Jewish Data times Issue 28

Jewish Data Times Issue 28 6/23/08
Focused on records posted at http://www.jewishdata.com/
1, Many new records from Brooklyn, NY
.2. New entries from Israel.
3. Many records edited.
4. Several responses we received.

1. More than 20,000 new records have been posted from Washington Cemetery inBrooklyn NY. So far, there are now more than 52,000 indexed images from thislocation. This Jewish cemetery has been in use since 1867, and in the nearfuture we plan to complete the work of imaging and documenting this entireJewish cemetery.

2. Several thousand record listings have been entered for Hebrew tombstoneimages from the famous Mt. of Olives in Jerusalem. One will notice that allthe tombstones are flat, and many contain information on which European City the person emigrated from. To date, 1,320 images have been indexed, and theproject will continue. More indexing has been worked on from Har Menuchos inJerusalem, of which 5,100 of the 6,000 images are now searchable.

3. Records from the following locations have recently been edited to includemany of the Hebrew only, or difficult to read monuments. Mt. Olive from LosAngeles, CA- 1,262 records, and Jewish cemeteries in Milwaukee WI- 6,219.

4. Here are some of the responses we received in connection to the articlein issue 27 called "Talking stones?" which is reprinted below..

Maury Kitces: Let me tell what has happened today - since I rejoined.First some background.My distant cousin Ethel was named for an aunt of hers who had "died inchildbirth". She knew nothing else about this woman, not even her marriedname. She always wanted to know more about her, and where she was buried.About 10 years ago my cousin found a letter that was written to her aunt byher (unknown) uncle, and it was signed "Louis". So now we were looking forLouis and Ethel, married between 1930 (when she left Montreal) and 1937 whenmy cousin was born. With much work, we located the marriage record of LouisCohen and Ethel Dunsky (1 Oct 1933 in Brooklyn). We have been searching allof the available government records for Ethel Cohen without success foryears.This morning, I looked for Ethel Cohen in your database, and there it was,the tombstone that my cousin has been looking for 30 years or more!Ethel Cohen, bat Chaim, died Feb 1935, age 26. I emailed my cousin, whoimmediately went to the cemetery, where she found the records that showedshe was buried with a stillborn baby. Here is what she wrote back to methis evening."You are fantastic. Truly fantastic. Thank you so much for uncoveringEthel Cohen's whereabouts. When I received your message this morning, Inoticed that her father was listed as Chaim, and when I called the cemeterythey said she was buried with a stillborn baby. Donald and I immediatelydrove to the cemetery in Elmont, NY and visited the gravesite. It is such arelief to have found Ethel, and I will be indebted to you forever."So, if anyone else asks "What value can there be in old stones standing openin the field?" Now you have an answer.Mary Miller: Just wanted to say a big THANK YOU for the tombstone photos.Wehave tried many times to get information about the burial of my greatgrandmother. I have come upon your site and found not only her tombstone,but her parents as well. Again, these are wonderful images which help toconfirm the family heritage as I have been recording it! With birthdates,death dates, family relationships...they are invaluable, not to mention veryspecial to have when I am so far away and cannot make the trip myself.

Margaret Levine: Thank you for identifying the graves of my maternalgreat-grandparents,Louis and Jane Levi Wolfe. It is amazing to have the online photos! I wasalso able to get a copy of census data on their household in Syracuse fromthe American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati, another excellent resource.


Talking Stones?Some people wonder about the great efforts by the staff ofhttp://www.jewishdata.com/ to photograph entire Jewish cemeteries around the world,and then index and post them at the site. It seems more popular to searchfor official Government records in basement State archives for birth,marriage, census, and death records. But stones? What value can there be inold stones standing open in the field?To this we offer a response: The value of any individual record is bestmeasured by the information it provides. One particular can lead to moreinformation which can help form a full picture about the life of the targetperson and their descendents. Every record is certainly unique and deservescareful examination. Let us consider and compare the information offered bya tombstone image vs. a regular record such as a birth or census record. Thedocument may record report a single detail, for example - Joseph Cohen livedat 245 Main St. and came from Russia in 1886. A tombstone image typicallyprovides a basic record on the person- his or her birthdate, father's name,date of death, Jewish name, words indicating where he or she was a parent orgrandparent. Occasionally the image of the stone may record the person'scountry and city of origin, their occupation, and their majoraccomplishments on this earth. Is there any other record that provides somuch information in one image?When considering the value and validity of each record, one willinquire -who created the record? In the case of a Government record, it isdifficult to know who was the source. Perhaps a Government official justasked a few questions without taking the time to make sure they understandthe answers correctly. Sometime census volunteers justified writing entriesbased on a neighbor's word. A monument however, was inscribed in stone bychoice words provided by close loving family members who also paid for theinscription. Knowing this will cause us to not overlook any subtle hint theymay have intended to convey to us in their carved words.As to the fact that the monuments seems too easy to access compared torestricted Government archives, we may suggest: G-D Almighty in his infinitewisdom, created the world in a manner that essentials such as air and waterare plentiful, and readily available at no charge. In a similar vein:tombstone records, precisely because they are so essential for genealogyresearch- they are open in the fields waiting for any visitor to find themand appreciate the information they are telling. At Jewish Data we aretrying to capture the maximum number of images before the stones fade bynatural or sometimes unfortunately un-natural causes. The small fee athttp://www.jewishdata.com/ is only for the convenience of viewing records quicklyand comfortably, while sparing the time and money it would require to travelaround the world. If at least some of these points are correct, we are leadto the conclusion that tombstones are records in stone which speak louderthan documents alone.