ROOTS
14/12/2001

ELLEN MOORE of New Hampshire thinks her father may have hidden his Jewish heritage. Robert Gorman was born on October 31, 1915 in Glenboig, Scotland, to Peter and Mary Gorman. Robert, who died in 1963, moved to the USA before America's involvement in the Second World War.

He was 21 at the time and a professional dog handler. He married Ellen's mother in Concord, New Hampshire, and was a practising Roman Catholic. Ellen, an only child, was born on March 26, 1945.

After he died, Ellen discovered a pair of Shabbat candlesticks, given to him by his mother when he left Scotland.

''I am not close to my many relatives in Scotland, but I have a cousin who lived in Israel before marrying an American and moving to Hawaii. My mother, 83, is not Jewish,'' Ellen says. ''Years ago, I decided - after living a Protestant Christian life - to explore Judaism. I am legally converted and actively Jewish. My husband (second) is a Christian.''

Robert only returned to Scotland once - in 1955 - to visit his brother and sister and families.

Write to 2564 Rt 4-A, Springfield, New Hampshire 03284, USA or email sassyell@nhvt.net


EDDIE MARTIN of Worsley wants information on a Jewish woman, born in 1904 in the village of Tulln, Austria, to solve a mystery over a handbag found in Cheetham Hill, Manchester.

Eddie believes that Marie Zweg moved to Cheetham Hill around 1938.

He was given documents concerning the then 34-year-old Marie concerning her attempts to get a passport to leave Austria.

The documents were found in a handbag in the cellar of a house in Cheetham Hill. Also in the handbag were two place name cards of the type used at functions. One has the name Marie Zweig and the other Katherina Steiner, while underneath it says in German, 'die 4 Yahre unschuldig im Kerker war' (innocently imprisoned for four years).

Eddie has donated the original documents to The Shoah Centre, but is intrigued to find out the fate of Marie.

Write to 21 Dunster Road, Worsley, Manchester. M28 1AY, telephone 0161-790 2932 or email bemartin@btopenworld.com


DARREN DRUCE of Cheshire has ''hit a brick wall'' in his family research.

His great great grandfather, Harris Druce, passed through Ellis Island in September 1904, but he left his wife and children behind in England.

Harris was born in Russia around 1874, while his wife, Rebecca or Braine Zinkoff, was also born in Russia around 1872. She had a brother called Jackaria Goldis who lived in Leeds from 1907-10. Harris and Rebecca had eight children.

Write to 1 Bosley Close, Middlewich, Cheshire, CW10 0NW or telephone 01606 834204.


FRANK LIPPA, who now lives in Melbourne, Australia, is researching his family tree. His cousin Leila Kleiman (nee Lippa) from Liverpool and Leeds also lives in Melbourne.

Leila's grandmother's sister was called Sarah Hochberg. Around 1900, two Hochberg girls emigrated to South America. Sarah married a Feifel (Phil) Philips in London between 1900-1910. They had a daughter called Kitty who married Willy Cohen.

Apparently Sarah and Kitty corresponded in Yiddish for many years with their South American family. Kitty and Willy had two daughters called Alma and Helen Cohen who lived in Leeds. Both girls married - Alma to Jim. Frank is looking for Alma and Helen who may be still in Leeds.

Email frank.lippa@aventis.com or telephone Harvey Kleiman on 0113 2369912


MARTIN MILLER of New York is trying to find if there is a connection between the Matlow family in Syracuse and the family that runs Swizzels Matlow in England. Martin has discovered that the American family's original name was Matulevich or Matulewicz from Virbalis, Lithuania.

The mother was Taube Rubenstein Matlow, who was born in Sudargas, Lithuania. One of Taube's sons married a Handelman. A daughter Hilda Matlow Horwich, who claimed to have been born in Vilkaviskis, Lithuania, married Aaron and had five children while the family lived in England - a son and three daughters were born in Manchester, one daughter in Sheffield.

Write to 214 Oakmont Drive Dewitt, NY 13214, USA or email millerm@mailbox.syr.edu


NAOMI BARNETT of Melbourne is looking for descendants of Selina Barnett and Maurice Silverstein who lived in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Selina would have been born in the early to mid-1880s. They had a son called Cecil. Selina and Maurice had a furniture business.

In addition, Naomi would like to contact descendants of David, Janey or Ada Glass. They were nieces/nephew of the late Betsy Cohen (nee Glass) who was Naomi's husband's great grandmother. Janey married a grocer whose surname was Feuer.

Write to 2 Capri Court, Doncaster, Melbourne, Australia 3108 or email barnett@netspace.net.au


STAN LEE of Leeds is trying to trace cousins in Calgary, Canada, whose name was Barovich, probably now Barr. Formerly of Leeds, they left in the 1920s to settle in Canada. Write to 51 Primley Park View, Leeds, LS17 7LF or telephone 01132 686280.


American LINDA SPECHT wants information on her family. Her father's surname was Derber, while her grandfather, Max Tuchverderber, had a greengrocers in Strangeways, Manchester.

Linda's mother was Rose Brody, daughter of Louis Brody and granddaughter of Rabbi Samuel Menachem Brod (Braude), who was a rabbi in Hull.

Write to 10203 Navarre Ct, Richmond, VA, USA, telephone (804) 754 2393 or email linsd@aol.com


To make an appeal, email MIKE COHEN at roots@jewishtelegraph.com Please include your home address.

 
© 2001 Jewish Telegraph

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