A German-Jewish Refugee Finds Love and a Home in New by Lilo L. Waxman ong ago from far away I younger brother William. We were very Bad Homburg, with a population of came by ship to the shores lucky to leave at that time before it got so 19,000, was known for its healing springs. of the United States. It very bad in Germany with pogroms and It also was the summer resort of the Kaiser. L was 1936 and I was just My father, a dentist, was a respected person 16. Three years previously in that town. His family and my mother’s Hitler had staged a take- had lived there for generations. We had over in Germany, my country of origin. a three-story house and beautiful garden I have always been an optimist and that with servants to take care of everything. is why this portion of my youth as an My brother and I went to school, and life immigrant felt more like an adventure was pleasant, much like it is living in a than a feeling of sadness for leaving our city in the United States today. I was able home in Bad Homburg, Germany, near to finish high school in Bad Homburg, Frankfurt am Main. where I studied French and, fortunately, English. As a teenage immigrant I was looking for- ward to meeting my great uncle Ludwig After my parents realized that the situa- Ilfeld and his family in Las Vegas, New tion in Germany was getting worse, they Mexico, the real Wild West. For years wrote to my grandmother’s brother Uncle while in Germany, I read books by Karl Ludwig. His uncles, the Ilfelds, had estab- Mai depicting the American West with lished a mercantile empire throughout cowboys, Indians, mountains, horses, based in Old Town Las Ve- cattle, wolves, and coyotes. The author gas. In 1892 Uncle Ludwig settled in Las had never been to America himself, but Vegas, New Mexico. When he received my his books were well known throughout parents’ letter he started the complicated Germany, and still are today. procedure for us to gain entry to the U.S., which since 1924 had limited immigration drastically. As family members of a U.S. For me, going to America was a fascinat- Lilo Lang married Arnold Waxman in 1939 at ing adventure. I came with my father, Temple Montefiore in Las Vegas, New Mexico. citizen we were allowed to immigrate, but Dr. Gustav Lang, my mother Edith, and Uncle Ludwig had to sign an affidavit stat- deportations to the death camps. Before ing that he would be responsible for our Legacy is a quarterly newsletter Hitler, we lived in our beautiful town, family so that we would not be a financial published by the a spa well known throughout Germany burden on the United States government. New Mexico Jewish Historical Society and many other European countries. Our Getting out of Germany had its complica- 5520 Wyoming Blvd. NE comfortable life stopped when Hitler (continued on p. 8) Albuquerque, NM 87109 took power. Telephone: (505) 348-4471 INSIDE THIS ISSUE We left behind my paternal grandfather, Fax: (505) 821-3351 who died the day after Kristalnacht at age A German-Jewish Refugee Finds Love.....1 website: www.nmjewishhistory.org President’s Message...... 2 email: [email protected] 89. He was too old to emigrate with us. My father’s sister, who remained to take care of Roundup...... 2 Administrator: Bobbi Jackson him, died in a concentration camp. Rock-and-Roll Nostalgia Trip...... 3 Office Hours: 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Genealogy Corner...... 4 Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday WANTED Las Cruces Forum...... 5 Interim volunteer to run NMJHS office Editor: Dorothy C. Amsden Crypto-Jewish Settlement...... 6 in the JCC a few hours a week while Montefiore Cemetery Cleanup...... 9 Contributing Editor: Naomi Sandweiss administrator Bobbi Jackson is on Layout: DT Publishing, Santa Fe medical leave for several weeks starting In Memoriam...... 10 Printing: Minuteman Press, Albuquerque July 14. Please contact Noel Pugach at October Conference In El Paso...... 11 Mailing: Adelante, Albuquerque [email protected] or 505-323-2067. Upcoming Events ...... 12 Legacy, Volume 22, Number 2, June 2008 Message from President-Elect Noel Pugach t the NMJHS board’s the NMJHS. I will rely on their experience contribute your books and other saleable annual meeting on May and seek their counsel. I also welcome the items to our annual Labor Day weekend 4, 2008, I was elected input and suggestions of all of our mem- book sale at Wild Oats in Santa Fe. A president of our Society. bers. Please do not hesitate to offer your Installation of new offic- approval or your criticism. You This fall we invite you to ers will take place at the may contact me at npugach@ attend our first joint confer- next board meeting on June 29 in Albu- unm.edu or 505-323-2067. ence with the Texas Jewish querque. These include Dorothy Amsden Historical Society in El (vice president), Robert Gale (Treasurer), Your input is essential for us Paso. If genealogy is your Stephen Part (recording secretary), and to serve the membership and cup of tea, come to a geneal- Anthony Amsden (corresponding sec- the larger public. We will plan ogy class that NMJHS will retary). to continue our highly suc- offer in October in Santa cessful programs, but we will Fe. These activities inspire I am very honored that the board has also search for fresh ideas and my faith in a bright future placed its confidence in me to lead our approaches. I am happy to an- for the New Mexico Jewish valued Society for the next two years. I nounce that former president Noel Pugach, Historical Society. will devote my energies to the mission of Lance Bell has agreed to serve NMJHS President-Elect the New Mexico Jewish Historical Society as program chair. Share your ideas for Dr. Noel Pugach is professor emeritus of to promote the study and advancement future programs with Lance at zozobra2@ history at the University of New Mexico of knowledge of the Jewish experience in comcast.net. where he continues to teach courses on U.S. New Mexico and to educate the public Foreign Relations and Jewish History. Dr. about Jewish contributions and the role In the pages of this issue of Legacy, you will Pugach has been active in NMJHS for a of Jews in our region. find information on a number of exciting number of years, during which he has guided upcoming events and programs. In August the NMJHS Video History Project and the I hope to follow in the footsteps of pre- we are sponsoring a lecture on “Jews in production of booklets on prominent Jewish vious presidents, most recently Harold Rock and Roll” by Baron Wolman, with New Mexican families. A Melnick, who have advanced the role of a raffle of his famous photographs. Do Roundup by Naomi Sandweiss ince the lazy days of sum- American Jewish history can be found Museum of Jewish Heritage. Superman mer have arrived, let’s take at the American Jewish Historical Soci- himself was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe a lighthearted look at Jew- ety site at http://ajhs.org/publications/ Schuster. If you’re in a comic book mood, S ish contributions to popu- chapters/index.cfm. get your hands on the book Up, Up & lar culture. Oy Vey: How Jewish History, Culture, and Since it is an Olympic year, it is a good Values Shaped the Comic Book Superhero Everybody knows that the Teddy bear was time to recall Jewish Olympians, like by Simcha Weinstein. created in honor of Theodore (Teddy) Samuel Berger, the First Olympic Heavy- Roosevelt. But did you know that a Jew- weight boxing champion who took his For a taste of Victorian Jewish amuse- ish immigrant couple, Rose and Morris gold medal at the St. Louis Olympics in ments, browse the online archives of The Mitchom, invented the stuffed toy? 1904. And while most everyone is familiar American Jewess (1895 - 1899), the first The Mitchoms, refugees from Russian with Mark Spitz, Tiffany Cohen won dou- English-language publication directed to pogroms, ran a small store in New York. ble gold Olympic swimming medals at the American Jewish women. Editions can be After Roosevelt’s famous encounter with 1984 Olympics. More on famous Jewish found at the Jewish Women’s Archives at a young bear, Rose cut and stuffed a athletes and others can be found online www.jwa.org. Where else can you view piece of velvet into the shape of a bear, at the Jewish American Hall of Fame at an illustration of Sarah Bernhardt’s “lat- which the couple displayed in their shop http://www.amuseum.org/jahf/. est” gown or receive diet tips circa 1896? window, labeling it, “Teddy’s bear.” “Do not lie in couches, back in rockers Roosevelt adopted it as a 1904 campaign Up, Up & Oy Vey? If your plans include or sit on easy chairs” is the advice of one symbol and the Mitchom’s enterprise travel to Cleveland in the Fall, don’t miss doctor. My suggestion? Make sure that eventually grew into the Ideal Toy Com- the exhibit The Superhero: Golden Age of all of your reclining this summer is on a pany. Many more fascinating stories of Comic Books 1938 –1950 at the Maltz hammock! A

