Family Story Finder
The sweep of family history across the generations
Demise of the cultured Lewi family
Five siblings who stayed true to German ideals until the bitter end
Eilertsen roots in Farsund, Norway
Farmers and seafarers from the south Norway coast
Love conquers all as Gerhard marries Ilse
Two young Berliners make a modern marriage—with lasting consequences
Meeting Harriet Berkowitz
Harriet Berkowitz was doubly distanced from her Rabinowitz roots, first by her father’s partial family estrangement and then by his divorce. But she shared a trove of precious family documents and childhood memories after discovering this blog.
Rosa’s fateful choice
Rosa Feidt was the only Lewi sibling who got out, to her everlasting remorse
Seymour Rabinowitz and Harriet Berkowitz
Seymour, also called Samuel, was partly estranged from the family. He worked as a truant officer in the New York City schools. His daughter Harriet Berkowitz discovered our blog and contributed a trove of precious documents.
Sputnik in the backyard
Watching Sputnik at night from our back yard in a suburb of Pittsburgh is one of my earliest memories.
Stan finds love outside of a 20-block radius
Home from the war, Stan Ruby was a graduate student in physics at Columbia University. Helga Ringel was a smart, pretty war refugee from Berlin
The North American Ringel branch
When his siblings went to Berlin in the 1880s, Jakob Schia Ringel went to Hamburg, then Glasgow and Montreal. His two daughters raised families in the New York area
Tulbowitz in the USSR—an alternative history
If Sholom Tulbowitz had gone to Dvinsk instead of Rostov, as his cousin did, his Ratner descendants might have grown up in Perm instead of Albany.
Turning over rocks to find long-lost relatives
During the course of my genealogy work, I have discovered and connected with cousins from all my family branches. Here are some lessons learned.
Yichus and our relation to the famous rabbi
Walter thought he had proved the family legend of descent from the celebrated Kovno Rav, Rabbi Yitchak Elchanon Spektor. Later facts emerged that suggested a more tenuous connection.
Your first family story
Family stories may be sweeping or specific. They capture some essential aspect of the family's generational journey.