Guide
to
MS 369
The Kohlberg Family Papers
Inclusive dates, 1875 - 1995
Bulk dates, 1875 - 1949
6 feet, 6.5 inches
Prepared by Anna Hernandez
September 1999
Donated by
Eleanor Kohlberg Goodman
Citation: The Kohlberg Family Papers, MS 369
C. L. Sonnichson Special Collections Department,
University of Texas at El Paso Library
C. L. Sonnichson Special Collections Department
University of Texas at El Paso
Olga Bernstein Kohlberg
ca. 1884
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HISTORICAL SKETCH
The Kohlbergs were successful business entrepreneurs who made valuable and memorable civic contributions to the development of El Paso and West Texas. Historical information about them was recorded and preserved through the foresight and commitment of family members.
Family Origins
The Kohlberg family roots can be traced back through the history of the Bassevi family to the patriarch Abraham Basch of Prague who lived from 1545 to 1590.
Ernst Kohlberg
Ernst Kohlberg was from Beverungen in Westphalia, then a province of Prussia. Born May 24, 1857 to Rosa Bernstein and Siegmund Kohlberg, he belonged to a family of seven sons and one daughter. In 1875, Ernst left Beverungen to work for Solomon C. Schultz, and moved to the El Paso region.
Over the next three years, Ernst Kohlberg wrote letters back to family and loved ones in Germany, describing his experiences. His son, Walter Lionel Kohlberg, later translated the letters into English. In 1973, the Texas Western Press at the University of Texas at El Paso published Letters of Ernst Kohlberg, 1875-1877.
The International Cigar Factory
In 1881, Ernst opened a store for the wholesale and retail distribution of cigars. Joined by his brother Moritz, he operated the business under the name of Kohlberg Brothers Tobacco Company. Five years later, the young businessmen opened the International Cigar Factory. As the first cigar manufacturers in the Southwest area, the Kohlbergs’ signature product became the popular La Internacional cigar.
Taft-Díaz Meeting
When the meeting between presidents Taft and Díaz took place in 1909, Ernst Kohlberg was proprietor and manager of the Regis Hotel where the state ceremonial banquet was held.
Death of Ernst Kohlberg
Ernst Kohlberg died an untimely death at the hands of a gunman on June 17, 1910. This scrapbook contains newspaper coverage of Ernst Kolhberg’s murder and the subsequent trial of his assailant.
Only fifty-three years old at the time of his murder, Ernst Kohlberg had already established his legacy in El Paso. Married for almost twenty-six years, Olga and Ernst Kohlberg had three sons and one daughter—Walter Lionel Kohlberg, Herbert Sidney Kohlberg, Leo Jacob Kohlberg, and Else Betty Kohlberg.
Olga Kohlberg
Olga Bernstein was born in Eberfeld, Prussia. She was twenty years old when she married Ernst Kohlberg on June 22, 1884 and moved to the United States. Married for almost twenty-six years, Ernst and Olga had three sons and one daughter. Olga Kohlberg was an important contributor to El Paso's burgeoning frontier civic community who with dedication served her Southwestern home until her death in 1935. Olga Kohlberg helped to establish El Paso's first free kindergarten school (the first free kindergarten in Texas) and was a primary influence behind the development of the city's first public library and hospital.
A dynamic community member, she helped to organize and lead various auxiliaries. She was a founding member of the Ladies Benevolent Association, the Kindergarten Association, and the Mount Sinai Jewish Congregation. She was a founding member and President of the El Paso Women's Club and the El Paso Library Association. She was also a recognized member of the Jewish Welfare Association and the local chapter of the American Association of University Women.
For her many accomplishments, Olga Bernstein Kohlberg was elected to the Hall of Honor by the El Paso County Historical Society in November of 1972. Also, two schools in the El Paso Independent School District have been dedicated to Mrs. Kohlberg. The former Zach White Elementary School, originally built in 1927, was proudly renamed the Olga Bernstein Kohlberg Prekindergarten/ Kindergarten in May of 1992. The second school honoring Mrs. Kohlberg was a new building designated the Olga B. Kohlberg Elementary School. Dedicated in November of 1997, the school's motto is - dream, believe, achieve… Kohlberg's keys to success!
Descendants - See attached chart
SERIES DESCRIPTIONS
The Kohlberg Family Papers are arranged in four series:
Series I. Ernst Kohlberg, b. 1857 d. 1910, 1 foot, 9.7 inches linear.. Ernst Kohlberg, b. 1857 d. 1910, 1 foot, 9.7 inches linear.
Arranged topically, this series contains correspondence, personal documentation, copies of the book Letters of Ernst Kohlberg 1875-1877, photos, newspaper clippings, periodicals, advertisements, and ephemera. Typescripts and scrapbooks are in their original bindings.
Series II. Olga Bernstein Kohlberg, b 1864 - d. 1935. 2 linear inches. Olga Bernstein Kohlberg, b 1864 - d. 1935. 2 linear inches
Arranged topically, series II contains correspondence, newspaper articles, manuscripts, brochures, ephemera, and two copies of Land where we live El Paso Del Norte.
