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  1. #1
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    Default LAZARUS, Birmingham early 19th cent.

    I am interested in three women from Birmingham who all had the surname LAZARUS before marriage. I'd like to know who their father(s) were, or any other family information prior to marriage.

    Rebecca Lazarus, c.1798-1844, m. Joseph Woolfe COHEN of Dublin
    Elizabeth Lazarus, c. 1803-?1863, m. David DAVIS, born Leeds, but settled in Glasgow
    Phoebe Lazarus c. 1811- 1873, m. Nathan Jacob CALISHER

    The above husbands each had further LAZARUS connections:
    Joseph Woolfe COHEN was in business with, and recorded as an uncle of, Henry LAZARUS of Portsmouth and Dublin.
    David DAVIS was brother-in-law to Julia LAZARUS of Exeter (daughter of Moses Lazarus and Rebecca Schultz).
    An Isaac LAZARUS was a visitor in the CALISHER household in 1841. He settled in Glasgow and changed his name to John LIZAR. His second wife was Eliza LYON of Plymouth, whose aunt was married to one of the LAZARUS family of Exeter.

    I believe all these LAZARUS folk are related. If anyone can help me identify the family origin of the three women or of Isaac Lazarus/John Lizar, I'd be thrilled.

  2. #2

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    Eve,
    First of all I have replied to your private email. With regard to the Lazarus do you want to provide additional data on the 3 Lazarus women plus Isaac Lazarus aka John Lizars?
    As you know, Berger has various newspaper records on some of the Lazarus and John Lizars.
    By the way, do you hold a GRO Copy of John Lizars 2 marriages to indicate his father's name/occupation?

    As a help to other researchers I will post initial data ( Eve already has this data) on John Lizars two marriages:
    Marriage 1- The Morning Chronicle Monday Nov 2 1857 - On the 28th ult. John LIZARS Esq of Glasgow to Ellen second daughter of the late Michael SOLOMON Esq of Chesterfield Street
    Marriage 2- Glasgow Herald Mon May 14 1866
    At the Synagogue Portsea On the 3rd inst.... Mr John LIZARS of Glasgow to Eliza daughter of the late Solomon LYON of Plymouth Dorsetshire

    If you don't have access to the 2 Berger volumes let me know and I will post.

    Phillip

  3. #3
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    Default 3 B'ham LAZARUS women; John LIZARS

    Hi Phillip,

    thank you for your quick reply. I received and replied to your email (rather garbled, I fear).

    <With regard to the Lazarus do you want to provide additional data on the 3 Lazarus women plus Isaac Lazarus aka John Lizars?>

    What information do you recommend I post? I have census records for the 3 Lazarus women, but they were all married by the time of the censuses and I've found nothing beyond their last name and place of birth.

    The information about Rebecca Lazarus is from 'COATS OF MANY COLOURS AN ACCOUNT OF THE JOSEPH FAMILIES IN THE ENGLISH SPEAKING WORLD; partial transcription with notes by Rabbi Dr Bernard Susser'.
    (I find this a bit confusing - I'm not clear what's Jessop and what's Susser.)

    For Elizabeth (nee LAZARUS) DAVIS, my sources are a bit confused. According to the 1851 Scottish census, she was from Handsworth, which later became part of Birmingham. Some information came from Michael Tobias (who is working on all Scottish Jews and initially contacted me about John Lizar). I think I tracked down what may have been his source for surname, which was the book (online) Records of the Franklin Family and Collaterals by Arthur Ellis Franklin. (I will have to revisit this.)

    Phoebe CALISHER's maiden surname, LAZARUS, came from the online GRO records of her daughter Rosetta: CALISHER, Rosetta; Mother's Maiden Name: LAZARUS
    GRO Reference: 1839 M Quarter in OF THE CITY OF LONDON UNION Volume 02 Page 15
    Her date (somewhat variable) and place of birth is from census records.

    <As you know, Berger has various newspaper records on some of the Lazarus and John Lizars.>
    I've got Berger's 1871-1880, but not the other one. I go through my copy regularly.

    <By the way, do you hold a GRO Copy of John Lizars 2 marriages to indicate his father's name/occupation?>
    I have the first one, but haven't got around to ordering the second.
    John is a whole other story and I'll start another thread on him.

  4. #4
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    !@#$%^&*!!!!! I spent an hour or two writing a description of my research re John Lizars, then found I had to log in AGAIN, and in doing so, lost the whole danged thing. For now, the very abbreviated answer is that a note about his tombstone, made prior to itbecoming too worn to read, gives his father's name as Eliezer. The first marriage certificate gives his father's name as Lewis LIZARS. I think this is a wee porkie as I can find no evidence that there ever was a Lewis Lizars (Lizars was a very uncommon name as far as I can tell). For the moment I will repeat only that Isaac/John, born c. 1811, could very well have been an early child of Eleazer son of Joseph/Yespe Lazarus and Elizabeth Barnett (synagoguescribes). The fudging of the name might be explained by Eleazer having apparently been convicted of forging a banknote and being transported in 1815. This Eleazer was granted a full pardon in January of 1820. There are problems matching some of the info about the convict with what else is known about Eleazer (occupations don't match). But his absence exactly brackets the seven-year gap between his and Eliza's first batch of kids and the six that came later. And John's birth would fit in very well in the first batch. Lots more circumstantial details - but also more questions.