Page 2 New Mexico Jewish Historical Society Rock-and-Roll Nostalgia Trip with Legendary Photographer Baron Wolman ho is the photographer who sent Wolman a check for $50; overnight Happy birthday to Rolf Beier immortalized rock-and-roll his hobby became his career. icons of the sixties? Baron from Lilo L. Waxman W Wolman, of course, now a Baron’s big break came in 1967, when Roll- resident of Santa Fe. This ing Stone founder invited him is your special opportunity to join the original staff of the magazine. Happy birthday to to hear this legend speak about his historic Best known for his informal portrait style Pearl T. Ilfeld rock-and-roll photography on Sunday, where, as Wolman explained, “I tried to From The Waxmans and August 24, at 2 p.m. at the Jewish Com- capture a piece of the musician’s soul,” his Bill Lang munity Center in Albuquerque. photo images are intimate and compelling, and his prints are widely collected. Wolman, first chief photographer forRoll - Congratulations and happy ing Stone Magazine, will take the audience During his relatively short “tour of duty” 90th birthday to Mildred Terr back in time, when many rock-and-roll with the Stone, Wolman photographed of Las Vegas greats were just blossoming. It all hap- many of the icons of music including from your family pened in Haight-Ashbury, a district of , Jerry Garcia, , Carlos Santana, Miles Davis, BB Welcome to new King, , NMJHS members James Taylor, and many more heroes Kay Goldman and heroines of Robert Arthur Kammer the 1960s music Veronica and Alan Neuman scene. Virginia Prihoda

NMJHS will have Baron Wolman and Friends a raffle and auction Friends of the Society of five of Wolman’s legendary framed and , and Baron Wolman was signed silver gelatin prints. The 11-by-14 Fay Blake Larry & Becky Ilfeld there with his camera. Wolman will also prints of Jerry Garcia and Janis Joplin will Gay Block Steve & Beth Moise discuss his take on the history of Jews in be part of the raffle ticket sale. The 11-by- Edward Gladden rock and roll. 14 prints of Jimi Hendrix and Jim Mor- rison will be part of the silent auction. The larger 16-by-20 print of George Harrison In memory of Robert Ilfeld Have you ever wanted to will be auctioned off live. own a Wolman photograph from Betsy Nordhaus Messeca of Janis Joplin, Jerry Garcia, Jimi Hendrix, , You can buy raffle tickets at the door or or George Harrison? This is beforehand by contacting Bobbi Jackson, In memory of Robert Ilfeld your chance. Five signed and the NMJHS administrator, at 505-348- son of Max Ilfeld and framed silver gelatin prints will 4471. Raffle tickets are $5.00 each or six grandson of Ludwig Ilfeld be raffled and auctioned off. for $25.00. Only 500 raffle tickets will be from sold. Wolman’s prints will be available for Lilo L. Waxman, viewing before and during the event. Dr. Harold Waxman, Wolman began shooting seriously while and Bill and Hermine Lang, on U.S. military duty in West Berlin, Admission to this special event is $3.00 for Germany. On the front lines of a potential members and students and $6.00 for non- cousins of Robert World War III, Wolman photographed NMJHS members, payable at the door. and penned a story about the then-new Light refreshments will be served. For more Berlin Wall. His hometown paper, the information, contact Bobbi Jackson. A In memory of Robert Ilfeld Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch, published From Nancy and David Paxton the entire piece, photos and text, and then

