Esther and Leon wedding photo.
Now that I found my husband’s grandparents’ ketubah (Jewish marriage license), I can be definite about another family legend.
The rumor was that his Grandmother Esther was anywhere from 12 to 15 years old when she married her husband Leon, who was 25. My mother-in-law told me that her mother was 12 when she married. My husband’s first cousin, also named Esther, told me that her grandmother was 15. All agreed she lied and said she was 16 when she married in 1903.
I now have facts. She was born October 4, 1889. That means when she married on August 9, 1903, she was not quite 14. I have to be honest, this shocked me. I cannot imagine letting my 13-year-old daughter marry a man who was 12 years older, 25, even if he was a well-educated and kind physician. I guess times were different. However, it was London, England, and not the wild west. All that went through my brain, was: “What were her parents, Abraham and Rachel, thinking!!!” But the marriage occurred, so they must have approved. (See blog below.)
They lived in England, where their first three children were born. The oldest was born when Esther was 15 years old. The next when she was 17, and so on until she had 10 living children. She died in childbirth in 1933, when she was 44. She is buried with an infant. (See blog below.)
Leon immigrated to the United States in February of 1908. And another legend is correct, they came through Canada. It makes sense as she was a citizen of England, coming to Canada was not a problem. Leon was born in Romania, but he had lived in England for a while. But actually only he entered the USA at Vanceboro, Maine, which is located across the St. Croix River from St. Croix, New Brunswick, Canada. There is a railroad that connects the two cities, which was opened in 1871. I assume he came by rail.
Interesting there is an E Matassarin that took a boat to Canada around the same time. But Esther and her three children actually moved to the USA on August 7, 1920, on the ship, Carmania. The three children were Malvenia (Molly), Joseph and Jeanne. (I have to add one comment here. Their third child, Jeanne, was born in England, supposedly in July 1908. Either she was born a year earlier, making her 101 when she died, or they came a year later. I think she was a year older! A family member has confirmed the 1907 birthdate.)
When they arrived they stayed with family members from Esther’s side before they took the journey to Kansas.
Over the years, Esther’s age moved back and forth in the census. In a 1925 census of the city in Kansas where she lived, she is listed as 35 years old and her husband is 47. Their true ages. She had six children living with them ranging from age 4-18. Her oldest daughter had already died as a young adult. (Her grave was moved from Wichita to Leavenworth so she could be buried with her parents.)
But in the 1930 census, just five years later, she lists herself as being 42, adding two years to her life, and now just ten years younger than her husband. She has an additional two living children, including my husband’s mother. One more live birth would occur soon after the census.
They originally lived in Brooklyn in New York City after they immigrated to the USA. Then they moved to Kansas, living at times in both Wichita and Leavenworth. I know that Leon became a naturalized citizen of the USA in September 1915 in Wichita.
My husband’s grandfather served as a doctor for the USA Army during World War 1. He was shipped overseas on August 23, 1919 on a ship called, Chicago. He was stationed at the US Army Base Hospital #58, which was located in Rimaucourt, France. The Army Hospital in Rimaucourt was the last US military hospital created in WW 1 and only existed until February 1919. I am not sure where he went after this base closed.
He left the USA as a captain. When he returned he held the rank of major. He left Brest, France, the main port the USA used during the war, on September 10, 1919, serving just over a year in Europe. He arrived home on the ship, Mount Vernon, docking in Hoboken, New Jersey on September 19,1919.
One more item about Leon and his time during World War 1. He found a way, through the JDC, American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, to send $10.00 to his mother, and his sister, Anna, in Romania on October 17, 1917. (I found this in the JDC Archives.)
He ended up in Leavenworth, Kansas, where he continued to work on the military base. He was discharged from military duty in 1930 with the rank of Major. I believe he then went into private practice. Unfortunately, his wife died just a few years later. The memory my mother-in-law told me was that he went every day to visit his wife’s grave until he died. Years ago, when I went to the cemetery, there was a stone bench next to her grave. I believe her memory to be true.
My husband’s mother was about eight when her mother died and 17 when her father died in the middle of World War 2. She was the third youngest child. Some of her older siblings served during the war and were dispersed throughout the world.
I am so glad that JewishGen.org, the Archives.jdc.org and Ancestry.com had records that helped me piece together this history. I also used Wikipedia for info about towns in France and Canada.
https://zicharonot.com/2019/01/11/cemetery-records-impacts-family-stories/
https://zicharonot.com/2019/04/04/the-great-alie-street-synagogue-my-husbands-family-london-ties/
Tags: Army Hospital WW1, USArmy Base Hospital #58 WW1, Wichita, WW1 army physician
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