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May 20, 1937 – Just a quicky today. Back from Sumter. Very busy.

20 May

May 20, 1937

Just a quicky today. I have been very busy since I got back from Sumter.

Hindenburg Zeppelin

Too bad about the Zeppelin. Of course I did not receive the mail sent with it.

Trudel and Madge

Leonard’s grandfather on his mother’s side, Maier Hochster, came from Alsfeld, Germany about 100 years ago. Aunt Flora’s inlaws came from Essingen and Germersheim. The Grossmans from Dusseldorf. Just found this all out lately.

Do you want me to send you a box of men’s clothes etc? What you can’t use you could give to a poor house.

Enclosed are a few photos from Sumter.

Love Trudelchen

Scenes from Sumter in the 1930s

Note: The information Trudel reports about my father’s ancestry differs to some extent from details I have learned recently on Linda Scheffler’s HOECHSTER-HOCHSTER-HEXTER Family from Storndorf, Germany site on MyHeritage.com I must express my gratitude to Linda for the help she has given me with this site and her enthusiasm for family geneology.

It seems Trudel sent most of her photos from the Sumter trip to Germany with her letter and didn’t save many. So I have inserted some photos I found online. See a few photos of the people and places from that trip in Trudel’s previous post.

2 Comments

Posted by Leonard Grossman on May 20, 1937 in Chicago, immigrant experience

Tags: Chicago, letters, work

March 3, 1937 – In the next 12 days I have to finish 18 hats.

03 Mar

3/3/37

Sorry I did not write sooner. We are very busy at work and I just wrote two long letters in English and in the next 12 days I have to finish 18 hats. Some alterations and some new. And then I will have to make some decent hats for myself since I will be leaving for Sumter on March 16.

Hats

Madge invited a lot of the meshpoche so I can meet them. I had some nice clothes made by Rose LaMarque, so Madge and her husband Ray will not have to be ashamed of me. The dresses are mostly black or dark color since everything gets very dirty here and I do not like to spend a lot of money on cleaning bills.

Leonard went shopping with me for other things. He has a wonderful taste but unfortunately not that much money. Just like home!!

Gone With the Wind

Before leaving for South Carolina, I want to finish reading “Gone with the Wind” which plays mostly in Atlanta, Georgia, where Leonard was born. Unfortunately Leonard will be too busy and will not be able to go south with me.

Last night we had dinner at Frances and Felix Welsch, Leonard’s very nice cousins where Aunt Flora stays when she is in Chicago.

It is very hard to explain “corn on the cob.” You do not have that, only the big corn cobs that are fed to the animals on a farm. This corn is very sweet and delicious, with some butter and salt on top.

If the movie “Camille,” with Greta Garbo, should come to Frankfurt, try to see it. It is excellent.

Love,
Trudelchen

Shortlink http://wp.me/p1yA95-o6

1 Comment

Posted by Leonard Grossman on March 3, 1937 in family, immigrant experience

Tags: clothes, hats, letters, movies, travel, work

January 7, 1937 – “It was the most wonderful New Years Eve ever.”

07 Jan

January 7, 1937

Starting this letter before my husband comes home for dinner, trying to answer your last 4 letters.

Also I gave up my “business” because it was costing too much. I intend to continue making hats here in our 1 room at the Devonshire Hotel.

Our 1 Room at the Devonshire

I even started working again for C-R where I stopped in to just say “hello” and they asked me if I would like to come back to work.

Of course it is better to earn some money instead of playing cards or something and losing money. All I did for the last 4 weeks is moving and I am glad I will have now regular hours again.

C-R Millinery Co

Ernale’s English gets better with every letter. Keep it up. Leonard is so happy when he can read and understand your letters by himself.

Devonshire Hotel

Can you keep the letters I write you for a little longer? I would very much like to have them since they are like a diary, but really have no room for them until we move to a bigger place, which we intend to do soon.

[Continued after dinner.]

We finished some duck which we had at Bill Thompson last night. He has a friend who raises fowl on his roof.

Aunt Henny sent us a big box of grapefruit and oranges and Leonard’s sister sent a shoebox full of nuts.

Big Bill Thompson

Hope you started the new year OK. For me it was the most wonderful NY Eve ever. We left our room at 10:30, I in my beautiful brocade dress from 2 years ago and Leonard in a tuxedo, which was awfully tight on him.

First we stopped in the bar here in the hotel and had 2 drinks with some friends in the building. Then we went downtown in a hotel where we had dates with various friends. It was terribly crowded. Then we went to the Morrison Hotel, where I had my 1st date with Leonard, but did not stay because they asked for $6.50 each just to sit down.

