HAMILTON — An upcoming exhibit will give visitors a look at Jewish life in Hamilton in the 1930s and 1940s, showcasing artifacts from Hamilton’s once-thriving Yiddish-language newspaper. The exhibit, The Jewish Voice of Hamilton, spotlights this publication and explores the dynamic life of the city through the lens of its publisher, Henry Balinson.
For Balinson’s daughter, Goldie Leibman, who was collating printing jobs in her father’s print shop at age five, it’s a glimpse back into her childhood.
“These items have brought back a lot of very happy memories that I had forgotten. I realized this was the happiest times of our lives,” she said.
“I was born during the Great Depression, and like most families, we struggled. We lived in the apartment over the printing plant, and the whole family would go downstairs and fold carefully and lick the stamps and address labels. It was really fun, and I felt very important at the time.”
The exhibit, at the Rose and Phil Rosenshein Museum at Beth Jacob Synagogue, features items on display for the first time, including editions of the newspaper, photographs, family memorabilia, letterpress printing artifacts and oral history recordings, all part of the Balinson Family Archive. Advertisements for local businesses (some still active today), local politicians and appeals to aid the Red Cross war effort offer a further window into Hamilton.
“Henry Balinson wrote from the heart, reporting on the activities of the city, commenting on the impact of the war and providing a perspective many other Jewish immigrants of the time would have shared,” said Wendy Schneider, co-chair of the Rose and Phil Rosenshein Museum.
“The Balinson archive is of historical interest because it provides a window into a culture that has now largely vanished and offers insights into the craft of letter-press printing.”
In 1911 at age 24, Balinson immigrated to Canada from Russia, where he had worked as a typesetter. He later started the International Press on King Street West and published the Jewish Voice of Hamilton. An educated and engaged man, the newspaper served as an outlet for his opinions and observations, including his column, Mein shpatsir iber Hamilton (My stroll around Hamilton). Balinson used this space to deliver commentary on Jewish Hamilton and garnered much positive and critical feedback from readers.
In addition to publishing the Jewish Voice, International Press attracted business from other organizations because of its typesetting services in languages including Russian, Ukrainian and Hungarian.
Leibman credits her mother, Sarah, with being the quiet “backbone” of the family, providing comfort, support and delicious home-cooked meals.
Leibman and her siblings Morley, Robert, Alex and Norman helped around the shop. But in 1945, Alex, who was 24 and a Canadian Air Force wireless air gunner, was killed in an air raid on the island of Malta. After this, Balinson stopped publishing the newspaper, and Morley took over the printing business.
“Publication stopped, and our whole life turned very sad. Mom and dad never recovered from it. Our whole family never recovered,” said Leibman, who now lives in Toronto.
Balinson died in 1961 at age 75.
Leibman is proud to share her family’s legacy with the public through this exhibit. “I didn’t know the significance of the newspaper,” Leibman said. “It’s now a piece of history, and I was part of it.”
The family-friendly official opening of The Jewish Voice of Hamilton is Sunday, Sept. 20, 10 a.m. to noon, and will feature guest speakers and children’s activities.
It will run for six months and is open during synagogue office hours, with group tours by appointment.