  5. #5

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    Eve
    I am going to post a range of data ( not early I am afraid) on John Lizar and the Lazarus in #1 of this thread. In addition, Having looked at numbers of Ancestry.Com Public family trees on the lines none of them have connected the Lazarus you are researching but 2 trees have for the parents of Elizabeth Lazarus who married David Davis the following which you may well discount-Joseph Moses Levy Lazarus 1778-1850=Esther Cohen 1780-1850; Leiser Lazarus 1776-1846 b Denmark=Julianne Levi 1785=1862 b Denmark.
    I have seen no evidence to support this data but have not looked in detail.

    There is only 1 census record which shows out of the 3 female Lazarus you are researching a reference to birth in Birmingham and that is for Phoebe. The other records are for Scotland and show only birth England.

    I hold a copy of the Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeoligical Society Vol XC111 1993- Whitehaven and its Jews W R Sellick.
    This journal article has references to David David and John Lizar:
    "An initial visit to Whitehaven was made in September 1843 by a Mr J LIZARS, who on future visits called himself Mr I LAZARS. The "J" stood for John...on his first and second visit (in May 1845) .. he gave his business address as 89 George Street Edinburgh.. Lizars later visited in August 1854 giving his business address as 10 St Andrews Square Edinburgh, and claiming to be "successor" to Mr I DAVIS". Yet another Davis optician.....Finally, the name of J Lizars, optician, is still the name of as shop owned by a descendant, Mr Ballantine at 6 Shandwick Place Edinburgh. Mr Ballantine who is not Jewish, maintains that a family tradition9 without documentary proof) claims his great grandmother Julia Lizars, daughter of John Lizars, optician, was Jewish. Lizars, lithographers of Edinburgh, who Mrs Ballantine informs me, were another branch of the same family, had future connections with Whitehaven when they worked for Callender and Dixons, booksellers here."

    I will post further.

    Phillip

  6. #6

    Default DAVID DAVIS

    Eve
    Here is a continuation from the Sellick article on David Davis.
    " G and D Davis, working opticians from London, took John Swan's shop, Lowther Street, in March 1821, "for not more than nine days"...D Davis returned alone in January 1822 and ... in July 1824 D Davis was "an Optical, Mathematical, and Philosophical Instrument Maker, from Glasgow, late of London".
    D Davis was almost certainly David Davis, one of the earliest and most influential of Glaswegian Jewry who.. settled in Glasgow in 1823, and led the small congregation as President for over twenty years... It is not until 1831 that his name is first found in the Glasgow Post Office Directory, where he is described as an Optical, Mathematical Instrument Maker.... upon his retirement he removed to London where he died".

    In June 1826, a J Davis working optician, from Glasgow, late of London took a local drapers shop... his advertisements contained a section thatw as an exact copy of an advertisement of D Davis... Mr C Davis working optician late of London appeared in May 1829... "with grateful acknowledgement for the favours conferred on is brother at his former visit to Whitehaven".

    You probably have this data but I am posting for other researchers in case they can help you with your research.

    I will post newspaper records from Berger 1861-71.

    Phillip

  7. #7

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    Eve
    From Doreen Berger The Jewish Victorian. Genealogical Information from the Jewish Newspapers 1861-70 transcribed and edited by Doreen Berger,Publisher Robert Boyd

    Henry Lazarus Death Monday 28.12.1868 at his residence 83 Pembroke Road Dublin in his 60th year ( there is a full reference to his important role in the Dublin Hebrew Congregation) references to Mrs Henry Lazrus wife, Alfred L Lazarus son, Mrs Julius Calisher daughter, Lesser Lesser son in law, Miriam Lazarus daughter=Alfred W Harris son in law eldest son of Lewis Harris Lower Baggot
    Street- married 12.12.1866 at residence of bride's father 83 Pembroke Road Dublin

    Marriage Helen Lazarus 19.2.1868 at 83 Pembroke Road Dublin third daughter of H Lazarus.. to L LESSER Stenmore Villa Clifton Road St John's Wood West London

    Death- David Davis 2.5.1870 at 40 Kensington Gardens Square formerly of Glasgow in his 70th year...will proved under £50000- Elizabeth Davis wife death 9.5.1863 at 22 Upper Bedford Place Russell Square age 60 wife of David Davis formerly of Glasgow, Helena Davis daughter; Montague Jacobs son in law, Louise Davis daughter, David Woolf son in law, Sarah Davis Daughter,Samuel Woolf son in law

    Will look further.

