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Born as Irving Wolk: My great grandfather
Born as Irving Wolk on December 17, 1911 in Worcester, Massachusetts, friends, family, and clients of my great grandfather called him Gerry. This photo was estimated to have been taken in the late 1930's or early 1940's, when my great grandfather and great grandmother were in their late twenties/early thirties. Here, my great grandfather is pictured with my great grandmother, Frances. -
My great grandfather as a businessman
My great grandfather was a businessman and sold appliances such as televisions and washing machines. -
World events that Gerry lived through
My great grandfather lived during both world wars. As a Jewish man, he must have been especially aware of anti-Semitism. My great grandfather was an air raid warden during World War II. -
Walker Electrical Supply in Worcester, MA
My great grandfather opened an appliance store in Worcester, Massachusetts. The store was called Walker Electrical Supply. Walker was his last name, after changing it from Wolk. -
Reason for name change (continued)
Coming off the heels of World War II and fearing a culture of antisemitism, my great grandfather believed that his shop would be unsuccessful if people knew he was Jewish. Pictured here is his business card, with his changed last name. Notice that the telephone number was only five digits. -
Reason for name change
Not only did my great grandfather go by a different first name, he changed his last name. The latter is of course, less common; yet my great grandfather changed his last name from Wolk to Walker out of fear that nobody would shop at his appliance shop if they knew he was Jewish. Pictured here is his driver's license with his new name. The license was issued on August 16, 1939. -
Family life
My great grandfather had a wife named Frances and three sons: Barry, my maternal grandfather, Kimmy, and Ricky. They were raised as Walkers. Pictured is my grandfather, Barry. -
My great grandfather's passing
My great grandfather passed away at the age of 39 in 1951. My grandfather, the oldest child of the household looked after his two younger brothers as a father figure in their father’s place. -
My mother and her connection to her grandfather
My mother, born Elizabeth Robyn Walker on July 11, 1964 heard stories about her paternal grandfather from her mother and uncles. She heard about him from her grandmother (my great grandmother) as well. -
My mom and her grandmother, Frances
My mom asked my great grandmother (whom she always resembled) when looking at photos of my great grandfather why his name had changed. As a child, she does not recollect being given much of a response. -
How "Walker" was viewed by children at Sunday school who kept their Jewish last names
When my mom went to Sunday School at her family’s temple growing up, other students were perplexed by her presence there. They told her that she did not have a Jewish name, and that if her name is Walker she was not Jewish. The other children questioned my mom about this for many years. Yet, she did not learn why her grandfather changed their family name until she became a bit older. -
When my mom learned why her grandfather changed their name
When my mom was a teenager, she remembers being told why her grandfather changed the family name. When she learned that it was because her grandfather believed that his store would be unsuccessful if the customers knew he was Jewish, she felt it was very sad that he felt he had to hide who he was from others. My grandfather is pictured below. I believe he resembles my great grandfather. -
My mother marries and Walker becomes her maiden (and middle) name
My mother married my father, Rod Nangle on May 4 1993. That is, of course, how I got my last name Nangle. My mom changed her name from Elizabeth Robyn Walker to Elizabeth Walker Nangle. -
How I came to learn of the name change
At one point in time during my childhood, there was a picture of my great grandfather on the mantle in the living room. My mother told me about the name change from a young age. Yet, at the time I recall being told that it was because he wanted to change the name because he preferred the name Walker over Wolk. -
How I learned of the name change (part two)
I did not learn until I was a bit older that my great grandfather changed his name because he believed antisemitism permeated enough of the country to hurt his business. Learning this made me realize that just because the war ended, antisemitism had not. -
What I learned from looking for photos for this project
Unfortunately, we do not have many photographs of my great grandfather at our house. Therefore, I had to ask my relatives if they had photographs. I learned quite a bit from this search. I contacted my uncle Jeff Walker and my great aunt Rachel Walker. -
Rachel's advice for me
I reached out to my great aunt, Rachel Walker for a photo of my great grandfather. She said that she has seen photographs of him, but does not have one herself. Given the time period and my great grandfather's untimely death, we do not have many photographs of him. She told me to ask my grandmother, Judy Walker if she had one. -
My grandmother's response (air raid warden)
My grandmother did not believe she had any photos of her late father in law. She asked me what the project was about and said that from what she could remember, he sold appliances, such as washing machines and was in business. A couple of days later, she sent me another email to tell me that she just remembered that my great grandfather was an air raid warden during World War II. -
My mom's advice for this project
When I told my mom about this project on the car ride home from school, I asked her if she knew any family stories that might be useful. She interrupted me mid-sentence and said that she had the perfect story for me. This was the story that she told me. -
What this project taught me
Because my great grandfather passed away at a young age, he was rarely discussed when my mother grew up. Because of this, she did not know that much about him other than that he changed his name. By contacting my older relatives and asking them about my great grandfather, I have learned much more about him. I feel fortunate to get to know my great grandfather in a way I would have never otherwise. Mr. Day says that I look like my great grandfather.