Page 3 Legacy, Volume 22, Number 2, June 2008 GENEALOGY CORNER: Missing in Bolechow Book Review by Dorothy Corner Amsden Daniel Mendelsohn, The Lost, A Search for Six of Six Million (New York: Harper Perennial Edition, 2007), 516 pp, $15.95. he larger sweep of history knew what had happened to them except thought these tangential findings might does not always allow for that none of them survived. be all he would ever know about Shmiel the human scale. It covers and his family, but there is more to the T events, strategies, logistics, Old photos and stories of Shmiel and story that I leave you to find out for confrontations, annihila- his family intrigued the boy. He soon yourself. tions, mass migrations, came to realize that he bore more than depredations, and deprivations. What a little resemblance to his great-uncle. Daniel Mendelsohn is a scholar of Greek makes it possible for us to understand the After Abraham Jaeger died in 1980, classics who teaches at Bard College, impact of history on those who lived at Mendelsohn found letters that Shmiel located north of New York City on the the time are newspaper reports, personal had written to his brother Abraham and Hudson River. Proustian in approach and accounts, scholarly studies, and historical other American relatives in the late 1930s language, the story of Mendelsohn’s lost novels. for help in getting his family out as the relatives make a compelling narrative. We situation worsened in Bolechow. Their learn their story through multiple digres- Add to that list detective stories. Daniel plight seized his imagination. What more sions, a technique that serves to enrich the Mendelsohn writes about his efforts to could he possibly learn about them? account and heighten the suspense. learn the stories of six of his relatives who . . . That’s how my grandfather used to died during the Holocaust. In his book His account took some incredible de- tell stories. The long windup, all that The Lost, A Search for Six of Six Million, tective work and amazing persistence. background, all those Chinese boxes; the reader becomes his silent partner as Mendelsohn started making contacts with and then, suddenly, the swift and ex- he undertakes a lengthy and ultimately distant family members and other people pert slide into the finale, the finish line rewarding course of action to learn what who had lived at one time in Bolechow. where the connections between all the really happened to his grandfather’s be- Out of a population of 6,000 Jews before details you’d learned along the way, the loved brother Shmiel Jaeger and Shmiel’s the war, he learned that 48 survived the seemingly irrelevant facts and subsidi- wife and four daughters. Holocaust. They formed an association ary anecdotes he’d lingered over at the of Bolechow survivors that kept them in beginning, suddenly became clear. It is also a story of a small town, Bole- touch with one another even though they chow, where the Jaeger family came had settled in far-flung places. Another interesting technique that from, in what is now Ukraine, not far Mendelsohn uses is a series of related from Lviv (Lvov in Polish, Lemberg Starting with his own elderly family digressions that refer to portions of the in German). For several centuries this members and Bolechow survivors in New Torah. He weaves the story of Genesis region in eastern Galicia was part of York, Mendelsohn’s search for knowledge throughout his narrative, from Cain and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Around took him to Poland, Ukraine, Israel, Aus- Abel to Abraham to Noah to Lot, juxta- 1900, Bolechow had a population of tralia, Sweden, and Denmark as one new posing the analogy of the Great Flood to about 12,000 people; about half were contact led to another. The pieces of the the Holocaust. This device allows him Jews, the rest Poles and Ukranians. puzzle were fragmentary and sometimes to ask questions about the responsibility conflicting. As the survivors warmed to of God to his creation and how humans As a boy growing up on Long Island, his quest, they tried to answer his ques- behave in times of great distress. Daniel Mendelsohn used to listen to his tions, yet even then some held back infor- maternal grandfather Abraham Jaeger’s mation that was too painful to share. Dorothy Amsden serves as NMJHS geneal- stories about Bolechow and his lamenta- ogy chair. A tions that his older brother Shmiel chose Mendelsohn wanted to know how to make his life there instead of emigrat- Shmiel’s family had lived as well as how The NMJHS is soliciting historical ing to the United States like his other they had died. During his search he papers and photographs for inclu- brothers and sisters. The stories of the learned much about Bolechow where the sion in its archival collection at the Jaeger family fascinated young Daniel. Jaegers had lived for three centuries. The New Mexico Records Center and He overheard snatches of adult conversa- survivors that he visited plied him with Archives. For more information, tions in Yiddish after the war about what Bolechow specialties, such as pierogis, contact NMJHS at (505) 348-4471 had happened to Shmiel and his wife and kasha, and golaki, and told him stories or [email protected]. four daughters. They were lost. No one about their town and their families. He Page 4 New Mexico Jewish Historical Society

Las Cruces Forum: Judaism in New Mexico Wolfe’s Bagel Cafe by Noel Pugach 6241 Montgomery NE Albuquerque, NM 87109 emple Beth El in Las Cruc- The lecture concluded with a brief dis- (on north side just east of San Pedro) cussion of the extraordinary changes Hours: es hosted an afternoon Mon through Sat 6-2 • Sundays 8-1 forum on New Mexico that occurred in the Albuquerque Jewish community during the 1960s and 1970s, Bagels, Shmear, Coffee and Espresso Bar, T Jewry in the 20th Century, Lox, Deli Sandwiches, Soups as part of its Centennial made possible by the influx of Jews after See our menu at www.wolfesbagels.com Speakers Series on Febru- World War II and the postwar transforma- ary 17, 2008. Jeff Brown, Professor of tion of American Jewry. These led to the History at New Mexico State University creation of new local Jewish institutions and moderator of the forum, invited me and a new leadership. to be the keynote speaker and to focus my remarks on the Jews of northern New Following my talk was a panel of three Las Mexico. Cruces residents: Bea Kline, Frances Wil- liams, and David Steinborn. They focused Given the limited time available and the on southern New Mexico, Las Cruces in vastness of the subject, I addressed three particular. Williams and Kline provided themes in my formal presentation. First, overlapping but different perspectives on I discussed the persistence of the 19th the early history of Temple Beth El and century pattern of Jews establishing gen- its founding. David Steinborn, a very eral stores in rural and small town New influential business and civic figure in the city, added information on Jews in Doña P.O. Box 9333 Mexico well into the 20th century. In sup- Santa Fe, NM 87504-9333 port, I used the examples of the Danoffs Ana County as well as on the Temple. E-Mail: [email protected] in Gallup and the Wertheims in Porter A vigorous question-and-answer period and Fort Sumner. followed. Mobile: (505) 577-7395 • Fax: (505) 982-6211

