Sunday's Obituary - An Obituary That Broke My Heart

My sisters and me with "Nana" (I'm the ham-bone on the right).  We loved her hugs.

I was excited to get home to Pennsylvania and dive into the local newspapers so I could find the obituary for Hazel Blum nee Hill...the next door neighbor we called "Nana".  I wanted more details on her life.  I knew some basics about who she was, but hoped for more in her obituary.  I was to be greatly disappointed.

Hazleton Standard Speaker 01AUG1996, pg2

"Hazel Blum

Hazel Hill Blum, 97, of Hazleton, the oldest member of Trinity Lutheran Church, died Tuesday at Hazleton General Hospital.

Born March 17, 1899, she was the daughter of the late Conrad and Olive Aubrey Hill, and was a life-long resident of Hazleton.

Preceding her in death were her husband, Dr. Maurice L.; brother, Harry; and a sister, Rebecca Hill Kramer.

Surviving are two nieces and a nephew.

Funeral arrangements will be announced."

I know I shouldn't have been disappointed with this obituary.  There is some good stuff in there (believe it or not).  It gives me the name of the church she belonged to (which I did not know).  With this I can help rectify something that was missing from this obituary...where she's buried.  I saw that statement "Funeral arrangements will be announced" and with two kids getting bored in a library I only searched through the rest of the roll of microfilm in hopes of finding her burial announcement, but there was nothing.  A call to Trinity Lutheran will hopefully tell me where "nana" is buried.  I have a feeling it's Vine Street Cemetery in Hazleton, Pennsylvania.  Why?  Proximity.  It's the closest cemetery to the church. That's not conclusive, but it's a start.  Perhaps the church will be able to help me out more.

My parents always would talk about how old "nana" was.  I frankly thought that it was a bit of an exaggeration.  Little did I know that "nana" was already 73 years old when I was born!  The obituary (while not a primary source) helps to confirm how old she really was.  There's a little part of the Irish in me that giggles knowing "nana" was born on Saint Patrick's Day.  Warm and fuzzy feelings (nothing truly of genealogical significance there...just smiles).

Knowing that "nana's" parents were Conrad and Olive Hill was no surprise.  I was able to find this information out in the US Federal Censuses.  Hill may indeed be a very common last name, but I had one bit of information going for me..."nana" was my neighbor and I knew that the house she lived in with her husband, Maurice, was the house she grew up in.  Finding her in the census records while knowing that tid-bit was easy.  What I didn't know was her mom's maiden name.  The way the obituary was written we can tell it's Aubrey.  I'll be able to do some research there.  Why?  She's not my family. I just want to know more about hers.  It's not something that I can really explain.  Perhaps other genealogists can empathize with me here...perhaps I'm just a bit kooky.

Michele, "Nana" and me (I know I'm cute)

I knew the names of her brother and sister because they were in the census records too.  Now I'll be able to look for Rebecca in later census records under her married name. Perhaps I'll be able to find out the names of both Harry and Rebecca's Hill descendants.

So there is information gleaned out of a rather brief obituary, so why am I so sad?  I loved "nana".  Still do and always will, but I have the memories of a child of her and we know that children don't always remember the most significant bits of information, nor do they ask the questions we as adults want to know.  My "nana" died when I was a trainee in the Army.  I didn't know until over a year later that she was gone.  My father never told me.  I just felt hollow.  I was now an adult and would never be able to hug that tiny little lady again.  I'm 5'5"...or at least I was before the Army shrank about 3/4-inch from me over 10 years.  "Nana" was maybe 5'0" tall.  There wasn't a time I saw nana outside or visited with her that I did not hug her.  She never had children and rarely had family visit her.  Who is there to remember her?  This obituary doesn't encourage me.

I hope that I will find the burial information for her in the newspaper next year.  I hope it was put in there. I hope that she was memorialized properly.  "Nana" lived to be 97 years old, but did she out-live everyone that truly knew her?  Does anyone have fond memories of "nana" apart from my sisters and I?  I hope so.  I hope this post lets them find me so that we can always remember one of the most loving people I have ever met...Hazel Blum nee Hill.

