SIGRIST:

Good afternoon. This is Paul Sigrist for the National Park Service. We are here on Bennett Avenue in New York City with Julia Greenberg, who came from Russia in 1903 when she was six years old. Good afternoon, Mrs. Greenberg.

GREENBERG:

Good afternoon.

SIGRIST:

Could you please give me your full name, including your maiden name, and your date of birth?

GREENBERG:

My maiden name was Levine, L-E-V-I-N-E. I came here when I was six years old, as you know.

SIGRIST:

And what is your birth date?

GREENBERG:

My birth is July 21, 1897.

SIGRIST:

I see. What town were you born in?

GREENBERG:

I was born in a little town called Igumen. I-G-U-M-E-N. It's a suburb of Minsk.

SIGRIST:

What was the town like?

GREENBERG:

Very small town.

SIGRIST:

Can you describe what it looked like?

GREENBERG:

Well, being only six years old, I couldn't tell you much about the town. They were all very small houses, more like huts. Unpaved roads. The paved roads were in the heart of the town. My grandparents lived a little ways out and their streets were not paved. So when we went to visit them, my brother and I went to visit them on Saturdays, we were knee-deep in the mud.

SIGRIST:

Whose parents were they, your mother's or your father's?

GREENBERG:

My father's.

SIGRIST:

Can you describe going to your grandparents? What kind of house did they have?

GREENBERG:

Well, it was almost like a hut. They had, oh, I would say maybe four or five rooms. But the floors were not wood. The floors were earthen floors.

SIGRIST:

Did they keep animals?

GREENBERG:

No, they didn't keep animals. They had children. My grandparents had ten children, one of whom died in infancy. The other nine all lived to maturity.

SIGRIST:

I see. And you said you went and visited them every Saturday.

GREENBERG:

Yes, my older brother and I used to visit them every Saturday.

SIGRIST:

Why did you go out every Saturday?

GREENBERG:

Well, during the years that I'm talking about, my father was already in America. My mother, my brother and I lived in one room with friends. And on Saturday that was the day you visited your grandparents.

SIGRIST:

Tell me a little bit about your father going to America and when he did that.

GREENBERG:

My father was a farmer, and he had a couple of years when the crops were frozen, and so there was no money. And so America looked like a good place to go to. Not having any money, he couldn't take the family, he went alone. And he came here, being a farmer, and coming to a big city like New York, there wasn't any farming to do, so he had to learn a new trade. And he learned to be a machine operator in the ladies' garment section, and that's what he did for a living for a number of years. And the thing that was bad about that was that in those days when you had seasons, when you had no season you had no unemployment, so things were bad. My father was here for six years before we came here.

SIGRIST:

I see. So he left soon after you were born.

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

Where did he live when he first came to America?

GREENBERG:

When we first came to America . . .

SIGRIST:

When he first came to America.

GREENBERG:

( she laughs ) When he first came to America he got himself a job in a stable. In those days we had horse and wagons, and horses were taken care of in stables, and he slept at the stable and took care of the horses until such time as somebody helped him get into the garment trade and learn how to operate a machine and learn how to do the work, and he later became very apt in the work.

SIGRIST:

What was his name?

GREENBERG:

Carl.

SIGRIST:

And what did he look like?

GREENBERG:

What did he look like? There's a picture of him over there.

SIGRIST:

Just sort of describe in your own words.

GREENBERG:

How can you describe your father? ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

Was he a tall man or a short man?

GREENBERG:

Medium height, thin.

SIGRIST:

Dark-haired?

GREENBERG:

Bald.

SIGRIST:

Moustache?

GREENBERG:

Hmm. All the men in my family, in my father's family, became bald at a rather early age.

SIGRIST:

Your grandfather, too?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

And tell me a little bit about your mother. What was her name?

GREENBERG:

Her maiden name?

SIGRIST:

And her first name.

GREENBERG:

Her first name was Marsha.

