Chaykele (Chaya) Twersky was the daughter of Reb Mordche Shpikover, son of Reb Itzikel Skverrer zt"l. That made her first cousin of the old Skverrer Rebbe from New Square; as his father Reb Doovid'l Skverrer and Reb Mordche were brothers. Her brother was Reb Yitzchok Noochem of Shpikov/Rava-Ruska, who was married to the daughter of Reb Yisoocher Dov Belzer zt"l, and was the subject of one chapter of David Assaf's latest book. Chaykele is supposedly the one who introduced him to the Maskil Dinesohn in Lvov/Lemberg, since she had already had extensive contact with many Maskilim like him. She was married to Reb Menachem Nochum Twersky, who was later the Trisker Rebbe in Warsaw and died Al Kiddush Hashem in 5703. After being married for a while they both realized that they were headed in opposite directions and divorced. She went back home to Shpikov, moved around in Europe, and later emigrated to the United States with her two children Yochanan and Avrohom. Yochanan passed away in 1967, Avrohom in 2000, or so it seems from the following obituary in the New York Times:
Paid Notice: Deaths
TWERSKY, ABRAHAM
Published: August 15, 2000
TWERSKY-Abraham, 92. Of West Orange, New Jersey. Formerly of The Bronx, New York. Beloved husband of the late Anna (nee Bernstein) and the late Isabelle (nee Arsham). Devoted father of Naomi Zahurak & David Twersky. Loving brother of the late Yochanan Twersky. Cherished grandfather of Suzanne, Michael, John, Gary, Richard, Michael and Anna. Adored great-grandfather of Daniel, Hannah, Skiler, & Christopher. Services will be held at the Bernheim, Apter Goldsticker Funeral Chapel, 1600 Springfield Avenue, Maplewood, New Jersey, today, August 15, at 1:30 P.M.
The following is Chaykele's Tzavo'oh (will and last testament) as dictated to her friend, as she hadn't the strength to write it herself, but was of sound mind. Pictured above is Chaykel with her two children and sister; which sister it is is still unclear. It could either be Mirel, the former wife of Reb Osher Perlow hy"d of Stolin, son of the Yenukah/Frankfurter zt"l of Stolin, or it could be Feiga, who was married to the son of Reb Yitzchok of Buhush. Either way these two are very hard to tell apart. One of these days I'll translate it for y'all. I apologize if anybody was offended by the posting of women's pictures; I have a soft spot for Bnei and Bnos Kedoshim, I don't think they have the affect that stam women's pictures have. That point can also be argued, but that's how I see it.
35 comments:
Are you certain that the dimunitive of her name was Chaykl. BY us in White Russia Chaikl was the dimunitive fro a male name Chaim.
Read the first page of the will. It says Hut "Chaykele" Tverski etc. So I guess it's Chaykele.
It's posts like these that entitle you to your daily portion of air.
I didn't that you were the "Minister of Air!" Thank You, Natchalnik.
Now before you go and print remember where you saw it first and give some credit, will ya?
I'd never consciously take myself out of the מביא גאולה לעולם gang.
But how can one decipher the tzvuah ? I am sure it's contents are dazzling, but I get dizzy reading other peoples script.
Click on the pages and read. That's what I did. If an "intellectual dwarf" like myself can do it then a GIANT like yourself surely can....
Can you help out us not so talented folks? I couldn't decifer much more that that she says she has nothing physical to leave other than some letters for her sons and her silk dress for ???. Does she say that she would like to be buried in Shpikov if it doesn't cost too much? Please be nice and help me out. I would love to know what it says in full.
What year was it that she died?
Quite a post. This is what we read this blog for.
chc:
I'll try and translate soon.
Very interesting, thanks. So her children became maskilim? What happened to her eventually in this sense? Where did you get those letters from?
Also, you might find it interesting, there opened an archive of interrogation protocols of Baal haTania and other related materials:
http://www.podval.org/19-kislev-archive/pages/
Ikh ken nit leinen af Rushis.
I can't reveal my source.
Her children were raised not frum after a certain age. Their mother made sure of it.....
Does David Twersky, son of Avrohom, writer for the New York Sun, and great-great grandson of Reb Itzikel Skverrer get to sit Oyvin Oon by the Skverrer Tish?
How old were her children when they died? Who raised them after her death?
They were in their 40's and 50's, I would hope they'd been raised by then....
Chaykele is a women's name , chaykel is a man's name. Now you have it right.
In the obituary in the NY Times on Abraham Twersky, there are great grandchildren by the name Skiler and Christophor, which are stricly goyishe names. Wonder if any of his children married out.
I would agree that the names don't sound particularly heimish but you cant make such generalizations. I used to think there were no yidden with the name John or Johnson. I was wrong.
We're lucky Tzig & Co can't read russish, or else they'd have to declare half of podval to be "fake.
I'm not sure who you mean by "& Co."
Fine Nyiredhaza gentlemen claiming to be the authentic representatives of the True Russian, Klein-Russian and Weiss-Russian Judenrat today.
You're mistaken, we never claim that. The Williamsburgers do.
Williamsburgers claim to be Russians ? Did you read that in the sources ?
no, they claim to carry on the true Russian tradition though.
Thank you very much for this it is a very intresting piece.
I like the part where she writes (I think) that זכו מלאכתן נעשית ע"י אחרים thats a real positive attitude.
The satmar rebbes daughter name was Chaikou A"H
In my family she was known as Chaykie, but that could be the Hungarian version.
Hirshel: This might help (to some degree).
Google has a good set of language tools here: http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en
http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.podval.org%2F19-kislev-archive%2Fpages%2F&langpair=ru%7Cen&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
here is the page in google translate.
U'N': I don't know about the origins of "podval". How do you know half of it is fake?
It was published in Kerem Chabad ages ago. Is there more here that was not published?
Guravitzer: Yes.
bahaltener : it's not fake, it's an original. but there are things there between the lines that tzig & co would surely like to bury.
I have a sore spot for Bnei and Bnos Kedoshim, I don't think they have the affect that stam women's pictures have. That point can also be argued, but that's how I see it.
a. mistameh meinst du 'soft spot'...
b. what is the effect pictures of 'stam women'have?
what is the effect pictures of stam women'have?
Peyshe:
Do I need to spell it out for you?
Schneur: Who makes "Koyvetz Volyn"? Where can it be found?
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