Amanuensis Monday - So Memorable He Got an Editorial

Hazleton Standard Speaker 24MAY1971, pg 12

I've said before the Maurice Blum's obituary was impressive.  I've never (in my limited experience) seen an editorial written on a local person that had died.  Granted, most of the information in the editorial is almost verbatim from the obituary (who knows...perhaps the gentleman that wrote the editorial also had a hand in the obit), but it was still surprising to see.  I came across the editorial purely by accident as I was searching the newspaper for his burial notice.  No author was attributed to the editorial.

Here it is:

"Dr. Maurice L. Blum

'One thing I know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve.'

This quotation by the late Dr. Albert Schweitzer, famed jungle missionary and physician, is applicable to the subject of this editorial - Dr. Maurice L. Blum.

Dr. Blum sought and found how to serve his fellow man.  His death last Thursday terminated a life of dedication to the service of others.

He was a benefactor to his country, community and profession, serving with distinction as soldier, leader, counselor and worker.

When the need arose for leadership or active membership in a worthy cause Dr. Blum was always available and, once involved, never faltered in his efforts to attain the objectives.

A veteran of World War 1, he was always considerate of those who were about to or had served their country.  This fact was evidenced by his participation in the preinduction programs for draftees, his hospital projects for veterans and his participation in veterans affairs.  He was a past commander of the Hazleton American Legion Post, served in many other capacities with that organization and was very active in the Greater Hazleton Veterans Association.

His compassion for the less fortunate was manifested in the programs of cheer he organized for th patients at the White Haven Sanitorium and the White Haven State School and Hospital, in his work with the Salvation Army, the Red Cross, the United Fund and other welfare agencies.

He made great contributions of service as president and member of the Hazleton Lions Club, devoted much time and effort to the Boy Scouts, Heart Association, Unico Club and the Hazleton Tuberculosis and Health Society.

The Greater Hazleton Jaycees cited Dr. Blum as the 'Outstanding Citizen' in 1957.

In his profession of optometry he was awarded life memberships in the national, state and regional association for his service as an officer.  He aided int he organization of the anthracite optometry group.

Dr. Blum sought and found how to serve, gained happiness from his unselfish endeavors and will never be forgotten by those he served and those with whom he served."

Sunday's Obituary - Finishing Maurice

Hazleton Standard Speaker, 22MAY1971, pg2

Last Sunday I transcribed Maurice Blum's obituary.  It was rather long (and impressive) so I didn't post the Death and Funeral notices with it.  Tonight I'll finish that up and share them both.

"BLUM - At Hazleton, Thursday, May 20th, Dr. Maurice L. Blum, beloved husband of Mrs. Hazel (Hill) Blum, reposing at the Fierro Funeral Home.  Viewing from 7 to 9 Saturday evening.  Services at the Beth Israel Temple at 10:30 Sunday morning with Rabbi Abraham Ruderman officiating.  Interment in the Beth Israel Temple Cemetery.  Arrangements by Fierro Funeral Service."

Hazleton Standard Speaker, 24MAY1971, pg28

"Dr. Maurice L. Blum, 701 W. Diamond Ave., who died Thursday at the Hazleton State General Hospital, was buried Sunday from the Fierro Funeral Home.  Rabbi Abraham Ruderman, spiritual leader of the Temple Beth Israel, conducted services at the temple.  Interment was in the Beth Israel Cemetery.

Military honors were accorded by members of Hazleton American Legion Post 76.  Flagbearers were Patrick McDwyer and V.J. McGeehan.  Max Pancheri Jr. was the bugler.

Members of the firing squad, under the command of Harry Kenvin, were Paul Evancho, Dennis Boyle, Donald Hill, Edward McGeehan, Thomas Kennedy, and post commander, Raymond Marusak.

Active pallbearers, all members of the Hazleton Lions, were past presidents Peter Forliano, Angelo Sist, Carl Ambrosia, and Edward Scarp, President David Schwartz; and Louis J. Fierro, third vice president."

