About This Item

  • Call NumberBJHP_0584
  • Summary(00:50) Interviewee Matt is the son of David, speaks about his grandfather Milton. Milton, father of David, from Austro-Hungary, mother from Belarus. Milton came to US at 16 with his father, Hirsch, in 1923. Hirsch was sent back to Poland at Ellis Island and Milton never saw him again -- (06:07) Milton settled in Brooklyn and started a home painting business. He painted gold leaves on the front of the New York Public Library main branch -- (07:50) Milton met his wife, Tillie, at his boarding house. They had 3 children: Arnold (eldest), Burton and David (youngest). The family lived in Brownsville, then East New York on New Jersey Ave and Vermont St -- (10:26) Like many Jews at that time who dreamt of owning land and becoming farmers, Millie and Milton moved upstate to farm. A year later, they sold the farm and returned to Brooklyn and Milton resumed being a painter -- (11:40) They considered themselves “non-practicing leftist Jews.”
  • Date2022-05-23
  • Physical Description1 audio file (17 minutes) : digital, MP3
  • CreatorEngel, Matt; Engel, David
  • CollectionBrooklyn Jewish History Project
  • Cite AsOur Streets, Our Stories collection, Brooklyn Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History
  • Formatsound recording-nonmusical
  • Genreinterviews
  • NoteTitle supplied by cataloger. Audio interview conducted on May 23, 2022 by Ariane Loeb. Collected through the Brooklyn family Jewish History Project of Brooklyn Public Library. This project is funded by the David Berg Foundation.
  • SubjectJews--United States ; Families ; Emigration and immigration
  • PlaceBrownsville (New York, N.Y.)East New York (New York, N.Y.)
  • RightsThis work is covered by a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Users are free to share and adapt the work for non-commercial purposes as long as appropriate credit is given to the source and new material created with this work is shared under the same conditions.
  • TitleMatt and David Engel family. Oral history interview with Matt and David Engel conducted on May 23, 2022.
  • Biographical NoteMilton (Menashe) Hirsch Engel traveled from Austro-Hungary to the US with his father in 1923. Hirsch was returned from Ellis Island to Poland. His son, Milton never saw him again. Rose (Landskroner) Engel, mother of Milton came later with her other children: Sayfra (born 1915), Frieda (born 1914), Sam (born 1918) and Abe (born 1922). Milton settled in Brooklyn and started a home painting business. He married Tillie and they had three sons, in birth order: Arnold, Burton and David. The family lived in Brownsville, then East New York. Millie and Milton moved upstate to farm. After a year they sold the farm and returned to Brooklyn.