Max’s family became “Society” people and were often followed in the newspapers.

Max was born Marcus Dawid, in January 1858 to Jochene and Dobre (Huttner) Wosnitzer. In 1877, he married Lena Kopf in Tarnow. Lena was born Rachel Lea Kopf on October 19, 1857, to Abraham and Neche. Max had a twin sister, Chane Scheindel, who died when she was 9 years and 7 months old.

Their oldest son, Abraham, was born in was born May 30, 1880 in Tarnow. They had another son, Jakub Isak, born in 1881, but he was not mentioned after they immigrated. There was also a son, Benjamin, who was born around 1881. He was not mentioned in the New York census records, either.

In April of 1882, Max immigrated to the US from Hamburg on the steamship Empress. His occupation is listed as a merchant or trader. His jourey on the steamship took him first to Liverpool in England and the on to New York. [1] The Hamburg steanship line actually docked in Hoboken, New Jersey. He would have had to take a ferry to Ellis Island to be processed.

Max's ship manifest

He first went to New York and then to Newark, NJ, where they settled. They lived in the Jewish area of Newark, called the Third Ward. As their family grew up, they mostly settled within a few blocks of each other. 

His younger brother, Joseph, had immigrated to the US in Jan. 9, 1881, and settled in NYC with his wife.  However,  Joseph moved to Newark, NJ, by 1906.

Jewish Area of Newark, NJ Map

Max started the successful Hudson Hat Company, while his brother, Joseph, was in produce.   (To learn more about his hat business, click on The Hudson Hat Company under the Wosnitzer menu.) However, the family always called the Hudson Hat Company the Nutley Hat Company. Max’s children held different positions in his company throughout the years.  His nephew, from his brother Tobias, also named Irving Wosnitzer, also worked for him.

The photo below was believed to be taken at a party before Max and Lena’s 50th Annniversary Trip to Europe in 1928.

Seated at the table were: (counterclockwise from the fron to the rear:

  • Max Wosnitzer
  • Lena Wosnitzer
  • Mr. Triests
  • Jesse Triests
  • Jessie Wosnitzer
  • Irving Wosnitzer
  • Ira”s Finacee
  • Ira Wosnitzer
  • Roslyn Weintraub Malin
  • Morris Wosnitzer
  • Annie Wosnitzer
  • Norman Karph
  • Gertrude Wosnitzer Shipman
  • Alan Shifman
  • Henrietta Wosnitzer Gross
  • Seymour Rl Gross
  • Lewis A. Weintraub
  • Samuel A. Rothenberg
  • Albert Wosnitzer
  • Jennie Wosnitzer Weintraub
  • Esther Wosnitzer Rothenberg
  • Antie (From England)
  • Irving Wald
  • Aunite Anker
  • ?
  • ?
  • Sarah Wosnitzer Karpf
  • Adolph Karpf
Max Wosnitzer Family

According to Gertrude’s daughter, who was born in 1938, the above photo must have been taken at about that time, since her parents were only married for one year and both are in the photo.  Max and Lena travelled back and forth to Austria every year during “the season”.  Did they go to vacation, see family, check on the family business, and/or look for fabric and things for the hat factory?  However, at this particular time in history, whatever the reason was, it was a dangerous time to be travelling there.  We will never know if they tried to convince other family members to leave.

They also travelled to Africa.

Max and Lena

Max and Lena walking on the Boardwalk after the Nutley Hat Factory fire occurred.

Below are portraits of Max and Lena.

Max Wosnitzer
Lena Wosnitzer

Max’s family was often in the society pages of the newspapers.  I was told “they attended charitable gatherings, went to the best universities, became doctors, had “Attendants” who helped with the household duties, and took their clothes to the laundry instead of doing it themselves…. They were “Society” people.”

Gertrude Article in NYTimes

Max died in January, 1931, in Newark, NJ, and is buried in the Union Field Cemetery in Newark.  His stone reads: Mordechai David ben Yochanan. Lena died in 1948.