SIGRIST:

And what was her maiden name?

GREENBERG:

Her maiden name was Bagdonowich.

SIGRIST:

Could you spell that, please?

GREENBERG:

I don't know if I can spell it right, but I would imagine it's B-O-G-D-O-N-O-W-I-C-H.

SIGRIST:

Was she from this town?

GREENBERG:

Uh, yes. I think she was. But her father was not. Her father lived in Riga. And he was a passementerie worker. In other words, he was really an expert in passementerie. And if you don't know what passementerie was, all the epaulets that go on royal garments, he made them. And in Riga, Jews were not allowed at that time. But because of his profession he was allowed to live there, and he used to make all these things.

SIGRIST:

And the name of the town was?

GREENBERG:

Riga. R-I-G-A.

SIGRIST:

And was this outside of Minsk also?

GREENBERG:

I don't know what the location is to Minsk. I don't think it's just outside of Minsk because I think when we went there we traveled quite, overnight.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember visiting her parents?

GREENBERG:

Her mother lived where we did because she did not want to go to Riga. So she stayed where her children were. She had other children besides my mother.

SIGRIST:

Oh, I see. And so she lived in the house with you.

GREENBERG:

Oh, we didn't live with her.

SIGRIST:

Oh, but she lived near you.

GREENBERG:

She lived with her other children. But oh, the town was small. A very small town. You could walk around it.

SIGRIST:

Now you said, it was you and your mother and you said you had a brother.

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

And what was his name?

GREENBERG:

Hyman. H-Y-M-A-N.

SIGRIST:

Was he older?

GREENBERG:

He was three years older.

SIGRIST:

I see. So you were basically children together?

GREENBERG:

Yes, yes.

SIGRIST:

All right. Let's talk a little bit about just sort of everyday life. For instance, what did you eat?

GREENBERG:

When?

SIGRIST:

What.

GREENBERG:

What did I do?

SIGRIST:

What did you eat?

GREENBERG:

What did I eat?

SIGRIST:

Yes, what sorts of things did you eat . . .

GREENBERG:

Oh, we ate normal foods.

SIGRIST:

As a child in Russia.

GREENBERG:

Normal foods. Fish, eggs, meat, milk.

SIGRIST:

Was your mother a good cook?

GREENBERG:

My mother was a good cook, yes. And we had a cow. ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

But the cow was to supply milk. You didn't butcher the cow, did you?

GREENBERG:

No, no.

SIGRIST:

I see. Did you ever help your mother do the cooking?

GREENBERG:

Not while we were in Russia. In America, yes.

SIGRIST:

But you were too young in Russia?

GREENBERG:

At six years old you don't putter around the kitchen. Not in the European kitchens, anyhow.

SIGRIST:

What did the kitchen look like in the house?

GREENBERG:

Well, I would say it was a room about this size, and these built-in ovens as they have in the bakeries.

SIGRIST:

What sort of furniture did you have in the kitchen?

GREENBERG:

The usual, I would say. Small table and a few chairs.

SIGRIST:

Did your mother bake bread?

GREENBERG:

I beg your pardon?

SIGRIST:

Bake bread, did your mother bake bread?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. She baked all her own bread.

SIGRIST:

I see. Let's talk a little bit about religious life when you were a child. Did, you were Jewish?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

Was there a synagogue in town?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes.

SIGRIST:

Was your mother religious?

GREENBERG:

Yes. My mother was religious. My father was religious. And when I came to America we were all religious.

SIGRIST:

So as a small child were you taken to synagogue regularly?

GREENBERG:

No. When I was in Russia I didn't go to kindergarten. I didn't go to any school. I didn't go to school till I came here.

SIGRIST:

Did your brother go to school?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

In Russia?

GREENBERG:

In Russia. Yes, oh yes. He did.

SIGRIST:

There was a school in this town, then?

GREENBERG:

Uh, you went to private school there. A small town, small school. But he had a very good Jewish education religious-wise.

