas for =
speakers who are capable of presenting sessions on these topics. I=E2=80=99=
d appreciate receiving your suggestions ASAP.

Vivian Kahn, Oakland, California
JewishGen Hungarian Research Director=

Questions about Mauthausen have recently been posted. I just want to point =
out that the JewishGen Holocaust Database has a datafile of over 38,000 na=
mes of prisoners in Mauthausen that you might want to search.

https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/holocaust/0117_Mauthausen-Gusen-Death-B=
ook.html

Joyce Field
jfield@...

Questions about Mauthausen have recently been posted. I just want to point =
out that the JewishGen Holocaust Database has a datafile of over 38,000 na=
mes of prisoners in Mauthausen that you might want to search.

https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/holocaust/0117_Mauthausen-Gusen-Death-B=
ook.html

Joyce Field
jfield@...

Although the conference seems many, many months away, the organizers =
want to receive proposals for sessions and luncheon speakers by November =
27. I have already heard >from two researchers who have presented in the =
past and will be proposing sessions for San Diego. I would appreciate =
other suggestions. Please don=E2=80=99t suggest topics! I need ideas for =
speakers who are capable of presenting sessions on these topics. I=E2=80=99=
d appreciate receiving your suggestions ASAP.

Vivian Kahn, Oakland, California
JewishGen Hungarian Research Director=

I found the proposed rule as it relates to genealogy records very confusing.  I recently submitted a Form G-1041 by mail - I did not see a way to submit it electronically.  I have yet to receive a response from USCIS.  What do they mean by "pre-existing digital records" and how would I know whether they are available?  Is the $385 for all records or only for a single item, like a visa application?  I'm trying to understand whether the proposed changes (other than the considerable cost increases) would be beneficial.

Ellen 
Saratoga County, NY 

Dear researchers, how are you all doing?

After my last message about new microfilms, records I received several
emails >from people who might help us translating, transcribing.
That is very good. That may speed up our work on Bessarabia Revision Lists,
and other projects.

I am also getting a lot of emails >from people who are stuck with their
research and want to see if I can help.

My first reaction usually is asking to send this post to the whole
Bessarabia SIG list. We have almost 1,000 members (Alan can correct me)
and there might people who are also researching families in the same
town or even the same families!

Here are also a few steps for our researchers:

- At the JewishGen.org registration page put as many surnames/towns you are
researching as possible
- Find out WHO else researching that town or surname/town, and communicate
with these members. This is how I found a lot of family members, my family
lost about 100(!) years ago.
- Search not only Romania (Bessarabia)databases, but all databases at
JewishGen. You may not know that your relative before coming to Kishinev,
lived in Mogilev-Podolskiy for example or in Vilna
- If you do know that your ancestors lived somewhere else, and moved, you
can search specifically that database and search by name or by "Any field"
and put value like Kishinev for example or some other town your relatives
lived in Bessarabia.
- If you know the town your ancestors lived, visit the town website, also
check out of we have Yizkor Book for that town translated.

This is like a minimum research to do, and please post message to our
group... send it to me (I would try to respond as soon as I can), not
only write Questions/issues, but also with your success stories. I know
many of you discovered a lot of your families, and I heard >from some of
you, but I want our group to hear too.

All the best,

Shabbat Shalom
Yefim Kogan
JewishGen Bessarabia SIG Leader and Coordinator

MODERATOR NOTE: As of today the Bessarabia SIG Discussion
Group has 919 members

Dear researchers, how are you all doing?

After my last message about new microfilms, records I received several
emails >from people who might help us translating, transcribing.
That is very good. That may speed up our work on Bessarabia Revision Lists,
and other projects.

I am also getting a lot of emails >from people who are stuck with their
research and want to see if I can help.

My first reaction usually is asking to send this post to the whole
Bessarabia SIG list. We have almost 1,000 members (Alan can correct me)
and there might people who are also researching families in the same
town or even the same families!

Here are also a few steps for our researchers:

- At the JewishGen.org registration page put as many surnames/towns you are
researching as possible
- Find out WHO else researching that town or surname/town, and communicate
with these members. This is how I found a lot of family members, my family
lost about 100(!) years ago.
- Search not only Romania (Bessarabia)databases, but all databases at
JewishGen. You may not know that your relative before coming to Kishinev,
lived in Mogilev-Podolskiy for example or in Vilna
- If you do know that your ancestors lived somewhere else, and moved, you
can search specifically that database and search by name or by "Any field"
and put value like Kishinev for example or some other town your relatives
lived in Bessarabia.
- If you know the town your ancestors lived, visit the town website, also
check out of we have Yizkor Book for that town translated.

This is like a minimum research to do, and please post message to our
group... send it to me (I would try to respond as soon as I can), not
only write Questions/issues, but also with your success stories. I know
many of you discovered a lot of your families, and I heard >from some of
you, but I want our group to hear too.

