Author Archives: Heather Dubnick
A Family Tragedy Unearthed in Newspaper Archives
Last week, I decide to search for instances of the surname Dubnick in the available online newspaper archives at Newspapers.com. I was hoping to shed some light on the lives of my great grandfather Jacob Dubnick and great grandmother Rose … Continue reading
For TBT: A Bunch of Roses
This week I was surprised to learn from my Great Aunt Edy that my maternal grandmother Ruth’s original name was Rose Marie, but that her mother decided to change it early in my grandmother’s life to Ruth Margaret. This struck … Continue reading
Circular Genealogy, or Self-Discovery Through Social Media
An amusing anecdote: A number of genealogy groups now have Facebook pages. In some of these groups, people post the surnames they are seeking and the locations where these families lived. My mother’s mother’s family is from Pueblo, Colorado—also my … Continue reading
New Virtual Exhibit of Judaica from Moldova
Exciting news: I received an announcement this morning, on multiple JewishGen SIG lists, that a new virtual museum of Judaica is now available for viewing. The exhibit includes images of many fascinating and beautiful artifacts, as well as photographs of people, documents, newspaper … Continue reading
A Long-Lost Cousin from Kishinev
My father’s mother’s parents, David and Esther Aptekar, were both born in Kishinev (Chisinau), Moldova, and both came to the United States, where they met, before World War I broke out. David Aptekar, my great grandfather, came to the United … Continue reading
Finding Fera Citron, Part I
My paternal great grandmother Fera came to the United States under someone else’s name. Family lore has it that a cousin by the name of Ester had arranged passage and broke her leg the day before the trip, so Fera’s … Continue reading
Great video about journey of Sephardic Jews from Spain to the Balkans
I just ran across this excellent video tracing the history of Sephardic Jews from the expulsion to the modern-day Balkans (in Spanish with English subtitles). To me, this is the most fascinating chapters in Jewish history, as I am have … Continue reading
Genealogy: Earliest Encounters
My first encounter with genealogy when I was a child was, of course, likely in elementary school, where I’m sure I was asked at some point to construct a rudimentary family tree—a tree that was likely very simple and extended … Continue reading
Welcome to the Little Oak: Roots and Branches Blog!
Welcome to my family history blog. I have been fascinated with family history and genealogy since I was a little girl, but for a long time the effort to trace family lines uprooted by migration and conflict seemed quixotic. Then, … Continue reading
