Name

Mr. and Mrs. Ben Newman

Number

OH 19

Subject

Families

Interview Date

4 Jan. 1975

Quantity

1

Interviewer

Stephen Spiesman

Conservation

Copied August 2003.

Use Restrictions

Conditional access. Researchers must receive permission from the interviewee or their heir prior to accessing the interview. Please contact the OJA for more information.

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Biography

Ben Newman was born in July 1920 in St Catharines, Ontario. He married Sheila Gould from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Ben's father, Abraham, immigrated to St. Catharines from Russia in 1909, living with his aunt and uncle and helping them with their junk business. His wife, Mary, and two children followed later. Four more children were born in Canada: Norman, Benjamin, Rebecca, and Gordon. Benjamin took over the company after Abraham’s retirement and turned it into one of the largest steel manufacturers in Canada. Ben Newman was active in all phases of Jewish life in the community and was the first Jewish aldermen in St. Catharines, a position he held for several years.

Material Format

sound recording

Name Access

Newman, Benjamin

Newman, Sheila

Geographic Access

St. Catharines (Ont.)

Toronto (Ont.)

Original Format

Audio cassette

Copy Format

Audio cassette

Source

Oral Histories

Name

Larry Cohen

Number

OH 302

Interview Date

7 Jun. 2007

Quantity

2 mini DV's, archival and reference copies

Interviewer

Sharon Gubbay Helfer

Notes

Ontario Small Jewish Communities Project.

Availability of other formats: Also available as an M4V video file

Use Restrictions

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Biography

Larry Cohen lived in Buffalo for many years, where he met and married his wife,, Marlene. He joined the US Army during the Korean War and was stationed in New Jersey. After the army, he began working at his grandfather’s steel business and then in 1959 moved back to Niagara Falls. He held several positions with the synagogue in Niagara Falls including treasurer and president. He has three children—Bobby, Steven, and Michelle—and numerous grandchildren.

Myer Salit, Larry Cohen's grandfather, was born in Brest Litovski, Poland. At the age of twenty-three, he booked passage to America on the SS Norge. On 28 June 1904, the ship struck a reef off the coast of Scotland and sank. Mr. Salit survived, along with approximately 160 other passengers, and made his way to New York and then St. Catharines, Ontario, where his brother-in-law, Harry Rubin, was a scrap metal dealer.

In 1905, Mayer Salit moved to Niagara Falls, Ontario, and set up his own scrap metal business. He was the first Jewish resident of that community. Over time, the business prospered and grew. After the Second World War, his son-in-law, Irvin Feldman, joined the company followed by his grandson, Larry Cohen, in 1955. The company began to diversify, selling new and used steel products to local industry. Myer Salit passed away in 1958 and left the business in the hands of Irvin and Larry. By the 1960s, the company branched out and became a reinforcing steel (rebar) fabricator and changed its name to Salit Steel. During the 1980s, the family sold off the scrap metal division of the company. Mr. Feldman retired, and the responsibility for managing the firm was shared by Larry Cohen and Steven Cohen, Myer's great-grandson. The company has continued to expand and diversify and currently serves the needs of southern Ontario.

Material Format

moving images

Geographic Access

St. Catharines (Ont.)

Niagara Falls (Ont.)

Original Format

Mini DV

Copy Format

DVD

Source

Oral Histories

Name

Norine Fenig

Number

OH 303

Interview Date

19 Jul. 2007

Quantity

2 mini DV's, archival and reference copies

Interviewer

Sharon Gubbay Helfer

Notes

Ontario Small Jewish Communities Project.

Physical condition: The last 5 minutes of CD 1 are missing; it may be worthwhile to redigitize the original media

Availability of other formats: Also available as an M4V video file

Use Restrictions

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Copyright is held by the Ontario Jewish Archives. Please contact the archives to obtain permission prior to use.

Biography

Norine Fenig (née Revzen)’s father, Morton, came to St. Catharines from Russia in the early 1900s. Her mother, Caroline, came to Rochester, New York with her family. Her father and uncle went into the scrap metal business, eventually starting Niagara Structural Steel. Norine went to the University of Wisconsin and taught elementary school in Buffalo after graduating. She met her husband Leonard in Rochester, New York and they lived there for a year before moving back to St. Catharines so that Leonard could take over the steel business. Norine and Leonard had two children – Abraham and Celia.