Second, I noted the return of Jewish The forum was generously funded by the merchants to the Plaza in Santa Fe, but New Mexico Endowment for the Humani- showed how they differed from ear- ties, the NMSU Bookstore, and Temple Beth lier Jewish businessmen. To illustrate my El. Such programs are extremely valuable in point, I talked about the jeweler Solomon educating the public about the rich history CUSTOM PICTURE FRAMING WHERE QUALITY MAKES THE DIFFERENCE Spitz and Emil and Johanna Uhrfeld, who of Jews in New Mexico and producing more Allegro Center founded the White House. information on the subject. A 2008 St. Michael’s Dr. Ste. D 505-473-1901 P.O. Box 5215 FAX 473-7806 Santa Fe, NM 87502 800-537-2934

Mission Statement The mission of the New Mexico Jewish Historical Society is to promote greater understanding and knowledge of New Mexico’s Jewish history. The Society’s pro- grams examine the state’s Jewish heritage in all its diversity and strive to present this heritage within a broad cultural context. The Society is a secular organization and solicits the membership and participation of all interested people, regardless of religious affiliation.

The New Mexico Jewish Historical Society is a beneficiary agency of the Jewish Federation of New Mexico.

Page 5 Legacy, Volume 22, Number 2, June 2008 Crypto-Jewish Settlement on the Spanish Caribbean Congratulations to Islands: Research Project Filled with Finds, Frustrations NMJHS Board Member by Stanley M. Hordes Stephen Part hen I embarked on a new , and of the sixteenth and La Cueva High School social stud- research project to study seventeenth centuries. ies teacher Stephen Part received the history of crypto-Juda- four competitive awards this sum- W ism in , Puerto Rico, New light will be shed on demographic, mer. One is a fellowship from the the Dominican Republic, occupational and migration patterns of American Bar Association to at- and pre-British Jamaica two years ago, little crypto-Jews over the course of the last tend a workshop on “Federal Trials did I realize the impact of geo-politics – six- three hundred years in the northern Car- and Great Debates in U.S. History” teenth-century and twenty-first century ibbean region. Did crypto-Jews continue and a decision session of the Su- – would have on my work. to play a significant role in commerce? To preme Court in Washington, D.C. what extent did they serve as economic and An additional two fellowships are Having just completed my book on crypto- cultural links among Mexico, the Carib- from the National Endowment for Jewish settlement in New Mexico,* I want- bean Islands, and the Iberian Peninsula? the Humanities that will take him ed to examine the same phenomenon in a What was the role of Cuban, Dominican, to Ellis Island in New York City different part of the Spanish Empire. New Puerto Rican, and Jamaican in and to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. In Mexico was isolated, both administratively the slave trade? August Mr. Part will attend a work- and geographically. The Spanish Carib- shop on “The American Judiciary” bean, like New Mexico, found itself distant Yet other questions remain to explore. Did in Washington, D.C. from the headquarters of the Tribunal of the Caribbean crypto-Jews continue to follow Holy Office of the Inquisition in Mexico, the pattern of marrying among themselves? but, unlike New Mexico, was right square To what extent did they interact with open- on the major shipping lanes between Spain ly-practicing Jews living on the British, Summer Film and the mainland of the Spanish colonies French, Dutch, and Danish Islands? What Schedule of Mexico and . was the role of these individuals within the structure of the ? Was NMJHS is partnering with the Santa The historical literature relating to the there any discernable pattern of interac- Fe Film Center to show the follow- crypto-Jewish community of Mexico and tion between them and the Ashkenazi and ing films on Sundays at 4:15 p.m. at the northern frontier of New Spain is well who arrived in the Caribbean the Film Center, 1616 St. Michael’s developed. Similarly, much is known about in the late nineteenth and early twentieth Drive in the Village West Shopping the Sephardic Jews who were able to prac- centuries? Center. tice their faith openly on the Caribbean islands administered by England, France, I have started the archival phase of my July 13, Ladina – 500 Years Young, Holland, and Denmark. By contrast, very research with an exhaustive and compre- documentary by Rina Papish about little has been published about their cousins hensive analysis of the primary sources in Yasmin Levy, an Israeli singer who who had to maintain their faith in secret on the archives of Spain and the Caribbean to immortalizes the musical legacy of the islands under Spanish rule. ascertain the identity of those crypto-Jews her father. who migrated from the Iberian Peninsula to The recent emergence of people who those islands. The most important of those August 10, The Bubble, film by are exploring a crypto-Jewish past in records to be examined are the procesos, or Eytan Fox set in the fashionable the Caribbean now offers a unique and trial records, maintained by the Holy Of- Sheinkin Street district of Tel Aviv, unprecedented opportunity to trace fice of the Inquisition. These documents vacillates between romantic com- the origins of these people back to the are replete with demographic, biographical edy and political tragedy. early Spanish colonial era. Through the and ethnographic information, and serve genealogical information secured by as a valuable source to help identify and September 14, So Long Are You means of interviews with informants and analyze the practices of those conversos who Young, documentary by Judith subsequent archival research, scholars can ultimately settled in the Caribbean. Schaefer about the astonishing examine possible links between the living power of words inspired by a little- remnants of culture in the Greater In addition to containing information known literary sensation. Antilles and the flourishing crypto-Jewish pertaining to the individual arrested and communities in Mexico, South America, (continued on p. 7) Page 6 New Mexico Jewish Historical Society Crypto-Jewish Settlement (continued from p. 6) charged with the crime of judaizante, endeavors. Travel to Cuba necessitated the procesos also include lists of persons permission from both the U.S. and Cuban WANTED implicated by the defendant. These lists governments. The former required sending • Good books often contain the names of dozens of a letter to the U.S. Treasury Department, • Any saleable items - jewelry, potential suspects. More often than not, proving that I was a bona-fide scholar, with accessories, art, collectibles, those named in the testimony were able to a legitimate research project, and promising housewares, etc. escape the long arm of the Inquisition and that I would be working full-time on that • Your time & talent to volunteer succeeded in fleeing to more remote parts project while I was in Cuba. It also required of the . The extent to which the me to obtain the proper kind of visa from for the NMJHS Caribbean’s early colonists included these the Cuban government. refugees among their ranks will be a critical area of investigation. On my first preliminary reconnaissance 7th Annual visit, I had no problem traveling on a tour- Most important among these records are ist visa. But when I returned a year later, Book & the procesos de fe generated by the Mexican accompanied by two research associates, we Inquisition, which had jurisdiction over the found that our tourist visas did not entitle Etc. Sale Greater Antilles until the 1610s, and the us to gain access to the documentary col- procesos and relaciones de causas produced lections essential to complete our work. Labor Day Weekend by the Tribunal de Cartagena de Indias We had to cut our trip short. On the way Saturday & Sunday after the 1610s. In addition, correspond- home, one of my research associates was August 30 & 31, 2008 ence between the Tribunales de México detained in Miami by the U.S. Immigra- 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Santa