Saving Monticello: The Newsletter
The latest about the book, author
events, and more
Newsletter Editor - Marc Leepson
Volume XVIII, Number 1 January
1, 2021
“The study of the past is a constantly evolving, never-ending journey of
discovery.” – Eric Foner
MICHAEL
LEVY: When doing the research for Saving Monticello more than twenty years ago, I found precious
little information on the life of Uriah Levy’s father, Michael Levy—and nearly
all of it came from secondary sources.
I wrote that Levy senior was born in 1755, most likely in Germany, and that his father, Isaac Levy, moved the family from there to England. Michael Levy subsequently emigrated to the U.S., winding up in Philadelphia where he became a charter member of the German Jewish Congregation Rodeph Shalom.
In an unpublished family memoir, Uriah Levy’s brother Jonas wrote that their father “came to this country from old England when about ten years of age, and was brought up to the Mercantile business which he continued until his death in high repute.” I came across advertisements in in the Pennsylvania Journal in 1780, and five years later in the Maryland Gazette for Michael and Isaac Levy, who most likely were brothers, noting that they were “CLOCK and WATCHMAKERS, Late from London” who offered for sale “a large assortment of the most elegant and fashionable CLOCKS and WATCHES.”
Michael Levy, I reported, married Rachel Machado Phillips of Philadelphia in 1787. They had fourteen children. Michael Levy died, according to First American Jewish Families, Malcolm Stern’s 1960 pioneering collection of 600 family genealogies, in 1812.
Just last week I had an email from Brian Collins, a Michael Levy descendant who lives in the U.K.—and who has done considerable research into his Levy Family ancestry, mostly in England, much of it based on London Land Tax Records and London City Directories from the 18th and 19th centuries. Brian has kindly given me permission to present his main findings in this newsletter, which I greatly appreciate.
Although he has not found an official record of Michael Levy’s birth, Brian reports that the records indicate that he likely was born into an Ashkenazi Jewish family in what is now Poland and that the family moved to what is now Germany and then emigrated to England, settling near the Great Synagogue of London (which was built in 1690) in the early 1760s.
The Great Synagogue of London (1890 engraving)
“This area is at the Eastern end of the City of London, due north of the Tower of London,” David wrote, “and had a large immigrant Jewish population from the mid-1700s.” It appears that Michael had four siblings: Isaac, Nathan, Lyon, and Amelia (or Abinda or Minka) and that his father’s name was likely Judah Levy. “Both Lyon Levy and Judah Levy frequently appear renting properties in the same streets as Michael,” David said, “both during and for long after the period he was in London. In fact, many Levys are found in this area of London and may also be relatives of Michael.”
Michael Levy became a watch and clock maker in 1768, David learned from an insurance policy he discovered on a property on Hanover Square near the Great Synagogue. His research confirmed what I found: that Michael then entered into a partnership with an Isaac Levy, who likely was his brother. As I wrote, Michael and Isaac had a shop first in Baltimore, and then in Philadelphia. What I hadn’t known was that the brothers at one point lived in Portsmouth, Virginia, where
Michael obtained his US. citizenship in 1786 and they opened a shop there in 1787. Michael subsequently moved back to Philadelphia and married Rachel Machado Phillips, while Isaac appears to have stayed in Virginia.
The Philadelphia City Directories from 1802-16 list Michael Levy variously as a “Clock Maker &c.,” “Watch Maker,” “Merchant,” “Watchman, and “Clock and Watch Maker” at eight different addresses on Mulberry Street, North 4th Street, North 5th Street, North Water Street, Vine Street, and Banner’s Court.
Brian Collins found letters Michael Levy wrote from St. Domingo (Haiti) in 1787 and 1788, as well as evidence that Levy “may have returned to London for a lengthy stay in the 1790s.”
He also found documents showing that in 1802 Michael Levy was a founding member of Rodeph Shalom, the Philadelphia German Ashkenazic Jewish Congregation. Brian has not discovered Michael Levy’s exact date of death, but noted that records refer to Rachel Levy as a widow starting in 1818.
He also found documents that indicate that Michael Levy returned to London for a final stay from 1819 “until at least 1825 and perhaps until his death,” whenever that was. Brian could not find any burial records for Michael Levy in Philadelphia, which, he said, “was very unusual for members of both the Mikveh Israel and Rodeph Shalom Congregations” since both congregation’s “extensive burial records survive.”
Rodeph Shalom Congregation, Philadelphia
Brian said that he is continuing his research into Michael Levy’s life and will update me when he finds new information.
He also found documents that indicate that Michael Levy returned to London for a final stay from 1819 “until at least 1825 and perhaps until his death,” whenever that was. Brian could not find any burial records for Michael Levy in Philadelphia, which, he said, “was very unusual for members of both the Mikveh Israel and Rodeph Shalom Congregations” since both congregation’s “extensive burial records survive.”Brian said that he is continuing his research into Michael Levy’s life and will update me when he finds new information.
LADDERS: In the December
issue we looked at what I
dubbed the “Great Ladder,” the wooden folding ladder that’s been in Monticello
since Thomas Jefferson’s day. I included an image of the ladder in Monticello’s
Entrance Hall near the famed Great Clock, as well a vintage photo of the ladder
itself.
A few days ago the folks at Monticello who do the curatorial, collection and
restoration work posted this current photo of all five ladders they use to do
their important work on Instagram.
I was happy to see that the picture was taken in the Entrance Hall and that it included the 18th century Great Clock and (on the left, above) the ladder, which was used to wind the clock back in the day, but these days is only used for display in the house. #preservingmonticello
HAPPY
TWENTIETH: Twenty years ago today I had all but finished my research
on the post-Jefferson history of Monticello, and was well into the writing of Saving Monticello. Free Press at Simon
and Schuster published the book in hardcover early in November 2001. I was
working with my editor, Chad Conway, on the editing when the momentous events
of September 11 happened.
The shock waves from the September 11th attacks
were still very much in the public consciousness when Saving Monticello came out in early November. And now, in the 20th
anniversary year of the book’s publication, our world has been hit by another
cataclysmic event.
The catastrophic 2020-21 pandemic in many ways dwarfs what
happened on September 11, 2001. Today, the 9/11 attacks rarely are at the
forefront of people’s consciousness. But all of us have been dealing with the
pandemic since it began last March. It seems likely that by November 2021 the
pandemic will be under control and life for all of us will begin to return to
something approaching normal. Here’s hoping.
EVENTS:
I have two events this month, both of them livestreaming Zoom talks for Context
Conversations. The first will be on Saving
Monticello on Saturday, January 16,
beginning at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time. Here’s info on how to register: http://bit.ly/ContextSavingMonticello
The second is a talk on the history of the
American Flag based on my book, Flag: An
American Biography, on Friday,
January 22, also beginning at 5:00 p.m. Eastern time. Here’s the link to
sign up: http://bit.ly/ContextFlag
GIFTS: Want a personally autographed, brand-new paperback copy of Saving Monticello? Please e-mail me. I also have a few as-new, unopened hardcover copies, along with a good selection of brand-new copies of my other books.
