Learn more about the Geneva Ohio Jewish Farmers

The Geneva Ohio Jewish Farmers

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE GENEVA JEWISH FARMERS

Banquet Given in Honor of Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver by the Jewish Farmers of Geneva Ohio Labor Day September 3, 1928
Photo by H. Koss. Image courtesy of the Western Reserve Historical Society

More on these pages

Links to other websites
(in date sequence)
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1906 "Agricultural Colonies in the United States" by Max Rosenthal
In the 1906 Jewish Encyclopedia.
1928 Jewish Independent April 27, 1928
National Council of Jewish Women helps organize Jewish Farmers Association of Geneva Ohio, Cleveland Council helps.
1984 Cleveland Jewish News February 10, 1984
"Geneva Ohio Experiment - Jewish Farmers" by Harriet Tramer
A full page story that mentions the Flock, Cohen, Silverman and Orkin families.
1989 "An American Jewish Family's Farm Odyssey"
by Jacob L. Ornstein-Galicia
Journal of the American Jewish Archives. 1989 24 pages, pdf.
Jacob Ornstein (1915-2010) grew up on his family's farm in Northeast Ohio. A professor of linguistics who studied Chicano speech in the American southwest, he added "Galicia" to his surname late in his life to honor the land where his parents were born.
1990 Cleveland Jewish News September 17, 1990
"Together Again - The Geneva Jewish Farmers". The July 7-8 1990 reunion of farmer families and memories of the 1928 gathering with Rabbi Abba Hillel Silver.
1991 Cleveland Jewish News September 6, 1991
"Swack family farm sold" - by Elmer Swack
1996 Howard W. Brody (1916 - 2003) "The Life and Times of a Jewish Farm Boy" Cleveland Jewish News Friday, July 26, 1996
Two well illustrated pages view page 22 view page 23
If you enjoy this, you can read his full essay below.
2012 Ashtabula County grape growing history by Donniella Winchell

In the Archives at the Western Reserve Historical Society

Archives of the Jewish Farmers Association Reunions 1989 and 1992
The WRHS Archives (MS 4794) have a scrapbook and articles about the community, including "The Life and Times of a Jewish Farm Boy" by Howard W. Brody. This link is to the Finding Aid, a document that describes the content of the archive.

Books

"The Life and Times of a Jewish Farm Boy" by Howard W. Brody (1916-2003), pages 171-191 in "Remembering Cleveland's Jewish Voices", published 2011, edited by Sally H. Wertheim and Alan D. Bennett, from documents selected by Judah Rubinstein. This is the complete essay by Howard Brody which is in the WRHS Archives MS 4794.
"Jewish Farmer in America: the Unknown Chronicle" by Jacob L. Ornstein-Galicia © 1992. In Greater Cleveland this book can be found only at the Chardon Library, very appropriate as the Ornstein family farm was located near Chardon. The author's memoir focuses on his parents and their family life, saying little about the Jewish Farmers Association.

Another memorable group photo of Jewish Cleveland
On another Labor Day - it was 1911 - members of the Jewish Carpenters Union gathered in front of Congregation Oheb Zedek prior to marching in Cleveland's Labor Day Parade. See the photo.