I had a wonderful surprise on my blog last week. A blog I wrote about my grandfather’s mysterious family focusing on his brother ( see blog below) had a message from my great uncle Jacob’s granddaughter. There has been NO contact as far as I can tell since 1957.
The comment: “Rupert John Rosenberg was my father; Jacob was my grandfather.
Jacob did not come to England (but died in New York c 1957) but (Rupert) John did . I never met Jacob and I know little about my American family but I know Delilah had two children…” (I do not want to go into too much personal detail to keep the anonymity of my cousin.)
I was startled, but immediately answered her sending my work email address. Since that first contact, she and I have been emailing, sending photos and information. And finally, we had a face-to-face conversation through Facetime. Later this month, she will meet more of the family, as we have a family Zoom with her.
In my original blog, I mentioned that my great uncle disappeared in 1957. I searched for him everywhere. But no mention. I thought he went to England to live with his son. No mention. Now I know that he died in 1957, when he was only 62, from cancer. This would also impact his son, who also died in his late 50s from cancer as well.
But what I did not know is that the father and son had been estranged. I am not too surprised, as Jacob also distanced himself from his own family. His siblings basically had little contact with him after his mother passed away. But it is a mystery. My cousin thinks it is because her father did not want to serve in the Korean War, so left the country after he completed college. And that was the cause of the estrangement. After his father passed away, her father did continue to have contact with his mother.
In the meantime, his son started using his middle name, John, as he progressed in his career as a writer of novels and working in the British film industry. One of the movies he worked on is one that I remember.
For me part of the excitement, besides finding my second cousin and her family, was learning that I was correct in my research. I had found my father’s first cousins Rupert and Delilah. Rupert was married exactly as I thought. And, although I did not write about his sister’s marriage, the Delilah I found was correct. She married the man I thought, Leonard Raphael, and was a concert pianist. She had two children. (Since they are living, and I have no contact with them, I will not name them.)
When pieces of the puzzle come together, it is joyful!
My second cousin told me she had an older sister who lived in a Mediterranean country and she wanted to save the cats. That made me laugh, as my daughter, who has name very similar to this yet unmet second cousin, also lives in a Mediterranean country and has saved many cats and volunteered at a shelter. Another coincidence is that the cousin who contacted me, has the same name as my niece. I find that so serendipitous. My daughter and the sister have virtually the same name, with just one letter change. And my niece and this cousin have the same name with just one letter change.
To continue the similarities, my newly found cousin has four children. Her oldest son and my son have the same name.
Finally, we had a long discussion about our family’s thick and wavy hair. When she saw a photo of my brother, my found cousin commented that her Dad and sister have the same hair. The men in my family are known for not having the male baldness gene! Even the women are known for their thick and wavy dark hair.
I must admit I write my blogs for my family, but also to find out what happened to the people who disappeared. In my mother’s family that pertains to those who were murdered in the Shoah. In my father’s family, it is the mystery of his father’s siblings. There are still two missing, Samuel and Minnie/Muriel. I hope one day to find them as well.
https://zicharonot.com/2019/12/10/back-to-my-grandfathers-mysterious-brothers-first-jacob/
zicharonot 
What a wonderful connection!
It was!
I loved reading this posting especially for you. I know how exciting it is to make these cousin connections, fill in the gaps and prove our research. 🙂
Thank you! It is exciting. Family mysteries are sometimes difficult to untangle. So when it happens I feel joy.
I too have discovered, or I should really say, have been discovered by a distant cousin. He lives in Israel is retired and has been researching family history on many ancestry sites. We’ve even met a few times. It’s really a wonderful thing. Thank you for sharing your story.