As I transcribed the funeral notice a thought crossed my mind...Boyle is a family name for my tree.  I wonder if this Dennis that served as a member of the firing squad for Maurice's funeral was related to me.  Boyle is certainly a common name, but I'm 1/2 Irish...they're pretty much all common names.

Then there was the mention in the firing squad of Donald Hill.  Again, another common name, but Maurice's wife was a Hill.  Her brother's name was Harry according to Hazel's obituary (that'll be next week), but thought that perhaps this was a nephew or a cousin.  As far as nephews go that would have the Hill surname...none.  As far as I can tell, Hazel's brother had 2 daughters, Doris and Marian.

Either way the thought of a Hill family member taking part in remembering Maurice makes me smile.  The thought of a distant cousin of my own taking part is beautiful indeed.  Even if I can't verify who they are right now the thought makes my heart light.

Funeral Card Friday - While I'm Talking Blums...

I wanted to throw up a blog post tonight of something from my husband's side of the family tonight because I haven't in awhile and because I've spent quite a bit of time this week on Hazel and Maurice Blum (and I still have so much to do with that tangent I'm on).

So as I was looking through the stacks of memorial cards that were given to me from my Wisconsin family I came across this one for Rev. Leonard Blum.

Not the same family.  Different faiths as well (Maurice's Blums are Jewish), but the name caught me and I knew I wanted to share this one tonight.  So often Catholic clergy are forgotten.  After all they have no descendants so unless a nephew or niece remembers them, they risk being forgotten.

The memorial cards I have had meaning to my Wisconsin family and many times that can mean a possible link.  For this card I don't believe that's the case.  As a Catholic I know that if a priest (particularly one that had been in my parish a long time) died, I would keep the card.  So it is most likely that Rev. Blum was a family priest and/or friend.  Either way, the family wanted him remembered.

"Jesus!  Mary!  Joseph!
'Be you then also ready:  for at what hour you think not, the Son of man will come.' Luke 12, 40
In Memory of Rev. Leonard Blum,
Born September 5, 1845, at Treves, Archdiocese Cologne, Germany,
Ordained to the Priesthood December 27, 1872,
Died November 8, 1913, at Milwaukee, Wis.
Prayer.
O GOD, who among apostolle priests hast adorned Thy servant LEONARD with sacerdotal dignity, grant, we beseech Thee, that he may be associated with them in everlasting fellowship.  Through Christ, our Lord. Amen."

Tombstone Tuesday - Maurice Leib Blum

Civilian tombstone - Beth Israel Cemetery

I've been sharing about Maurice Blum recently.  As I try to discover more about the lady I grew up calling "Nana" I need to find out more about the people in her life and Maurice was her husband.  Maurice was born on April 10, 1895 in Warsaw, Poland.  He came to America around 1911.  Married Hazel Hill in the early 1940s and died on May 20, 1971 in Hazleton, Pennsylvania.  As you can read from my recent posts, Maurice did an awful lot in his life.  He really impresses the heck out of me and I wish I had known him.

Maurice was a veteran of World War I so he has a military stone with his regular tombstone.  I love that.  It not only lets you know someone was a vet, but tells you a little about their service.  Particularly good since getting military records can be a pain in the butt...especially since so many have been destroyed.  At least you might be able to find out more about the person's unit if you can't get their file.  This information can also help you get the right file if your veteran has a fairly common name.

Maurice's Military Marker

"Maurice L Blum
Pennsylvania
PVT Co C 30 Infantry
World War I
April 10, 1895    May 20, 1971"

I haven't had much luck finding information on this unit...for WWII, sure...not so much for WWI, but it'll be something that I check out for sure.  I'm a veteran and as silly as it sounds, I don't know the best places to look for this information.

Where do you look for unit histories?

Military Monday - Maurice's Life Before Hazel

Beth Israel Cemetery, Hazleton, PA

I'm continuing with my research into my "Nana's" family today with a World War I draft registration for her husband, Maurice Blum.  His obituary (here) was filled with so much information regarding his involvement in various organizations, but was lacking in his personal life.  No mention of how old he was.  No mention of where he was born or lived prior to Hazleton, Pennsylvania.  No mention of when he came to America.  Very little information about his marriage to Hazel, and only a passing mention of a sister living in Tel Aviv (a name would have been nice here).  What we do know is that he served in World War I so I went for his WWI Draft Registration.