Gravestone of Max Wosnitzer
Gravestone of Lena Wosnitzer

The Children of Max and Lena

Based on the 1905 US Census, Max and Lena’s family consisted of the following children: Abe, Sadie, Jennie, Isadore, Esther, Ike, Annie, Yettie, and Morris. You can read a little bit about each one below.


Abe

Abe was born April 15, 1880, in Tarnow at 90 Zawale.  He had blue eyes and dark brown hair. In 1904, he married Anna Dougherty. Anna was born in Newark, NJ. She was christened in St. Joseph Catholic in Jersey City, NJ on Sep. 11, 1877.

They moved around from Newark Ward 3, to Newark Ward 9, to South Orange, to East Orange, back to Newark, and in 1953 to Montclair. He died in July 1968, in East Orange, NJ at age 88 years old. He is buried in B’Nai Abraham Memorial Bark in Union, NJ.

Abe and Anna’s children were:

  • Albert H. (b. Oct. 21, 1905) – married 2 times to: Carrie Baum / Lillian Bassin. As a child, Albert had polio which resulted in his left arm being stunted.
    • He had a son, also named Albert, with Carrie
    • He had a daughter, June Ann, with Lillian.

We learn that Albert got shot in an attempted robbery at this home.

This article appeared in the Courier-New (Bridgewater, Nw Jersey) on Monday, January 8, 1931, Other Editions, Page 13

Albert Wosnitzer Shot

  • Gertrude Jeannette (b. Sep. 28, 1907) – married 3 times to: Barling / Shiffman / Seifer . She eventually moved to CA to be near her daughter, Carolann in the Palos Verdes Peninsula area..

Gertrude and Burton Barling
Gertrude and Burton Barling

6, Gertrude was chosen to the the queen of the Mardi Gras pageant at Bradley Beach.

The article appeared in the Asbury Park Press, Asbury Park, New Jersey, Friday, September 3, 1926, Friday, Page 1.

Gertrude Wosnitzer is queen of the pageant at Bradley Beach, NJ.
  • Gertrude’s daugther is:
    • Carolann Barling married Harold (Hal) Jennings
      • Robert -died Sept. 30m 2016 at age 55 from a massive heart attack
      • Ken-  married Lisa and has 2 sons
      • Carin – Gabarra   is the women’s soccer coach at the US Naval Academy in Anapolis, MD.  She was on the Women’s US National Soccer team and won the World Cup in 1991.  She was also in the 1996 Olympics, receiving the first women’s olympic Gold Medal.
  • Wilbur Raymond (b. Sep. 24, 1910 – Jan. 12, 1998). Bill was a graduate of the Newark Academy and the Wharton School, U. of Pennsylvania.  Where there, he was captain of the baseball team. He married Irene Patricia Harris after she graduated from college.  He served in the Navy as a Lt. Commander during WWII.   Wilbur died from a heart attack and is buried in Holy Sepluchre, in East Orange, NJ.  Wilbur and Patricia’s children are:
    • Douglas Andrew
      • was born with Cerebral Palsy and following a lenghty battle with it, he sadly died in his teens
    • Bill
    • Bob
    • John
  • Muriel Estrow (b. 1917) . Muriel married Stanley Estrow.  Stanley was a Park Ave, NY, lawyer and publisher. Muriel and Stanley had 2 children:
    • Barbara
    • David

Were there ghosts in Abe and Anna’s home?  Read the article below to find out!

Abe 's Ghost Story

Abe and Anna’s home in Montclair, New Jersey in 1949

Their granddaugther, Carolann remembers: “from about age 4 when I started kindergarten until 8th grade when my grandmother fell down the stairs and broke her hip“.

They then moved to a brand new apartment that wasn’t even finished when they moved in. Carolann remembers “It had a doorman and garage attendants that I drove nuts . Lived there through college. It was the first larger apartment building in Montclair. My friends and I used to elevator up to the 6th floor and suntan on top of the elevator shaft.