Series III. Walter Lionel Kohlberg, b. 1885 d. 1949 4 feet, 4.3 inches linear. Walter Lionel Kohlberg, b. 1885 d. 1949 4 feet, 4.3 inches linear
Series III contains four sub-series. They are: Research files, Scrapbooks, Newspaper Clippings, and KTSM Builders of El Paso Radio Scripts. The research files are arranged topically and contain genealogical documentation, correspondence, family photographs, ephemera, historical postcards, and photographs of the Mexican Revolution. The two scrapbooks were dis-bound and the pages placed in folders in the original order. The newspaper clippings are arranged chronologically. The radio scripts were removed from post binder are arranged in reverse chronological order.
Series IV. Eleanor Francis Kohlberg Goodman, 1 linear inch. Eleanor Francis Kohlberg Goodman, 1 linear inch
Arranged topically this series contains genealogical data, ephemera, and newspaper clippings.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTES
The Kohlberg Family Papers collection is primarily composed of newspaper clippings and ephemera related to family members and to the historical development of the El Paso region. There are some family documents and genealogical references, including several family trees. The Letters of Ernst Kohlberg 1875-1877, translated by Walter Kohlberg and published by Texas Western Press in 1973, is a central component of the collection. Also prevalent is information on the International Cigar Factory. A small amount of correspondence, postcards, and family photographs can be found in each of the four series, but is mostly located in the Walter Kohlberg series. Most of the photographs are of the El Paso region and events including the Mexican Revolution.
The Ernst Kohlberg series contains correspondence dated 1876 to 1906, materials related to the family tobacco business and the Taft-Díaz meeting in 1909. It also includes naturalization papers, commercial agent appointment papers, ephemera such as the announcement of his wedding to Olga Bernstein in 1884. There is also a scrapbook about his murder in 1910 and the trial of his assailant, John Leech. Materials about the International Cigar Factory include advertisements, labels, and photographs. Also included here is an article that Leonard A. Goodman III wrote at the age of seven about the family tobacco business that was published in Password, the journal of the El Paso County Historical Society. Materials on the Taft-Díaz meeting include invitations, souvenirs, and a menu. Also in this series are issues of Jewish Texan and El Paso Magazine containing articles about Ernst and Olga Kohlberg.
The Olga Bernstein Kohlberg series contains correspondence dated 1930-1931, a manuscript titled Some of the Papers of Olga Kohlberg, which includes a paper titled "History of Charity Organization, El Paso, Texas", newspaper clippings, and ephemera. There is a copy of her memorial services program, nomination papers for the Hall of Honor program, the "Texas Women's History Project", the school dedication programs, and other tributes.
The Walter Lionel Kohlberg series contains materials he collected during the course of his research into the Kohlberg family and El Paso histories. The genealogical documentation includes several family trees. The research files contain many of the photographs of the Kohlberg family and the El Paso region.
The three scrapbooks contain newspaper clippings and ephemera. The first scrapbook is dated 1915-1944. It contains information about family members Leo Jacob Kohlberg, Olga Bernstein Kohlberg, Herbert Sidney Kohlberg, Eleanor Francis Kohlberg, and Walter Lionel Kohlberg. It also has pictures of El Paso mayors from 1873-1944 and a booklet titled El Paso and the New Southwest, published by the Gateway Club of El Paso. The second scrapbook is dated 1922-1944 it contains several items of note. They are: El Paso, an illustrated booklet; The Jockey Club Juárez and El Paso, a souvenir booklet; and the El Paso Police Department Souvenir 1918, a commemorative booklet. It also includes an El Paso Times special edition titled "Texas College of Mines and Arts" from 1934. The third scrapbook dated 1935-1945 contains information about Bessie Kohlberg Owen and Branch Craige Jr. It also contains a collection of charcoal drawings signed "W. Kohlberg" and "H. Kohlberg".
The newspaper clippings date from 1909 to 1949. They contain many items about family members, such as the birth of Betty Jean Craige, the first daughter of Branch Craige Jr. and his wife Jean Mohler McCracken. There are also two issues of Israelitisches Gemeindeblatt, with articles on the Bassevi family. They are written in German. Partial translations of these articles are attached. The Translations were provided by Thomas F. Burdett, curator of the S.L.A. Marshall Military History Collection at the University of Texas at El Paso Library. Local topics covered in the newspaper clippings series include; Fort Bliss, Mount Cristo Rey, and Elephant Butte Dam.
The Eleanor Francis Kohlberg Goodman series contains more current information on the Kohlberg family and El Paso events. The item titled Who Begets? is a family tree of the descendants of Else Betty Kohlberg and (Lawrence) Branch Craige. There is a copy of the news column "Ask Aunt Carol" from 1973. The column reprints a letter written by Hermann Kohlberg to his brother Ernst, in which he describes his family's experience during the San Francisco earthquake of April 6, 1906. Local topics cover include a file on the Hotel Paso Del Norte and the Cortez building, listing important dates of purchase and construction, and a file on the Rita Moreno benefit concert of 1987.
PROVENANCE
Eleanor Kohlberg Goodman donated the Kohlberg Family papers to the University of Texas at El Paso Library by in 1998.
LITERARY RIGHTS
Permission to publish material from the Kohlberg Family Papers, MS 369, must be obtained from the C. L. Sonnichson Special Collections Department, University of Texas at El Paso Library.
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