    Phillip

  8. #8
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    Phillip,
    Thank you for posting all this information. Most of it I have already, but I know you're also posting for others.
    Julia LIZARs, daughter of John Lizars, married Michael BALLANTINE and the business went into Ballantine hands, though it retained the name of Lizars.
    By one of those freak coincidences, I introduced my self to a Scots Jew in a pub in Toronto many years ago, only to learn that he was an optician who had just bought the business! He changed the name to Black & Lizars and I think has since sold it again. He was familiar with the business's Jewish origins, but the Ballantine family apparently doesn't know anything about John Lizars' origins.
    One of the Scottish censuses gives his place of birth as Berwick-on-Tweed. Possible, I guess, but I've found no evidence - so far - of Lazarus families from there.
    David DAVIS was originally from Leeds and spent some time in Dublin. I believe he was related to Gabriel DAVIS, an optician in Leeds, but I haven't sorted out the kinships.
    Gabriel married Ann AARON of Birmingham. Ann's sister Elizabeth married (1811) Lewis Henry LAZARUS, son of Henry (Pencilmaker) and Parla Lazarus. In 1828, Lewis Henry LAZARUS, on behalf of his son Henry, dissolved an intended partnership between Henry (a minor) and Abraham LYON and Nathan J. CALISHER of Birmingham. It is in this Nathan Calisher's household that John LIZARS (still known as Isaac LAZARUS) was at the time of the 1841 census. (Reminder: Nathan's wife was also a LAZARUS, but the relationship between her and John/Isaac, if any, is unknown.)
    While David DAVIS was in Ireland - and possibly also when in Glasgow - he was associated with Samuel Joseph RUBENSTEIN (as his employer and as contact for mail). Samuel RUBENSTEIN married Sophia DYTE, daughter of David Moses DYTE and Hannah daughter of Henry and Parla LAZARUS. Sophia's sister Elizabeth married Lewis DIGHT, a cousin. Lewis and Elizabeth's son Maurice married Esther LAZARUS, daughter of David LAZARUS (son of Moses and Nancy of Exter, whose two brothers, Lyon and Eleazer, are my 3x gr grandfathers).
    Samuel Joseph RUBENSTEIN's brother, Bernard Joseph RUBENSTEIN, married Julia LAZARUS, daughter of Moses LAZARUS and Rebecca SCHULTZ of Exeter. (Moses was a son of Eleazer [b. Moses and Nancy] and nephew of David, therefore first cousin of Esther above.) (Yes, it gets cross-generational.)
    Re Nathan CALISHER and Henry LAZARUS above: Nathan's son Julius married Henry's daughter Juliet.
    Henry LAZARUS was the son of Lewis LAZARUS of Portsmouth.
    Portsmouth being where John LIZARS married Eliza LIZARS, niece by marriage of Lyon LAZARUS of Exeter and Plymouth.
    (There is another LAZARUS family in London, that of Eliezer and Elizabeth, whose sons Joseph and Benjamin married two sisters from Exeter, mentioned in a previous message, but I haven’t figured out how/if they fit in, even though I do think this family is a good candidate for being John LIZARS’s )
    This is one section of the convoluted interrelationships that connect different Lazarus lines. The whole is easier to see drawn out in a diagram - and shows that the Exeter/Plymouth, Portsmouth and London (that of Henry Pencilmaker) lines all originate with one or more Eleazers of the same generation - but who is/are known only via the Hebrew names of the first generation of men who appear in any documents or on tombstones. I realise that the surname LAZARUS originates from Eleazer, so this isn't surprising, but generations and dates fit very well, and the network of interrelationships between these lines is very suggestive. And I've been careful to put together other LAZARUS lines to show that they do NOT interact with these ones.
    (By the way, I long ago gave up looking at most other people's trees on Ancestry etc because, 1) a lot of the early generations I know to be rubbish/guesswork, and 2) I know that what is correct was likely taken from work I and several LAZARUS-of-Exeter descendants pieced together before Ancestry existed - and that I'd published on the internet under our collective name, Laz-R-Us.)

  9. #9
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    Re the three women LAZARUSes "of Birmingham". Phillip, you're right that only one appears in a census record with Birmingham as a place of birth. This is my difficulty! I am having to reply on historical family histories for some of my information, and I've been able to find not a single male LAZARUS (who wouldn't lose the surname when married) from Birmingham from an early enough time to fit with the women. It's very frustrating! I've checked newspapers and directories and found nothing useful. Occupations can be a useful clue (outside of the pawnbroker/general dealer/jeweller variety). Pencil makers, pen and quill cutters and stationers are a good clue for the Henry Pencilmaker LAZARUS, David LAZARUS and DYTE/DIGHT connections. And OPTICIAN for c. 1840s onwards.

  10. #10
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    Default Davis DAVIS optician, Elizabeth LAZARUS

    Thanks for the information you've posted. Some I have, but not all. David and Gabriel DAVIS were originally from Leeds before ending up in Glasgow. I haven't sorted out if they were brothers or nephew and uncle. And there may have been more DAVIS opticians of the same family. Michael Tobias is a researcher working on a history of all the Jews of Scotland and I got some my information from him, but he hadn't worked out all the DAVIS connections himself at the time we discussed it.
    Confusingly, there was another David DAVIS who was an optician and who married an Elizabeth LAZARUS, of approximately the same time as the couple I'm interested in. Luckily, there was enough information in sysnagoguescribes and census records to sort them out.
    Eve

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