About two or three years later, Rachel and her two-year old son Abe arrived
in New York. It was not an easy reunion. Abe, who was very attached to his mother, clung to her and refused to even look at
his father. The birth of their second child, Anne, in 1895, was a much happier event for David, and in some ways she represented
for him his first born and was a favorite of his. The couple had five more children: May was born in 1897, Cel in 1900, Morris
in 1901, Elie in 1903, and Dora, my mother, in 1905.
The family,
due to David's intelligence and striving efforts to get ahead, lived comfortably during David's lifetime. David always
thought in terms of setting up fairly big business projects which could grow and bring in a good profit. He was very fond
of horses (as Morris is today), and opened a horse stable where many wealthy people would keep the horses that pulled their
buggies.
He then expanded into the hauling business, and finally
went into the wrecking and building business with some real estate speculation on the side. The family moved several times,
each time improving their living conditions. Finally he had a house built for the family on Stake Street in Brooklyn. As a
father, he is remembered as authoritarian, yet warm and devoted to his children. He is also warmly remembered as sometimes
meeting the children after school and treating them to lunch at the delicatessen.
David came to an early and tragic death in 1905. As he was inspecting a wrecking job of some of his workmen, a wall
collapsed upon him. He died on May 2, 1905, after three days in the hospital. David's death left the family in emotional
and economic turmoil. At the time of his death, Rachel was two months pregnant with my mother, and the other children ranged
from Eli, two years old, to Abe, 12 years old.
Pessa, Rachel's
sister, and her wealthy husband Nathan Horn, who was a tailor, lived in Washington, DC. They urged Rachel to abort the pregnancy
and return to Poland (probably to relieve themselves of responsibility). Others advised her against this and she decided to
remain in this country. At this point, the Horns stepped in.
If
anyone in the family is remembered as malicious, it was the "wealthy Horns." Rachel, already over-burdened with
family responsibilities and unfamiliar with her husband's business, entrusted the management of her finances to them,
and they responded by taking advantage of her and swindling her out of her due money. They sold her house in Brooklyn and
pocketed most of the money.
They arranged for Rachel and her
children to come to Washington in 1906, and set them up in a rundown rat-infested house. Their once-comfortable and secure
life was suddenly one of near poverty and uncertainty. The Horns did provide just enough money for survival. The ostentatious
parade of wealth which the Horns displayed, however, was particularly painful and hateful to Rachel and the children. Sometimes
they would treat the children to a ride in their chauffeur-driven car. Rachel's older girls felt particularly bad that
they could not afford the beautiful clothes that the Horn daughters wore.
Rachel's older children especially, were encouraged from an early age to take on responsibility and take jobs
that would add to the family's resources. With the children working, Rachel's economic situation vastly improved.
The Horns loaned her money to buy a first house. She moved to a house on 717 Princeton Pl, NW, a very nice neighborhood.
Rachel is deserving of a lot of praise. She single-handedly raised her children
with little outside help. Despite the amount of responsibility that was hers, she is remembered as being easy going and not
punitive. Her life, as seen by her children, was one of hard work with little pleasure except from the children, which occupied
the center of her life.
Rachel's youngest sons, Morris
and Eli, continued to live with their mother for a long time. Morris stayed until he was 37 years old, and Eli until he was
40 years old. Shortly after Eli married in 1942, Rachel, now 71, became very ill. She died the night of July 7, 1947, of a
heart attack.
