ROOTS
16/06/2000

AN American architect who arrived here in 1940 would like to meet fellow refugees from his time in the Heaton Road hostel, Withington, and the Cassel Fox hostel in Upper Park Road, Salford.
Lou Adler, 74, and his wife Edna are currently visiting England from Atlanta, Georgia.
Lou arrived in Liverpool in May 1940, aged 14 and speaking very little English. He recalls: ‘‘All I remember was the Jewish community gave us food. I was very hungry — we were fed garbage on the Bodegraven (the ship from Holland).
‘‘From Liverpool I moved to Wigan. The Bishop of Wigan was especially kind. I remember him saying ‘You are the children of God’.”
Lou also has fond memories of Harris Blond, a raincoat manufacturer on Cheetham Hill Road.
He said: ‘‘Harris Blond gave me an opportunity. If I felt downhearted I went to his home in Didsbury.’’
Lou worked at the Blond factory for a while, but Harris’s wife urged him to further his education. He took her advice and enrolled at the Sackville College of Technology to study engineering and maths.
Other friendly faces from that era include Harris’s brother Neville, the Barash family and a Miss Phillips.
From Withington Lou moved to the Cassel Fox hostel in Salford and would now like to contact those former refugees who shared his teenage years in Manchester.
‘‘I want to find them to see if they are okay financially and health wise. We might be able to help each other,’’ he added.
Lou is also trying to trace Heinz Hirschberg, who he now believes is called Rabbi Harry Jacobi.
Lou and Edna have three sons. The eldest Yitzhak is a rabbi, David is in real estate and the youngest, Stuart is an architect.
Lou contacted the Chief Rabbi, Professor Jonathan Sacks, for help in tracing his former colleagues and it was Prof Sacks who put him in touch with the Blond family.

During his stay in Manchester he was re-united with Hilda Barrett (nee Levy) who used to work alongside him as a machinist at Blond’s factory.
Lou was born near Wurtenburg in Germany and attended the Jewish school in Bad Lergenthein.
His parents Adolph and Elsie were prominent members of the community. Adolph was the president of the Corn Exchange and a member of the Town Council.
Lou escaped Nazi Germany for Holland and sailed for Liverpool before the German invasion of that country.
His parents were transported to Poland and Russian and were sent on the Siberian Railroad to Japan before escaping to the States. He also has a sister in New Jersey.
Anyone who can help should contact Lou at 1565 Coralwood Ct, Decatur, GA 30033, USA or telephone 404 633 3416.


GARY Robinson, of Kent, wants to find relatives of his grandmother, Kate Robinson (Allen), who was born in New York City around 1868/9.
She emigrated to Liverpool in the 1880s and had a sister who married a Mr Levi/Levy. They had six daughters all named after flowers. Kate died in 1943, aged 74.
Write to Gary Robinson, 79 Jail Lane, Biggin Hill, Kent TN16 3SE, telephone 01959 572715 or email gary@llamaland100.freeserve.co.uk .


SYLVIA Woodrow, of Manchester, is trying to trace relatives of her late grandfather Israel Yzorssky (Yesorsky) who settled in Leeds.
Israel married Rachel and had eight children — Sam Young, who emigrated to Canada; twins Betsy and Leah; Sylvia’s mother Minnie, who married Alec Caro; Mick, twins Gertie and Joe; and Ada, married to Lionel Lee.
Israel also had two brothers — one moved to America and lost touch with the family — the other lived in Gateshead and had two sons, Louis and Rabbi Wolf Yesorsky, who moved to South Africa.
Contact 22 Rochford Avenue, Whitefield, Manchester M45 7PS.

 
© 2000 Jewish Telegraph

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