Kornstein-Rosenthal Family Collection 1867-1988 Bulk dates: 1924-1941

The Kornstein-Rosenthal Family Collection comprises papers of several members of the Kornstein and related families. Most prominent among these are Adolf (Adolph) Kornstein and his wife, Suse (Susan), on whom the bulk of the collection focuses. Other family members who feature heavily in this collection are their parents, Jakob and Alwine Kornstein and Julian and Margarete Rosenthal, as well as Suse Kornstein's uncle Robert Naumann. This collection primarily pertains to the family member's daily lives, especially during the 1920s through the 1940s in Germany, although attention is also given to Adolf and Suse's professional development from medical students in Germany to practicing physicians in Brooklyn. Most of the collection constitutes extensive family correspondence. Other papers include educational and professional documentation of Adolf and Suse Kornstein, some official papers of family members, essays and research material of Robert Naumann, and some photographs and genealogical material. In addition, a detailed manuscript on the lives of Adolf and Suse by their daughter is also present, which is based on various documents in this collection.Adolf Kornstein was born in Breslau in 1908, the son of Jacob Kornstein and his wife Alwine Kornstein née Schacher. Jakob Kornstein was originally from a small Galician village called Budzanow (now Budaniv, Ukraine), and was the last child of his parents to remain in Germany; by the 1920s his seven siblings had immigrated to Brooklyn, New York. But Jakob stayed and settled in Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland), where his wife had established a shop that sold clothing accessories like hats, gloves and furs. It was here that Adolf and his younger sister Ilse grew up. Following the growing depression and inflation in Germany during the early 1920s, in 1924 Jakob and Adolf traveled to New York City to visit their relatives and assess the economic situation there.The time in New York had an impact on Adolf Kornstein, who remained there with his relatives until 1927. While his father returned to his mother and sister in Breslau, Adolf learned English and American ways and attended the Manual Training High School in Brooklyn, from which he graduated in 1926. During his time in America, Adolf came to the decision to study medicine rather than working in business like most of his relatives. Following his graduation from high school he began taking pre-medical courses at the City University of New York, but returned to Breslau in the fall of that year due to the wishes of his father. After passing his Abitur in Breslau in 1928, Adolf began his German medical studies at the University of Freiburg. There he met a fellow medical student, Suse Rosenthal.Suse Rosenthal was born and raised in Breslau in 1909, the daughter of Julian and Margarete Rosenthal née Naumann. The Naumann family originally came from Liegnitz (now Legnica, Poland), and it was there that Suse Rosenthal's grandmother Clara resided along with her uncle Robert, who had a stationery shop there.In early 1934 Adolf Kornstein and Suse Rosenthal were married, and at the beginning of April they left for the United States along with Adolf's mother Alwine, his father Jakob having died during the previous year. The following year Suse made a trip back to Germany. By 1936 she and Adolf had opened a practice together in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, where they also lived with Alwine Kornstein. After various delays, the Rosenthals finally immigrated to the United States via Spain in the summer of 1941. Upon their arrival, they too resided in the apartment of their children and grandchildren. Adolf and Suse Kornstein had three children: James (1937), Roslyn (1940) and Mark (1949). Nearby was also Adolf's sister, Ilse, who had married an American, Manuel Schwartz, in 1931. Margarete Rosenthal died in 1943, Alwine Schacher in 1947, and Julian Rosenthal in 1954.Adolf and Suse Kornstein Americanized their names as Adolph and Susan; their sons had their surname changed to Korsten. Their daughter Roslyn married Daniel Tanzman.Processeddigitize