All the best,

Shabbat Shalom
Yefim Kogan
JewishGen Bessarabia SIG Leader and Coordinator

MODERATOR NOTE: As of today the Bessarabia SIG Discussion
Group has 919 members

Some of my cousins and I are planning to create a family website that
would include photos of Kishinev pre 1907. Am looking for
suggestions for where I can access or obtain such photos - it would be
for a private family website.

Also, I am interested in learning if anyone has developed a family
website that includes not just family genealogy, but also family
history, memories, photos (not just of relatives). What, if any,
template did you use?

Thanks

Alan Levitt
LEVITT, LEVIT - Kishinev
GURMAN, Romania

Some of my cousins and I are planning to create a family website that
would include photos of Kishinev pre 1907. Am looking for
suggestions for where I can access or obtain such photos - it would be
for a private family website.

Also, I am interested in learning if anyone has developed a family
website that includes not just family genealogy, but also family
history, memories, photos (not just of relatives). What, if any,
template did you use?

Thanks

Alan Levitt
LEVITT, LEVIT - Kishinev
GURMAN, Romania

Are you familiar with the poet Chiam Nachman Bialik? I attended the Chiam Nachman Bialik Folk Shul (a Jewish school) in West Philadelphia in the 1940s. I believe it was at 59th and Locust streets . Teacher was Mr. Shichman.

Molly Arost Staub
Boca Raton, FL
Member Jewish Genealogy of Palm Beach County

Thank you Ruben for your kind offer. 

would you be able to check out -- 

- Kalich / Kallech / Kalech
- URI / UHRI 
- Beer 
- Brawer. 

Best regards, 
Yaron Pedhazur 

yarpd@...

 

The New York Times has an article about Stella Levi a 96 year old Holocaust
survivor >from Rhodes, Greece. The article depicts her life on Rhodes until
taken to Auschwitz. The article also mentions a pop-up installation in
Greenwich Village, NY using concerts conversations, films, artifacts and
food to evoke Ms. . Levi's life and Jewish culture in prewar Rhodes. The
exhibit is called "Los Corassones Avlan," which means "hearts speak," an old
Sephardic saying in Judeo-Spanish. It is on view Sundays through Thursdays

from 1:00-9:00p.m. Fridays 1-4PM and Saturdays 5-10:30 PM at 148 West 4th

Street through November 24th. See: http://primolevicenter.org/

To read the article see:
www.nytimes.com/2019/11/15/nyregion/holocaust-survivor-stella-levi.html

Jan Meisels Allen
Chairperson, IAJGS Public Records Access Monitoring Committee

The New York Times has an article about Stella Levi a 96 year old Holocaust
survivor >from Rhodes, Greece. The article depicts her life on Rhodes until
taken to Auschwitz. The article also mentions a pop-up installation in
Greenwich Village, NY using concerts conversations, films, artifacts and
food to evoke Ms. . Levi's life and Jewish culture in prewar Rhodes. The
exhibit is called "Los Corassones Avlan," which means "hearts speak," an old
Sephardic saying in Judeo-Spanish. It is on view Sundays through Thursdays

from 1:00-9:00p.m. Fridays 1-4PM and Saturdays 5-10:30 PM at 148 West 4th

Street through November 24th. See: http://primolevicenter.org/

To read the article see:
www.nytimes.com/2019/11/15/nyregion/holocaust-survivor-stella-levi.html

Jan Meisels Allen
Chairperson, IAJGS Public Records Access Monitoring Committee

Hi,

Some years ago, I found information on line about my REICHZELIGMAN family, that had died in Zurich,

I wrote to the archives and they were very helpful.

Having said all that, I would suggest you write to the State Archives in Bern
https://www.sta.be.ch/sta/en/index/staatsarchiv/staatsarchiv/genealogie.html

They might be able to help you!

Regards
Angie Elfassi
Israel

I don't think one can overlook the convenience factor when sorting out
the geographical names our ancestors reported to officials. For example, my
grandmother and her brothers were >from Chepovichi in what was at the time
the Kiev gubernia. Their Ellis Island records specify Chepovichi (in
various versions of its Polish and German spellings).

However, once in the States, they all of them consistently reported
their birth places as Kiev. Why Kiev? I'm betting it's almost certainly
because Kiev is easier for American officials to spell! This would be
especially important for people like my grandmother who never learned to read and
write English.

And then there's my grandfather, born in Ozdamichi between David-Gorodok
and Turov. Thanks to the 1921 Quota Act, he kind of had to sneak into the
States by pretending his fianc=E9e's older brothers (who had become US
citizens) were *his* older brothers. As part of the charade, he
reported his place of birth on his Ellis Island records as Kiev - and then stuck
to this on all subsequent US records, including his naturalization a few
years later.

When you're evaluating information, you always need to consider not only
who was supplying the information but also whom they were supplying it *to*.

SarahRose Werner
Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada
RABINOWITZ: Chepovichi (Ukraine)
GITTELMAN: David-Gorodok/Turov (Belarus) =20