Read colorful narratives of our ancestors below! Hopefully, that will compel you poke around a bit in our site and get to know these people or maybe you’ll be inspired to find another individual to learn about. Alex Haley said, “In all of us there is a hunger, marrow-deep, to know our heritage- to know who we are and where we have come from. Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning. No matter what our attainments in life, there is still a vacuum, an emptiness, and the most disquieting loneliness.” And he would know.
A rough, no-nonsense, cowboy with a sense of humor. Known to all as Sid, he was born in Southern California. He ran away as a youth for a life of horses, lassos and dusty ranch living. His first job as a cowboy was to clear the fields of gophers. Never missing a chance to impressively tell a story, he charmed Ada Kallin and they married. Father to two, he ran a restaurant/deli with famously delicious brisket sandwiches. The restaurant defined his early marriage years, he worked hard and long hours, feeding hungry travelers and locals alike. Later he separated from Ada and married Shirley Bretwor. Years passed, and he had two boys with Shirley. They lived in Northern California. Among many business ventures, they owned a jewelry store in San Francisco. He loved to tell the story of a would be heist, where he stood up to the thieves and kicked them out of his store. After retiring, he lived in Hawaii for many years, returning to Northern California to spend time with his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. He died in Northern California surrounded by three generations.
Genealogy
A beautiful and refined woman, she fell hard for a cowboy. She was born in London, UK to a Jewish family. Eventually, the family made their way to the United States, and to California. Mother to one sturdy boy, and one stunning daughter, she taught them to laugh and be merry.
Genealogy
A quiet, unusually muscular, father of five. He was born a Jew in the Russia of the 1800s. He served in the military as a young man, leaving that life in the early 1900s to begin anew on the East Coast of the United States of America. Jacob married and had a daughter in Boston. Tragedy and betrayal encouraged him to change coasts, beginning another again in Southern California. There he met and married Dora Fingerman–they had one son and three daughters together. A handsome man, he enjoyed square dancing with his wife. He is remembered for his steady presence and support. He died and was buried in Southern California.
Genealogy
A petite and passionate, curly-haired, bright-eyed pillar of a woman. She was born into a poor Jewish family in Vitebsk, Russia in the 1800s. She worked hard her whole childhood to help support her very large family. At the age of 17, she took a boat to the United States of America with her sister. They did not speak any English. They worked hard in sweat factories, earning money to bring the rest of their family to a new life in America. Eventually, she settled in Southern California. She met and married Jacob Flaxman there. She built security and comfort from nothing by working hard every day of her life. Her oldest child, and only son, Victor, became sick and died at the age of 16. This was a tremendous blow to her. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for her family. She survived her husband for many years, carrying on in her tradition of industry. She died and was buried in Southern California.
Genealogy