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An Immigrant Story: Letters From
David To Dora
By Dean B. Kaner
My maternal grandparents immigrated to
America in the early part of the 20th century. Like so
many other Jewish immigrants they sought freedom from persecution and
an opportunity for a better life.
Born in 1892, my grandfather David
Nahaman Walonick came alone to America in 1915 at age 23 from Elaky,
Russia. He left behind two sisters and a brother. An escape plan for
David was imperative as Jewish boys from ages 12-25 were conscripted
into the Russian Army for a compulsory twenty-five year service. Many
never made it out alive. According to his late son Albert, David made
it to Czechoslovakia where he was befriended by a Christian family
with the last name Vallonick or some sounding name like it.
David altered that name and changed his
birth name from Kantorovich to Walonick.
We have no family history as to why he
went to Minnesota when he came to America, but David made his way to
small town named Chatfield in southeast Minnesota where he started a
fur trading business. He resided there from 1915 to 1922 before
moving in 1923 to another small town of 4,500 in the southwest corner
of the state called Worthington so he could expand his business. The
main industry was farming from raising soybeans to pigs and poultry.
Worthington also had railroad lines running through the community
where products could be transported across the country. In July 1918,
David was drafted in the Army and sent to France to fight in the
Meuse-Argonne Forest from September 26 to Armistice Day November 11,
1918. The battle was the Allied offensive that broke the German lines
on the Western front and the biggest battle fought by the American
Expeditionary Force during the war. He remained in occupied France
until July 1919 before returning to Chatfield. The battle experience
of World War 1 haunted him for years. The chemical warfare used by
the Germans would shorten his life.
A young man driven by success, David
mastered the English language both written and verbal. It helped him
build a fur trade called Northern Fur and Hide Company. He would buy
furs from area trappers then sell them to the garment industry in
New York City. There was a huge demand
for fox, muskrat, ermine, skunk, weasels and mink. Since fur trading
was a seasonal business, David figured out how to survive and grow
his business by selling other products. He bought and sold
commodities by the tons like rubber, wool, tallow grease, scrap iron,
metals, magazines, battery lead and rags. Sometimes sitting on the
products for months until the price reached a market high to sell.
From 1918 to 1922, David amassed a small fortune of $15,000. The
average American family had an annual income of $1,500 in that same
period. He became an American citizen in 1922.
My grandmother Dora Tarnorudski, later
changed to Turner, was born in Russia in 1898. She lived in a small
Ukrainian town called Husiatyn, where she spoke Ukrainian and
Yiddish. At the turn of the century, more than half of the 6,000
residents were Jewish. Hassidism thrived in Husiatyn that included a
Hassidic Court. Hassidism has a philosophy of serving God and helping
others through a traditional Jewish interpretation of the Scriptural
and Rabbinical texts.
In a horrible twist of fate, the
Russian Army crossed the Zabrotz River in 1914 and attacked Austria
through Husiatyn. Fires in the town destroyed more than 600
buildings. The Jews dispersed among neighboring towns and villages to
avoid oncoming armies. Some like Dora’s father David were
injured or killed by the Armies or local peasants in actions against
the Jews called pogroms. Others died of typhus as local conditions
deteriorated. Jews were ordered out of Husiatyn in 1915.
Eventually some Jews, including my
grandmother’s family returned between 1918 and 1919. Then the
Bolsheviks came to power and confiscated property from Jewish owned
businesses. By 1921, the Jewish population had declined to 368, less
than 10% of the peak population in 1890.
Dora had older sisters Gita and Esther
in Husiatyn and siblings closer to her age brothers Sam and Abe and a
sister Rachel who immigrated to America before the Russian Revolution
in 1917 and settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Dora, the youngest sibling remained in
Husiatyn to take care of her elderly father until they could both
emigrate in 1921.
Gita and Esther never left Husiatyn and
the family lost contact with them after the Nazi invasion during
World War 2. They were presumed killed in the Holocaust.
Dora, 23, and her father David, 74,
arrived in Minneapolis in 1921. Dora found factory work and begin to
learn English in night school. She once told her youngest daughter
Annette years later, I kissed the ground I was so proud to be an
American. She became a citizen in 1929. Dora was very close with her
family and lived in the predominantly Jewish neighborhood of North
Minneapolis like so may other immigrants. Her father also found
happiness with his new found freedom.
Fast forward to September 1923 when
Dora was introduced to David by friends in Minneapolis.
A long distance courtship by letters
ensued before they married in June 1924. Only the forty- three
letters written by David to Dora survived. Some of the letters are
five to six pages. The following are excerpts.
