Marmorstein Family History

The eldest of Izsak and Esther’s 12 children, Max was born in Középlak in 1895. He was the first Marmorstein to immigrate to America. He settled in Cleveland, Ohio in 1913. There, he became extremely successful, investing in commercial real estate, especially hotels. He returned home in 1920 to bring his younger brothers Jakab and Adolf to America, and after the war, he helped a number of family members resettle in the US or Israel. In addition to many theaters, hotels and apartment buildings in Cleveland and the surrounding area, Max owned racehorses and the Casa Marina, a famous Key West hotel, where he would host family events. Max’s home, Wickliffe, is now the city hall of the Cleveland suburb of the same name. Max married Florence late in life and had no children. See More...

Izsak and Esther’s second child, Lajos was born in Középlak in 1897. He served in the Hungarian army in Russia and Italy during World War I. He was wounded late in the war and was awarded medals for his service. In 1922, he was the fourth Marmorstein son to come to America, where he was known as Louis. Unlike the others, he was unhappy in America and returned home later in the 1920s. There, he married Ibolya Geist in 1927(?) and they had two sons, Erwin (1928) and Elemer (1930). They prospered in the village of Váralmós throughout the 1930s, owning property, employing many local people on their farms and in their timber and mining business. Sometime after Hungary joined the Axis powers in 1940, Lajos was conscripted into forced labor. He was somehow able to return home in 1943, but in 1944, he and his family were deported to Auschwitz with virtually all the Jews of the region. He survived into 1945, but was murdered in Buchenwald late in the war. His wife was also murdered in the camps, but his sons survived and eventually made their way to America. See More...

Isak and Esther’s third child, and first daughter, Vilma was born in Középlak in 1898. There’s a surviving postcard that she sent the family during a holiday in Budapest. On the postcard, she expresses delight at the sights and sounds of the big city. There, she met and married Adolf Marmorstein, a Budapest dairy merchant (it’s not clear if they were related). Together, they lived in Budapest and had three daughters, Gabriella, Ilus and Munci. She and Adolf were killed in Auschwitz, as was one of their daughters. Gabriella and Ilus survived and immigrated to Israel after the war. See More...

Gizella, Izsak and Esther’s fourth child and second daughter, was the first Marmorstein of the 20th century. She married into the Jakab family and was the mother of Armin and [Abraham??] and ??. Her son Armin survived conscription in forced labor and a Soviet POW camp, and lived a long life in Cleveland, eventually becoming Alex’s partner in his painting company. See More...

Isak and Esther’s fifth child, and third daughter, Hanna was born in 1901 [1900?] in Középlak. She married Joseph Abraham and they lived in Váralmás. They had three children, Bandi [Andre?], Edith and Klara.. In 1944, they were deported to Auschwitz, where they were killed. Their children survived and settled in Israel after the war. See More...

Adolf was born in 1903 in Középlak. He and his younger brother Jakab immigrated to America in 1920. He changed his name to Eddie and joined their brother Max in Cleveland. He married Lillian Aronson (1910-1993) at Max’s Casa Marina hotel. Together, they had three children, Barry, Inez, and Eva. They lived in Chicago. Eddie died in 1954. See More...

Jakab was born in 1905 in Középlak. He immigrated with his brother Adolf in 1920. He settled in Cleveland and changed his name to Jack. He married Sadie Fineman (1907-1995) in 1930. They had three children, Judy (1931-1995), Sally (1937-1939), and Andy (1941-2019). Jack was a carpenter, contractor, and house painter. He started a house painting business with his brother Sandor (Alex), where many family members worked. Jack died of a heart attack in 1952. See More...

Sandor was born in 1907 in Középlak and came to America in 1926. He changed his name to Alex and married Sarah Neuman (1909-1985). They had two daughters, Joanie and Diana. He started the family house painting business with his brother Jack, and ran the business with his cousin Armin (Gizella’s son) after Jack’s death. See More...

Iliana was born in 1909 in Középlak. In 1926, Lajos returned home to escort her, as well as three of her Marmorstein siblings, to America. She changed her name to Lillian, and married Bela (Bill) Bokor. They lived in New York, where they had two sons, Sandy and Lenny. See More...

Deszo was born in 1911 in Középlak. In 1926, Lajos returned home to escort him, as well as three of his Marmorstein siblings, to America. In Cleveland, he worked at one of his brother Max’s theaters. He married Anne Meisel and they lived in Florida and Detroit. He was murdered in Miami in 1948. See More...

Piroska was Izsak and Esther’s fifth and final daughter. She was born in 1913 in Középlak, just as Moric left for the US, and just before Lajos left to fight in World War I. She came to America with three of her siblings (and Lajos, who returned home to accompany them) in 1926. She married Andre (Andrew) Rosenfeld, also from Kolozsvár, and they had one son, Ronnie. Andrew was extremely successful in business. He and Pearl were at the center of Marmorstein family life for decades. See More...

Bela was the youngest of Iszak and Esther’s twelve children. He was born after Moric had left for America and when Lajos was already fighting in World War I. He was just 11 when he arrived in America, along with three of his older siblings. During World War II, he served in the US Army in Europe, where his fluency in Hungarian made him especially useful. He was wounded in a plane crash while serving there. He married Evelyn H. Dubin and lived in Florida. They had one daughter, Vicki. See More...