Minna Chaskelson was Ari’s 4x great-grandmother. She was born in 1852 in Silale, Lithuania, and died at the Carlington Nursing Home in Johannesburg on 9 Aug 1930. She had emigrated in 1903 with her husband and children, following her brother Bernard (or Benhard) who had emigrated in 1895 and set up a mattress company. The family had lived in Memel (Klaipeda), where the family kept an inn.
In her will, obtained from the South African archives (thanks to the very helpful service provided by Ancestor.co.za), she leaves everything to two of her daughters, Jennie (Janie) and Hannah.
We don’t seem to have a photo of Minna. We had thought that she was the person on the left in this wonderful photo of all the great-aunts in their lovely hats taken in 1932, but obviously she was no longer alive then, so that’s another mystery to clear up. Amazing how you notice these things when you present the information in a different way!
Ari, this shows how you are related to Minna:
