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Passover Memories
“Mother whitewashed all the walls and scoured the floors. She made the utensils kosher for Passover with scalding hot water. A stone was first heated in the range until it was red hot. It was then put into a very large pot of boiling water, making the water sizzle and hiss. The utensils were boiled for some time in this water.”
Sophie Turnoy Trupin, Dakota Diaspora, 1984. The Turnoy family farmed near Wilton, North Dakota, in the 1910s.
“When we got ready for Passover we even washed the doorknobs... [M]y mother would make me go through every book, shake them out. God forbid someone would be reading a book and a crumb would fall out. I was fifteen years old before I saw the end of a Seder because I was so dead tired by the time the first Seder came along.”
Anne Rothenberg Zabel, oral history, 1994. The Rothenberg family lived in Sioux City, Iowa, in the early part of the century. Courtesy of the Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest.
“Each spring we eagerly awaited the large boxes of delicacies that would arrive by freight from Minneapolis for the week of the Passover celebration. Mama would see to it that the house was thoroughly cleaned, and even though our house was not strictly kosher, all forbidden food was removed from the shelves. My mother was so emphatic about it that I think she had us believing that something dreadful would happen to us if we ate bread or other things that were not allowed.”
Toba Marcowitz Geller, manuscript, 1976. Between 1915 and 1940, the Marcowitz family owned a general store in Halliday, North Dakota. Courtesy of the Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest.
“Passover was an exciting time. Supplies were ordered from Minot, and we always had a Seder. When we children were able to stay awake through the whole service, we were very proud. And from the time we were able to drink from a glass, we each had our own glass of wine.”
Craney Goldman Bellin, manuscript, undated. Bellin grew up on a farm near Anamoose, North Dakota, during the 1910s. Courtesy of the Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest.
top photo: The Chanen "girls" cleaning up in their mother Sadie's Minneapolis kitchen after a holiday meal, about 1950. Courtesy of the Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest.
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