Nina Talbot

Painter - Writer
painting, Gerschon Neger, by Nina Talbot
Gerschon Neger, oil on canvas, 48 x 42 inches

Faces of Dynów

Gerschon Neger

Gerschon Neger was the eldest of five brothers, sons of Chaim Aaron and Miriam Neger. Gerschon was born in Dynów in 1871 and emmigrated to Budapest in 1890 where he worked as a tailor and married Czili Weiss, a Hungarian widow. They had four children: Livia, Janos, Elżbieta, and Sarolta. We do not know how the family survived in WWII.

I found the record of Gerschon in an archive in Israel. Before finding this record I had only known about the four younger Neger brothers. With the assistance of a researcher, we located, and in 2016, I met Gerschon’s only living relative, his great grandson, Gyuri Szigethy. Together we visited the Jewish Cemetery in Budapest where Gerschon (his name changed to Gustav) and his wife Czili Neger are buried.

Mr. Szigethy had no prior knowledge of his family history, as his grandmother Livia passed away when Gyuri was a small boy. Livia Neger was a painter and attended The Hungarian University of Fine Arts art school in Budapest in 1915/16. Gyuri gave me one of Livia’s paintings. He also gave me a locket that belonged to his mother, which he said she wore all the time. Gyuri’s mother, Anna Maria Szigethy was trained as a lawyer and became a well known public radio host in Budapest.

I still can’t believe that I found my Hungarian cousin Gyuri Szigethy, great grandson of Gerschon Neger!