Kushner Cousins Identified

 

I never thought I would find any of my Kushner cousins, especially since I know that Herman Kushner, even though he married, had no children of his own. His wife did have a child by her first marriage. I also have known for years that Nate Kushner had one daughter, Honey. Grandma told me about her niece Honey herself, but I have yet been unable to find out if she ever married. I have been in touch with Nettie’s family members and was in touch with one of Celia’s daughters for a while.

 

Great-grandpa Jacob had four brothers who lived passed childhood. His brother Abe, whose photo with his wife was always on grandma’s dresser while I was growing up, only had one child: Edwin I Kushner. Edwin was a Flight Officer and had received awards and decorations. The National Jewish Welfare Board first had Edwin as missing, and then declared dead. Edwin died just 3 weeks before WWII ended.

Edwin I Kushner, front

As for Jacob’s brother Samuel, I’m not sure if I actually found the correct records for him. Grandma wasn’t sure about his wife’s name, but thought it may have been Leah. I don’t know if Joseph had any children or not. I did however know that George married Lena Bloom and that they had two daughters: Nettie and Rose. I also know that Nettie married and had two daughters and their last name was Butler. This is because George, Lena and Rose moved from New York to Atlanta and lived with Nettie and her daughters after she became a widow. I knew, according to the 1940 census, that Nettie was a widow and her daughters were 6 and 10 years old.

 

Just a few days ago I discovered that someone has Nettie, her two daughters and David Butler in his family tree. I contacted him and come to find out, he lives in my old stomping ground! He also has more information on Nettie - she had another husband and information her two daughters and their families! I was so excited, I stayed up until 4:30 AM looking at all of his information on my newly discovered cousins. Thank you California!

Sherlock Continues...Yankl Cantor Family

by Michal Esterson

Yankl (Yaakov) Cantor was a chazan (cantor), as one of his grandsons, Yaakov Zalman Godrov (known as Jakob Gordon in Helsingborg, Skane, Sweden) and namesake. He gave one of his son's (my great-great-grandfather Nakhman) the last name of Kaufman. The name Kaufman emerges when Yakovman, then Yakofman was shortened to Kofman. Kaufman is derived from Yaakov!  I have been able to find out who Nakhman’s children married, with the exception of his one son who changed his name back to Cantor - Max Kaufman Cantor.

 

Sara Kaufman Kushner

I know that Rose Kaufman married Mr. Forman (still don’t know if she had children), Max Kaufman Cantor had two children- I do know he had a daughter named Gertrude, Samuel married Etta Feinberg and they had 8 children and they lived (from 1891) in Fall River, Massachusetts, Sara (my great-grandma) married Jacob Kushner and they had 8 children – 2 died before 1910 and Lillian died at age 2, she fell off a horse and was kicked in the head and Fanny married Abraham Cooperman and they lived in New Jersey and had no children (although their poodle ate in a high-chair at the table).  Nakhman was a rabbi and possibly a chazan.