The Thumims in Modern Times

From Germany the Thumims moved eastward, swept along by the wave of expulsions from various countries (England, 1290; France, 1306; Spain, 1492; Portugal, 1497). Some members of the family settled in Autria, while others found refuge in Poland. These branches of the family may have remained in contact with each other, since many of the Polish members lived in the parts of Poland given to Austria in the partitions of 1772 and 1795. As time went on the two branches began to differentiate. Some members of the Polish branch slid slowly into poverty, while those in Austria eventually wended their way into the heart of Viennese cultural life at the end of the nineteenth century. My grandfather's family ran a cafe on the Judengasse in Vienna. Today the building houses a hairdressing establishment. As far as anyone knows, all the Thumims who remained in Europe perished during the Holocaust.

My grandfather Carl (1897-1978) emigrated from Austria in 1906. The image to the right is his picture. He married Lea Dolgin, whose family once owned and operated a high-class fur shop in Moscow.

Carl held the patents for several kinds of circuit-breakers that are still in use today. He also developed a machine that uses an air cushion to move large stacks of paper and worked on part of the Manhattan Project in Schenectady, New York.

At present our branch of the family consists of

• My father Martin (b. 1939)
• My mother Elizabeth
• My uncle Donald (b. 1944)
• His wife Carole
• Myself (b. 1967)
• My wife Anna
• My brother Michael (b. 1969)
• My brother Jon (b. 1970)

Everyone who bears the Thumim (or Thumin) name is related. I'm always on the lookout for news and information about the family, so if you have any, please contact me. It would be fascinating to put together a comprehensive history of our family!

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