USA > New York > Bronx County > The Bronx and its people; a history, 1609-1927, Volume III > Part 77
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Mr. Deutsch was married in New York City, April 27, 1897, to Bertha Levy, daughter of Isaac and Clara Levy, both since deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Deutsch are the parents of three children: Sylvia, Melvin, and Ivan. The family home is located at No. 1135 Grant Avenue.
LOUIS ABRAMS-As a member of the concern of Cohen and Abrams, Louis Abrams has been ac- tively engaged in real estate brokerage in The Bronx, since 1904. Mr. Abrams is a son of Abraham Louis and Esther Abrams, the father having died in 1897, the mother in 1878. Mr. Abrams's father, who was a business man, but retired before his decease, was a native of Poland, and although he came to the
United States for a time, later returned to his native country where he died.
Louis Abrams was born in Kietno, Poland, Novem- ber 20, 1876, but came to the United States at the age of nine and attended the public schools of New York City. He left school and went to work at the age of fifteen. Much of Mr. Abrams' business life was spent in traveling for the Myles jewelry concern of Maiden Lane, New York City, ten years being spent in traveling in the United Kingdom. In 1904, however, he returned to the United States and entered the real estate field, operating for the most part in The Bronx. Under the firm name of Cohen and Abrams he is very active in this field and has been associated with many successful projects.
Mr. Abrams is a member of the Allied Business Men's Association and is connected with several or- ganizations. He is affiliated with the Republican party, and the Prospect Avenue Synagogue.
Mr. Abrams married, in Manhattan, July 2, 1910, Anna Schniderman, daughter of Morris and Bella Schniderman. Mr. and Mrs. Abrams have three children: Isidore, born June 4, 1911; Harold, born May 15, 1914; and Charles, born April 15, 1916.
CHARLES VOLK is well and widely known throughout his section of The Bronx as a stone- cutter and monument-maker of proved ability and wide experience, for he has been closely identified with that field of endeavor for the past thirty years. He is also deeply public spirited, and is interested and active in any worthy movement which tends to bring advancement and progress to his community. Mr. Volk is a fine example of the self-made man, for he has worked hard ever since he was a boy, and although confronted by many obstacles, he has achieved success. Charles Volk was born on Feb- and was left an orphan while still in his infancy. His father died while his son was a baby, the mother ruary 9, 1872, in Stuttgart, Württemberg, Germany, had died in child-birth. On March 12, 1887, at the age of fifteen years, Charles Volk came to the United States, alone. He settled first in Brooklyn, where he joined his uncle, under whom he obtained his first job, that of assistant in the latter's shoe manufacturing business in Brooklyn. He then de- cided to learn the stone-cutter's trade, and to this end he entered the employ of Rudolph Gutes' Stone Yard in Brooklyn, where he remained for some time, learning the trade in all of its branches and finally became manager after the death of the Sen- ior Gutes, continuing in this position of impor- tance and responsibility until the year 1900. He then decided to start in for himself making monu- ments for cemeteries. Previously, however, he had come to The Bronx and had established his business at No. 3579 Jerome Avenue in 1898, two years be- fore he finally resigned as manager of the Gutes establishment in Brooklyn. Mr. Volk's present ex- tensive and prosperous monument business is the second oldest in his part of The Bronx, and the success of this enterprise is entirely due to Mr. Volk's unflagging perseverance in the face of great odds. An illustration of this characteristic is the fact that he attended night school in Brooklyn while working for his uncle during the day. Mr. Volk
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Charles Volk.
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is a staunch Democrat by political persuasion, and is an active member of the Democratic Club. He also holds active membership in the Stuyvesant Society; Vreeland Lodge, No. 714, Free and Ac- cepted Masons; the Franz Schubert Maennerchor, the Harlem Independent Schuetzen Corps, the Damphyno Bowling Club, the North End Demo- cratic Club, the Memorial Craftsmen of America, the Allied Business Men's Protective Association, the Municipal Business Men's Association, and the Volunteer Firemen Hook and Ladder Company, No. 7, all of The Bronx.
Charles Volk married (first), May 4, 1893, Rosie Raichle who died on August 18, 1907. He mar- ried (second), in March, 1909, Agnes Bohne. Charles and Rosie (Raichle) Volk were the parents of the following children: 1. Johanna Volk, born on March 12, 1894. 2. Amelia Volk, born on Oc- tober 5, 1896, and killed in an automobile accident. 3. Agnes Volk, born on April 13, 1900.