SIGRIST:

I see. Do you remember going to synagogue with your mother? Do you remember the actual . . .

GREENBERG:

Very vaguely. Very vaguely. But I know my mother went every Saturday.

SIGRIST:

I see. Is your father writing to your mother?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. Yes, yes.

SIGRIST:

Is he sending money?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

The intention was to bring you all over to America . . .

GREENBERG:

Which he did.

SIGRIST:

Right. How did your mother feel about leaving Russia?

GREENBERG:

Oh, she was anxious to get to America. My mother was a self-educated woman. She was always anxious to learn. And so she got as much knowledge as anyone could get by themselves, so she knew about America and she was anxious to get to America. And then she, of course, was anxious to get here because my father was here.

SIGRIST:

Sure. In Russia, how were you supporting yourselves? Just by money that your father was sending from America, or did your mother work?

GREENBERG:

That I don't know. My mother had two children. I don't know how much more work she could do. And being only six years old I don't know those details.

SIGRIST:

I see. All right. Well, let's talk a little bit about coming to America.

GREENBERG:

The trip over?

SIGRIST:

Well, your father, did you save up the money that your father was sending to pay for the passage?

GREENBERG:

No. My father sent us tickets to come over. We came over in steerage. ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

Yes. Where did you leave from?

GREENBERG:

Uh, Hamburg.

SIGRIST:

How did you get from your town to Hamburg?

GREENBERG:

Horse and wagon.

SIGRIST:

How long of a trip was that?

GREENBERG:

All I can remember is overnight. After that, I don't remember much. But I do remember Hamburg.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember packing before you got to Hamburg?

GREENBERG:

No. I wouldn't have any thought of that, because at six years old you're not concerned with those things and you're not allowed into the sanctuary of packing and doing things of that sort.

SIGRIST:

Were you excited about going to America? Because you didn't know your father. You'd never seen him, really.

GREENBERG:

That's where the trouble came in after I got here. ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

Well, all right. So what do you remember about Hamburg?

GREENBERG:

What I remember? The streets, big city streets. We were placed in some sort of a place where we had to wait for the day when the sailing came, a house of some kind, which I really don't remember. Just very vaguely.

SIGRIST:

How long were you in Hamburg?

GREENBERG:

About two days.

SIGRIST:

And then the boat arrived, or you . . .

GREENBERG:

I can't tell you very many details. I think I'm remembering a whole lot at this point. ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

So you were in Hamburg for two days.

GREENBERG:

And then we got on the boat?

SIGRIST:

Do you remember what the name of the boat was?

GREENBERG:

Yeah, Batavia.

SIGRIST:

B-A-T-A-V-I-A.

GREENBERG:

V-I-A.

SIGRIST:

I see. And what was that like?

GREENBERG:

And I think we were on the boat for something like twelve or fourteen days.

SIGRIST:

What were your accommodations like in the boat?

GREENBERG:

Steerage.

SIGRIST:

What was that like?

GREENBERG:

No rooms. Big, the whole place all springs, three deckers hanging from the ceilings. Those were your beds.

SIGRIST:

What did they feed you?

GREENBERG:

Oh, the food was all right.

SIGRIST:

Did you bring any food with you?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. My mother brought, my mother had a whole basket of food she had brought, but it certainly wasn't enough for fourteen days. But what you also carry when you come on these trips, everybody does, is bread that you have dried out into toast and, well, I could give you the, I don't know whether it's the Jewish name or the Russian name, but it wouldn't mean anything, called "suhakis." And they make up a whole lot of that. It's like zwieback, see? And that's what you bring, and you have that with tea when you want to eat. Of course, they serve their meals, but they are very meager meals. You might get a bowl of soup at lunchtime. And I can't remember what we got at other meals, frankly. But my mother had made these things, and you could always get hot water and make some tea. You carried your own, not tea bags, we didn't have tea bags in those days, but you carried tea.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember playing on the boat at all?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. We did a lot of playing. I can't tell you what kind of playing, but we ran around and we played. We were children.

