Julia and Morris Mandelowitz World War II correspondence
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Language of Materials
Abstract
This collection is comprised of thousands of WWII era letters, primarily between Morris and Julia (nee Emmer) Mandelowitz. The Brooklyn couple maintained a regular correspondence between 1941 and 1946, during which time Morris served as a gunnery instructor for the US Army. The bulk of the letters are primarily sent from the front to Brooklyn, but also include letters between friends, parents and other relatives. The letters offer insight into life in Brooklyn as well as on the front during WWII.
Biographical / Historical
This collection is comprised of thousands of WWII era letters, primarily between Morris and Julia (nee Emmer) Mandelowitz. The Brooklyn couple maintained a regular correspondence between 1941 and 1946, during which time Morris served as a gunnery instructor for the US Army. The collection also includes many letters from friends and family serving in the war, or on the home front in Brooklyn. Both Julia and Morris's parents were European immigrants who lived in Brooklyn. Morris's parents, Charles and Rebecca Mandelowitz, owned a luncheonette in Brooklyn and later a hotel, Greenfield Manor, in the Catskills. Julia's parents, Andrew and Fanny Emmer, also lived in Brooklyn where her father worked as a milkman with a horse drawn carriage and her mother as a homemaker.
Morris and Julia married in 1943. At the end of the war, the couple returned to Brooklyn living in a converted garage on Rogers Avenue, and then to the Marine Park Co-ops on Burnett Street where they stayed for the remainder of their lives. They had two children, Alan Mandell and Marianne Erlichman. Julia was a bookkeeper at various companies in Brooklyn and Manhattan, and was also a homemaker. Morris worked for Metropolitan Life Insurance and Mack Truck, as well as other companies. Julia died on February 7th 2003, and Morris died December 26th 2004. The couple is buried together on Long Island.
Arrangement
Material is arranged in the order in which it was received from the donor.
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of thousands of letters, primarily between Morris and Julia (Emmer) Mandelowitz. The bulk of the letters are between 1941 and 1946, primarily sent from the front to Brooklyn, but also include letters between friends, parents and other relatives. Friends and relatives were assigned all over the United States or world and many letters came from Julia's younger brother, Sammy, who was in the Merchant Marines and traveled from Europe, through the Panama Canal to the Pacific. The letters offer insight into life in Brooklyn as well as on the front during WWII. The correspondence documents day-to-day life, while also revealing the correspondents' hopes and aspirations for after the war. The correspondence is supplemented by army documents and family photographs.
Subjects
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright to this collection is held by the Brooklyn Historical Society.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Julia and Morris Mandelowitz World War II correspondence, 2017.008, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Marianne Erlichman and Alan Mandell, children of Julia and Morris Mandelowitz, 2017.
Appraisal
A small number of materials were removed from the collection during processing, including music books, Life magazines, and travel brochures.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Materials were donated organized into binders, with letters sleeved individually. Materials were removed from binders and sleeves, and placed in acid free folders and boxes.