Maurice wasn't living in Hazleton or even Luzerne county when he registered for the draft and he wasn't married to Hazel yet, so how could I be sure that I had the right WWI registration?  It wasn't hard to discover this.  There are lots of great records out there that touched on Maurice's military service like his WWII registration which not only listed Hazel as his wife, but gave his birth date and birth location. That birth information was exactly matched in a World War I registration in Allentown, Leigh County, Pennsylvania.  I can be pretty certain that this is the right Maurice.  I know stranger genealogical coincidences have occurred, but this with matches that corroborated it from census records that I know to be him and veterans burial records help to solidify this match (a visit to his grave when home also was helpful, but that's tomorrow).

So what did I find about Maurice and World War I and why is it important.

WWI Draft Registration*

Name and Age - Maurice L Blum / 22
Home Address - 609 N 6(th) Allentown PA
Date of Birth - April 10, 1895
Citizenship - declared intention
If not citizen, what nation are you a subject - Warsaw, Russia
Occupation - (unk) foreman silk mill
Employer - Allentown Silk, Allentown
Dependents - sisters
Marital status and race - single / caucasian
Prior military service - None
Exemption claims from military service and grounds - Two sisters in Europe

And about how Maurice looked (although there was a head shot of him with his obituary) - he was of a medium and slender build with blue eyes and light brown hair.

Remember that the borders to countries change.  They still do and always have.  Heck state and county borders in our own country do the same!  We all (should) know that Warsaw is in Poland not Russia, but at the time this was apparently not the case.  Even if you don't remember your history very well, what Maurice tells us in this registration lets us know that Warsaw was under Russian control then.  We also see that he is responsible for the support of 2 sisters that are still in Europe (presumably in Warsaw)  and that Maurice was not yet an optometrist.

From this registration I know his date and place of birth and can find him a bit more easily in the census records knowing that I may not find him in Luzerne county.  I can use his birth information to help narrow down searches including finding him on passenger lists and naturalization records.  Only two sisters are mentioned here and we know that one was alive and well in Tel Aviv in 1971, but we don't know her name or when she eventually passed on.  One hard to read record can yield a lot of information that will help me to find more and get to know Maurice (and thus Hazel) a little better.

*WWI Draft Registrations can be viewed from many genealogy search sites, both paid and free of charge like our wonderful National Archives!

Sunday's Obituary - Discovering Nana through Maurice Blum's Obituary

What a handsom man he was!

I never had the pleasure of meeting Maurice Blum and he's not a relative of mine, but I wanted to share his obituary because he is special to me and my family.  How you might ask?  His wife, Hazel Blum nee Hill, was all I ever knew of a grandmother.  My paternal grandmother, Florence Tabor nee Bronsavage, died a decade before I was born and my maternal grandmother, Mary Ann Brown nee Quirk, died 2 years before I was born.  I love both of them, but I never had them in my life.  Hazel was my surrogate grandmother.

I've mentioned Hazel in previous posts, but nothing really concrete.  I never really knew much about my "Nana".  She taught my sisters and I how to knit and crochet.  She loved watching soap operas while she did her yarn-work.  She embroidered and cross-stitched and even reupholstered the covers on some dining room chairs with her needlework.  She lived in the house next door to us.  It was a house that she grew up in and lived her entire life.  It was the house she eventually shared with her husband, Maurice Blum.

I had always wanted to find out more about Nana, but like many things, I procrastinated and never followed through until I got a lovely email and phone call from a sweetheart named, Debbie, that came across one of my posts on Nana.  I'm not going to tell Debbie's story here.  She's going to be writing a book about it and when it's out I'll let you all know so you can see for yourself, but Debbie asked for some information on my Nana and I was so disappointed to admit that I knew little of value about a woman I loved dearly...so I started some research.  Research for me to find out more about the woman that meant so much to me and research for Debbie because I was touched by the connection her family had with Hazel and Maurice Blum.