LOUIS NEUBURGER-Four years after his arrival in this country from his native country, Russia, as a young man of twenty-four years, Mr. Neuburger established himself, in 1909, in the plumbing, steam- fitting and mill supplies business, at Claremont Park- way and Bathgate Avenue, where he was joined two years later by his younger brother, Edward Neu- burger. In 1912, the business was moved to No. 3882 Third Avenue, and in 1922, to its present loca- tion, Nos. 3878-80 Park Avenue. Since then the broth- ers have continued this business with ever-increas- ing success under the name of Neuburger Brothers, a co-partnership, and their establishment, employing some twelve men, is rated among the leaders in its line and in that part of The Bronx. Louis Neu- burger was born in Russia, December 14, 1881, a son of Robert and Edith Neuburger, both his parents be- ing natives of Russia, where his father still resides (1926), at the age of ninety-two years, having re- tired from active business many years ago. His mother died in 1913.
Louis Neuburger was educated in the public schools of his native country, and after coming to New York City, alone, in 1905, attended the New York public night schools. At the same time he took up the plumbers' trade, which he had learned in Libau, Russia, before coming to the United States, and he made such rapid progress that four years after his arrival he was able to establish himself in business under his own name. As this business met with marked success from the very beginning, Mr. Neuburger, in 1911, sent for his younger brother, Edward, and since then the two brothers have been associated in business. He is a member of the Work- ingmen's Circle, The Bronx Board of Trade, and the Building Industry League.
Mr. Neuburger married, in New York City, Oc- tober 1, 1910, Pauline Michelson, a daughter of Jacob and Rose Michelson, the former a retired business man. Mrs. Neuburger also has two brothers, Meyer Michelson, a contractor, and Max Michelson, a brick- layer. Mr. and Mrs. Neuburger are the parents of two daughters: 1. Edith, born July 10, 1914. 2. Charlotte, born September 21, 1917. The family
home is located at No. 641 East One Hundred and Seventy-fifth Street, The Bronx.
SAMUEL SHAPIRO-Beginning as a house painter in the employ of some one else, it did not take Mr. Shapiro very many years to establish his own business. Its continuous growth gradually led him into wider fields of endeavor, until today he is considered a very important factor in building and real estate circles in The Bronx. He was born July 10, 1882, in Kovno, then a city in the Russian prov- ince of Lithuania, now the capital of the Republic of Lithuania, a son of Bernard and Pauline (Jaspin), Shapiro, his father being a merchant.
Samuel Shapiro attended the local district school of his native city. At the age of seventeen he came to the United States, settled in New York City and immediately went to work as a painter. After three years he established his own business as a painting and decorating contractor, continuing in this busi- ness for fifteen years. Very soon after going in busi- ness for himself, he branched out into the building field whenever and wherever an opportunity pre- sented itself. Successful from the very beginning, his operations gradually became larger and larger, until he found it necessary to sell out his painting and decorating business in order to be able to devote his entire time and undivided attention to his build- ing and real estate interests. At that time he built and bought several apartment houses in various parts of New York City. In 1920 he moved his business to The Bronx where he had gradually con- centrated his operations and where he had built and bought a number of large apartment houses, estab- lishing headquarters at No. 563 East Tremont Ave- nue.
In politics he is a supporter of the Democratic party and as such is a member of the North End Democratic Club. His religious affiliations are with the Concourse Center of Israel, being a member of its board of directors. He is also a member of Mar- shall Lodge, No. 848, Free and Accepted Masons, Adler's Young Men's Independent Association No. 1, Grand Street Boys' Association, Inc., and Unity Club.
Mr. Shapiro was married in Manhattan, October 25, 1903, to Ida Jaspin of New York City, daughter of Harris and Gertrude Jaspin. Mr. and Mrs. Shapiro are the parents of two children: 1. Dorothy, born October 25, 1909. 2. George Leonard, born November 11, 1915. The family home is at No. 1950 Andrews Avenue.
FREDERICK MARTIN SCHILDWACHTER- Devoted for almost thirty years exclusively to one line of business, the retail selling of ice, and ever since 1892 a resident of and in business in The Bronx, Mr. Schildwachter today is at the head of one of the largest independent retail ice companies in the coun- try. He was born in Waldeck, Germany, July 16, 1865, a son of Daniel and Katharine Schildwachter, his father being a farmer. Both of his parents died while he was still in his infancy, and at the age of sixteen he came to the United States by himself.