Abe and Anna's home in 1949

Anna passed away first. She died at 73 years old in 1956.

Her obituary appeared The Montclair Times (Montclair, New Jersey) on Thursday, March 1, 1956, Page 7.

Anna Wosnitzer's Obituary, 1956

Abe’s obituary appeared in the New Jersey Jewish News on July 12, 1968.

Abraham Wosnitzer Obituary, 1968

Sadie

Sadie, aka Sarah, was born in Nov. 1886 in NJ.  In 1909 she married Adolph Karph.  They lived in Newark until 1940, then the census says they lived in East Orange.  They had 4 children:

  • Norman
  • Sidney
  • Florence
  • Dorothy

Sadie died in August of 1970.

Her obiturary appeared in The Item of Millburn and Short HIlls, Millburn, New Jersy, Thursday, August 6, 1970, Thrusday, Page 15.

Obituary of Sadie Wosnitzer Karph, 1970

Jennie

Jennie, also known as Jamie and Jeanette was born in April, 1888 in NJ.  She married Louis Weintraub. In 1920, they lived in Newark Ward 5.  

They lived at 25 Van Velson Place in Newark. It was a large apartment building and her sisters her Henrietta Gross, Esther Rothenbrug, and her brother, Morris’ ‘widow, and their families also lived in the same apartment building.

She died in Oct. 1973 in Sarasota, FL.

Jennie and Louis had 2 children:

  • Roslyn
  • Victor
Jeanette Wosnitzer

Isidore / Irving

Isidore, later known as Irving, was born in Feb. 1890, in NJ. On March 30, 1913, he married Jessie V. Rich. For a while, they lived in NY, but travelled to NJ regularly to visit family and also to Albany.  Was there a factor there?  He died on Oct. 21, 1938, and is buried in Union Field Cemetery, Newark, NJ in Row 01 #13L.

Irving and Jessie had 2 children:

  • Mortimore married Victoria Meth.  He eventually became the owner of the Hat Factory. Morty died at age 55 from a massive heart attack while sitting in his car.
  • Bluma (Sissy).  Bluma married Irving Goldstein. Bluma owned a woman’s clothing boutizue in Scarsdale, NY for several decades up unitl 1916 when she finally retired. The extended family (children, grandchildren and great-children) still like to continue the annual family gathering in the Hamptons.  Irving and Bluma’s children were:
    • Eileen -retired
    • Paul – a surgeon at NYU
    • Bobby – took over his father’s business
    • Note: One of Bluma’s son changed his name from Wosnitzer to Warren to sound more Americanized
Morty and Vicky

Morty and Vicky     

Morty's Car - 1942

 Morty’s Car after the 1942 St. Patrick Day’s Parade 

Morty's Engagement Announcement

 Morty and Vicky’s Engagement Announcement.

                                 


Esther

Esther was born in Nov. 1895 in NJ. 

She met and married Samuel Aron Rothenberg. He had been an accountant for Hudson Hats. They married in 1915 and had 2 sons: John “Jerome” and Samuel Aaron “Junior”.

There is a family story that Esther’s mother, Lena, wanted her to name her first son “Jerome” but Esther wanted to name her son John. Throughout his life John was called “Jerry” but when he went to get his driver’s license, he discovered the name on his birth certificate was actually John!

Esther Wosnitzer

Esther and SA (Samuel) on the boardwalk in Atlantic City

Esther and SA Rothenberg in Atlantic City

SA, as Samuel was known, went on to start his own hat company in 1919.

However, he died in 1932 at the young age of 42.

Samuel Rothenberg's New  Business

.

Both John and Junior were drafted in World War II. Sadly Junior was killed at 19 years old just before the Battle of the Bulge in Belgium

His mother recieved a letter from the military informing her that her son was a casualty of war. (The list is from Ancestry.com)

Junior Rothenberg

WWII Casualty Letters, Aug, 1945
Junior Rothenberg

John survived the war and had two sons with Ruth Parent.

