Johanna Klipsch

In early November 2020 the Klips family enlisted the services of a Hungarian translation service based on Cleveland Ohio, who gave the following information about the photograph. 

The name of the photographer is Márton Fáy, and he was the official photographer of the FREE AUSTRIAN AND HUNGARIAN NATIONAL RAILWAY COMPANY.  The city is Resicza, Resita in Romanian and today it is in Romania and interestingly it has a Railway Museum see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Re%C8%99i%C8%9Ba

However it was an ethnic Hungarian city which was “given” by the victorious powers to Romania in the much lamented and painful to us Hungarians “Treaty of Trianon” after WW1. Another description of its history is here: https://www.jewishgen.org/communities/community.php?usbgn=-1168531
Its Hungarian name was Resiczabánya, bánya meaning mine, so there was a mine there.

As for the photograph, it is a list of their offerings: enlargements, they also offer to prepare platinum aquarelle or even oil paintings based on pictures up till life-size.  They are also a warehouse of photographic equipment and you may reorder a picture years later

 

Johanna Klipsch was the grandmother of Robert Klips and Stephen Klips. Here is everything that is known about her, and probably everything that ever will be. 

In 1914 Johanna emigrated to the US with her children. Here is an image of the 1914 passport, and its TRANSLATION IS  HERE (link)

passport

In order to get the family here, Anton had to obtain the services of the Hungarian consulate. There is this official document, and THIS TRANSLATION OF IT (link)

Johanna Klipsch document

There is a “Find a Grave” web service. Here’s a link to Johanna’s  grave in Cleveland, and associated obituary information. Here’s a screen capture of that page.  (It’s good to know that Crest kills all of those germs.)

There are also “Find a Grave” pages for Johanna’s husband Anton Klips who died  about a decade earlier (LINK), and for her daughter Molly Bruggemeier, Anthony’s older sister, who lived until 1977 (LINK). 

Here’s a home movie from 1957 or so showing Anthony, his wife Mildred, their two sons, during a visit to Johanna either at her home or that of  her daughter Molly Bruggemeier, in 1956 or 1957.

Anthony is the cinematographer. The footage of the lumberyard “Forest Materials Co.” may have been because that was where sister Molly was employed. That is conjecture but why else would Tony film a lumberyard? 

 

Here’s a still image from around the same time as the movie. 
Why is Aunt Molly strangling her nephew? 

“Broken Oath”
(A Mysterious Letter)

Within a small envelope containing a few family belongings, including the photos and documents reproduced above, we found a single sheet of paper with handwriting on both sides. Here is that old letter: 

Johanna letter

An Austrian botanist friend of a friend was kind enough to look at it, then later to translate it. 
He said the following preliminarily in an email on November 15, 2020:

Yes this is tricky to read because it is old German “Kurrentschrift” used in hand-writing even some earlier decades last century. I have learned a bit of it in primary school but my generation did not use it any more.I can read the title, it means: gebrochener Schwur – i.e. broken oath – and this letter may tell a very personal story. I could try to decipher and translate this, however, this will take some time, as there are many ambiguous characters especially in imprecise handwriting.

Then a few weeks later he graciously sent THIS TRANSLATION (link to PDF)  (pasted below) 

(1) Original transcription

Gebrochener Schwur!

