Through the databases we have linked back to the USA and UK c. 1890. Lapis (via Yad-Vashem) seems to be spread throughout the Pale - but we don't have more definitive clues.

We have made some decent connections in the US post migration but no clear origins.

David Lapes - London

Lapes, Lapis, Lopis

William Lopis - 1840 (UKR)
Nathan Lapes - 1854 (UKR)

Descendents - Pugatsky, Lerner, Susman

by family lore Abraham Sudack, my paternal great grandfather’s family name was originally Lepis (spelling uncertain) from Ukraine. He fled the Czar’s army in the early 20 th century and came to the US changing his name somewhere along the way. Settled in Fall River, MA. (Sudak is a town on the Black Sea coast of Crimea).

Bruce Baron

Oh - We have some odd hints.

One is 'Sandeck Kaplin' against Rissie Lapis - Rosalia Lapes (https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/LB3B-8P8) in her death record.

Also 'Risa Sundock'

Rosalia Lapes died Manhattan 1912
is the Wife of William (Wolf) Lapes died Odessa 1902 - My GG Grandparents

My Great Grandparents are Edmund (also Samuel Lapes or Hyman Lopis) and Phoebe (also Rebecca Lopis)
We have a family lore of them coming from Prague and being Christian and also Phobe Nicols/Nicolai [maybe ref to Nikolaev] as potential maiden names.

We think that Wolf had at least one brother Nathan - who took his family to NYC around 1908.

We also find Lapis in Yad Vashem with many clusters in Ukraine - but throughout the Pale.

More to follow