September 28, 1923 Franklin, MN
Hello Little Girlie,
How are you? I hope you are well. I
thought I would drop you a few lines to let you know that I came
safely to my destination. I am writing this letter in a hurry as I am
busy. I hope to be in your city next Tuesday night and will try my
best to be there as soon as possible. I want to see you again and
again.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 9, 1923 Worthington, MN
Hello Sweetie,
I have lots of news to tell you, more
than I expected. Right after I left you, I went up to your fine
brother Samuel. We both talked for a while and also talked about you.
Then we parted and I caught my train just in time. Two minutes later
and I would have missed it. I never felt so funny in my life. I
wondered what I was thinking until I started the truck at the train
station in Worthington and headed home. I really don’t know
what home means for the last 11 years, but anyway Worthington is my
home. My partner went to Rochester to take care of his mother so he
told me that he wanted to dissolve the partnership with the condition
of the privilege of coming back. I also asked him about the girl with
the ten thousand dollars. He would get the money if they married, but
he made up is mind that he couldn’t marry her. You see there is
a saying money can buy everything but love. Deep in my heart is my
love for you since the minute we met and it grows stronger and
stronger.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 11, 1923 Worthington, MN
Hello Dearie,
I have been looking for a girl like
you for the last 29 years. I have met probably three dozen and always
found some fault with them. Yesterday when I came into Worthington, I
felt like a prince as I said to myself, “This is my Kingdom.”
There was a fight for this town last Fall and Winter. First it was
with
Waseca Hide and Fur Company, which
because of us lost eight thousand dollars of fur business. Second was
M. Yaseleff from Spirit Lake, Iowa. We broke him up entirely. Third
was my cousin from Sheldon, Iowa, who lost $4,500 and had to go back
to New York where he came from. Now he is begging me to take him back
and promised to work for me faithfully. I think I am going to order
him down here as I am all alone now and will give him one more
chance. Two years ago I broke him in the fur business, but then he
started his own company with a rich boy in my neighborhood.
This county and the neighboring
counties have some of the best farming communities in the state.
Worthington is a railroad center connected with the cities of Chicago
and Omaha. It is a divisional point where all trains stop. It is also
a lively little city and I’m quite sure that you will like it
in the summertime. Even better than Minneapolis. If you are willing
to learn the raw fur game, you will like it and have lots of fun in
the winter. Not every Dick and Harry can be a fur buyer. The trade is
ranked high. Oh sweetie, I wish I could be with you for only five
minutes, because I would feel so happy. Let’s hope for the hour
which will bind us to be happy forever. My best regards to your
father, brothers and sister.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 17, 1923 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
Can let you know that I am in good
health and pretty busy. I am still straightening up things that were
run down for a period when I was on the road. Little by little I am
finding mistakes and shortages in money by my former partner. Not
that he stole it, just that he is a dumb head. I received your letter
in English again and was pleased.
Don’t be ashamed if you make
mistakes. We all make mistakes, so don’t be offended if I
correct you like I did in my last letter. It is never too late to
learn, so spend any spare time writing and reading English.
I remain as ever Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 20, 1923 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
Can inform you I am in the best of
health and the change in weather feels so refreshing. By the way, in
your letter you must think that Worthington is a little village. That
a person can’t enjoy life here. Worthington is a lively town.
There are paved streets with a fine white way through downtown lined
with cafes and restaurants.
There is a large ninety thousand dollar
armory where soldiers train once a week.
We have a movie theatre with the latest
movies, dance halls, clubs and a wonderful park by the lake shore
drive. Worthington is the county seat for Nobles County. I always
find some fun here, probably more than I can in the city as I know
everybody and everybody knows me. I feel at home everywhere with
everyone.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 24, 1923 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
I want you to know that my dreams of
life and love are different than the other fellows. They meet a girl
they like and force love on them. Soon they marry and what happens
after that we should never experience. Sunday night I talked to you
from Sheldon, Iowa. I had a wonderful time and stayed there overnight
with a young couple and their four-year-old boy. They have been
happily married for five years. She is American born and can hardly
speak Yiddish. She is well educated and graduated from high school.
Her folks are worth $150,000. He is from New York. His name is Sam
Sigman. He is in the scrap metal business in Estherville, Iowa, not
far from Sheldon. When we sat down for dinner Sam said, “Well
Dave, I have a wonderful girl for you.” I said “Thank you
Sam, but please don’t mention girls anymore to me as I found
the right one.” He wished me good luck. The Sigman’s used
to live in Minneapolis. Well dear, you will have some visitors in
Minneapolis and you will visit them in Iowa.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 25, 1923 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
I love you more than anybody else since
the minute I met you.
