Family archeology: Letters from my grandfather
Tue, Jun. 16th, 2015 07:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
I recently rediscovered a looseleaf book full of acid-free pages that I put together to store a treasure trove of pictures and correspondence from my father's side of the family. Last night and tonight, I've taken some time to scan and transcribe some of the correspondence therein. It's fascinating to read my paternal grandfather's letters to my grandmother before they were married. He is a devoted suitor, an entirely different man than the one I knew as a child. Most of the letters date from 1915, the year they became engaged to be married--100 years ago! I can't seem to load an image of the letter that I wanted to share (I'm getting a file size error, though it's no more specific than that), but here's the transcript. It mainly concerns the acquisition of invitations for their engagement party. (ETA: Actually, the letter isn't dated. It was in an envelope that, as it turned out, belonged to a different letter, matched by dates. This letter may concern invitations to either their engagement party or their wedding. It's unclear.)
Dear Little Girl.
I just received a telephone message from Mr. Bernstein that he will not be able to entertain me to-night on account of feeling very ill; therefore you will not have to hurry in coming over to the house to-night.
About the invitations. The kind that we ordered was not made up on account of the price. He wanted $6.00 for 100 and I couldn’t see into it. Therefore a prettier and plainer card was ordered. That is the arrangement my father made.
Sadie, I’d rather give you the other couple of dollars and have you buy a better hat or a better shirt or anything else that would be necessary for you to wear. Now I hope this will be satisfactory for you as I think it is a very good idea. They will be thrown away, the good invitations as well as the other.
My best regards to your folks and Sophie.
I remain as ever
Morris
Lots of love to my dear little girl
Now, there are any number of things about this letter that I love, but the thing I love about it the most is that this is my grandfather, a man whom I knew to be cranky and bitter and generally pretty unhappy. To see him write such a letter with obvious care and thought, and to sign it the way he did, is just amazing to me. At the same time, that second paragraph contains an interesting contradiction. My grandfather says that he couldn't see the price, but that his father made a different arrangement--so who made the decision to get less expensive cards, my grandfather or my great grandfather? (I should note that I have one of the invitations--the card is plain as can be, no adornment, but of a good, thick stock.) My great grandfather had a far worse reputation than my grandfather did, so I wonder if a choice presented as a pound-wise decision was actually someone pinching pennies. I can't be sure, but the generosity of the offer from my grandfather to my soon-to-be grandmother is very sweet.
And here's the invitation (click to embiggen):

Dear Little Girl.
I just received a telephone message from Mr. Bernstein that he will not be able to entertain me to-night on account of feeling very ill; therefore you will not have to hurry in coming over to the house to-night.
About the invitations. The kind that we ordered was not made up on account of the price. He wanted $6.00 for 100 and I couldn’t see into it. Therefore a prettier and plainer card was ordered. That is the arrangement my father made.
Sadie, I’d rather give you the other couple of dollars and have you buy a better hat or a better shirt or anything else that would be necessary for you to wear. Now I hope this will be satisfactory for you as I think it is a very good idea. They will be thrown away, the good invitations as well as the other.
My best regards to your folks and Sophie.
I remain as ever
Morris
Lots of love to my dear little girl
Now, there are any number of things about this letter that I love, but the thing I love about it the most is that this is my grandfather, a man whom I knew to be cranky and bitter and generally pretty unhappy. To see him write such a letter with obvious care and thought, and to sign it the way he did, is just amazing to me. At the same time, that second paragraph contains an interesting contradiction. My grandfather says that he couldn't see the price, but that his father made a different arrangement--so who made the decision to get less expensive cards, my grandfather or my great grandfather? (I should note that I have one of the invitations--the card is plain as can be, no adornment, but of a good, thick stock.) My great grandfather had a far worse reputation than my grandfather did, so I wonder if a choice presented as a pound-wise decision was actually someone pinching pennies. I can't be sure, but the generosity of the offer from my grandfather to my soon-to-be grandmother is very sweet.
And here's the invitation (click to embiggen):

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Date: Wed, Jun. 17th, 2015 05:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: Wed, Jun. 17th, 2015 01:19 pm (UTC)