Treue Liebe hast Du mir geschworen, rufest Gott zu deinem Zeugen an, nun ging deine Liebe schon verlohren [verloren] sie [sieh] wie sich der Mensch verändern kan [kann]. Willst dich nun von deinem Mädchen trennen die dein Herz zu keiner Zeit betrübt, ach du mußt [musst] es mir ja selbst bekennen[,] den [denn] du hast mich niemahls [niemals] treu geliebt. Einst war ich dir alles hier im Leben[,] drückest mich an deine heiße Brust kontest [konntest] nur in Wonne mit mir schweben[,] Zank und Streit war niemals dir bewußt [bewusst]. In der Blüte meiner schönsten Jugend gab ich mich zum Opfer für dich hin[.] Raubtest mir die Unschuld samt der Tugend[,] Schpot [Spott] und Hohn ist von dir mein Gewinn. Teurer mein du brichst deinen Schwur der Treue[,] liebest mich schon lange Zeit nicht mehr[,] doch geduldig trieft [trifft] eine sichere[?] Reue dan [dann] schlägt dein Herz von Vorwurf dir so schwer. Ist mir nun das schwere Los beschieden[,] das [dass] ich wirklich von dir scheiden soll, nun so ziehe hin in Ruh und Frieden[,] lebe du mein Teuhrer [Teurer] lustig wohl. Nimmermehr werd ich mein Herz verschenken[,] weihl [weil] mir´s lieben nichtmer [nicht mehr] möglich ist[.] Und an dich mus [muss] ich so lange denken biß [bis] der Tod mein treues Auge schließt[.] Lieg ichs [ich] dan [dann] in meinem Todes Schlummer decket michs [mich] die kühle Erde zu[,] ach dan [dann] quälet mich kein stiller Kummer[,] dan [dann] genieße ichs [ich] die stille Ruh. Fürt [Führt] dich einst der Weg zu meinem Grabe sehest meinen Leichenstein vor dir, gebe mir die allerletzte Gabe[,] weine eine heiße Träne mir.

Schluß [Schluss]

Johanna Klipsch

(2) Transcription in actual orthography and poem format

Treue Liebe hast Du mir geschworen,
rufest Gott zu deinem Zeugen an,
nun ging deine Liebe schon verloren
sieh wie sich der Mensch verändern kann.

 

Willst dich nun von deinem Mädchen trennen
die dein Herz zu keiner Zeit betrübt,
ach du musst es mir ja selbst bekennen,
denn du hast mich niemals treu geliebt.

 

Einst war ich dir alles hier im Leben,
drückest mich an deine heiße Brust,
konntest nur in Wonne mit mir schweben,
Zank und Streit war niemals dir bewusst.

 

In der Blüte meiner schönsten Jugend
gab ich mich zum Opfer für dich hin.
Raubtest mir die Unschuld samt der Tugend,
Spott und Hohn ist von dir mein Gewinn.

 

Teurer mein du brichst deinen Schwur der Treue,
liebest mich schon lange Zeit nicht mehr,
doch geduldig trifft eine sichere Reue,
dann schlägt dein Herz von Vorwurf dir so schwer.

 

Ist mir nun das schwere Los beschieden,
dass ich wirklich von dir scheiden soll,
nun so ziehe hin in Ruh und Frieden,
lebe du mein Teurer lustig wohl.

 

Nimmermehr werd´ ich mein Herz verschenken,
weil mir´s lieben nicht mehr möglich ist.
Und an dich muss ich so lange denken
bis der Tod mein treues Auge schließt.

 

Lieg ich dann in meinem Todes Schlummer
decket mich die kühle Erde zu,
ach dann quälet mich kein stiller Kummer,
dann genieße ich die stille Ruh.

 

Führt dich einst der Weg zu meinem Grabe
sehest meinen Leichenstein vor dir,
gebe mir die allerletzte Gabe,
weine eine heiße Träne mir.

(3) Attempt of a translation of (2) to give you an idea (this should be really refined by an expert)

True love you have promissed me
askest God to witness this
but your love has gone away
just as man can change each day.

 

You want to separate from me
Though I never hurt your heart,
so you have to confess me,
that you never loved me true.

 

Once I was your sweetest love,
you the only that embosomed me
both we full were of delight,
never disturbed by argument and strife.

 

In the blossom of my youngest beauty
I have made a sacrifice for you.
Losing my virginity and virtue,
mockery and scoff I have gained from you.

 

My dear you have broken your oath,
you did not love me any more,
but regret will come to you,
and unload a burden on your heart.

 

So bad fortune I have gained,
separating now from you,
so let’s go in peace and silence,
carry on your life in pleasure and delight.

 

Never will I lose my heart again,
love is precluded from this place.
And I have to think so long of you  
until death will close my eyes.

 

In my grave in final slumber
covered by the soil so cool,
then I shall have no more grief
and enjoy eternal peace.  

 

Once you come along the way
see my tombstone just ahead,
leave a final gift for me
stop in reminiscence and shed a tear.

Passport.traveldocument 1914

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