I want you to know I didn’t
compare myself to Rabbi Akiva, as that was only a short story to take
away a lesson about what faith means.
I am going away 100 miles from
Worthington and hope to be back Friday. I have done wonderful
business today in the office. I know that when I go away I lose
business. I always dreamed if I could get a good woman it would help
me in life and business. You write that you would like to talk with
me by phone a little longer. Well dear, this isn’t Minneapolis.
If we talk about love through the phone, the operator would call me
up and tell me everything we talked about. I am sure she would tell a
second girl about our conversations and the whole town would know.
I would be embarrassed and so would
you.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
October 30, 1923 Worthington, MN
Good evening Sweetheart,
I started out on my three day trip, as
I wrote you last night from Lakefield, MN.
I arranged business there. I stopped
later in Heron Lake, MN and didn’t think I could make a deal
with the same article, but talked business and did. If I can make
four side deals a month that would be great. I feel so happy tonight.
I bought nineteen hundred pounds of tallow grease which will net me a
profit of $95. I am stocked with lots of merchandise. Four carloads
of metals and a car of rubber and other little things that make lots
of money. I have no credit in this town and it takes lots of cash to
run a junk business. Furs, wool, hides and tallow is a cash business.
Pretty soon the fur season will start and I can give more attention
to it. That is why I am so busy getting merchandise ready to put up
on the market. I am going to sell the metals, hides and a few other
items, but can’t afford to sell the scrap iron because it is
priced very low right now. Honestly, I never thought I’d drop
my business and go see a girl at the beginning of the fur season.
That won’t stop me from seeing you.
I am sending you long, long kisses.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
November 1, 1923 St. James, MN
Hello Dearie,
I am on my way back to Worthington. St.
James is about 75 miles from Worthington and I am staying here over
night. I need to come back here next week to finish loading. So far
everything is coming my way and I hope it keeps up.
Yesterday I received a letter from my
younger sister in Europe. I was happy to read that she was well, but
sorry to hear that my oldest sister only 19-years-old is going to get
married in a way I can’t imagine because she is suffering from
hunger. She is very beautiful and deserves a good husband. My brother
said she wants to better her life. I haven’t seen my family for
eight years. I sent them $30 this past Spring and never heard from
them until my sister’s letter yesterday. The government took
the money. That is the God forsaken Russia for you. Yesterday, I sent
$25 to my uncle in New York and asked him to send it to them from
there. I also put a $500 bill in the letter and registered it. I
would like to help get our families over here. It takes months before
we can get a letter from them. I will write you tomorrow night from
Worthington.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
November 2, 1923 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
I came into Worthington at 3 p.m. from
St. James. I figured to be here before that time but stopped off at
Mountain Lake, MN. There is a Jewish junk man that sold me some wool
and offered a carload of junk to sell five tons of metals and ten
tons of rags. As far as I know I have booked business for the next
three to four weeks, so I asked for an option on the merchandise
until next week. I am going to offer it for sale. If I can sell it,
there will be a good profit. If not, I won’t bother because I
really don’t care for any new business. My best regards to your
father and tell him Hello from me. Also to your brothers and sister
and families.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
November 10, 1923 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
Can inform you that I arrived safely at
1 p.m. in Worthington. If I would have driven through the night and
not stayed in Windom (about 40 miles from here), I would have arrived
earlier. But I’m not at war now. I am taking my time. I still
remember those dark days in July 1918 when I was called to war. I had
a 30 day extension from the government to dispose of my goods and be
ready July 26. There were eleven carloads. My spirit was broken. I
couldn’t work as I asked myself “ What am I getting ready
for? To slaughter men?” I had five men loading the goods and it
was terribly hot. I remember ordering two kegs of beer. I told the
men to have a good time and not get overheated. I didn’t care
about the money, only to be ready July 26. Now that the war is over,
I’m no longer in a hurry. That’s probably why I haven’t
gotten married.
My credit with the bank in Windom was
as high as $12,000 in 1920. I lost $6,500, but my banker George
didn’t press me and encouraged me to keep doing business. He
said the time will come when I will make money and he can give me
credit again.
In 1921-22 the fur market was good and
George kept his word. I handled $66,000 worth of furs and made a
profit of $6,100. I paid the bank $5,000 and later the remaining
balance. Same thing happened in Chatfield. Lost some money but made
it back and paid the bank my debt. From 1918 to 1922, I made $15,000.