Norine was involved in St. Catharines Young Judaea organization, which was founded in the community in 1931. During that time, they had two groups, one of which was an arts and crafts group led by Norine. She recalls attending meetings with members from Niagara Falls and Hamilton. They organized parties as well as other functions. She states that many of the teens met their spouses this way and “that’s how most of the marriages took place.”

Norine Fenig was a member of her local Hadassah and was also involved in the group bat mitzvah at St. Catharines Congregation B’nai Israel, which occurred in 2003, and the preparation it entailed.

Norine is a keen bridge player, playing duplicate bridge in clubs and competitions in St Catharines, Niagara Falls, Toronto, and Florida. She has reached life master status in the American Contract Bridge League.

Material Format

moving images

Geographic Access

St. Catharines (Ont.)

Original Format

Mini DV

Copy Format

DVD

Source

Oral Histories

Name

Neville and Ruth Sischy

Number

OH 439

Subject

Canada--Emigration and immigration

Jews--South Africa

South Africa--Emigration and immigration

Interview Date

17 Nov. 2016

Interviewer

Miriam Borden

Total Running Time

OH 439 part 1: 37 min.

OH 439 part 2: 7 min.

OH 439 part 3: 7 min.

Biography

Neville and Ruth were born toward the beginning of apartheid rule in South Africa. Indeed, Neville was born the same year the National Party returned to power and formalized the system of apartheid. Because of their young age, Neville and Ruth were largely unaware of the political developments taking place in their country. By the time they left South Africa in the mid-1970s, the government had devolved into a police state. For them, the Canada of Pierre Elliott Trudeau was a welcome contrast to the injustice of apartheid South Africa.

Neville and Ruth grew up in traditional Jewish homes, in which their grandparents spoke Yiddish and were treated with deference. Neville met Ruth while attending medical school in Johannesburg. He was twenty-one at the time; she was eighteen. The two married on the condition that they leave South Africa and, after a positive look-see, came to Canada in 1975. Initially, Neville had trouble finding work as a general practitioner but was eventually able to open a clinic, where he has worked for forty years. Ruth, meanwhile, quickly found work in the nursery department of Holy Blossom Temple, the latter serving as a launching pad for their integration into Canadian society.

Although there were challenges along the way, Neville and Ruth have never regretted their decision to immigrate to Canada. They have four children, all of whom have made friends with the children of their Holy Blossom friends, and hope to see those friendships continue into the third generation.

Material Format

moving images

Language

English

Name Access

Sischy, Neville

Sischy, Ruth

Geographic Access

Benoni (South Africa)

Cape Town (South Africa)

Germiston (South Africa)

Toronto (Ont.)

Vancouver (B.C.)

Original Format

Digital file

Copy Format

Digital file

Transcript

Part 1:

00:35 Ruth discusses her parents' immigration history. Her father came to Benoni, South Africa from Lithuania and Latvia at age fifteen. Her mother came to Cape Town from Lithuania as an infant with her mother.

03:40 Ruth discusses her Jewish home life growing up. Yiddish was the primary language spoken by her grandmothers and between her grandparents and her parents. She describes her parents' home as traditional but not religious.

05:04 Ruth discusses her education. She attended a public school. She describes her brothers' Jewish education. She did not have any formal Jewish education.

05:42 Ruth continues to describe her home life.

06:55 Neville discusses his family's immigration history. His father came from Sveskna, Lithuania to live with an aunt in South Africa at age sixteen in 1927. He eventually bought a men's clothing business in Germiston, where Neville was born. His mother was born in South Africa. His maternal grandfather came to South Africa from Lithuania at the turn of the twentieth century, leaving behind a wife and child. He was able to bring them to Johannesburg, South Africa thirteen years later.

09:23 Neville explains that he lived in Germiston until 1971, when he moved to Johannesburg to go to medical school. He met Ruth while he was attending medical school. He explains that he and Ruth were married knowing they would leave South Africa.

