The clubs of the Irene Kaufmann Settlement House and the YM&WHA all had similar activities, but each clearly favored some activities more than others.
The Ovarb Club—that's Bravo, spelled backward—began at the Irene Kaufmann Settlement House in 1910. Over the next 18 years, it participated in athletic, social, and educational activities, but it was best known for its plays.
[IMAGE: A photograph showing about 100 people in an assembly room at the Irene Kaufmann Settlement House. A caption reads, "376—Irene Kaufmann Settlement—The Ovarb Association—Judge Cohen Night, March 30, 1925"—Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh Photographs, MSP 0389.]
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The Ovarbs found their first theatrical success in April 1921 with "The Fortune Hunter" but gained lasting fame within the club world in December 1921 with their production of the comedy "Officer 666" at the Schenley High School auditorium.
[IMAGES: (Left) An article from the Dec. 6, 1921 issue of the Pittsburgh Press, announcing the Ovarb Club production of Officer 666 with its cast of "prominent amateur performers." (Right) A ticket admitting two to the Ovarb Club production of "Officer 666." (Belle Barsky Memory Book—MFF 4846).]
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The Jewish clubs of that day were strictly defined as either "boys" or "girls." Plays expanded that membership, if only for an evening.
The Ovarb Club was a boys' club, and so it held auditions for the female parts. One went to Belle Barsky, a promising amateur actress in the Hill District. She later became a well-known figure in the local music scene as a piano teacher and accompanist.
[IMAGES: (Above) A group of high school actors, including Belle Barsky, posing in an entryway of Fifth Avenue High School. (Left) A letter from Ovarb Club adviser O.B. Markey, thanking Barsky for her contributions to the success of "Officer 666." (Belle Barsky Memory Book—MFF 4846).]
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Social events were another way for clubs to expand membership. Boys' clubs regularly hosted dances.
The Ovarb Club hosted a Valentine Dance at the Hotel Schenley in February 1925, complete with music by Walter P. Hines and His Orchestra.
Tickets were $2.50 per couple, a pretty expensive night out in the mid-1920s. But these sorts of club-sponsored dances were among the most popular social events for young Jews in Pittsburgh at the time. How many local families can trace their origins to those dance floors?
As the Ovarbs put it in an ad for their Valentine Dance, "NUF-CED!"
[IMAGES: An ad from the Feb. 6, 1925 issue of the Jewish Criterion, announcing the Ovarb Club Valentine Dance at the Hotel Schenley.]
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As the leaders of the Ovarb Club reached their late 20s, they looked to adapt the affairs of their club.
Shortly after the successful Valentine Dance in 1925, they held a meeting to discuss "The New Ovarbian Era."
Like many of the more successful Jewish youth clubs of that era, the Ovarbs decided to mentor younger Jewish clubs in the neighborhoods.
The newly formed Ovarb Association brought together more than 200 boys from 11 clubs. Its first event was "Judge Cohen Night," in March 1925, honoring Judge Josiah Cohen, a jurist who was active in Jewish and civic causes locally and nationally.
The event included speeches, music, and a chance for the younger clubs to promote their activities. The only known photograph of the event, seen at the top of the newsletter, shows a huge turnout, with at least 100 boys packed into a room at the Irene Kaufmann Settlement.
But the effort at expansion appears to have been short-lived. The Ovarbs fade from the record by the end of the 1920s and only reappear through later reminisces and reunions.
[IMAGES: (Top) A notice from the Feb. 27, 1925 issue of the Jewish Criterion, reporting on the activities of the Ovarb Club. (Bottom) A notice from the March 20, 1925 issue of the Jewish Criterion, announcing the upcoming Judge Cohen Night.]
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In the next few issues of the newsletter, we'll dig deeper into these reminisces and reunions by looking at the Argonne Club and the J. N. Chester Club.
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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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Third Annual Derekh Speaker Series: Ariel Sabar |
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The Rauh Jewish Archives is pleased to once again partner with the Derekh Speaker Series at Beth Shalom Congregation. The series is hosting a digital talk on Wednesday, March 3, at 7:30 p.m., with Ariel Sabar, author of "Veritas: A Harvard Professor, A Con Man and the Gospel of Jesus's Wife."
"Veritas" is a tale of fierce intellectual rivalries at the highest levels of academia, a piercing psychological portrait of a disillusioned college dropout whose life had reached a breaking point, and a tragedy about a brilliant scholar handed an ancient papyrus that appealed to her greatest hopes for Christianity–but forced a reckoning with fundamental questions about the nature of truth and the line between faith and reason.
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This series with five authors from across the country is made available through the Jewish Book Council and funded by Seth Glick and Carolyn Slayton. To learn more or purchase the books, visit Congregation Beth Shalom.
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The Student and the Demagogue |
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In late March 1940, a Jewish student at the University of Pittsburgh named Meyer H. Fogel received a signed letter from Father Charles E. Coughlin.
“I must confess that, though accustomed to opposition of all sorts, nevertheless, I do not relish being characterized as an anti-Semite, a pro-Nazi and a falsifier of documents,” Coughlin insisted.
“Not that this matters much in itself. But, incidentally, I happen to be a priest in good standing, and, therefore, feel that the entire attack leveled against me smacks not only of a personal nature but, possibly, of one against the Christian religion.”
[IMAGE: A letter to the Pittsburgh Press, written by Meyer H. Fogel in September 1936. Fogel wrote the letter after Rev. Charles E. Coughlin broadly attacked Jewish people during a speech. In his letter, Fogel rebuts the speech, point by point.]
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Save the Date—April 15:
Researching the History of Institutionalized People
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For generations, various barriers have prevented researchers from accessing the historical files of institutionalized people. Learn about a multi-year effort to preserve historical records from state-run institutions in Pennsylvania, as well as the new policies that have opened these records for research.
These materials offer a rare, individual-focused approach to researching the early history of institutionalization in Pennsylvania. For genealogists, these records offer the potential for poignant insights into the lives and personal experiences of institutionalized ancestors and their families in Pennsylvania.
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[IMAGE: Black and white image of institutionalized women in the company of a nurse on a porch at Polk State Center, c. 1900s-1920s. Five younger women and three older women are dressed in winter attire, all seated, before a nurse standing in the background. One young woman is in a bed with a doll in hand and another young woman is in a wheelchair. (Polk Center (PA) Glass Plate Negatives, Record Group 23, Series 989, Pennsylvania State Archives).] |
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If you like this newsletter, why not forward it to a friend? We want to share the story of Western Pennsylvania Jewish history with as many people as possible.
If you've received this newsletter from a friend or neighbor, and you want to read more, just click on the link below to start receiving future editions.
[IMAGE: Marian Schreiber and employees at the Schreiber Trucking Company, c.1943—Schreiber Family Papers and Photographs, MSS 846.]
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The Rauh Jewish History Program & 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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