We met some friends and the 6 of us went to a very big nightclub where I had not been before. We saw 2 very wonderful floor shows and at 4:00 a.m. we ate breakfast there. At 6:30 a.m. we met our friends again, in our hotel bar. At 8:00 a.m. we went to another place but I had only 1 cup of coffee.

When we came home we ate some herring and bread and butter and finally went to bed at 10:15 a.m. I felt so good, although I had about 18 drinks in 12 hours, that I would have liked to go skiing. But too warm, no snow, no skis.

Love,

Trudel

3 Comments

Posted by Leonard Grossman on January 7, 1937 in Chicago, diary, immigrant experience, Letters

Tags: apartment, Chicago, Chicago weather, work

August 20, 1936 – The biggest and best night club; elegant people

20 Aug

Roof garden at the Seneca Hotel.

Trudel continues to translate only brief summaries of her original letters. The two entries she made for August 1936 only hint at the changes she had made in her life. But we can fill in some of the blanks from her photo album. Last month she mentioned sitting on the roof of the Seneca Hotel because it was so hot. Since posting that I found a photo of the Roof Garden at the Seneca in her album, which I have included here.

Although she doesn’t mention it in her translations, her photo album for the period includes photos on Chicago’s lake front and in the parks. I have included some of those as well.

The biggest and the best

8/3/36
Last night we went for the first time in the Chez Paree, the biggest and best nightclub here. Very elegant people, good dinner, excellent entertainment.

The Chez Paree

The most elegant people…

Chez Paree

8/20/36
Sully sold her business. I would like to take over, but the hotel has to settle with her first.

Summer, 1936 — Sully’s Hat Shop

Summer Scenes – 1936

Looking south toward Oak St. beach.

Between North Ave. and Oak St.

Looking North from Oak St Beach

Trudel and friend at the beach

Picnic in Jackson Park

Trudel takes a cool drink

Trudel with Parasol.

http://wp.me/p1yA95-lK

4 Comments

Posted by Leonard Grossman on August 20, 1936 in Chicago, immigrant experience, Memoir

Tags: Beach, Chez Paree, Chicago, hats, Lake Michigan, Night Club, Oak Street, parks, work

March and April 1936 – I will be glad when the election is over.

30 Apr

Trudel continued to abstract her letters into brief notes so I have consolidated March and April 1936 into one post. [April is below the first movie trailer.]

3/20/26
A fortune teller told me that Papa was not feeling well and should watch his health much more. Right? Leonard is very busy making speeches for Governor Len Small for mayor of Chicago. I will be glad when the election is over.

Easter Sunday 4/12/26
Happy birthday to Erna. [Erna’s birthday was April 25th.]
Leonard with speeches, also on radio, and I with hats, are keeping both of us very busy. I Try to go with him when I can.

Last Friday Rose LaMarque and I saw “The Great Waltz.” Wonderful.

4/26/36
Although Leonard was not elected as a judge, he is still much better off than the other Republican candidate who spent $25,000 and lost too with only ½ as many votes as Leonard, who did not spend 1¢. I am glad it is all over but it was very interesting for me and I learned a lot.

Papa’s letter had been opened by the Germans, by the foreign exchange department.

I Have not moved to the Seneca Hotel with Mrs La Marque yet, but will tell you the advantages I will have:
1. The landlord will not misplace my mail
2. All phone calls and visitors will be told me as soon as I come home
3. Home right after work (in the building)
4. Not so much alone
5. For the same money much bigger room
6. Telephone in the room
7. Private bathroom
8. Much better neighborhood
9. 1st class hotel service
10. Restaurant and grocery store in building
11. Closer to the beach in summer
12. Radio
13. Sewing machine
Etc., etc.

Went to Klemm and Addie Eggner’s wedding last Sunday. Although Leonard was not in the mood for it since his 85 year old Father had died 3 days before in Sumter, he went with me anyhow. He could not go to the funeral since it was the next day and it would have taken 2 days to get there.

I saw best movie ever, “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town”: serious story; excellent performances.

I have been unable to find any information about the judicial elections in Chicago in 1936. It would appear that there must have been some kind of open primary or Trudel may have combined the primary with the general election in her mind, which would explain how LJG could lose to “his opponent” and his opponent could also lose.

2 Comments

Posted by Leonard Grossman on April 30, 1936 in Chicago, diary, family, immigrant experience, Memoir

Tags: Chicago, elections, family, hats, judge, mayor, Primary election, work

Trudel's Truth