Gerald Broida – Heritage Ramblings

Gilbert Broida in Wrestling Tourney, May, 1935. In "The West End Press", May 3, 1935, (no vol.) No. 64, page 4, column 1. digitaldu.coalliance.org — *Gerald Broida in Wrestling Tourney at 8:20, May 6, 1935. In “The West End Press”, May 3, 1935, (no vol.) No. 64, page 4, column 1. digitaldu.coalliance.org*

Broida Family (Click for Family Tree)

Incredible resources spring up on a daily basis, whether they are just becoming available online or whether they are just now showing up in my search results. A recent find is the University of Denver’s “Digital DU.”

Some of our Broida family went to Denver around 1900 (John and Gitel Broida, and their sons Joseph Broida and Harold Broida), then returned to Pittsburgh after Gitel died; Pittsburgh was where many of the family had settled earlier. (See previous posts, including this one about the Broidas in Denver.) A son who had stayed in Pennsylvania with family while his mother was ill, Theodore “Dave” Broida, married in Aurora, CO, in 1916, then lived in the Denver area and raised a family. It was puzzling why Dave moved to Denver, of all places, but the recent repository find gives us some clues. So do recent serendipitous comments when talking with the generations that were closer to the time and people.

One dear cousin who is an incredible, deep well of Broida information told me this week that Gerald Broida told her years ago that young Jewish boys used to ride the trains west, selling candy to passengers; his father, Dave Broida, was one of them. One day Dave got off the train in Denver, fell in love with the place, and decided to move there. Gerald had also commented that the 1916 wedding of Dave Broida and Lucy Shatzke was the first Jewish wedding in Arapahoe County, Colorado.

A second conversation that same night with a different family member revived her memories of Dave Broida sending the three sisters a box of 100 pieces of Double Bubble Bubble Gum from Denver occasionally during the war years, when food and candy was rationed. Bubble gum used latex rubber for its chewiness, but rubber and manufacturing facilities were needed more for tires for jeeps and military trucks, gaskets, seals, inflatable vests, etc., so bubble gum was hard to come by in the mid 1940s. The young girls rationed out their sweet treasure of bubble gum from their great-uncle, and no doubt were envied by friends. “Dave and Lucy [Broida] were in the candy business” she said also, and the light bulb went on. Here was more information to corroborate that Dave had been one of the young boys selling candy on a train as they were off to see the world. A rest stop in Denver with the clean air (compared to polluted Pittsburgh) and beautiful mountains even higher than those of Pennsylvania may have made him realize he had found the home for his heart. He would have had knowledge of candy wholesalers to buy his wares for the train, so getting into the candy business later would have been logical.

In the 1920 US Federal Census, however, Dave was mistranscribed as being a ‘machinist’ but is actually a ‘merchant’ in the furniture business.

The next US census, in 1930, lists Theodore D. Broida as a salesman for novelty goods. That could be candy and all those impulse items at the register. A 1940 census entry has not yet been found for the family, but would be very useful. City directories or newspapers might have more information to verify Dave’s occupation, so a Google search was next. The search found The West End Press article above. While about G. Broida being in a wrestling tourney at a weight of 145 pounds (he was 17 then), Gerald Broida was Dave and Lucy’s son. The link led to “Digital DU.”

There are 633 hits on The West End Press at “Digital DU” but “Broida” does not have any hits, so either the search engine does not go into pages of the newspaper, or else I haven’t figured out how to use the website. (There is an advanced search and even a how-to, but still no Broida results though we know there is at least one mention in the newspaper.) A note to the digital librarian may help, so that is on the agenda. Looking through other areas of the site, however, showed more interesting areas to peruse. There is a “Special Collections and Archives” section that provided more clues to our family story. Apparently Denver, as suspected, was a location that a lot of people with ‘consumption’ (tuberculosis), such as Gitel Broida, moved to, looking for a cure for their disease. It became a problem for Denver to grow so fast, and more sanitariums were founded to serve those who needed medical care. The Digital DU website lists the “Jewish Consumptives Relief Society Records” from the organization founded by Eastern European Jewish men in 1904 (so too late for Broida records), many of whom had the disease themselves. (See image of Patients Undergoing Heliotherapy– likely Gitel Broida underwent the same treatment years earlier.) The Jewish population of Denver was growing and thriving as well, and the Special Collections and Archives contain Jewish artifacts as well as documents.

This website appears to be worth investigating further, especially how to navigate and search more effectively.

Searching nearby universities and their digital libraries is a great resource for family historians- otherwise, how would we have known that Gerald Broida weighed 145 lbs. in 1945 and wrestled in a Jewish league?

Notes, Sources, and References:

1) 1930 US Federal Census for Joseph Shatzke, head of household- Year: 1920; Census Place: Aurora, Adams, Colorado; Roll: T625_155; Page: 18B; Enumeration District: 8; Image: 207. Ancestry.com. 1920 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

2) 1930 US Federal Census for Theodore Broida, head of household- Year: 1930; Census Place: Denver, Denver, Colorado; Roll: 232; Page: 2B; Enumeration District: 0220; Image: 1045.0; FHL microfilm: 2339967. Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2002.

3) Jewish Consumptives Relief Society Records – http://digitaldu.coalliance.org/fedora/repository/codu:32554

Patients undergoing heliotherapy- http://digitaldu.coalliance.org/fedora/repository/codu:60066

4) Special Collections and Archives- http://digitaldu.coalliance.org/fedora/repository/codu%3A17451

5) The West End Press article- http://digitaldu.coalliance.org/fedora/repository/codu%3A55006/B121.02.0010.0006.00016_access.pdf/access

6) Denver University’s Digital DU– http://digitaldu.coalliance.org

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*John Broida in 1901 Denver City Directory*

➡ Broida Family

Today we will be looking at search results from the Denver Public Library, with a few additional sources to verify and render the picture more complete.