Fe and Cartagena, and the Supreme Council tion Service. We didn’t know what to do of the Inquisition in Madrid yields impor- until, fortunately, he was released almost at the tant demographic information concerning an hour later. He had the audacity to carry Wild Oats Community Room crypto-Jewish activity in the region. a common Spanish surname, one which (Cordova Road between St. Francis probably matched dozens of persons on Drive & Cerrillos Rd) Little did I realize the impact that geo- the government’s watch list. A A A political conflicts, old and recent, were to Come one, come all! have on my research. I knew that tropical But we plow on, undaunted by the bureau- Free – Everyone welcome Wheelchair accessible climates are generally not conducive to the cratic challenges. The information derived Parking right at the door preservation of records, and I suspected that from this project is funded by a generous A A A insects, leaky roofs, and humidity would grant by Dr. Richard E. Greenleaf to the have taken their toll on the documentation Latin American and Iberian Institute of the To donate or volunteer, telephone Sheila Gershen 505-988-3143 or that I sought to access. University of New Mexico. The grant will Shirley Jacobson 505-989-8966 provide a unique window into the past and But it was attacks on the ports of Havana, will greatly enhance the community’s un- San Juan, and Santo Domingo by the derstanding about an intriguing, yet poorly Open Dutch and French navies, as well as vari- understood aspect of Latin American and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. ous incursions by pirates, that resulted in Jewish history. Mon - Sat huge lacunae in the available documentary ______505-474-4424 record. “Sorry, we have no documents prior *Hordes, Stanley M., To the End of the Fresh home-style cooking since 1996. to the mid-seventeenth century,” I was told Earth: A History of the Crypto-Jews in New by archivists in San Juan. And a notation Mexico (New York: Columbia University 730 St. Michael’s Dr. Santa Fe in the first book of sacramental records of Press, 2005). the cathedral in Havana explained that all GOT YOUR HEALTH INSURANCE the baptismal and marriage records prior Dr. Stan Hordes is an adjunct research RATE INCREASE YET? You Will!!! to the 1580s had been destroyed by enemy professor at the University of New Mexico’s H S As H R As attacks. Latin American and Iberian Institute, who is We represent 33 companies and most likely can save you money. known for his extensive research into crypto- Please Call Ned A. Miller, CLU, CSA, Twenty-first-century conflicts between Jews of New Mexico. He is one of the founding 505-881-8004/1-800-321-8004, email: millerned@ nations, I came to realize, also had the members of NMJHS and has served several aol.com potential to complicate my research times as Society president. A 3500 Comanche Rd. NE., Albuquerque, NM 87107 Page 7 Legacy, Volume 22, Number 2, June 2008 A German-Jewish Refugee (continued from p. 1) tions, especially for my father, but that is teacher two days a week after school. In The first time I met Arnold was on a another story. private homes I taught gymnastics and Sunday afternoon when my mother, acrobatics, which I had learned in Ger- brother, and I were all dressed up to go After a few weeks in New York City we many from the age of six. One class was for a walk and window shop around The took the Atchison, Topeka, & Santa Fe for young women and two for children. Square in Las Vegas. He was driving a railroad west. The entire Ilfeld family All three jobs brought in about $75 per nice car with his parents and called to welcomed us at the train station in Las month, an unheard of sum in those years, my mother to ask if we wanted a ride. Vegas. Uncle Ludwig helped my parents We accepted. Perhaps because of his find a place to live. First order of business mustache, I thought Arnold was much for my father was to learn English so he older. But only seven years separated us. could obtain the credentials necessary to From then on, my family had an open practice dentistry in the United States. invitation to go to Mora and visit with He enrolled in an English course at High- the Waxman family. lands University in Las Vegas. One Sunday, our group of friends went After a year’s study, my father felt he knew on a picnic to the Gallinas Canyon, sufficient English. He applied to several which is on the opposite side of Mora dental schools and was accepted at St. from Las Vegas. Arnold and I dated, but Louis University, one of the few schools never alone. There was only one car, one that accepted German refugee dentists. nice restaurant, and one movie theater, German dentists had to take the last two which offered only one show time. The years of a four-year course in dentistry to only time we were ever alone was when A new plate glass window for an old store in get their American license. We remained Mora. Arnold rented horses in Las Vegas and in Las Vegas while my father went to St. taught me how to ride. Louis to study. when the U.S. was still in the depths of the Great Depression. Another time our families drove to I had gone through the German school Madrid, New Mexico, which was well system and did not need any more In the fall of 1936, my parents met Milton known for its Christmas displays. Thou- schooling, even though I was barely six- and Frances Taichert. The Taicherts were sands of luminarias lit up displays that teen. However, I knew nothing about the thrilled to have my parents, and my aunt depicted the Stations of the Cross. Ma- United States’s social system. I chose to go and uncle, in their home for a B’nai Brith drid is a village surrounded by moun- for another year of high school as a senior meeting. They were a prominent, chari- tains, and the displays were located on and took typing, American history, and table couple in Las Vegas. Mrs. Taichert the mountainsides. It was a beautiful social studies. I loved school and being taught my mother many American ways. sight. As Arnold and I walked ahead of with people my own age. I graduated in Most homes in New Mexico were adobe- the crowd, the snow crunched under our 1937 at the age of seventeen. style, but their large home was colonial. feet. I very naturally put my arm in his. They had wooden floors and Persian rugs. Later, I was scolded because my parents We were the only German immigrants Mrs. Taichert collected antiques as well. thought this was very improper. I am in Las Vegas at that time; people were Their son, Marvin, followed their lead wondering now how I was ever able to kind and curious about us. Uncle Ludwig some years later by making a bequest for get married after having such a strict invited Bill and me to perform on the the upkeep of the Montefiore Cemetery. German upbringing! button accordions that we had brought with us. I wore a dirndl dress and Bill At the B’nai Brith meeting my parents met In the fall of 1938, I went with my par- wore lederhosen when we played for the Waxmans of Mora, which is a small ents to live in St. Louis where my father the Elks Club and the Rotary and the town in the mountains 30 miles north of was finishing his dental studies. Arnold Masons. Uncle Ludwig belonged to all Las Vegas. Their son Arnold was also there and I wrote to each other almost every of them! as well as his cousin, Reva Steinfeld. Reva day. Finally in early December 1938, the was an accomplished pianist and played “important letter” arrived. We became After graduation I had three part-time for the guests that night. She and Arnold engaged by mail. After I told my parents jobs. Uncle Ludwig helped me find a were raised together, being of the same age. about Arnold’s intentions my father said, half-day job at the local five-and-ten-cent The Steinfelds, Minnie and Phillip, lived “All I know about Arnold is that he is a store. I also worked for The Las Vegas in an adobe house next to the Waxmans good son to his mother, and he will make Optic, the local newspaper, trying to col- and were partners with the Waxmans in a you a good husband.” lect old debts. My third job was as a gym trading post called Morris Back & Co. (continued on p. 9)