Frederick Martin Schildwachter was educated in
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the public schools of his native town in Germany, and after coming to this country attended the public night school on One Hundred and Twenty-fifth Street for two years. In 1886 he started in the ice business in Harlem, moving six years later, in 1892, to The Bronx where he continued in the same busi- ness. On January 1, 1909, he started in the retail ice business under his own name, the concern then being known as Fred M. Schildwachter. From small beginnings the business grew rapidly until, in 1925, it had some 4,500 individual customers. This growth, together with the fact that, as they grew to manhood, the founder's sons became associated in business with their father, resulted in its incorpora- tion, in 1916, under the firm name of F. M. Schild- wachter & Sons, Inc., with headquarters at No. 1769 Webster Avenue, where it occupies its own modernly equipped building. Mr. Schildwachter himself is the president of the corporation, and all five of his sons are associated with him: Christian M., as treasurer, Fred H., as vice-president, Albert G., as secretary, Daniel Arthur, engineer, and Charles, office manager. Mr. Schildwachter is a member of Silentia Lodge, No. 198, Free and Accepted Masons, and of Bronx Lodge, No. 871, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. In politics he is a supporter of the Denko- cratic party and as such is a member of the Arthur H. Murphy Association and the Jackson Democratic Club.
Mr. Schildwachter married, in New York City, February 18, 1891, Annie Sievert, a native of New York City, and daughter of Albert and Annie Sie- vert. Mr. and Mrs. Schildwachter are the parents of six children: 1. Christian M., born March 11, 1892; married and father of two children. 2. Fred H., born October 10, 1893; married and father of one boy. 3. Albert G., born January 3, 1895. 4. Mar- garet, born April 26, 1897. 5. Daniel Arthur, born April 19, 1899; married and father of one girl. 6. Charles, born October 31, 1901.
HARRY BRODWIN-Born in Tarashta, Russia, on January 4, 1892, Harry Brodwin came to this country with his parents, Jacob and Reba Brodwin, when he was eight years of age and went with them to live in Philadelphia where his father engaged in the real estate business.
He attended the public schools of that city, finish- ing his studies in 1905. He then worked for several years as a messenger and in the grocery business, but his desire was to study music. He finally obtained a position as a salesman of pianos, devoting a part of his time to vocal culture. In 1913, he started his present business in pianos, phonographs, and radio sets, which he established in his own store at No. 535 Courtlandt Avenue, The Bronx, under the firm name of Brodwin & Company, in 1919. Mr. Brod- win is a member of the Jacob Schiff Center, where he is also a soloist.
On January 16, 1916, at Philadelphia, Harry Brod- win, married Sarah Resnick, daughter of Morris and Bessie Resnick. To Mr. and Mrs. Brodwin three children have been born: Beatrice, Frances, and Maurice. The family are members of Adath Israel Temple.
LOUIS BROOKS, proprietor of a wholesale con- fectionery business in The Bronx, has been a resi- dent of that borough for the past twenty years. He is a son of Israel and Rebecca Brooks, the father, who came to the United States from Austria as a young man, having died about 1916, the mother about 1920.
Louis Brooks was born in New York City, Sep- tember 16, 1891, and attended Public School No. 62, Manhattan. He was employed in the confectionery business for eight years, after which he launched out into the business for himself, starting a factory and wholesale house in 1913 and moving to his pres- ent location about 1921. His enterprise has been very successful, due to his sound business manage- ment and untiring effort. Mr. Brooks is a staunch Democrat politically, and has served as vice-president of the Central Democratic Club as well as being an active member of the Tackamuck Democratic Club. He is also a member of The New York Candy Club, the Westchester Candy Jobbers' Association, and the Metropolitan Confectionery . Agency. His religious affiliations are with the Jacob Schiff Center.
He married, in Brooklyn, June 19, 1919, Emma Katz, a daughter of Louis B. and Mary Katz, the father retired. Mr. and Mrs. Brooks have two chil- dren: Ezra, born July 29, 1920, and Bernard, born November 11, 1923.
FRANK DEL BALSO-Forty-five years in the excavating and building business have brought great success to Frank Del Balso, treasurer of Frank Del Balso & Sons, Inc., No. 1662 Boston Road, The Bronx, New York City. To much of the older, as well as the more recent construction, in that rapidly grow- ing part of New York this concern can point as the result of their good workmanship. Frank Del Balso, founder of the company, was born in Campobasso, Italy, February 23, 1865, son of Antonio and An- gelina Del Balso, both of whom died in Italy.
