At the turn of the twentieth century, a Jewish family fled Poland in pursuit of change. The family wanted to take a new direction in life and sought the American Dream: the idea of freedom, equality, and opportunity for every American (“American…”). Along with millions of other Jews living in Russian ruled land, my great-great grandfather, Israel Eisenberg defied the Russian czar’s laws against immigration. Many escaped the vicious highway gangs and Russian border guards by bribing officials to allow them passage to The Land of the Free.
Israel Eisenberg boarded the S.S. Vaderland de la Red Star Line in Antwerp, Belgium. He hoped to build a new life for his family in the United States.
In hopes of fulfilling the American Dream, my great-great grandfather boarded the S.S. Vaderland, pictured on the right, where he was a bit of a celebrity. Legend has it that he was captured near the end of the Revolution in the Kingdom of Poland. Miraculously, he escaped the pogroms: an organized massacre of the Jews (Hartmann 504). On the same night he was captured, he fled from the Russian secret police on horseback, and found his wife, Fannie, and children. Together, the family made their way to Antwerp, Belgium, where they boarded the Red Line to Ellis Island.
Arriving on October 22, 1907, the Eisenberg family settled in New York City. Israel worked as a peddler to support his growing family. He must have been a convincing salesman, as he soon found himself wealthy compared to other Jews in the United States. He found the true meaning of the American Dream in the United States of America; he was able to pursue his religion without persecution.
John and Ceil Pudles, my great grandparents, in the 1940s playing poker, enjoying life.
Although the Eisenberg family was able to practice religion however they wished, the pressure for Jews to conform in the United States inevitably caused them to drift from their Jewish cultural roots, losing their religious identity. Intermarriage between different religious and ethnic groups was relatively rare; thus, Israel and Fannie ensured that their children would maintain Jewish traditions. Their oldest daughter, Ceil, married into a wealthy Jewish family: the Pudles family. John Pudles, born and raised in Manhattan, married Ceil on January 9, 1927. John and Ceil are pictured living the American Dream. The couple later had two children, Michael and Murray.
Murray Pudles, my grandfather, was the first in the family to rebel against Jewish tradition and profoundly change the centuries-old culture. He fell in love with a Christian southern belle from the small town of Hanceville, Alabama. Murray’s family did not entirely disapprove, and often joked that he was “outkicking his coverage” by dating Ina Jo Hardin. Although considered way out of his league, Ina Jo officially married Murray on July 4, 1954, breaking the laws of Judaism. The picture below demonstrates the mixing of Jewish and Christian cultures at their wedding.
The wedding reception for Murray and Ina Jo Pudles, the first and only intermarriage in the Eisenberg family.
Before beginning to research my family, I thought I might find I was related to someone famous, or that my family might be known for something significant. Instead, I found a family who sought change, who sought to be different. I found a family who fought for what they believed, and that is something to be proud of. My family of mixed cultures is proof that the United States was accepting of immigrants, and that no American should ever have to face religious persecution.
Works Consulted:
“American Dream.” Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 30 Mar. 2015.
Roark, James, et al. The American Promise. Value ed. Vol. 2. Macmillan, 2014. 504-05. Print.