Al's mother thought, "Well if Al would come up to Waterbury and open a store, he would not have to work so hard [as he did on Madison Avenue in New York]." [So, we took a vacant store on South Main Street in 1950]. It was next to Worth's department store and Ruskins's, this large corset, underwear and accessory store, and then there was a large dress and coat shop next to them, and then there was Penny's Millinery. My husband named the store after me.... Many women in the Jewish community still have a hat that Al made [for] them for a bar mitzvah of their son. -Penny Smith

Nathan and Lewis Albert, c.1900 (Collection of the Mattatuck Historical Society)

Jewish immigrants to Waterbury brought with them the skills they had practiced in Europe, adapting them to new opportunities in America. Centuries of restrictive laws in Europe and the United States prevented Jews from participating in various occupations. Recurring persecution and expulsion encouraged Jews to engage in businesses that permitted and rewarded mobility and did not require extensive investment in fixed property. Many became adept as merchants and traders and with providing financial services, where their international networks were valuable assets.

 

My grandfather was born in Poland and then he went to Paris.... He was a furrier, and in custom clothing.... He started to specialize and designed fur hats. Then he came to this country, and he did that and he also custom made clothing. Even today, I’ve heard people say, "Oh your grandfather designed my wedding suit." -Donald Liebeskind

 

Peddlers, traders and merchants were among the earliest occupations of Jewish migrants to Waterbury and the retail trades remained a highly visible arena for successful Jewish businesses over then next century and a half. Many Jewish immigrants, however, worked in other occupations: as farmers, bakers, tailors, jewelers, mechanics and manufacturers. Their children became teachers, lawyers, judges, writers, entertainers, and doctors.

Joe Rubin and Eleanor Anderson in the Record Shop, 17 South Main Street (Collection of Frieda Rubin)

My husband Joe founded the record shop in the 1940s and ran it for 51 years. The first record shop was in...Harrison Alley, and that was a jewel. It looked larger than it was...because it was designed with mirrors.... The doctors were all great buyers of classical music, and they would come in and say, “Joe, I heard [a particular favorite]” ...and [Joe would have it]. -Frieda Rubin