Page 8 New Mexico Jewish Historical Society A German-Jewish Refugee (continued from p. 8) I married Arnold Waxman in 1939 during gave me half of everything she owned to killed or maimed on that fateful day. the worst winter we ever had in northern furnish our new home. Arnold was drafted in 1942. After he left New Mexico. At that time we had a small for the Army, his mother and I closed up synagogue but no rabbi. In earlier years, That is how Arnold and I had a complete our house, and I moved into his parents’ when there were more Jewish families in household, including my grandmother’s house. Arnold was sent to basic training Las Vegas, Uncle Ludwig acted as a lay silver service. We moved into the adobe in Cheyenne, Wyoming. When he was rabbi for the High Holidays and bar mitz- house that was previously owned by transferred to San Francisco, I followed vahs. In fact, he performed my brother’s Arnold’s Aunt Minnie. A horse corral him. We never returned to live in Mora. bar mitzvah. The synagogue was cleaned separated our house from the Waxmans’, Following his discharge, he went to dental up and prepared for the wedding as it had Arnold’s parents. After the honeymoon, school in St. Louis, which became our been closed for many years. Arnold continued to work for his par- permanent home. ents in Mora in the general merchandise My mother and Mrs. Taichert planned store. I still think of Mora from those days, a the wedding. I had nothing to do with it two-block village with a dirt and gravel except pick out my dress. Luckily I chose We stayed in Mora for three years. It was road from one end to the other, adobe a wedding dress in St. Louis that could a good time for me. Looking back now I houses, store fronts with wooden plat- easily be altered into an evening gown. wish Arnold had encouraged me to help forms, horses, and horse-drawn wagons. My mother and I stayed at the Taicherts. in the store and learn to speak Spanish. I It was just like the Wild West towns I My father and brother came from St. did not do much as a new bride except try had read about in Karl Mai’s novels. In Louis just before the wedding and also to be a homemaker, and Arnold’s mother the middle of the street I saw my future stayed there. Rosie was most helpful. husband in cowboy boots and hat and behind him the snow-capped mountains Temple Montefiore in Las Vegas was I had a Mexican maid who cleaned every rising up at the very end of the street, constructed in 1885 and was the first in day and took our laundry home to her towering over the Mora Valley. It was a the New Mexico Territory. At that time, mother. It was necessary to clean often be- breathtaking experience. there were about seventy Jewish families cause of the way adobe houses were built. Lilo Waxman leads an active life in St. living in Las Vegas. By 1939 the Jewish The frames of the doors and windows were Louis in the summer and Naples, Florida, population of Las Vegas had dwindled to set into the adobe walls leaving small gaps. in the winter. Her husband Arnold passed about twenty families. Frequent sandstorms would blow sand away four years ago. This article is excerpted through the gaps into every room. from her memoirs, which she wrote for her We “imported” a rabbi from Albuquerque grandchildren. for the wedding. He arrived at the syna- When I wanted to go horseback riding, the gogue just in time for the ceremony; in corral man would go out to the pastures Previous articles about the Waxmans and fact, he was late because of a horrible owned by the trading post in his Model T their cousins the Ilfelds have appeared in snowstorm. Before that moment, he had Ford. He would bring back a horse for me this newsletter. One is by Arnold Waxman, never laid eyes on either one of us. to ride. That’s when I learned to saddle, “Jewish Settlers of Mora, New Mexico, Circa bridle, and groom a horse. I spent much 1850,” in the June 2006 issue, page 5; I walked down the aisle holding my of my time riding. While living in Mora, another is by Florence Ilfeld Beier, “Ludwig father’s arm, and there was Arnold stand- I had the freedom to explore the beauti- Ilfeld, Las Vegas Legend,” in the September ing at the bima waiting for me to come ful surrounding mountains by horseback. 2006 issue, page 6; a third is by Lilo Wax- to him. The rabbi read my name directly Arnold always joined me on weekends and man, “New Mexico – Déjà Vu,” in the De- from my birth certificate. He started out when he was not busy in the store. cember 2006 issue, page 9, which tells about with “Gerda Liselotte . . .” and so on. No her visit to Mora earlier that summer. You one in temple knew who “Gerda” was, In wintertime we traveled ten miles north can view past issues at www.nmjewishhistory. because everyone knew me as Lilo. The of Mora past Holman Hill to what is now org, then click on Publications. A guests were a little confused. They didn’t the Sipapu ski resort. A one-rope tow pow- know that Lilo is the diminutive in Ger- ered by a Studebaker engine pulled you up man for Liselotte. the mountain. I used my wooden skis that Stefanie Beninato we had brought from Germany. A Well-Born Guide / Have Ph.D. Will Travel My mother and my mother-in-law, Rosie Original Tour Waxman, went to the basement of Uncle A number of young soldiers from Mora Jewish Legacy in New Mexico Ludwig’s house where the wooden crates and elsewhere in New Mexico were sta- tioned in Pearl Harbor before the United www.swguides.com [email protected] of our German household goods were P.O. Box 1601 Santa Fe, NM 87504 stored and opened every crate. My mother States entered World War II. Many were 505.988.8022

