Memoir: Dora C. Davis
Dr. Jerome Apt
American Federation of Zionists Convention (1903)
Calendar: Adam Brown on DNA
Community News: Jakob's Torah (pictured), 1950 Census, Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project
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Dr. Jacob Rader Marcus is often called the father of American Jewish history.
The Western Pennsylvania native was a history professor at Hebrew Union College from the 1920s until his death in 1995. He also founded the American Jewish Archives in 1947.
Those two jobs went together. Almost every student at the Cincinnati campus of the college passed through Dr. Marcus’ classroom at some point. As these students were ordained and assumed pulpits at Reform congregations around the country, they became a network of trusted associates who could locate source material to send to the archive.
This work was especially important in the decades before local Jewish communities like ours began creating archives to house materials locally.
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Rabbi Isidor Reichert, the first leader of Temple Israel in Uniontown, Pa.
—Temple Israel Records [MSS 1906]
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Temple Israel minutes, June 10, 1904, describing founding of the congregation.
—Temple Israel Records [MSS 1096]
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For example: Dora Cohen Davis.
Her parents were one of the first Jewish couples to settle in Uniontown. Her three-page memoir from 1965 provides crucial information about the early years of that community.
In a few paragraphs, Davis describes a series of transitions that were common in that era but were not always well documented. Her parents came to Western Pennsylvania from New York City after meeting as fellow Jewish merchant on a train and learning about opportunities in Uniontown. Her father peddled throughout Fayette County before starting a store in town. There, her parents discovered a small, disconnected Jewish population, “about nine families and many bachelors,” with no communal life.
With autumn arriving, her parents team up with another Jewish family in town to organize High Holidays services. “So a Torah was installed in our parlor, and Mr. Epstein, from Alsace-Loraine, took charge of it and the services… There was no name given to the organization—they just worshipped together and bought a Torah and the books required.
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“The families increased, so they moved downtown to a room and they held Sunday school there—they called it Sunday School then. The older men taught the children, which numbered about fifteen. Then we moved to a room above a store on Main Street, and then to the Club the Jewish people formed called the Standard Club.” From there, the community founded a cemetery and a B’nai B’rith lodge. But the Standard Club remained the central Jewish meeting place in the town until the first years of the 20th century. As the Jewish population grew and diversified, an Orthodox contingent formed Tree of Life Congregation in 1902, and the Reform group started Temple Israel in 1904. |
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All year, the Rauh Jewish Archives is highlighting memoirs of Jewish life in Western Pennsylvania. If you would like to donate a memoir, or just chat about the stories you've read, contact the archive or call 412-454-6406.
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New Collection:
Dr. Jerome Apt Papers and Photographs [MSS 1213]
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STS-37 flown name badge used by Jay Apt on launch and entry suit.
—from Dr. Jerome Apt Papers and Photographs [MSS 1213]
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Dr. Jerome “Jay” Apt is an astronaut and scientist who flew four space missions with NASA and later led the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. He is also part of one of the oldest Jewish families in Pittsburgh, dating back to the founding of the organized Jewish community in the 1840s.
The collection documents of Apt’s decades-long affiliation with NASA, starting with his attendance at the Apollo 11 launch in 1969 and continuing through his four space flights in the 1990s and his publication of the best-selling space photography book “Orbit.” The collection also covers his years with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. It provides an inspiring and intimate look at what it takes to get one of the most exclusive jobs on (or off) the planet.
Our rollout of this large collection includes three parts: a finding aid on Historic Pittsburgh detailing the papers and photographs, a digitized collection on our eMuseum site showcasing 123 artifacts including dozens of objects that Apt used during his space missions, and a new entry on the Jewish Encyclopedia of Western Pennsylvania with documents and images.
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Jewish Encyclopedia of Western Pennsylvania:
American Federation of Zionists Convention (1903)
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Program for mass meeting during the American Federation of Zionist’s Sixth Annual Convention in Pittsburgh.
—American Federation of Zionists Convention papers 1903 [2011.0225]
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The American Federation of Zionists held its Sixth Annual Convention in Pittsburgh on June 7-9, 1903. The convention included a mass meeting, speeches from national and international Zionist leaders, and numerous cultural and social events throughout the city, including trips to Kennywood and the H. J. Heinz plant.
It was the first of at least three American Federation of Zionists conventions held in Pittsburgh, followed by 1910 and 1918.
Our entry for the American Federation of Zionists Convention (1903) includes several press clippings from the time, as well as a program from a mass meeting at the Bijou Theatre.
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The Jewish Encyclopedia of Western Pennsylvania brings together numerous online resources into a clearinghouse for conducting research about Jewish history in this region. As we migrate information to this new website, we’ll be announcing new entries and resources in this section of the newsletter. |
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July 31
JGS Pittsburgh Presents: Adam Brown
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The Avotaynu DNA Study is an ongoing worldwide academic collaboration of scientists, historians, genealogists and community leaders utilizing DNA to illuminate the origins and migrations of the Jewish people. Under the guidance of the Technion, the Avotaynu DNA Study has more than 8,000 participants representing all known Jewish communities from China to Curacao. Adam Brown is Project Administrator of the study. In his talk, “The Genetic Origins and Migrations of the Jewish People," he will answer DNA questions and explain how the Avotaynu study can help you understand your family origins.
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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Adam Brown is a frequent lecturer on genealogical subjects at genealogical conferences all over the world. In addition to administering the Avotaynu DNA study, he is the Managing Editor of AvotaynuOnline.com. He was National Chair of the IAJGS 2017 conference in Orlando. A strategic planner by profession, he has led numerous boards and commissions on municipal planning and finance, Jewish education, and scientific research in Israel.
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From the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh:
Jakob's Torah: An International Journey
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In its newest digital exhibit, the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh tells the story of Jakob's Torah, which made its way from Germany to Shanghai to San Francisco and New York during and after the War before coming to Western Pennsylvania. It is now on display at the Holocaust Center's new exhibition space at the Jennie King Mellon Library on the campus of Chatham University. |
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The 1950 Census is now online.
You can access the census data using the link below. As additional research tools become the coming weeks and months, we'll share them here.
If you would like help using these records, please contact the Archive.
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Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project |
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The home page of the new Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project website, hosted by Carnegie Mellon University Libraries. The redesigned website is launching this month. |
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By now, you're probably expertly zipping around the new Pittsburgh Jewish Newspaper Project platform. But if you still need a little help navigating the features and tools of the website, the Rauh Jewish Archives recently contributed a brief explanatory article to the Jewish Chronicle. It provides some basic tips and techniques for conducting research using the new site.
We plan to provide a live virtual training workshop in the near future to review the website and its functionalities. Until then, we are here to help you troubleshoot problems. You can contact the archive or call 412-454-6406.
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[IMAGE: Marian Schreiber and employees at the Schreiber Trucking Company, c.1943—from Schreiber Family Papers and Photographs, MSS 846.]
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.
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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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