SIGRIST:

Were there lots of people on the boat?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. The boat was packed.

SIGRIST:

Were they all Russians?

GREENBERG:

No. I don't know where they were from. Or they may have been Russians. I don't know.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember being up on deck at all?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. We'd get up, but we lived in steerage.

SIGRIST:

Did you get sick? Did anyone get sick?

GREENBERG:

You mean any people on the boat? Lots of people on the boat got sick?

SIGRIST:

Did you or your mother or brothers?

GREENBERG:

I don't recall that any of us got sick.

SIGRIST:

But there were lots of people that did get sick.

GREENBERG:

Yeah.

SIGRIST:

Was this an exciting thing for a little girl? How did you feel about being on this great, big boat. You'd never seen a boat, probably.

GREENBERG:

No particular, I was with my mother and my brother and I went where they went. ( she laughs ) Don't forget, first of all, I was only six years old. In the second place, I'm now ninety-three, almost ninety-four, so that's a long time to remember things.

SIGRIST:

A long time ago. Do you remember seeing the Statue of Liberty?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

Were you called up on deck when you got into New York Harbor?

GREENBERG:

I don't remember the actual arrival, but I know there was a lot of noise and everybody was excited because we finally got here.

SIGRIST:

And what was the actual date? You did know that.

GREENBERG:

It was in May, but I don't know the actual date.

SIGRIST:

May of 1903.

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

Well, let's get you to Ellis Island. How did you go from the oceanliner to Ellis?

GREENBERG:

I don't remember. Probably across a plank, as you do from all boats, onto the island.

SIGRIST:

And then what was Ellis Island like?

GREENBERG:

A tremendous room with an awful lot of people and an awful lot of noise and people from all over, all kinds of countries with all kinds of languages that you didn't understand. And the one thing that I remember very vividly on Ellis Island, when we were finally, when my father had come to get us, there was an iron gate between him and us. And when our name was called and we were to go and my mother's baggage was coming, and my mother had what we called a featherbed that she had made of feathers that she had plucked from ducks and made them. This was a tremendous thing, a size that you could put into a double bed, that's how big that thing was. It was in ticking. And you see in order to make sure that we didn't bring in any contraband they searched your luggage. But when you brought in something like this, in order to make sure that you didn't have it in your luggage, they came by with a knife and cut it and the feathers were flying all over the place, and my mother's tears were awful, because this was her most prized possession. They finally, when they didn't find anything in it, sewed it up, but a lot of the feathers flowed, and a lot of my mother's tears flowed.

SIGRIST:

What do you think your mother was thinking about through this whole process?

GREENBERG:

I don't think she had any thoughts. She was so broken-hearted that her featherbed was being cut open.

SIGRIST:

Her introduction to America.

GREENBERG:

Well, I don't know. I think mostly her mind was on meeting my father and living here.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember seeing your father for the first time?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

What was that like?

GREENBERG:

Nothing. I was afraid of him. I wouldn't speak to my father for a long time before I got used to the fact that he was my father.

SIGRIST:

When you were in Russia did you know, you knew you had a father.

GREENBERG:

I knew I had a father, but that's all I knew. And I knew we were going to my father. But when we got here, I was hugging my mother all the time.

SIGRIST:

When you were in Russia did you have a photograph of your father?

GREENBERG:

I don't recall any.

SIGRIST:

So here was this strange man, and . . .

GREENBERG:

Well, I knew, I was told he was my father, but the word "father" means nothing to you at that time if you haven't seen him at all. I'm six years old, but in those six years I haven't seen my father.

SIGRIST:

Your brother, did he remember your father a little better, because he was very young, too?

GREENBERG:

Yeah, but I think he did. I really can't tell you his feelings, because I don't know.

SIGRIST:

And how long were you at Ellis Island?

GREENBERG:

How long what?