John Broida

In 1900, John Broida was listed as living at 1655 Eliot per the Denver City Directory.

The 1900 US Federal Census listed John, Gussie/Gitel, and two sons at 1655 Eliot Street: Joseph J. Broida, age 18, working as a clerk in a clothing house, and little Harry (Harold), just two years old. John was listed as a Dry Goods Merchant.

The Broidas rented their home, but also had four boarders living with them- a husband and wife with their two children. The boarders were born in Russia with their children born in New York. Samuel Bobresky, age 28, had immigrated to the US just three years before, and was a tailor- appropriate since John worked in men’s furnishings (clothing, accessories).

Ancestry.com’s city directories list John Broida in 1901 at the same address, with his occupation, which meant men’s clothing.

Theodore “Dave” Broida

In 1920, Corbett & Ballenger’s 48th Annual Denver City Directory listed “Broida & Eisen Furniture Co.” at 1860 Stout under the heading, “Furniture.” Dave Broida was partners with S. Eisen Jr.

*Broida & Eisen Furniture and Theodore Broida in 1920 Denver City Directory*

Dave and Lucy were residing at 1746 Geneva in Aurora. The 1920 US Federal Census indicates they were living with Lucy’s parents, Joseph and Sarah Shatzke, and had an almost two year old son, Gerald Broida.

In 1923, Dave and Lucy Broida were residing at 2620 West 23rd Avenue in Denver, and their business of second hand goods was located at 1959 Champa.

TD Broida's Second-Hand Goods Store listed in businesses in 1923 Denver City Directory — *TD Broida’s Second-Hand Goods Store listed in businesses in 1923 Denver City Directory*

The above was a listing under “Second-Hand Goods,” on p. 402, in the 1923 Corbett & Ballenger’s 51st Annual Denver City Directory; they were also listed in the residence section:

Theodore "Dave" Broida and wife Lucy M listed in 1923 Denver City Directory — *Theodore “Dave” Broida and wife Lucy M listed in 1923 Denver City Directory*

Interestingly, in 1923 on p. 402 under Second-Hand Goods, S. Eisen Jr is listed at 1860 Stout. The joint venture, ‘Broida & Eisen Furniture Co,’ in 1920, apparently had dissolved by 1923. (And I was reminded to not just glean only the exact information one is looking for- perusing other parts of the page may reveal some gems like this!)

The Denver Public Library also houses Denver Household Directories and Street Guides, which are organized by address and indicate who was living there or the name of the business at that address. In those directories, a search for “Broida” shows us the addresses and sometimes even the occupations of Theodore “Dave” Broida and his wife, Lucy M. Shatzke Broida:

1926: grocer, living at 1661 Williams (p. 626)

1927-29: still living at 1661 Williams

1931: 4042 Clay

1933: 3901 Clay

1934: 4439 Zuni

1937: still at 4439 Zuni

If one Googles the address, 4439 Zuni comes up with a map and street view of their Craftsman bungalow. One can also check zillow.com or trulia.com to learn more about the house, including current number of bedrooms, baths, square footage, etc. Zillow states the Zuni house was built in 1907, so basically it is the same house that Dave and Lucy lived in 78 years ago. (They would be very surprised that it sold for over $322,00!) One can look at their two residences on Clay (4042 built in 1926, 3901 built 1923) and still see those houses, but 1661 Williams has apparently been razed and an apartment building and parking lot placed where their house had been.

The home of John and Gitel Broida in 1900, at 1655 Eliot St., no longer exists- it is now a part of the Mile High Stadium complex.

Notes, Sources, and References:

1) 1900 Corbett & Ballenger’s 28th Annual Denver City Directory, p. 237: http://digital.denverlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p16079coll28/id/33385/rec/2

After doing a search on the website, a tab will be above the reduced-size document with your search term and how many hits were found in the document. Use the scroll box for the pages of the book that is on the right side of the screen. As you scroll, pages with hits for your search term will have a red, “1 found” (or more) listed after it; just click on that page to go to it. I have not figured out how to get rid of the red highlighting, unfortunately.

2) 1900 US Federal Census for John Broida, Head of Household, in Denver, Arapahoe, Colorado: Year: 1900; Census Place: Denver, Arapahoe, Colorado; Roll: 120; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 0126; FHL microfilm: 1240122

3) 1901 Denver City Directory entry for John Broida: Ancestry.com. U.S. City Directories, 1821-1989 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

4) 1920 Corbett & Ballenger’s 48th Annual Denver City Directory, p. 270, 717 for Broida & Eisen Furniture: http://digital.denverlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p16079coll28/id/25728/rec/3

5) 1920 US Federal Census for Joseph Shatzke, Head of Household: Year: 1920; Census Place: Aurora, Adams, Colorado; Roll: T625_155; Page: 18B; Enumeration District: 8; Image: 207

6) 1923 Corbett & Ballenger’s 51st Annual Denver City Directory, p. 402 for Theodore “Dave” Broida: rary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p16079coll28/id/28024/rec/1

7) No financial interest, etc. in any of the commercial sites listed- I just like using them to see our ancestor’s homes! One can also save an image of the house to compare to photos that you may have but not know where they were taken. Of course, houses change over 70-100+ years, but you might still be able to tell if it is the same house as what is on Zillow or Trulia, or even on Google.

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Tag: Gerald Broida

Those Places Thursday: Another Denver Colorado Repository

Original content copyright 2013-2015 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.

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