Frank Del Balso was educated in the public schools of his native town and came to the United States at the age of twenty-one. It was in 1890 that he established his present. business, and as his sons grew up, they joined him, and the firm was incorpor- ated under its present name of Frank Del Balso & Sons, Inc. The father is treasurer, Anthony is presi- dent, and Nicholas secretary, and from one hundred and fifty to two hundred men are employed. Mr. Del Balso is a member of the Italian-American Business Men's Association. His religious affiliation is with St. Anthony's Church.
On September 4, 1892, Frank Del Balso married, in New York City, Marie Carozza, daughter of An- tonio and Stella Carozza, both living. Children: 1. Anthony, born February 5, 1894, married. 2. Nicholas, born February 5. 1899, married. 3. An- gelina, born January 5, 1902. 4. Joseph, born June 5
, 1904.
MAX J. de ROCHEMONT-Formerly associated with the interests of The American Felt Company, Max J. de Rochemont, both in matters of salesman- ship and in those of the executive direction of the affairs of that company, has won a place of high re- gard among his business affiliations, as well as on
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the part of the public in general. The piano trade, whether in The Bronx or in any still more extensive territory, has no more intelligent and capable factor than Mr. de Rochemont. He is a son of Max J. de Rochemont, a mechanical engineer, who was born in Newington, New Hampshire, and died in 1885, and of Mary Isabelle (Lane) de Rochemont, who was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts; and be- sides Max J. there were two daughters, Mary and Eva.
Max J. de Rochemont was born November 6, 1876, in Newburyport, Massachusetts, where he attended the grammar schools. He became associated with that company in 1898, in the capacity of salesman and general manager, and he so continued until 1913, when he acquired the interest of L. M. Ide in the Laffargue Company and was chosen vice-president, and general manager, which interest he still holds.
Fraternally, Mr. de Rochemont is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons; and he is also a member of the National Republican Club; National Geographic Society; Piano Club, of New York; and Winged Foot Golf Club; and his hobby is golf. His religious faith is that of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Max J. de Rochemont married, September 17, 1903, Alice Spalding, daughter of Dr. Jacob F. Spald- ing, a physician, and a clergyman of the Methodist Episcopal church, and of Delia (Annis) Spalding, both of whom are now deceased. The children of Mr. and Mrs. de Rochemont: 1. Louise, who mar- ried R. M. Craigmyle. 2. Max J., Jr., died August 31, 1925. 3. Edward, a member of the class of 1926, New Rochelle High School.
HARRY GEHN-Remarkable ability to assimilate and meet new conditions successfully mark the char- acter of Harry Gehn, an enterprising business man of The Bronx. He was born in Wallkameer, Russia, August 19, 1895. His father, Maurice Gehn, brought him to the United States when he was eleven years old, and they arrived June 1, 1907. They lived in Reading, Pennsylvania, for three years, and at the end of that time came to New York City.
Harry Gehn obtained his schooling in the public schools of Reading, and was ready to engage in busi- ness at the time he arrived in the Metropolis. The automobile industry revealed the possibilities of the garage, and they engaged, father and son, in repair- ing and renovating or building automobiles. Their first place of business was at No. 1682 Park Avenue; afterwards it became No. 4142 Park Avenue, while the present place of business is No. 445 Gerard Ave- nue, corner of East One Hundred and Forty-sixth Street. The Harry Gehn Automobile Company, Incorporated, was organized under the laws of New York, and incorporated on May 1, 1923. Harry Gehn was elected president and treasurer, and Harry Flax secretary. The company bought the lot and build- ing it occupies, and it conducts a complete garage for repairing cars, building special bodies, and storage. Maurice Gehn is in business with his son. Their business address is No. 445 Gerard Avenue. Their house address is No. 2322 Valentine Avenue, The Bronx.
JOHN COUNES-A well-known name in The Bronx is that of Counes, made so by John Counes, who was prominent in the business and civic life of the community. He became one of the most impor- tant Greek manufacturers of confectionery in this section of the country, and was a devout and in- fluential religionist, one of the founders of the Greek Orthodox church at Eighth Avenue and Fifty-fourth Street, Manhattan. Courage, ambition and vision characterized this man, who shattered the ties that bound him to his native Greece and started life afresh in a world wholly foreign to him. He suc- ceeded beyond his fondest hopes, and also entered into the larger community interests by identifying himself with progressive endeavors that make for the betterment of the business, civic and religious rela- tions.