SIGRIST:

How long were you at Ellis Island?

GREENBERG:

How long was I what?

SIGRIST:

How long were you at, on Ellis Island? How long did the processing take?

GREENBERG:

Oh, I think we had to stay overnight.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember why?

GREENBERG:

I don't remember exactly why, but I think it was something, the fact that my father couldn't get there in time. He was working, and he couldn't get there in time.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember sleeping there?

GREENBERG:

No, but I remember the discussions afterwards that we had stayed overnight.

SIGRIST:

I see. So your father came to the island and he got you, and then where did he take you?

GREENBERG:

He took us to his sister's home. He had a sister here who was married and had a child. And we stayed with them a couple of days, because then he got an apartment in the same building.

SIGRIST:

And this is in Manhattan?

GREENBERG:

Yes. At 116 Stanton Street.

SIGRIST:

Stanton Street. And what was, you say he got you an apartment, what was that apartment like?

GREENBERG:

It was what they called a railroad flat in those days.

SIGRIST:

Did it have electricity?

GREENBERG:

No. ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

Gas light?

GREENBERG:

Do you know why I'm laughing? You are so young compared to that. Because if you knew anything at all about those days, there was no such thing as electricity, and certainly not for the poor people.

SIGRIST:

Did it have running water in it?

GREENBERG:

Cold water. Running cold water.

SIGRIST:

Was there a bathroom?

GREENBERG:

No. You had to go down to the yard, and the toilets were in the yard.

SIGRIST:

What sorts of people lived in the building?

GREENBERG:

People the same as the people of today, only they didn't have the things that we have today.

SIGRIST:

Were there other immigrants living in the building?

GREENBERG:

Well, the people living in the building doesn't necessarily mean that they were immigrants.

SIGRIST:

I guess my question is was this an immigrant neighborhood that you moved into? Were there other Russian families living . . .

GREENBERG:

I suppose so. There were other people living on Stanton Street altogether, and the building that we lived in was four stories high.

SIGRIST:

And what floor were you on?

GREENBERG:

On the third.

SIGRIST:

So it's your mother, your father, your brother and yourself. Did you have your own bedroom, or did you share a bedroom?

GREENBERG:

Are you kidding? ( she laughs ) There was no such thing as having a bedroom.

SIGRIST:

Where did you sleep in the apartment?

GREENBERG:

We had what was called a four-room apartment. Two bedrooms, a dining room and a kitchen. My mother and father had a bedroom, the other bedroom was rented out to people whom you knew who also were immigrants who came in, and the children slept on the floor.

SIGRIST:

On the featherbeds?

GREENBERG:

Uh-huh.

SIGRIST:

Were you enrolled in school right away?

GREENBERG:

Yes. The school was one block away, and we were enrolled in school right away.

SIGRIST:

How did you learn English?

GREENBERG:

Very fast. Learned it in school.

SIGRIST:

They taught it to you in school.

GREENBERG:

Because, you know, you see, today they talk about two languages. There were no such thing as two languages. It was English. And you came to school, you learned to speak English because nobody spoke anything else.

SIGRIST:

How about your father, I assume, already knew some English having been here some time.

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

How about your mother? How did she learn . . .

GREENBERG:

She went to night school. The school was a block away.

SIGRIST:

How many times a week?

GREENBERG:

Every night, five nights a week. No, it had to be four nights a week, because Friday night she didn't go.

SIGRIST:

Did she learn English easily?

GREENBERG:

I wouldn't say it was easily, but she learned it well.

SIGRIST:

And at this time your father is working in the garment. Did your mother work?

GREENBERG:

Well, my mother and my father's sister had a soda stand, what they called a soda stand, and they took turns in running that to make a dollar.

SIGRIST:

Where was that?

GREENBERG:

Right on the corner of Stanton and the corner of Essex.

SIGRIST:

Like a little pushcart?

