Jewish Ancestry Mythology (Lisonbee Account 1)

Hope Hilton was a freelance historian (much like I hope to become) who studied the Kohlhepp family generally to obtain a basis for information to understand the upbringing of her mother (Annalee Skarin) for her works like "Descent into Madness." I think she did a lot of great work, even if I do not agree with the conclusions she makes about the family in her Skarin writings. Her research was donated to the University of Utah, and greatfully made available to me. Amongst her papers I located a short biography of Frederick written by his third daughter, Eda Kohlhepp Lisonbee. It has several items of interest that I will try to study topically. First, let me paste the first section of the text, from which I will analyze and discuss it.

"Handwritten by the daughter of Frederick John Kohlhepp, Aug. 28, 1959. From the memory of Mrs. Eda Kohlhepp Lisonbee of Ashland, Ore. Sent to her neice, Hope A. Hilton also the granddaughter of Ferderick John Kohlhepp in 1959.

HISTORY of Frederick John Kohlhepp 1862-1919

My father frederick John Kohlhepp was born in Boston 13 Feb. 1862. His parents were Frederick John Kohlhepp and Elizabeth Wetzler who came from Germany in 1860 and settled in Boston. Frederick John Kohlhepp I started a dying establishment as the family had been dyers in Germany (Poland) and Russian since the Middle Ages, the name Kohl still means dye or dyer in the Middle East while the word “Hepp” meant “Jew” in Poland in the Middle Ages. Kohlhepp therefore meant a Jewish Dyer, as Jews were the only people allowed to be engaged in the dying business we know for certain that the family were Jewish in their culture and background, however as was common in Europe in the 1860’s to avoid persecution by the Gentiles[,] many Jews adopted the Christian religion or quit [being] their Jewish customs. Grandfather and his children were of this caliber[.] the only thing they refused to give into was the eating of pork. To my knowledge they never tasted it or allowed it in the home."

Commentary:

1. Eda informs us that her account is from her memory, so that it does not appear that she consulted any journals, letters, or other persons regarding the information she provides here. The document proports to have been written in 1859, which means Eda would have been 66 years old at the time of its production. The question then is if it is accurate. Even if it not, it still can give us an understanding of the family's impression of themselves and their history.

2. Eda refers to her paternal grandparents as Frederick John Kohlhepp and Elizabeth Wetzler. Their official names were Johann Friedrich Kohlhepp and Marie Elisabeth Wetzler. Is Eda flipping the grandfather's name and shortening the mother's, or is she referring to them the way the children and the grandparents actually referred to themselves? The best way to know this I suppose would be to examine correspondence and observe how they are referred to and refer to themselves.

3. Came from Germany to Boston in 1860? I don't believe that they immigrated so close to Fred's birth or that they initially settled in Boston, Massachussetts. I think that they had one stop before then. Here is where I will have to prove otherwise; the burden is with me.
NOTE: Having consulted my PAF, Fred had two sisters born earlier than him in the United States. One was born in 1853 (Elizabeth/Lizzie) in Rhode Island, the other in 1855 in Pennsylvania (Amelia). I should locate some Census records to verify this, but it seems very likely that they immigrated to the states at least by 1853.

4. The dying business. It is true that Johann Friedrich did run a dye factory in Boston, located in Jamaica Plains. I have an advertisement for the business as well as some listings in Boston and Jamaica Plains business directories. I will post these up later. However, Eda here does make a sweeping claim: that the Kohlhepps had been dyers since the Middle Ages (I am not sure how far back she means here--the Renaissance, earlier?) in Germany, Poland, and Russia. That she cites these three countries is interested, because due to family genealogical records, we have not found any Kohlhepps in Poland or Russia. Her reasoning (if not including word of mouth accounts) rests upon a folk etymology of the family surname, the Kohl and Hepp supposedly meaning Dyer and Jew in Middle Age Polish. I wonder how she came across this etymology. I need to conduct a surname search to see the possibilities of the meaning of "Kohlhepp" and if her interpretation was at all in vogue with the etymologists of her time period. Otherwise, did this come from subtle imagination?

5. This of course drives immediately to the Jewish question. Minerva Teichert had long claimed to come from Jewish ancestry. She drew a painting of Jewish immigrants coming to America, and associated with many Jewish people. The Mormon church (of which I am a member) had long connected itself with the House of Israel, and in patriarchal blessings assigns members to a tribe, which typically has a mission or role for the earth. Their is an idea of literal adoption into the House of Israel. Did the Kohlhepps wish themselves into Jewish ancestry? They did have a history of tall tales and exaggeration. I cannot find evidence that there was any Jewish blood that came into their lineage (though I am sure if we went back far enough we would, just as would be the case for nearly every human being on the earth). Fred's autobiography does not mention Jewish heritage either. Eda's further claims to support the Jewish theory are:
- Only Jews were allowed to be dyers. How so? Why?
- She claims Jews migrated from Germany to America and gave up their Jewish customs. I am sure this was true in some sense, but was it true on the whole? Why would the Kohlhepps participate? There is also a more fundamental problem here: Fred's mother was born a Christian, christined in a Christian church. I am not sure about Johann Friedrich, although he was a freemason. I will have to double-check my sources and post them up here. If these accounts are true, it seems strange to state they have Jewish heritage.
- She notes that the family refused to eat or have pork in the home. Even if this is true, did not other religious groups despise pork? I am sure there were many Christian groups that did the same from reading scriptures. It could also have just been family tradition or taste. I don't find this fact conclusive.

Given Eda's claims, did any of the other Kohlhepp sisters substantiate them, or back them up for the same reasons? This would be a difficult thing to find. I have heard that Fred's son, Fred, thought he had the natural right to be a Bishop do this jewish ancestry mythology. I will explain this claim more when I revise this post later.