10:29 Neville discusses the factors that contributed to his decision to leave South Africa.

11:49 Neville considered moving to England after he did an elective there during medical school. He explains why he decided to come to Canada instead. Neville discusses the circumstances that led to two of his father's cousins to leave South Africa and come to Canada.

13:24 Neville and Ruth explain why they decided to settle in Toronto rather than Vancouver, their initial destination. Ruth discusses the challenges of leaving her family. She recalls her first Rosh Hashanah in Toronto and how she found comfort from a sense of community.

17:23 Ruth notes that she chose Toronto over Vancouver thinking she would have a greater chance of seeing family. Paradoxically, her family immigrated to Oregon.

18:21 Ruth discusses the reaction of friends and family to their decision to emigrate.

19:12 Neville and Ruth discuss a look-see visit to Canada in 1974. They relate a humorous incident involving trying to get to the Canadian embassy in Rome.

21:04 Ruth describes the homesickness she felt as a new immigrant to Canada. She highlights the poor communication at the time: slow mail; postal strikes; sending mail via Buffalo, New York; expensive and complicated long-distance phone calls.

23:06 Neville discusses some of the challenges he encountered when he first arrived.

24:38 Neville and Ruth discuss the support they received from the Jewish community. They identify support from their colleagues.

26:10 Neville and Ruth explain the factors that directed them to choose their first neighbourhood.

27:12 Ruth discusses her adjustment to Canadian winter.

28:31 Ruth comments on her surprise of being able to practice Judaism openly in Toronto.

30:44 Ruth contrasts open conversations about the Holocaust in Canada with minimal discussion in Johannesburg. Neville discusses the impact of the Holocaust on his family.

32:25 Ruth discusses the role their household staff played in her life in South Africa.

33:11 Neville recounts an anecdote demonstrating the prevalence of domestic help in white South Africa.

34:08 Neville contrasts the oppressive society of South Africa with the open, welcoming Canadian governance and society.

35:11 Neville discusses why the military was glorified in South Africa.

36:02 Ruth discusses her professional career.

Part 2:

00:47 Neville's sister and family and parents immigrated to Canada a year-and-a-half after their arrival. Ruth's family immigrated to the United States.

01:25 Neville and Ruth have four children, all born in Canada.

02:01 Both Neville and Ruth strongly identify as Canadian. Neville recalls he felt Canadian when she took his children to school. Ruth distinguishes between her "childhood life" in Africa and her "adult life" in Canada.

04:16 Ruth explains when and why she returned to South Africa for visits.

05:07 Neville discusses a desire to help young children and families in South Africa.

07:17 Neville notes the similarities between Ruth and his backgrounds (e.g. living with a grandmother, Yiddish spoken in the home).

Part 3:

00:22 Ruth explains why she is grateful for coming to Toronto.

00:47 Neville discusses a social group in Toronto comprised of former Jewish residents from Germiston. He notes that he has a large extended family in Toronto.

01:38 Ruth notes that most of their close friends tend to be South African.

02:01 Neville discusses his cousin, Ben Sischy, who had been a political activist in South Africa.

02:30 Ruth notes her awareness of South African politics became stronger after she immigrated to Canada.

03:15 Neville relates stories about Black medical students in his medical school class.

04:24 Neville and Ruth explain that they visited Israel but did not consider moving there.

04:57 Neville and Ruth discuss their limited involvement with Zionist youth movements and reminisce about fundraising as children for Jewish organizations.

Source

Oral Histories

Loneliness

Basic Human Needs

Two Very Distinct Lives

Address

216 Beverley Street

Time Period

1918-unknown

Scope Note

The Apter Synagogue was formed by a group of people who came to Toronto from the area of Opatow (Apt) in Poland around the turn of the century. They first established a small synagogue on Centre Avenue near Dundas Street in the Ward. In 1918, in anticipation of more Apter immigrants coming to Toronto after the First World War, the synagogue was sold and a larger one purchased on Beverley Street. Both the synagogue members and the Apter Friendly Society met there.

History

In later years, a bitter controversy between the synagogue and society erupted and the building was sold.

Category

Political

Religious

Private Clubs

Source

Landmarks