The Katz Family, originating in Podzelva, Lithuania (then Russia), emigrated to Cleveland in the 1880s, fleeing persecution and terror. Seventy-five family members were originally recorded on a charter issued by the Governor of Ohio, which does not include in-laws. Including in-laws, over 90 family members emigrated to Cleveland. The Katz family became a well established family in the Cleveland Jewish community.
Aaron Katz and his son Solomon David prepared a "booklet of remembrance" in 1905. This "booklet", a large ledger with writing in Biblical Hebrew by Cleveland area scribe Yaacov Landy, includes relatives from 1905 to 1913. A composite photograph of individual portraits of over one hundred family members was included in "An American Story", the core exhibit of the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage, opened in 2005. The collection includes a photocopy of this photograph and a guide to the names of those pictured. Notes from family members indicate that W. A. Klein, an early mayor of Bratenahl and owner of Klein-Hanna Restaurant, was a relative and that the Miller family, owners of Independent Towel Supply Company, were also related.
The Katz Family Papers and Photographs, 1900-1992 and undated, includes a certificate of naturalization, family history (in Hebrew), genealogy, photographs, and a supplement and translation to the family history.
This collection may be of interest to those researching local history, local Jewish history, and genealogy. Of particular interest is the 1905 family history, written in Hebrew, its translation, and family photographs from the early twentieth century. Those interested in Jewish immigration from Podzelva, Lithuania, may also find the collection of value. The collection offers an example of the importance of genealogy to subsequent generations. Family names represented in the collection include, among many others, Blumenthal, Cali, Katz, Kehr, Keisler, Laidman, Landy, Malevan, Mauer, Stutz, Swerdlow, and Weinberg.
The collection is arranged alphabetically by document type and then chronologically.
Processed by M. Alexander Kaufmann in 2015.
None.
[Container __, Folder __] MS 5364 Katz Family Papers and Photographs, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio.
Gift of Ruth Katz in 2002 and Dylan Cali in 2015.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.