When doing genealogy research gets . . . interesting

No, Bubbe, that is not helpful! While this is not a literal conversation I had about my family's Jewish ancestry and where we lived before America, it's about as much information as I had to go on when I started work on my next big project . . .

Hanukkah is a holiday about holding onto identity and connections with history, which is also at the core of why historical dress matters to so many of us. Dress history lets us rebuild relationships with the past when they've been broken, whether that's through marginalization, family struggles, or simply time. It's through historical costuming that I was able to build a sense of Jewish identity that was positive and on my terms. Historical costume making gives us a creative, tangible way to connect with history, which has been missing for so many.

But it's not alone : when combined with genealogy research, historical costuming gives us a fascinating way to embody our direct past. In the New Year, I'll be using genealogy, historical dress sewing and analysis, and so much more to tell the story of Jewish immigration history in the Lower East Side! My great-great-grandmother was one of many Jewish immigrants to NYC in the late 19th century, and thanks to modern technology and historical sewing together, I can literally walk in her shoes as I put together the pieces of her life story. When we talk about immigrants coming to the US with the clothes on their backs, those were my ancestors, and I can't wait to show what their clothes and lives were really like.

Follow me on IG for more stitchy business : @missSnappyDragon
For business inquiries, send an e-mail to : SnappyDragon at TBHonestSocial dot Com
I do not take personal costume/sewing or research commissions.

Want to send me letters? Send mail to PO Box 3884, Berkeley CA, 94703! Letters and cards only please 💚

[laurenschiller]

How you know you have Jewish family: you know what town they came from but not what country because it depends on when they left

[Nightriser]

My grandmother's mother was undisputably from Poland, but the origins of her father are far less straighforward. See, his original, un-anglicized name sounds kinda German, so we all thought he was German. The story goes that he anglicized their name during one of the World Wars (whether that was a motion of solidarity or escaping prejudice is another question). However, after a little digging, I found something that said he was Austrian. But he was born in the 1890s, and that made me go, "Hold up! Those were the days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire! He might not be Austrian by today's standards." So I looked up his hometown, and sure enough, it isn't in modern Austria, but **drumroll** Czechia.

All of this to say, countries and borders are constantly in flux, and the old country may or may not exist at that point in time. **coughs in Polish**

[mcwjes]

You know! The old country! With the potatoes!

[erinrising]

I feel this, it was passed down that my family was from Wales, somewhere north of Cardiff...which is very much to the south of the country.

[jacobvardy]

Gods, this is every Romany family. Elders who were deliberately vague about citizenship. Plus ancestors with very good reasons to fear official paperwork, who thought literacy meant assimilation, and regarded borders with contempt.

[petermcgill]

She walked to school in the cold and she didn't even have feet. Those were hard times

[brooke_reiverrose]

As a genetic genealogist, I get a kick out of this. Love any genealogy content

“People who pass through don’t even know they they’ve been there!”

[WanderingWaystrel]

My Grandpa was a first generation Polish immigrant, but my Bubbie was either second or third generation depending on how you count it. Her mother from a place called the Pale of Settlement, which is where the Russian Empire sent all their Jews when they expelled them, most of which is now Ukraine. We have no way to know where they lived before that. Her father died in a facility when she was young, so we have no way to trace where he came from.

[marthahawkinson-michau]

On my grandfather’s side of the family we were told that he came from Swedish immigrants. He even told us stories about his ancestors that his parents and grandparents told him.

We researched the genealogy of his family and discovered that one of his Swedish ancestors had crossed the border from Norway and married into a small village.

[Brigid.em.Galloway]

My poor Granma died believing she was Italian, But I discovered her parents had immigrated from a village in Switzerland that was kinda near the Italian border, lol.

[jordanmcgrory]

Yeah, "countries" in Eastern Europe are not very helpful historically, especially in the Balkans. Better to ask what village or town they were nearest. Which country that was in probably changed every 5 years.

[carmenpeters]

Amazing! Isn't it!? I understand it though. People were afraid to say anything about their where abouts and even the real names of family memebers.
it's the reason for the saying ' LOOSE LIPS SINKS SHIPS'.

[lenabreijer]

Family myth says some great grandmother came from "somewhere up the river Rhine, not Germany " my sister doing genealogy is now back to the 1600s and hasn't found this mythical matriarch who gifted me oriental eyes, high cheek bones and minimal nose that won't hold up glasses.

[WinterWitch]

My mom does this about our ancestors and it drives me crazy. “That’s how they said/did it back in the old country” What old country, like which one?
Edit; spelling

[elysiacelestewells]

I asked my grandmother where her grandparents were from, finally we gave up and said Wakanda. She thought that sounded familiar ...

[alicialexists]

So true! Some of my very distant ancestors changed their surnames on the way to the US, so who knows what the "old countries" really are? Anyone else need a DNA test?

[dexaria]

My granny always claimed that in our family we ate fish like the queen. What method was this? Which queen? From which country/time? Who knows!🤣

[TankDogg-bmes]

What's worse is when two 2nd great aunts take information about their grandpa to the grave with them, and family members won't share anything about the 3rd great grandpa while they chase the wrong line.

[violetskies]

Ooh I have a related anecdote! We are not sure if at one point in time we had Jewish family members. When looking at old family photos from the late 1800s, early 1900s we have quite a few distinctly ethnically Jewish looking family members. So much so that me, my grandma, and my great aunt all thought that and when we mentioned it to each other it was a case of "oh we always thought that too". Add that to the fact that when my uncle was going to be named Abraham my great grandfather told my grandma "No you can't call him that, he'll seem Jewish and never get a job in his life" and it makes me wonder. It could have been typical for the time antisemitism or fear of antisemitism but it also makes me wonder if some of my family were originally Jewish. Probably no way to tell nowadays given anyone who might have known is long dead and if I were to do one of those genealogy tests (which aren't 100% accurate anyway) it might not even be enough by my generation to show up anyway but I am still curious.

[thesavingsorceress]

I’m very mixed with ancestry claims ranging from Wales to Northern Africa to Indigenous America and possibly China. One day, when I finally get a DNA test, I’m sure it’ll be an eye-opener!