John Rothenberg

John rothenberg

In the 1950 Federal Census, she is living in her home and her brother, Ira, is living with her. The 1950 Census was found on Ancestry.com. Her apartment was at 2524 Van Velsor in Newark, New Jersey. It was a large apartment building and her sister Jennie Weintraub, her sister Henrietta Gross, and her brother, Morris, and their families also lived in the same apartment building.

1950 Census for Esther and her brother, Ira

Esther died on April 10, 1973, in Springfield, New Jersey. She is buried in Congregation B’Nai Jeshurun Cemetery, in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

Her niece, Carolann recalls:

“I clearly remember Aunt Esther, my Poppy’s (Abe) sister. On Sunday mornings while their mother, Lena , was still alive, we would visit at their apartment across from a large park . (According to Josh, great-grandson of Esther, the apartment was at 5 Pomona Ave, right across from Weequahic Park.)

The two widowed sisters and Uncle Ira lived with Lena. Aunt Esther was a very pretty, small lady with blue eyes and strawberry blond hair. She would serve me ginger ale and honey cake .

Such a sweet family!”

Rothenberg Cemetery Plot in Elizabeth, New Jersey

Photo of the Rothenberg cemetery plot was found on FindAGrave.com.


Ike Aaron

Ike, later known as Ira, Jan. 10, 1896 in NJ. He was a bachelor and lived with his parents.  His fiancé died in a tragic accident and he never married. He was described as having gray eyes and blonde hair.

In 1927, he arrived in NYC on the Robert. E. Lee which sailed from Havana.

From family stories we learn that Ira liked to be part of the Broadway social circles and dated and “wooed” some actresses. In the 1950s, he moved in with his widowed sister, Esther Rothenberg. Two of his other sisters, Jennie and Henrietta, and his brother, Morris’ widow, and their families, also lived in the same building.

He died June 25, 1957 in NJ.

Ira Wosnitzer
Ira Wosnitzer's Obituary, 1957

Annie

Annie was born in Sep. 1897 in NJ.


Yettie

Yettie was born in March, 1898 in NJ. Could this be Henrietta? If so, she married Seymour Gross. They lived at 25 Van Velson Place in Newark. It was a large apartment building and her sisters Jennie Weintraub, Henrietta Gross, Esther Rothenberg and her brother, Morris’ widow, and their families also lived in the same apartment building.


Morris

Morris was born in April, 1899, in NJ, and died on Oct. 12, 1948 in Manhattan. On his Draft Card, he is described as having gray eyes and brown hair. He married Ethel L. Saltzman and became an attorney.

His engagement to Ethel Leer Saltzman was announed in the Passaic Daily Herald, Passaic, New Jersey, Friday, September, 21, 1929

Ethel and Morris' Engagement Announcement

He died in October of 1948 at age 49.

His obituary appeared in the Therald-News, Passaic, New Jersey, Thursday, October 14, 1948.

Morris Wosnitzer Obituary

Ethel continued to live at 25 Van Velson Place in Newark. It was a large apartment building and Morris’ sisters Jennie Weintraub, Henrietta Gross, Esther Rothenberg and their families also lived in the same apartment building.



Sources:

  • [1] Steamship record for Max from DetailStaatsarchiv Hamburg; Hamburg, Deutschland; Hamburger Passagierlisten; Volume: 373-7 I, VIII B 1 Band 049; Page: 564; Microfilm No.: S_13139 TitleHamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934Author Staatsarchiv Hamburg PublisherAncestry.com Operations, Inc. Publisher date 2008
  • Newark Directory Listings
  • US Census
  • Family members’ recollections

Outstanding Questions:

  • Who is Ida Wosnitzer?  Did one of the girls change their names or was she another relative?  In 1922, she is working for Max in the hat factory.