Born in Greece in 1862, John Counes was twenty- six when he came to the United States. His father, Charles Counes, who continued to live in his native land, visited his son in New York in 1901. The son established a confectionery business, first on the lower east side of Manhattan, and then, in 1898, at One Hundred and Fiftieth Street and Third Avenue, The Bronx, and in 1912 he again moved, this time to One Hundred and Forty-ninth Street and Third Ave- nue, The Bronx, where the business is carried on by his sons, Anthony J., Michael J., and George J. Counes, being manufacturers of high-grade candies and conducting one of the largest, if not the largest, establishment of the kind in The Bronx. Mr. Counes was president of the Greek Confectioners' Associa- tion of the Eastern United States, and a member of the Pan-Hellenic Society. He played an important part in the founding of the Greek Orthodox church, Eighth Avenue and Fifty-fourth Street, New York City, and was its first president.
John Counes married, in Greece, Polyxeni Krip- tos, and to them were born five children: 1. Charles, the eldest, has for a number of years been a con- tractor and builder in Miami, Florida; he was a mem- ber of the First Field Artillery, Twenty-seventh Division, and saw service in the World War, being wounded in France. 2. Anthony J., also served in the World War. 3. Michael J., served in the World War with the Eighty-third Division in France. 4. Constance. 5. George J. The father of this faniily died in 1922, and his passing was a distinct loss to the community, where he had established his name, founded a considerable business and achieved success in material and moral activities.
DOMINICK PICCIANO-A resident of The Bronx for some thirty-five years, ever since he came to this country with his parents as a small child of four years, Mr. Picciano has lived all these years on East One Hundred and Forty-ninth Street, where in recent years he has also been successfully established in the general real estate brokerage business. He was born in the province of Campobasso, Italy, a son of Joseph and Victoria Picciano, both natives of Italy, where his father served in the army as a young man. After coming to this country he settled in The Bronx and engaged in business, but is now re- tired. He is still a resident of The Bronx, where
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his wife also resided until the time of her death, De- cember 18, 1925.
Dominick Picciano was educated in the public schools of The Bronx, attending Public School No. 18, on East One Hundred and Fifty-seventh Street. After having been engaged in various activities for a number of years, he established himself in the real estate business in 1921, with offices at No. 279 East One Hundred and Forty-ninth Street, where he has continued since, and in which business he has met with marked success from the beginning. He is a member of The Bronx Real Estate Board, the Morris Avenue and the Hub Democratic clubs, and the Sons of Italy, of which latter organization he is an ex- Venerable. In politics he is a supporter of the Democratic party, and he has been a member of the Democratic Bronx County Committee, while his re- ligious affiliations are with the Roman Catholic church, and more particularly with the Church of Our Lady of Pity, on East One Hundred and Fifty- first Street, The Bronx.
Mr. Picciano married, in The Bronx, August 14, 1904. Mr. Picciano is the father of two children: 1. Angelina, born in The Bronx, August 2, 1905, now Mrs. Lanzetta, and mother of three children, Jo- sephine, Mary and Dominick. 2. Joseph, born in The Bronx, August 23, 1906. The oldest of his grandchildren was born in 1920, making Mr. Picciano a grandfather at the unusually early age of thirty- four years. The family home is located at No. 279 East One Hundred and Forty-ninth Street, The Bronx, where he also conducts his real estate busi- ness.
CHARLES SCHANO-Having learned the barber trade in his early youth, Mr. Schano followed it with much success for three decades, and for many years was the owner of the first barber shop ever opened on Morris Park Avenue, The Bronx. Soon after lo- cating in this section he recognized the possibilities in The Bronx real estate, and took up, as a side issue, the buying and selling of property. Ably as- sisted by his wife, he met with marked success from the beginning and eventually retired from the barber business, devoting since then all of his time and efforts to the real estate business. He has acquired a very high reputation for fair dealing, and as a keen judge of real estate values he conducts his lucra- tive and continuously growing real estate business in well equipped offices at No. 702 Morris Park Avenue, The Bronx.
Charles Schano was born in Brooklyn, New York, August 24, 1866, a son of Frank and Sibilla (Helbig) Schano, the former a successful building contractor, born in Dürkheim-on-the-Hardt, Bavarian Rhein- pfalz, Germany, as was his wife, and both died there. When he was six months old his parents returned with him to their native town and it was there that he attended public school until he was thirteen years old. At that time, in 1879, he returned alone to the United States and again went to live in Brooklyn, where he learned the barber trade. This he followed for thirty years at first working for some time in various shops but before long owning his own shop. In 1879 he bought out the first barber shop which
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