To: @PIKROZDL.PML
Subject: Genealogy #56
Reply-to: IsraelP@pikholz.org
Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2006 15:21:02 +0200

Dear Pikholz Cousins,

Only five weeks ago, I was leaving the Conference on Jewish Genealogy in 
New York and now with the remnants of the trip still piled up, it's time 
for last minute Rosh HaShanah greetings, and of course a brief summary of 
the latest goings on.  Very brief, I'm afraid.

First off, condolences to the family of Rabbi Isidore Pickholtz of 
Cleveland who died yesterday (Thursday).  The funeral is at one o'clock 
today in Cleveland and because of the holiday there will be only a token 
shiva. Rabbi Isidore Pickholtz is a descendant of the IF1 family through 
his mother and the IF4 family through his father and is the last of the 
"Ellis Island generation" in that part of the family.  He was eighty-
seven.

The Conference was excellent.  About 1500 participants from what I 
understand, with lectures and activities from eight in the morning until 
ten at night, sometimes with seven or eight lectures at once.  Lectures, 
workshops, computer labs, panel discussions, films and more - on 
families, communities, research resources, methodology and more.  The 
syllabus was about three inches thick, plus a CD.  And of course much of 
the best time was spent with other researchers - most I knew from before 
or from email contact, but some I was meeting for the first time.  Plus a 
number of you, whom I have finally met face to face after all these years 
of correspondence.  Very gratifying that.

I didn't give any lectures myself, but I am already planning two for the 
next conference, in Salt Lake City in July.

I was also able to visit a dozen cemeteries where I photographed graves 
for our virtual family cemetery - both Pikholz and others.  For the most 
part, I did not visit graves for which I already have photographs - there 
are just too many.  However, we did have one instance where quite 
unintentionally we found a family of Pikholz descendants we weren't even 
looking for and in fact had no idea where to find.  This would be Dora 
and Kopel Brumer and there two adult children.  Dora (Devorah Gittel) is 
the daughter of Chaim ben Eliezer Pikholz of Skalat (ELIEZER family) and 
all I knew previously is that they went "to America."

One of the first speakers was the president of myheritage.com, an Israeli-
based genealogy company whose expertise is face recognition technology.  
When I finally get my desk and head cleared from the trip, I want to 
figure out how we can best use this in our own research.  If someone 
wants to have a look at their site and take the lead on this, I'd be 
delighted.

No new developments on the new Galician records which recently become 
available.  Obviously I am not the only person still catching up from the 
conference.

There will be a pilot project to index records from the Lwow archives.  
these records are a bit earlier than the ones we have now (from Warsaw) 
and as such will have less information.  I don't know the estimated 
timeline for this project - negotiations are ongoing with the archives 
and the person who will organize the indexing.

I did receive permission this week to put the Rozdol censuses from 1801, 
1819 and 1826 online.  We have a few Pikholz representatives among those 
records.

I mentioned earlier that we are engaging a researcher in Budapest to find 
birth and marriage records for some unidentified Pikholz families there.  
Meantime a few more months have gone by and the researcher hasn't been 
responding, so when I have time, I'll have to find someone else.

We are working on a project to make available records of collections in 
Galicia to support Galizianers living in Jerusalem.  These records are 
for about 1925-39, earlier ones having been lost when the Old City fell.  
These records are handwritten in Hebrew and would be searchable as 
scanned pages, by town and year.  I don't know if we will be able to 
finance the larger cities, because there is just too much material, but 
the smaller towns should be doable.  We are now in negotiations with the 
Jerusalem institution which holds these records.  Unfortunately, their 
definition of Galicia doesn't include the arc from Skalat to Buczacz.

We have an ongoing struggle with the Israeli Ministry of Internal Affairs 
regarding certain records of dead people.  They have decided - with the 
support of the court, but contrary to the formal regulations - that no 
information may be given about anyone living or dead except to a "first 
degree" relative.  (That is more or less what the Germans were saying 
about the Red Cross records which are now becoming available.)  That is 
particularly strange because the Ministry of Defense has a website with 
this same information regarding all the fallen soldiers and the burial 
societies in Tel-Aviv and Haifa are also online.

The insurance story I told you last time regarding the previously 
unidentified Chaim Mendel Pickholz is moving along towards what appears 
to be a successful conclusion. This Holocaust victim has a ninety-five 
year old sister-in-law who is the only known heir and I hope we will be 
able to get this done before much longer.  No thanks to the Generali 
insurance company.

There are a few other items in preparation and you may receive some brief 
notices soon.

I promised you brief, so I shall close now, wishing all of you and your 
families a good, healthy and prosperous new eyar and a happy holiday 
season.  May you all be wrtiien an sealed in the Book of Life.

Israel P.

-- End --