The Pale of Settlement

This map gives some indication as to the expanse of the region known to us as 'The Pale of Settlement'.


In 1791, Catherine the Great, Czarina of Russia created a zone of residence - some called it a zone of containment for the Jews.
This territory comprised more than 38,000 square miles (more than 1 million square kilometres), west of Russia stretching between the Baltic and Black Seas. The Jews called it "the Pale," and most were restricted to this area until after the Russian Revelolution of 1917.
This region, east of Berlin and west of Moscow, was disputed territory for many years and included lands that today are known as Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belorussia, and Ukraine. But names of countries hardly mattered to the Jews.

ONE COULD BE BORN IN CZARIST RUSSIA, THEN LIVE IN GERMAN TERRITORY, BECOME A POLISH CITIZEN , THEN BECOME LITHUANIAN, MOVE BACK TO GERMAN CONTROL, AND FINALLY BECOME A CITIZEN OF A SOVIET REPUBLIC - AND NEVER LEAVE THE HOUSE WHERE YOU WERE BORN!

It was home to nearly all the world's Jews - in 1880 around 4 million Jews lived in the Pale, out of a world population of 7.7 million (another 2 million Jews lived outside the Pale but in Eastern Europe).
They lived in "nameless" Shtetls (small villages) such as Jagielnica, Kaisiadorys and Trakai, as well as Dorphs (larger towns) like Zasliai, Landau and Brody, and cities such as Lodz, Warsaw, Minsk, Bialystok, Vilna and Lvov. They shared a rich culture and a relgion, and a language - Yiddish....

From the book, 'Jewish Americans' by Robert Stein, published by Barrons/ Ivy Press Ltd, 2002.



http://rights.ivypress.co.uk/resource/?pid=1755

Location:Huddersfield Rd,Dewsbury,United Kingdom

Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses...

Coming to America: Statue of Liberty Poem...

Also known as the Statue of Liberty poem, New Colossus and its famous last lines have become part of American history. Here is the sonnet originally written by Emma Lazarus, in its unedited entirety:



New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Location:New York City

The First Post On The Bugle

After writing family history blogs on two other branches of my family, Dunns and Ornsteins, I felt it was high time I started this one about my paternal grandmothers family, The Herscovichs. My grandmother was known in English as Yvette Hurst, but was born, and known in Yiddish as Yetta Herscovich. She was born 27th March 1909, and died 16th December 1997.





Yetta Herscovich later Hurst, later Dunn, later still Westbrook.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Herscovitch...Herskovitch...Herskovitz...Herscovitz...Herskovich...Herskovici...Herscovici...Hirshkovich...Hirshcovich...Hirshkovitz...Hirshcovitz...Hershkovitch...Hershcovitch...Hershkovich...Hershcovich...Hershkovitz...Hershcovitz...Herschkovitch...Herschcovitch...Hirschkovitch...Hirschcovitch...Hirschkovitz...Hirschcovitz...Hirst...Herst...Hearst...Hurst...
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

The family originate from Eastern Europe, Romania also spelt Rumania and Roumania) in the 19th century. That's all we know, presently. No district. No town. No Shtetl or Dorph. It is however likely they lived in Galatia, the region of Romania which had a large Jewish population.

The geographical origins of my branch of the Herscovich family is one of the things I aim to establish with the publication of this geneological blog.






Samuel Herscovich and his wife Annie / Hannah (nee Dubosky) came to settle in London, England and had laid down roots in Whitechapel, East London at least by 1911. It is likely they left Romania due to the dangers of the Jewish persecutions or Pogroms.

They would anglicise their name to the more English sounding surname Hurst. This is where their UK history begins...

www.herscovitzhistories.blogspot.com

Location:Galatia, Romania

Rosalyn's Obituary

Below follows the obituary of Rosalyn Charter, who was one of my mum's American first cousins.

Rosalyn (Ornstein) Charter
CHARTER, Rosalyn (Ornstein) Of Mattapan and Randolph. Entered into rest February 4, 2011. Beloved wife of David Charter. Dear daughter of the late Harry and Leah Ornstein. Devoted mother of Harvey Charter and wife Barbara of Ft. Meyers, FL; Edward Charter and wife Eileen of Vineyard Haven, MA; Michael Charter and wife Coral of El Paso, TX; and Steven Charter and wife Yulia of Israel. Loving sister of Jerome Ornstein and the late Melvin Ornstein; sister-in-law of Leona Ornstein. Cherished grandmother of Paul Charter, Matthew (Motti) Charter, Jonathan Charter, Gabriel Charter, Zachary Charter, Seth Charter, Daniel Charter, Joseph Charter, Hank Charter, Aaron Charter, Lana Charter, Dan Charter, Matan Charter and Tamara Charter. Adored great-grandmother of Eliya, Gavriel, Aravah and Benjamin. Rosalyn was very involved in the activities at Young Israel Kehillath Jacob of Mattapan and Randolph where she was a member of the sisterhood. She was a retired den mother for Cub Scout Pack 13 of Mattapan and an amazing cook. Funeral services will be held at Stanetsky Memorial Chapels, 1668 Beacon Street, BROOKLINE, on Monday, February 7 at 12:00 noon. Interment will be at Agudath Israel Cemetery, 776 Baker Street, West Roxbury. Memorial observance will be at the Hebrew Rehabilitation Center, 1200 Centre Street, Roslindale, MA 02131 following interment until 5:00PM and on Tuesday and Wednesday until 5:00 PM. Contributions in Rosalyn's memory may be made to the Hebrew Rehabilitation Center.

Stanetsky Memorial Chapels 800-842-4280 www.stanetsky.com

Source cited 24th May 2011:
http://m.legacy.com/obituaries/bostonglobe/obituary.aspx?n=rosalyn-charter-ornstein&pid=148361359

Location:Boston MA

Leah's Obituary

Below follows the obituary of Leah, who was my grandfathers eldest sister. Born in Plymouth, England on 20th December 1902, she emigrated to Boston, America in September 1924. More information on Leah, such as her school report card and immigatory ships log can be seen several pages back in this blog.

LEAH ORNSTEIN
Funeral Friday, January 11, 2002
Memorial observance will be private.
Ornstein, on Wednesday, January 9, 2002, Leah (Ornstein) of West Roxbury. Beloved wife of the late Harry Ornstein. Devoted mother of Rosalyn Charter of El Paso, TX, Jerome Ornstein of Martha's Vineyard and the late Melvin Ornstein. Dear grandmother of one granddaughter, five grandsons and 11 great grandsons. Graveside services will be at the Liberty Progressive Cemetery, Fuller St., Everett on Friday, January 11th at 11:00 AM. Remembrances may be made to the Hebrew Rehabilitation Center for the Aged, 1200 Centre St., Roslindale, MA 02131.

Source cited 24th May 2011:
http://www.obitcentral.com/obitsearch/obits/ma/ma-norfolk6.htm

Location:Boston MA.

Jimi Hendrix the Finsbury Astoria Burnt Guitar FOUND

Tony Garland being interviewed about his days in the 1960's working as Jimi Hendrix's PR man / publicist. Tony is the son of Harry and Kitty Garland, (nee Austin) who was Max and Dobbie's youngest child.

Jagielnica - 1932 - Ягільниця - Kresowe miasteczko

The town of Jagielnica in Ukraine, also known as Yahil'nytsia, as it appeared in 1932, about 35 years after our ancestors left.