Page 9 Legacy, Volume 22, Number 2, June 2008 IN MEMORIAM Robert M. Ilfeld by Steve Kesselman ong-time member of the fornia Institute of Technology. He subse- In 1999, Bob married Pearl Thompson, who New Mexico Jewish Histori- quently returned to MIT as a Sloan Fellow shared his love of travel. Bob enjoyed meet- cal Society, Robert M. Ilfeld to receive an MSM from the Sloan School ing people. He was an avid bridge player who L passed away on April 26, of Business. He started his professional ca- earned Life Master status and played golf for 2008. Son of Max and Ber- reer working on several projects for General the sport and the ensuing friendships. tha Rosenau Ilfield, Bob was Electric in New York. His business career born on January 25, 1926, and grew up in flourished in several industries and many A few years ago I was privileged to inter- Taos in one of New Mexico’s most illustrious locations. view Bob for the New Mexico Jewish Pio- Jewish pioneer families. A precocious stu- neer Video Archive Project, sponsored by dent, he received a degree in nuclear physics At age 53 Bob retired to New Mexico to NMJHS; the tape and transcript may be in 1944 from the Massachusetts Institute of be closer to his aging parents. However, re- found in the NMJHS collection at the New Technology and was quickly drafted into the tirement only lasted three months before he Mexico State Archives. Bob’s input was es- Army where he was sent to Los Alamos to went back to work as a financial consultant sential for the preparation of “The Ilfield- work on top secret projects. for Dean Witter Reynolds Company (now Nordhaus Family” booklet published by the Morgan Stanley). He retired in 2007 as se- Society. A After World War II Bob earned a Master’s nior vice-president with twenty-eight years degree in nuclear physics from the Cali- of experience.

Judy Frankel by Isabel Sandoval udy Frankel, Sephardic lyrics of elderly Jews in San of Sephardic Jews, echoes the nu- singer, died in San Francis- Francisco. She performed ances of colonial Spanish in New co on March 20 after a long in Europe and Israel and Mexico. Judy loved New Mexico J illness at the age of 65. Of sang for Portuguese Presi- and the . In turn, she Ashkenazi origin, Judy sang dent Mario Soares. was loved and respected by New and collected Sephardic Mexicans. A memorial service music of the Jews expelled from Spain in Judy produced four CDs was held for her in San Francisco 1492. Her passion and rendition of Ladino and is credited with pre- on June 1st at the Fort Mason music captivated her listeners. Judy collect- serving Sephardic melo- Conference Center. A ed Ladino songs by learning the words and dies. Ladino, the language Judy Frankel

Harold J. Gans by Anthony A. Amsden arold J. Gans, a long-time microphone over to a new moaner in the University of Southern California before and colorful Santa Fe resi- early 1990s. Gans and his wife Sonia Sea- serving in the U. S. Army in World War II. dent, passed away this April brook Gans, moved to Norman from Santa As a photographer, he served in the Euro- H in Norman, Oklahoma. Fe two years ago to be near his daughter, pean, African, Middle Eastern, and Asia- Gans was a friend of artist but he never got Santa Fe out of his mind. Pacific theaters. Returning after the war, he Will Shuster, who created continued his interest in photography, en- the first Zozobra for the 1924 Fiesta de The son of Jewish immigrants, Harold joyed sailing and flying his own plane, was Santa Fe. Since then the 49-foot marionette Gans was born in 1922 in New York City a volunteer firefighter, and served on the ski has been burned each year before a crowd of and adopted by Julius and Elsie Gans, who patrol. thousands to rid people of their gloom. lived in Santa Fe. The Gans family owned Santa Fe Arts and Crafts on San Francisco Gans was also a 33rd degree Mason and a Gans started helping to build Zozobra in Street for many years. Harold took over the lifelong member of the Kiwanis Club. He 1938, including crafting its head, and be- store after his parents died, and eventually was a member of a coffee klatch at La Fonda came the main voice of Zozobra in 1951, sold the Gans Building to Walter Kahn. that included a number of older Santa Feans, moaning and howling through a micro- most of whom have since passed away. The phone. Gans missed a year in 1982 after suf- Gans attended Santa Fe public schools, the group included Sam Ballen, Walter Kahn, fering a heart attack, and finally turned the New Mexico Military Institute, and the Gus Denninger, and Tom Moore. A

