Friday 4 July 2014

Barney Oscar Rich

An Enterprising Man who Took Care of His Family







Barney Oscar Rich was born 8 Oct 1883 in Starow Cinavo, Volhynnia, Russia.




Travelling under the name of Berl Reitzman, he was 17 when he arrived in New York, 18 Mar 1901 on the S.S. Potsdam (NY Passenger List). The arrival date differs in his Naturalization Record by one year, 19 Mar 1900. He left Proskurow in Podolia ( now Khmelnitzky, Ukraine ). He was going to Philadelphia to his father M. Reitzman ( NY Passenger List ) who was known as Michael Rich in the US. His father lived at 1033 S. 3rd St.

  
When I started this genealogy journey, I was really fortunate to have contact with a great granddaughter of Barney's. It is she who gave me access to many of these marvellous pictures that I have on my Family Tree. Her grandparents  had told her that Michael had been working as a Hebrew teacher, earning just pennies a day.
"A day after arriving in the US, Barney got a job delivering meat for a kosher butcher. He got beat up daily as he went through a bad neigbourhood, delivering meat. He didn't quit his job, but bought a bull whip with his first pay check. The next time he went through the neighbourhood, he whipped the kids who were tormenting him. They wouldn't steal his money, just wanted to beat hi up because he was foreign.
Barney signed up for correspondence courses as soon as he got to America. He spoke 7 languages.
 In Russia, his family lived near the water. The story goes that Barney's mom was mad at him for something and chased him into a lake or river.
Barney took care of his siblings. He saved money and brought them all over from Russia. He later put them through school.







Barney put his brother through pharmacy school and made him the pharmacist at his drug store. He never could teach him to 'turn off the lights' so he could never be left to run the shop by himself."






Barney was the owner of a drugstore






 


Rose Rich Camlot
Mollie Rich Hopkins
Bessie Rich
Ruth Rich Goldstein

Photo taken by J.A.Walk Studios - post card printing on back - labeled "Souvenir of Atlantic City" Names on back are labeled as: Barney Rich's Sisters Aunt Rose Camlot, Aunt Mollie Hopkins, Aunt Bess Polansky, Ruth (Rich) Goldstein
Atlantic City, NJ


Michael's wife Sophie arrived in Philadelphia with their children, Bessie, Morris and Rose Lillian, 7 Sep 1903 on the ship, S.S. Nottingham. The names for the family were Sossie Raich, age 38, Bessie, age 11,  Mojche, 7 and Rochel, age 5. The tickets had been bought 31 May 1903 through the Rosenbaum Ticket Agency and sent to an address in Proskurov at the home of Shmuel Wolf Kaplan. The name of the person who bought the tickets was Michael Richman.

 




Bessie was born 25 Dec 1890 in Proskurov, Russia.  Bessie worked in her brother Barney's pharmacy as a cashier   (1940 Census). 




 

She lived with her brother Morris and his family in 1940. Her grand niece, Charlene, remembers Bessie living with her family for what seemed like years. Then Bessie, Rose Rich Camlot ( Charlene's grandmother, Bessie's sister ) and Charlene's mother's sister, Bernice moved to a house in Levitttown, Pennsylvania about 1963. Bessie had a common-law relationship with someone named Barney. Bessie had a child called Arthur who died as a child.
 








Bessie died 25 May 1964 in Bristol, Bucks, Pennsylvania











  Morris was born 12 Jul 1896 in Ostropol, Volhynnia, Russia. He married Pauline, born 1903. They had 2 children , Roselle and June. Morris died Oct 1967 in Wilmington, New Castle, Delaware.


 

Mollie/ Malka was born 6 Jan 1907 in Pennsylvania, died 29 Mar 1985 in Bristol, Bucks, Pennsylvania. She married Martin J Hopkins, born 6 Mar 1904, died 16 May 1973 in Bristol, Bucks, Pennsylvania. He was an owner of a cut-rate supply store. He was also the President and Secretary of the Bristol Jewish Center, President of Mill St Businessmen's Association and Bristol Lions Club. They had one daughter Lorraine, born 14 Oct 1928, died 24 Dec 2002 in Morrisville, Bucks, Pennsylvania. She married Bill Goldfarb and they had one daughter Shelley.(Bill Lynde)







Bessie Rich
Pop Hopkins
Martin Hopkins
Mollie Rich Hopkins
Richard Handloff
Laurie Hopkins Goldfarb
Bill Goldfarb
Rose Rich Camlot









Rose Lillian ( Ruchel Leah ) connects me to this family. She married her first cousin Charlie Camlot. Click the names, Rose and Charlie to link to my other blogposts to read about them.





Barney married Fannie Goldich 5 Jan 1912 in Philadelphia. They had 3 children, Beatrice Bebe, born 11 Mar 1917 in Philadelphia, died 8 Jul 2010 in Greenville, Delaware. (Alvin I Handloff ), Ruth, born 4 Nov 1912 in Wilmington, New Castle, Delaware, died 9 May 2005, in Warrington, Bucks, Pennsylvania ( Morris D. Goldstein ), Gladys, born 25 Sep 1921 in Wilmington, Newcastle, Delaware, died 18 Mar 2005, in Delray Beach, Florida ( Harry Zutz )

Barney died 14 Apr 1965 in Delaware. Fannie died 27 Mar 1977 in Wilmington, Delaware.




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