Chana "Anna" Rabinowitz and Herschel "Harry" Gittelman

Chana Rabinowitz was born in 1902-1905 in Chopovichi, in what was then the Kiev gubernia in the Russian Empire. Her parents were Herschel and Hinda Rabinowitz.

Chana and Itzhak Rabinowitz, date unknown

The family story is that Chana and her brother Itzhak set out to work their way to a port in Poland from which they could sail to the States. Each time they got to a town, they'd look for work. If one found work and the other didn't, the one who hadn't found work would continue on to the next town and look for work there. In this fashion, they leap-frogged their way to Warsaw. Chana arrived in Warsaw first, where she's said to have met Herschel Gittelman. By the time Itzhak arrived, Chana and Herschel had decided to married or possibly had already married.

Herschel was the oldest child of Lazar Gittelman and Raisa Wasserman. His US records say that he was born in 1900-1901. However, a notice published in the Detroit Jewish News 13 Feb 1948, says that Nathan Gittelman is seeking information on his brother "Harry" and Harry's children, "Leo" and "Risha," as well as on his uncle Nathan, Nathan's wife Grunia and their daughter "Velchik." According to this notice, Herschel was born in 1896 in Azdamichy, which is about 25 km east of David-Gorodok and 22 km west of Turov. This information agrees with my aunt's statement that Herschel was born on the outskirts of David-Gorodok in a rural area called Osdamisch.

I remember hearing that Herschel was a carpenter by trade. When I was growing up, we had some carpenter's tools that were said to have belonged to him.

For years I was puzzled by the fact that I couldn't find an immigration record for Herschel, nor could I find an American marriage record for him and Chana. Then I found enough evidence to put together a hypothesis.

In 1921 the US Congress passed the Emergency Quota Act, which set immigration quotas based on the percentages of each nationality in the US population as recorded in the 1910 Census and thus limited immigration from eastern and southern Europe. The law included the specification that "in the enforcement of this Act preference shall be given so far as possible to the wives, parents, brothers, sisters, children under eighteen years of age, and fiancées, (1) of citizens of the United States, (2) of aliens now in the United States who have applied for citizenship in the manner provided by law..."

Chana's and Itzhak's chances for getting into the States depended on the fact that they were both young people - Chana said she was 18 and Itzhak, 19 - who had two older brothers, Abraham and Chatzkel/Hyman, who'd applied for US citizenship. Their two older sisters, Sarah and Brandel, were unsuccessful in getting papers to go to the States and went to Argentina instead.

Herschel had no brothers or sisters in the States, only an uncle in Detroit, so he was out of luck. Or was he?

Less than a year after Chana's arrival, on 24 Mar 1924, another Rabinowitz arrived in New York: Hersch "Rabinovich." Hersch had reportedly been born in Kiev in 1900. He was single and a carpenter by trade, 5'9" in height (i.e. 3" taller than Chana) with a dark complexion, black hair and grey eyes. He hadn't been residing in Kiev immediately prior to his departure but rather in La Plata, Argentina, where he knew someone named Julio Socolinsky. He sailed from Buenos Aires aboard the SS Vauban. His contact in New York? His "brother," Abraham Rubin, which was the name used in the States by Chana's brother Abraham. Hersch reported that Abraham had paid for his passage and that Abraham's address was 193 1st Avenue.

In the 1920 US Census, Chana's brother Abraham had reported his occupation as woolens merchant. There definitely was an Abraham Rubin who owned a dress goods shop at 193 1st Avenue in December 1925. He might (or might not) have acquired the shop as early as November 1923. The puzzle pieces seem to fit together in a way that suggests that the Abraham Rubin who owned the shop was Chana's brother and that Hersch "Rabinovich" was in fact her husband, Herschel Gittelman.

The story was plausible enough that I eventually decided to shell out some money to Office of the Bronx County Clerk for a copy of Herschel/Harry's naturalization papers. (I'd like to thank my sister in the States for her assistance in brokering this. It's a heck of a lot cheaper to buy a USD money order in the States than it is in Canada.)

Sure enough, the Certificate of Arrival that Harry presented to the court certifies him as arriving under the name of Hersch Rabinovich on 24 Mar 1924 aboard the SS Vauban. In his citizenship petition, Harry states that he was born in Kiev 12 Jan 1900. He married his wife "Annie" in Bayonne, New Jersey, on 15 Apr 1924, three weeks after his arrival. (The New Jersey brides' index for the 1920s confirms that Anna Rubin married HG on this date. The corresponding grooms' index has not survived.) According to Harry, Annie was born in Kiev 20 Mar 1903.

Their oldest child, Leon, was born in New York 16 Feb 1926. Harry filed his Declaration of Intention shortly afterwards, on 29 Mar 1926. At the time the family was living at 318 East 9th Street, and Harry was working as a varnisher. On 08 Sep 1928 they moved to the Bronx, where a second child, Ruth, was born 08 Feb 1929.

At the time Harry applied for citizenship on 23 Oct 1929, the family was living at 1178 Union Avenue in the Bronx. Harry continued to work as a varnisher. His identity was vouched for by Anna's (probable) cousin Louis Kedofsky and Harry's (probable) cousin Fannie Posner. His petition was approved 25 Jun 1930

There are a couple of obvious questions that can be raised here. One is, why did Harry give his place of birth as Kiev rather than Azdamichy, David-Gorodok or Minsk? One possibility is that given the major discrepancy in his last name, he may not wanted to have created any additional discrepancies in his story. His passenger manifest said he was born in Kiev, so he stuck with Kiev.

The other question is, of course, how did he get away with the discrepancy in last name? I have to wonder if this was simple practicality on the judge's part. Harry had a wife who'd arrived in the country legally and two young children who were US citizens. Deporting Harry would quite likely throw his wife and children onto the welfare rolls. Better that Harry should stay and continue to support them himself.

The 1930 US Census found Harry, Anna, Leon and Ruth living at 1334 Prospect Avenue in the Bronx. Harry's occupation was listed as furniture polisher.

Harry served as one of the witnesses when Anna's brother Irving (Itzhak) filed his own petition for citizenship on February 10, 1938. Harry gave his address as 78 Avenue C, NYC, and his occupation as furniture polisher.

According to the 1940 US Census, the Gittelmans had moved to 78 Avenue C at some point after 1935. By 1940, Leon had completed two years of high school, and Ruth had completed Grade 6.

Harry died in New York County (Manhattan) 26 Feb 1950.

Anna died 15 Aug 1975 in Beverly Hills, California.