Page 10 New Mexico Jewish Historical Society October Conference in El Paso – An Event Not to be Missed by Noel Pugach et ready to sign up for “Merchants Along the Camino Real” will the joint conference of start off Saturday morning, followed by the New Mexico and “Immigrants to Texas and New Mexico.” G Texas Historical Societ- Informal talks of immigrant experiences ies on October 24 - 26, will take place during lunch. 2008, in El Paso. This is an event you won’t want to miss. As soon as plans are Saturday afternoon will have two ses- finalized, NMJHS members will receive sions: one on “Saving Jews from the the conference program and a registra- Holocaust,” the other as yet to be an- tion form in the mail along with lodg- nounced. Following the evening ban- ing details. Conference information will quet two speakers, Rabbi Leon of El also be posted on the NMJHS web site, Paso and Dr. Stan Hordes, will discuss www.nmjewishhistory.org. crypto-Jews.

“Jews Along the Camino Real,” will take The two historical societies will hold place at the lovely and historic Camino separate board meetings on Sunday Real Hotel in downtown El Paso. A few morning and then tour two beautiful sessions will be held in other locations cemeteries. that are a short walk from the hotel. Please make plans to join us for an excit- We invite our members to propose ing and delightful educational and so- presentations for the sessions. There is cial gathering. We encourage our New room for several additional speakers. In Mexico Society members to turn out in particular, we invite immigrants to New large numbers. Mexico to give their stories at the Satur- day luncheon. Contact Dr. Noel Pugach Plan to arrive in time for Friday services with your proposals and suggestions, at at Temple Mount Sinai, followed by din- [email protected] or 505-323-2067. ner. Sessions on Saturday will cover a number of topics of mutual interest to Noel Pugach is serving as co-chair of the joint Texas and New Mexico. A panel called conference. A

2008 Montefiore Cemetery Cleanup

Jessica Wohl of Santa Fe listens to stories about a Las Vegas doctor and his mother fol- Deborah S. Seligman lowing the annual cleanup of the Montefiore Attorney At Law Cemetery in Las Vegas on Sunday, April 27. The two grave markers she is kneeling next to 320 Gold Ave. SW, Suite 1221 are for Dr. Isaac Terr and his mother Pearl Terr. Albuquerque, NM 87102 Dr. Terr’s wife Mildred Terr still lives in Las Ve- PO Box 7806 gas. Their five children live in New Mexico and Albuquerque, NM 87194 are active in the Jewish community. [Photo by Jim Terr, one of Dr. Terr’s children.] Phone (505) 247-3030 • Fax (505) 247-3165 Blustery weather did not deter the small but dedicated group who came for the annual cemetery cleaning. People remarked that they came for many reasons, some because they could not tend the graves of their own Please patronize our parents in other areas and some to honor friends and family buried in the Montefiore advertisers and let them know Cemetery. Ted Herberger, the caretaker who also has family buried in the cemetery, says that much work has been done this year including surveying and rebuilding the you saw their ad in the outer wall and improving the property. NMJHS Newsletter.

Page 11 Legacy, Volume 22, Number 2, June 2008

Calendar of Upcoming Events 2008 Membership Dues Membership expires on December 31 Check online calendar of Upcoming Events for more details at Membership fees are as follows: www.nmjewishhistory.org. See film schedule on page 7 of this issue. Renewal New August 3 - 5, Eighteenth Annual Conference of the Society for Crypto-Judaic Studies, Individual $35 Phoenix, Arizona. For more information, go to www.cryptojews.com. Family $50 Senior (55+) $30 August 30 - 31, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Seventh Annual Book & Etc. Sale, Wild Oats Senior Couple $40 Conference Room, Santa Fe. Fulltime Student $20 Business $100 Sunday afternoon, October 19, genealogy class in Santa Fe. Time and place to be Friend $100 or more determined. Life Membership $1000 October 24 - 26, “Jews Along the Camino Real,” NMJHS joint conference with Texas Name(s)______Jewish Historical Society, El Paso Texas. Address______City______State___ Zip_____ NMJHS Board of Directors and Officers Email address______Officers Norman Budow – Santa Fe Phone ______Noel Pugach, Ph.D., President – Albuquerque Sheila Gershen – Santa Fe Dorothy Corner Amsden, Vice President – Los Alamos Gerald Gonzalez – Santa Fe Please make your check payable to: Stephen Part, Recording Secretary – Albuquerque Claire Grossman – Nashua, New Hampshire New Mexico Jewish Historical Society Anthony A. Amsden, Corresponding Secretary – Stanley M. Hordes, Ph.D. – Albuquerque Los Alamos Deborah Seligman – Albuquerque Robert N. Gale, Treasurer – Placitas Nancy Terr – Albuquerque and mail it with this form to: Marjorie Weinberg-Berman – Kings Point, New Mexico Jewish Historical Society New York Directors 5520 Wyoming Blvd. NE Barbara Baker – Santa Fe

Immediate Past President Albuquerque, NM 87109

Lance Bell – Santa Fe Harold Melnick – Santa Fe

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