So having just returned from a trip to Pennsylvania I'm going to share the information I found starting with Maurice's obituary today.  Maurice died a year before I was born, but Nana mentioned her husband frequently.  Like a typical 11 to 14 year old, the information just never really made and impression and apart from his name and a couple other details I can remember nothing.  It's really a shame because, as you'll see, he was an extremely impressive man.  So much so that his death made the front page of the Hazleton Standard Speaker.

Hazleton Standard Speaker, 21MAY1971, pg 1

"Dr. M.L. Blum, Prominent Civic Worker, Is Dead

Dr. Maurice L. Blum, local optometrist and one of the community's most active civic workers and leader in veteran affairs, died at 11 a.m. yesterday in the Hazleton State General Hospital following a lengthy illness.

Dr. Blum, who resided at 701 W. Diamond Ave., was a veteran of World War One, and was a charter member of American Legion Post 76, which he served as commander in 1928, and for many years as chaplain of the veterans' organization.

Dr. Blum served for 22 years as head of the National Firm's Division for the annual campaigns of the Hazleton Chapter of the American Red Cross.

He also served as general chairman of the United Fund Campaign, and headed divisions in other years.

Dr. Blum served as chairman of the Salvation Army Advisory Board, was a past president of the Hazleton Lions Club and served in various capacities with the Hazleton Tuberculosis and Health Society, the Anthracite Council of the Boy Scouts of America (now part of the Penn Mountain Council), and other local organizations.


Arranged Programs

21MAY1971, pg 14

For many years he arranged programs for patients in the White Haven State Sanitarium and continued the service for the White Haven State School and Hospital.

He was also one of the organizers and an active member, until his illness, of the committee of veterans in the Greater Hazleton Area who visited hospitalized veterans in St. Joseph and the State General Hospitals.

In July 1965, Dr. Blum was selected to a life membership in the American Optometric Association, and prior to that honor was awarded life membership in the state organization and in the Anthracite Optometric Association in 1960.  He aided in the organization of the anthracite group in September 1929, and served as its secretary-treasurer for 25 years.

State Chairman

In October, 1931, he was general chairman of the State Optometric Association Convention, which was held in Hazleton, at which time he was selected to serve a two-year term as secretary of the state organization.

In May, 1954, the Regional Association held a special dinner marking Dr. Blum's 25 years of service as secretary-treasurer, during which he was awarded a plaque for that service.

He has been the recipient of numerous local awards, among which were the designation of "Outstanding Citizen" by the Greater Hazleton Jaycees in 1957.  He was also recognized by the American Legion, the Boy Scouts of America, Salvation Army, Heart Association, White Haven State School and Hospital, Greater Hazleton Veterans' Association; Unico Club and the Community Chest.

American Legion Post 76, in April 1969, awarded Dr. Blum a life membership for his outstanding service to the organization [sic].

Dr. Blum is survived by his wife, the former Hazel Hill, and ane [sic] sister, residing in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Services Sunday

Services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Sunday from the Temple Beth Israel, with Rabbi Abraham Ruderman, spiritual leader of the Temple officiating.  Interment will be in Beth Israel Cemetery.

Viewing will be from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday at the Joseph and Mary Fierro Funeral Home.

Pallbearers, all members of the Hazleton Lions Club, will be President David Schwarz; Third Vice President Louis Fierro, and Past Presidents Carl Ambrosio, Edward Scarp, Angelo Sist and Peter Forliano."

I read this and all I could think was, "WOW".  I never imagined that Nana was married to such a man.  She was so quiet and reserved...shy even.  I could hardly picture her at his side at these events, but perhaps that wasn't expected at the time.  I read this obituary and realized that Nana's life must have been so different than what I imagined...or was it?  I wish I had paid attention to all her stories.  She and Maurice never had children so who is there to remember them now?

FOLLOW UP - It didn't take long after posting this that something occurred to me...there's no age or date of birth for Maurice.  All that great information and it isn't mentioned.  It's not impossible to find clues to a birth for him (military records, burial, SSDI) but it was just plain surprising that with all the great information in there nothing on his birth.  Heck...very little on his family in general!