GREENBERG:

No, it was up against a building, enclosed. It had shelves, a soda fountain, cigarettes, candy, and it was enclosed, like a bar, with a door that opened so you could go in and out.

SIGRIST:

I see. Was there a synagogue in this neighborhood?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes, several. It was a mostly Jewish neighborhood.

SIGRIST:

I see. And just as your mother had been religious in Russia, did you start attending regularly?

GREENBERG:

No, I didn't. Not for a while. Not for a couple of years.

SIGRIST:

But she did.

GREENBERG:

Oh, you mean going to the synagogue on Saturday?

SIGRIST:

Did she go?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember celebrating holidays at all? Passover?

GREENBERG:

Oh, we celebrated all the holidays.

SIGRIST:

Can you describe, perhaps, a passover celebration for me in those early years in America?

GREENBERG:

No. It would be a little difficult for me. I have difficulty describing it as they are today. ( they laugh )

SIGRIST:

So did you go right through high school?

GREENBERG:

No. I went through public school, and I went for one year to Wadley High School and then I went to a special school called Hebrew Technical School for Girls. My brother went to Hebrew Technical Institute, and this was the girls' part of that school. It was in a different location, and I went there at a later time than my brother because he was older than I was.

SIGRIST:

What did you learn?

GREENBERG:

In that school? Typing, shorthand, bookkeeping, English. We had a choice of either taking what they called a commercial course, or the manual course. I could have learned dressmaking and millinery and stuff like that. I chose the commercial.

SIGRIST:

Did you get a diploma or . . .

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes.

SIGRIST:

What year did you graduate from that?

GREENBERG:

I do not remember.

SIGRIST:

How old were you, roughly?

GREENBERG:

Hmm. When I graduated from that school? Sixteen.

SIGRIST:

And then did you go right out into the work force?

GREENBERG:

Yes.

SIGRIST:

What was your first job?

GREENBERG:

I was working for a lawyer on 125th Street near Lenox Avenue.

SIGRIST:

And what were some of your tasks?

GREENBERG:

I beg your pardon?

SIGRIST:

What were some of your tasks? What were some of your responsibilities at that job?

GREENBERG:

I was a stenographer in an office, in a law office.

SIGRIST:

Do you remember how much you made a week?

GREENBERG:

Yeah. Five dollars a week.

SIGRIST:

So you must have, but then you must have mastered the English language?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. You wouldn't know I was an immigrant by then.

SIGRIST:

What sorts of, what was your brother's first job?

GREENBERG:

My brother went to Cooper Union after. He went to Hebrew Technical Institute, and then he went to Cooper Union. He was an engineer, a mechanical engineer.

SIGRIST:

I see. And you said your mother never worked, except for running the soda stand with her sister-in-law.

GREENBERG:

My mother did a lot of work all her life. She did work at home.

SIGRIST:

Right. Did you, tell me a little bit about, in that neighborhood, were there lots of stores? Was it mostly a residential neighborhood or were there businesses also?

GREENBERG:

Oh, there were a lot of stores, too. Same like you have here.

SIGRIST:

When you came to America, did your family ever experience any kind of bigotry, say, anti-Semitic feelings?

GREENBERG:

I wouldn't know, really. No.

SIGRIST:

You said it was mostly a Jewish neighborhood.

GREENBERG:

Yeah, mostly a Jewish neighborhood. And then, what year did we go? I think it was in 1919, we went to Toledo, Ohio.

SIGRIST:

The whole family moved?

GREENBERG:

Uh-huh.

SIGRIST:

Why did you go to Ohio?

GREENBERG:

( she pauses ) That's a long story.

SIGRIST:

In a nutshell?

GREENBERG:

( she laughs ) Well, in a nutshell, my brother had gone to Toledo University. While he was there he saw a store, a country store-type, that he thought my father could do well in. At that time my brother was around twenty years old, I think. And so he wrote to my father and he helped along in ways. And my father went there and saw the store and decided to buy it, and then we went there. END OF SIDE ONE BEGINNING OF SIDE TWO

SIGRIST:

How long did you stay?