I’m not bragging, but there are
lots of good things about me which you will find out. I intend to
come for Thanksgiving and will let you know the date.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
November 14, 1923 Mason City, Iowa
Hello Sweetheart,
I am staying overnight here in Mason
City, Iowa. It’s about 170 miles from Worthington. I am not
very far from my destination. I haven’t done much business
since I left Worthington, but I don’t get discouraged as I am
not a working man.
Working in my own business, I can make
in one day what a working man makes in a month. I am on the road and
tired from driving. I hope you are in good health and feeling good.
That is the main thing in life.
I remain as ever Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
November 18, 1923 Chatfield, MN
Hello Sweetheart,
I came into my old beloved town of
Chatfield, MN at 11 a.m. today. Honestly, it makes me feel better
here than in Worthington. I became a man and was Americanized in
Chatfield. I am very well liked and welcomed by everyone. Right away
they ask me “Well Davie, are you going to stay here for good?
Please come back to the old town.” But I can’t do it.
Only to write a little business. I am going to play the Edison as Mr.
Olson, my friend has records and I feel like dancing. That’s
how I learned to dance four years ago.
From Your Loving Boy that hopes to see
you soon.
David Walonick
________________
December 20, 1923 Worthington, MN
Hello Sweetheart,
I hope you are well. I am fine and
doing lots of business. The market is improving day by day and that
makes me feel good. You know, when business is good everything seems
to be good. You feel the world is happy with you. I have an offer for
two cars of scrap iron so I am going to sell it tonight by mail. I
have five cars of iron around here that I’m starting to sell .
The rest I’ll sell after New Years. I need lots of cash for the
fur business this year, as I don’t have any backing from a
large fur house like last year. I am forced to use my own capital.
The merchandise I bought in McIntire, Iowa made me fifty to seventy
dollars more according to today’s market report. Since I met
you, it seems business had been better. You must be a gift from God.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
December 23, 1923 Stewartville, MN
Dearest Dora,
I’ve been traveling by train
while the truck was in the shop being fixed. The job cost $71.50, but
it is like new. It’s like putting a new heart in a person who
is complaining. I am through here in Stewartsville. I purchased from
Mr. Friedman $200 worth of goods. You are invited to come here next
summer for a visit. The Friedman’s have been great friends of
mine for many years. The fur business is improving and I hope we will
have a good season. It is 6 p.m. and I have my truck loaded for home.
Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
January 8, 1924 Worthington, MN
Hello Dearie,
I’m not able to writer you as
often as before because I am a very busy man. I ask you to understand
my circumstances. I will repay you in our future for every minute I
am missing at the present time. You should worry? I read your letter
and must say you don’t understand me. I am not a boring city
man where you can schedule a time to be together. I have three men to
manage. You are a smart girl when you picked me. I am doing this all
for you, the girl I am going to marry.
As ever Your Loving Boy,
David Walonick
________________
January 10, 1924 Worthington, MN
Hello Dearie,
I hope you are in good health. I am
fine. I am practically doing nothing as it snowed hard last night and
the roads are closed. When they reopen in a few days, business will
pick up.
I received your letter yesterday and
was glad to hear from you. You asked when you can see me again. It’s
only been a week since I saw you and already you are lonesome. I
can’t fly over for a few days to make you feel happy, then come
back.
You’d still be lonesome. The only
remedy for this is for us to get married. As I told you before, I
don’t care to get married now because I want you to finish
night school.
I hope you will be successful in your
Typing class.
I remain as ever Your Loving Boy,
David N. Walonick
________________
January 24, 1923 Worthington, MN
Hello Dearie,
How are you? What are you doing that
keeps you so busy that you haven’t had time to write? Or have
you forgotten me entirely? I hope I have a letter from you tomorrow.
Business has picked up a lot this week
and kept me real busy. I had to work two nights until 3 a.m. I
received lots of orders to buy furs. I can’t do this alone. I
always say a good woman is better than a hundred hired help.
When you come here, I will take you
out for a ride in my car and show you a good time. I fixed the car up
with a closed cab. No wind or cold can get in. This Sunday I am going
to Sheldon, Iowa to buy some furs from Mr. Sigman. After your visit,
I will go out on the road to buy furs. I’m going to have to
hire someone for the office because I do better when I’m on the
road. Last week, I connected with the largest fur house in the U.S,
and can buy anywhere.
Your Loving Boy,
David N. Walonick
Dora’s father David Tarnorudski
died on February 21, 1924 at the age of 77.
Dora and David were married on June 15,
1924 in Minneapolis by
Rabbi Solomon Silber of Knesseth Israel
congregation. They resided in Worthington.
