Cecilia Solow

Cecilia Solow

There are a couple of unsolved mysteries about Cecilia Solow,  Howard Stein's great grandmother.
Below are two photos, the first taken in Moscow, circa 1890.  

Cecilia Solow, Moscow, circa 1890

Next is the second photo of Cecilia.  It was taken at Bloomingdale's Department Store in New York City, circa 1895, when she was about 45 years old.   It was later framed and then Howard's sister Ann gave it to Howard.

Cecilia Solow at Bloomingdale's Department Store in New York City, circa 1895

Note: She is not smiling.  Nobody smiles in Victorian portraits. Why not? Mark Twain explains: "A photograph is a most important document, and there is nothing more damning to go down to posterity than a silly, foolish smile caught and fixed forever."
Here is what Bloomingdale's (59th & Lexington) looked like circa 1930 [Alamy].  Bloomingdale  has been at this location since 1886, and it's still there.

Bloomingdale's NYC circa 1930 [Alamy]

Some fascinating historical photos and the story of Bloomingdale's are HERE.

Here is what we know about Cecilia.

Her maiden name was Rebecca Moseson.   She was born in Russia (at that time, the Russian empire).  When she was 22 she married Samuel Solow from Bielsk (now Poland) in 1873, and their first son Leon was born December 10th, 1873, in Russia.  They were Jewish and they all spoke Russian.

Howard notes that "None of the Solow or Epstein sides of the family spoke or had any familiarity with Yiddish, language or culture.  Or Hebrew.  Everyone was fluent in Russian (and English).  I don’t remember any Yiddish culture."

They likely lived in Riga (Latvia) for some years, as probably Sophie (1877) and certainly Alexander (1878) were born in Riga.  They had 6 children, but Mollie (1881) died at the age of one.  David Solow was born in Moscow in 1884.  Sophie said she was from Riga, and said she attended a gymnasium (school) in Moscow.

Riga to Moscow is 919 km [Google Maps]

In 1982 Samuel (43) and Cecilia (41) and their 5 children Leon (8) Sophie (15), Alexander (14), Morris (10), and David (8) emigrated from Russia to New York City via Southampton.  They arrived on November 7, 1892. This is recorded in Samuel's US Passport Application (1921).

The 1900 census lists their address as: 67 E 27th St. (Manhattan).  It says they had a "servant" Rosie Solow (age 24) from Austria, staying for 3 months, but she was most likely a family relative helping out with the children.

Cecilia is Rebecca.  Here is the 1900 US Federal Census page.

The 1900 Census lists the following Solow family occupations.

Samuel - Shirt Maker 
Rebecca - < blank >
Leon - Retail Druggist 
Alexander - School Teacher 
Morris -    At College 
David -     At College
Rosie - Servant

David married a New Yorker, Florence Solomon, and  had 3 kids.  Their story is HERE.

In 1898 Sophie (21) married Barnett Epstein (24), who had emigrated to NYC from Russia in 1891.

So what are the mysteries?

1.  US Census Documents list her name as Rebecca, but everyone knew her as Cecilia.   Why does her NYC Death Index Certificate say "Zipke R Solow?"

2.  How did Cecilia and Samuel, a shirt maker from Bielsk, end up living in Riga? That's 700 km away.

3. Why did they later move from Riga to Moscow (900 km away) where David was born in 1884?


It is 700 km from Bielsk to Riga.  Why did they move?

Howard commented:

"Sophie recollected going to gymnasium in Moscow.  What I never understood was why a girl from Riga was going to school in Moscow, but the fact that Great uncle David Solow — something I didn’t know until your research — was born in Moscow suggests that the family had perhaps moved there as an alternative to Sophie traveling there for schooling.  But then, if I’m correct, Jewish people were discouraged, to put it mildly, from living in Moscow so why were any of them there?"  

Rebecca passed away in March 1910, just before the April 1910 Census.
The Solows and Epsteins were living together at 1110 Jackson Avenue.  The list includes:

Barnett Epstein (36) - Employer, Manufacturer of Leather Goods
Sophie S Epstein (32) - Wife
Adele Epstein (4) - Daughter
Clarence D. Epstein (11 months) - Son
Sally Ward (18) - Servant, Private Family, from England
Samuel Solow, Head (59) - Employer, Manufacturer of Shirts
Alex S. Solow (30) - Civil Engineer
Maurice Solow (27) - Worker, Manufacturer of Shirts
David E. Solow (25) - Worker, Manufacturer of Shirts

This is New York City in 1910.

New York circa 1910. Broadway and Hotel Victoria.

The Ford Model T was popular in 1910.

1910 Ford Touring

Cecilia Rebecca Solow – Moscow Russia
Circa 1890 - Colorized

This colorized photo of Cecilia is labeled “Moscou.” (That’s French for Moscow)
You can see the whole family (over 1,000 people!) at MyHeritge.com