GREENBERG:

I beg your pardon?

SIGRIST:

How long did you remain in Toledo?

GREENBERG:

Well, my parents remained in Toledo a good many years. I did, too. I worked in Toledo for a number of years.

SIGRIST:

So the store was a success.

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes. And they also bought a couple of houses, small houses, individual. Yeah, they made it a success there.

SIGRIST:

Was your mother happy that she came to America?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yes.

SIGRIST:

She wasn't, did she ever see any of her family in Russia again?

GREENBERG:

No.

SIGRIST:

None of her family ever came over.

GREENBERG:

No. She only had, well, she had nieces and nephews that came over. She saw them, the younger generation.

SIGRIST:

But not her . . .

GREENBERG:

She never saw her parents, nor her sister.

SIGRIST:

What about your father's family?

GREENBERG:

Oh, yeah. They all came over.

SIGRIST:

Did they?

GREENBERG:

Most of them.

SIGRIST:

Did your father help bring them over?

GREENBERG:

Uh-huh. Each one helped bring another one over.

SIGRIST:

Did his parents come?

GREENBERG:

No.

SIGRIST:

They stayed.

GREENBERG:

No. They all died there.

SIGRIST:

I see.

GREENBERG:

Well, not all the members of the family came over either. I would say about half of them.

SIGRIST:

Your father, did he really love America? Was he happy with how his life turned out here?

GREENBERG:

How could I describe that? First of all how could I know his feelings to begin with? He was a very hardworking man, struggling to make a living.

SIGRIST:

But it seems like he was successful at doing it.

GREENBERG:

Well, to a point of making a living, but I wouldn't say that he was any great success.

SIGRIST:

I see. Well, I guess, you know, my final question to ask you, is if you're glad that you had come to America?

GREENBERG:

Oh, I was very happy that I came to America. I wasn't, I stayed in Toledo for a number of years, and then I moved to Chicago and I lived in Chicago for a number of years. And then I decided that I liked New York best of all and I came back to New York.

SIGRIST:

So how, you've been in New York since 1932?

GREENBERG:

No, since 1927, I returned to New York. I had been here, you know, I think it was in 1917 I believe, or 1916 we went to Toledo. I said 1919, I was wrong. 1916 we went to Toledo and in the 1920s, some time in the 1920s I went to Chicago and in 1927 I came to New York.

SIGRIST:

I see. And you've been here since 1932, as you told us.

GREENBERG:

I lived in this house since 1932.

SIGRIST:

I see. Well, I want to thank you very much for giving us your time . . .

GREENBERG:

And, of course, I was married here in New York.

SIGRIST:

Yes. What year were you married?

GREENBERG:

1941.

SIGRIST:

And to whom? Who was your husband?

GREENBERG:

To William Greenberg.

SIGRIST:

And what did he do for a living?

GREENBERG:

He was a salesman. And he died in 1958.

SIGRIST:

I see. But you've stayed on here.

GREENBERG:

Yes. We lived here from the time we were married, and when he died I stayed on here.

SIGRIST:

Well, your whole life was here by then, also.

GREENBERG:

My whole life was right here. ( she laughs )

SIGRIST:

Well, Mrs. Greenberg, I want to thank you again very much for letting us use your house.

GREENBERG:

You're very welcome.

SIGRIST:

And picking your brain about your immigration experience.

GREENBERG:

Well, I'm glad that I could remember something to tell you so you have some story.

SIGRIST:

Indeed. I do have to say you're one of the early, of people who have come through the earliest that we have spoken to, and I'm very happy with that.

GREENBERG:

I have the most to tell you.

SIGRIST:

Yes. You had a great deal to tell us. So anyway I want to thank you very much.

GREENBERG:

You're very welcome.

SIGRIST:

And this is Paul Sigrist signing off for the National Park Service.