Chanukah
Esther Goldstein
Family and Cousins Club
Using gravestones for genealogy
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A worker at the Jewish Community Center in Squirrel Hill unpacks a nine-foot bronze menorah designed by Israeli artist Daniel Kafri.
—from Jewish Chronicle, Nov. 24, 1988
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Chanukah begins tonight. The central symbol of the holiday, the menorah, is one of the oldest of Jewish history, appearing across millennia of Jewish life.
In December 1988, the Jewish Community Center installed a nine-foot menorah as a permanent presence outside its building on Forbes Avenue in Squirrel Hill. The menorah was dedicated in memory of Harry Ratner by his children. For nearly 40 years, until his death in 1965, “Doc” Ratner had been a beloved and constant presence at the JCC’s predecessor, the old Irene Kaufmann Settlement House in the Hill District. “Having a menorah to remember ‘Doc’ Ratner is perfect,” his daughter Iris Dart said at the time. “His light, the light that enriched so many others will continue to shine forever.”
You can see this story and other Chanukah stories—as well as stories from the wintertime holidays of other American communities—at "A Very Merry Pittsburgh," on display at the Heinz History Center through Jan. 17, 2022.
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Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club |
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Members of the Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club, seated around a table at the Holiday House. Inscriptions note the name of the club and the date, Sept. 23, 1961.
—from Celia Schuster Rofey Papers and Photographs [MSS 1215]
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You may not know anyone in this photograph. But if you lived in Pittsburgh in the 1950s and 1960s, you've probably seen a photograph like this one.
The scene is the Holiday House.
One of the perks of that beloved restaurant—and others like it—was the roving photographer who snapped images of the diners for posterity. Photographs were printed and placed in commemorative sleeves, like the one seen here.
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Meeting notice for the Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club, noting upcoming annual banquet at the Holiday House.
—from American Jewish Outlook
Aug. 25, 1961
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The occasion documented here is the 1961 annual banquet of the Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club.
Surnames in the club include Alpert, Goldstein, Kaufman, Leibling, Rofey, Rosenbloom, Rossio and Silverman.
The Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club was founded in late 1958 or early 1959. It continued submitting monthly reports to the Jewish Chronicle until early 1972.
Those reports and the photograph seen above are the only known record of the club in the archive.
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Celia and her husband Leonard Rofey were active members and perennial officers of the club. They regularly hosted club events in their home, first on Pocusset Street in Squirrel Hill and later in the South Hills. The club also met at other family homes in Squirrel Hill and in Eastmont, as well as local hotspots like the Holiday House.
We know what we know about the club through the local Jewish press. These small newspaper reports are the best source of information about local family clubs, providing information about members, officers, venues, and activities over the years.
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Meeting notice for the Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club, announcing an upcoming "antique showing" for the club.
—from American Jewish Outlook
Jan. 22, 1960
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Celia and Leonard Rofey (center) with Philip and Virginia Rubin (left) and Dorothy and Harry Slifkin (right), Nov. 1980
—from Celia Schuster Rofey Papers and Photographs [MSS 1215]
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For the Esther Goldstein Family and Cousins Club, the meeting notices report a varied range of activities.
At the August 1959 meeting, each family performed a musical sketch. At the January 1960 meeting, each family displayed prized antiques.
The club held bake-offs, smorgasbord contests, sandwich contests, costume parties, and White Elephant sales, as well as picnics and the usual calendar of American and Jewish holidays.
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All this year, the Rauh Jewish Archives is highlighting stories of Jewish club life in Western Pennsylvania. If you would like to donate records of a local Jewish club, or just chat about clubs, contact the archive or call 412-454-6406.
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Dec. 12
JGS Presents: Dr. Janette Silverman
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As genealogists, we depend on gravestones to give us at least basic information about a decedent: name, for example, and perhaps years of birth and death. What happens when the gravestone doesn’t match other documents – how do you discover the facts? How do you interact with a cemetery to find graves when the gravestone isn’t in their database?
This is a virtual program. It will be recorded, and the recording will be made available for JGS-Pittsburgh members who are current on their dues.
This program is possible through the support of the William M. Lowenstein Genealogical Research Endowment Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation.
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Dr. Janette Silverman is a professional genealogist, heading a team of researchers specializing in Eastern European and Jewish research at AncestryProGenealogists® the division of Ancestry® that does private client research. Her research on behalf of clients takes her all over the U.S. and Europe. Silverman holds a Doctorate in Jewish Studies from Spertus Institute. Her dissertation, “In Living Memory” explored her family’s journey from Europe to the U.S. from the 1880s to the 1920s, contextualizing their experiences.
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[IMAGE: Marian Schreiber and employees at the Schreiber Trucking Company, c.1943—from Schreiber Family Papers and Photographs, MSS 846.]
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The Rauh Jewish Archives was founded on November 1, 1988 to collect, preserve, and make accessible the documentary history of Jews and Jewish communities of Western Pennsylvania. You can help the RJHPA continue its work by making a donation that will directly support the work being done in Western Pa. |
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Plan a Visit
Senator John Heinz History Center
1212 Smallman Street
Pittsburgh, Pa. 15222
412-454-6000
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A proud affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the Senator John Heinz History Center is the largest history museum in Pennsylvania and presents American history with a Western Pennsylvania connection.
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