There were no further letters from
David except on a few occasions when Dora visited her family in
Minneapolis. Though Dora loved David very much, she did not adjust to
living in Worthington. There were extended trips to Minneapolis so
Dora could visit her siblings whom she was very close. There was the
additional problem of not being able to practice her Orthodox
religious upbringing that became
non-existent in Worthington because
there wasn’t a synagogue there nor in nearby communities. Dora
wanted to be part of the Jewish culture, not isolated from it. David
was comfortable with assimilation. He was not a religious person and
even worked on the Sabbath.
In many respects this was the Old World
traditions fighting assimilation in America. It was a dilemma for the
Jewish immigrant.
January 25, 1925 Worthington, MN
My Dearest Wife,
I am glad to hear from you and that you
are having a good time in Minneapolis. I am fine, but business is
slacking up as it snowing and blowing. It is hard to get out with the
car.
Yesterday I took the train to Heron
Lake, MN and bought a little bit of furs. I notice you write in your
letter that you are thinking things over if you don’t hear from
me. I do not like that. I want you to be a brave woman and not be
scared about things. So they want you to stay until Sunday. That is
very nice, but I bet with all the fun you are having, you don’t
feel so happy to come back to your own home to monkey around with the
stove and gasoline burner. Well Dear, I am expecting you Sunday so
write me what time you leave Minneapolis. I am not going to write
anymore this week so good luck to you.
Note: There was no closing sentiment
nor signature from David Walonick.
June 25, 1925 Worthington, MN
Dearest Dora,
Your welcomed letter of the 8th
and 9th at hand and delighted you are okay. Can advice you
that I am in the best of health and having good business. I bought
six cars of iron last week and they are all sold. I am holding my own
in Worthington. I can draw money with the profit and leave the
balance.
Wool went up sharply the last ten days.
We are receiving thirty-nine cents for wool now. If we could have the
wool we bought last month, it have made us an additional profit of
$2,500. But we are poor people so we have to take a small profit by
selling to different films. I sold five thousand pounds to Lewis that
I bought this week north of Worthington. Shapiro bought twelve
thousand pounds, but my wool showed more profit than his larger lot.
If the market stays up another two weeks, we have a good chance to
make money. All of the wool is bought up in Worthington so we are now
buying outside of our territory.
Well my Dearest, I must tell you I am
very lonesome for you. I pray to God that He helps you at your wish
and I am with hopes that it will be soon. Good luck to you with my
best regard to the rest of the family.
I remain as ever Your Man,
David Walonick
The next day in Minneapolis on June 12,
1925, Dora gave birth to twins Albert and Florence. David Walonick
was in Worthington and wrote his last letter on June 26.
My Dearest Dora,
I was very glad to hear from you and
the children. Looks like it’s going to be a new season and
rubbers will be popular all year round. Inner tubes are worth
seven cents a pound now. Soon they’ll
be worth twenty cents a pound. Crude rubber is worth eighty-three
cents a pound. There is plenty of room for rubber to go up. My faith
in old rubber like in normal times is coming true.
I remain as ever Your Man,
David Walonick
We’ll never know how many times
Dora went to Minneapolis to stay with her family during their
marriage, but a third child my mother Annette was born in Worthington
on April 29, 1927. Shortly thereafter, David succumbed to a serious
respiratory disease as a result of the poison chemicals he was
exposed to by the Germans on the battlefield of France n 1918. He was
admitted to the Veteran’s Hospital in Minneapolis on May 16.
His condition worsened and on May 27, 1927, he died at age 35.
Dora was a widow
at age 29 with three young children to support. She had no finances
other than a small settlement from the government for David’s
military service and some life insurance money. Dora moved back to
Minneapolis where she found menial work in a garment factory.
Her nephew Ralph Turner recalls how his
Aunty Doba, which was the Yiddish name for Dora, struggled to make
ends meet but always paid her bills. Dora’s siblings and their
children remained close. Ralph said she was very kind and he adored
her.
Dora carried the torch for education
from David. Her three children became accomplished professionals in
their field. Albert was a medical doctor, Florence a teacher and
Annette a businesswoman.
Tragically, Dora was a hit and run
victim of a drunk driver while visiting her daughter Annette in
Superior, Wisconsin on December 12, 1954. She survived, but died two
days later from a blood clot at age 56.
Son Albert recalled with tears in his
eyes how difficult it was for his parents and other immigrants to
come to America with nothing except a dream for a better life.
~~~~~~~
from the January 2012 Edition of the Jewish Magazine
Material and Opinions in all Jewish Magazine articles are the sole responsibility of the author; the Jewish Magazine accepts no liability for material used.
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