PICK OF THE ARCHIVES (reprinted from Fall 2002 Generations ) by Judy Sherman
Leighton Siegel has given us a CD entitled "Ella Ostrin (1887-1960): Music and Family" which was restored from scratchy recordings made in 1948. We hear Ella, his grand-mother, playing "Hatikvah", "Bicycle Built for Two" and two Russian songs on the accordion, as well as the voices of adults and children in the family. Leighton recalled that she loved music and taught herself to play the concertina when she was none years old. In Russia she played at weddings and other simchas. "In Minneapolis," he reported, "she played for organizations and was still entertaining with her concertina in the last year of her life while living at the Sholom residence." The picture on the liner notes shows us a grandmotherly figure with her instrument in a homey setting typical of the 1940s.
Ella Ostrin and her beloved concertina
Ruth Davis has contributed a large collection of clippings, photos and personal recollections about Jewish Girl Scout groups, including troop lists, personal notes and letters. Ruth Davis organized the Adath Jeshurun Girl Scout troop 194 and received national recognition as a leader on local, regional and national levels, including a scholarship to attend the 1947 national encampment in New York State. Among other women recognized as leaders in scouting are Marjorie Mandel, Bernice (Bunny) Cohen, Helen Braude, Yetta Cram and Sonia Tapper.
Ruth Davis, outstanding Scout leader and compiler of Jewish Girl Scout collection
If you (or your mother or your daughter) were a Girl Scout in Minneapolis, at Willard, John Hay or Burroughs School, or at Adath Jeshurun, Beth El, Mikro Kodesh or Temple Israel, among others, you may find yourself in uniform, complete with neckerchief tie. In any case you will recognize the names and faces in this smile-invoking collection.
Girl Scout troop 140 pageant, 1940s?
Mrs. Davis also contributed a diary, accompanied by photographs, written in 1927 by Paulette Weil Fink when she went camping as a sixteen-year-old French Girl Scout. There is an English translation of part of the diary which reveals the emotions, rivalries and aspirations of the teenage years.
PICK OF THE ARCHIVES (reprinted from Spring 2002 Generations ) by Judy Sherman
Charles Frisch has contributed some fascinating materials collected by his father, Leo Frisch, who was among other things the long-time editor of the American Jewish World. The collection includes early letters and publicity supporting Zionism and Israel, including a 1946 efforts by the Minneapolis American-Christian Palestine Committee, and the James G. McDonald Mass Meeting for Palestine, June 27, 1946. There are publications and brochures, telegrams and letters supporting Zionism and the early State of Israel, beginning with a Keren Hayesod publication from 1926 and "Builders of the Homeland" biographies and portraits. These materials illustrate support for Zionism in the wider community.
On a less serious note, there arc souvenir programs from synagogue events from 1914 to the 1970s, and programs, commemorative books and publicity items from the Standard Club and its predecessor, the Gymal Doled Club. This varied collection demonstrates Leo Frisch's wide interests and community involvement.
Dolodian front cover, 1926
We recently received from Bill Wolpert a collection of anti-Semitic materials from the 1930s which is both interesting and terrifying. There are brochures from the "American Christian Movement" associating Jews with communists, misquoting dubious "Jewish" sources threatening the "American Way of Life," smearing President Roosevelt because of Jewish members of his government, "exposing" Jews in the movies, and otherwise claiming Jewish plots and misdeeds. This material is so naive and dated that it would be funny if it weren't so virulent and threatening. Bill found this collection on e-Bay and thought it was important for us to own it, both as historical documents and to remind our-selves that as a community we must be eternally vigilant against the lies and smears of hate groups.
