George Salomon Collection
Scope and Content Note
This collection consists of George Salomon's research notes, manuscript fragments, and photocopies of sources which he assembled in an attempt to compile a biography of Prussian Jewish mathematician Meyer (Meier) Hirsch and an extensive bibliography of Hirsch's publications. Salomon never completed the manuscript and bibliography because of ill health.
The first folder comprises Salomon's research notes, correspondence, and fragmentary manuscript chapters of a biography of Hirsch. These materials include a chronology of Hirsch's life and chapters devoted to Hirsch's upbringing, education, life in Berlin, and professional accomplishments. All materials are notated and bear extensive citations of sources consulted. The second folder contains a draft of a bibliography of Hirsch's publications and related works covering the years 1794-1892, and the remainder of folders two and three consist of photocopies of the first pages of works cited in this bibliography, as well as a small amount of correspondence related to Salomon's gathering of these materials.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1976-1981
Creator
- Salomon, George, 1920- (Person)
Language of Materials
This collection is in English and German.
Access Restrictions
Open to researchers.
Access Information
Collection is digitized. Follow the links in the Container List to access the digitized materials.
Use Restrictions
There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact:
Leo Baeck Institute, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011
email: lbaeck@lbi.cjh.org
Biographical Note
Meier Hirsch was a mathematician born in Friesack, Prussia, sometime around 1765-1770. His first publications date to the 1790s, and from 1804-1810 his publishing activity peaked; in particular, a collection of algebra problems went through several editions during the 19th century and appears to have been a popular teaching tool during this time. During this period of publishing activity, he also worked a private teacher in Berlin, among others for the Humboldt family. He claimed to have developed a method of solving equations of any power, although he recanted this claim in his final publication in 1810. Afterwards, he lived a reclusive life in Berlin and apparently succumbed to a mental illness.
George Salomon was born in Hamburg on 1920 April 23 as the first child of the historian Richard Georg Salomon and his wife Gertrud J. Horwitz. His research notes in this collection indicate that his family was related to the Hirsch family of Friesack by marriage. In 1937 he graduated from high school with his Abitur at the Johanneum Hamburg. In 1938 the family emigrated to the U.S. where George studied at Swarthmore College from 1937 to 1940 and in 1938 he became co-founder of a fund for refugee students. From 1940 onwards, he worked in New Yorks printing industry, and in 1947 he became a graphic designer. George Salomon died on May 8, 1981 in Great Neck, N.Y, leaving behind his wife Mathilde Norah Loewen and their children, Frank and Richard.
Extent
3 Folders
Abstract
This collection consists of George Salomon's research notes, manuscript fragments, and photocopies of sources which he assembled in an attempt to compile a biography of Prussian Jewish mathematician Meier Hirsch and an extensive bibliography of Hirsch's publications. Salomon never completed the manuscript and bibliography because of ill health.
Other Finding Aid
The original finding aid is available in folder 1.
Note
Legibility is not optimal on several of the photocopied research resources.
Processing History
The name of the collection was changed in 2011. The former title of the collection was the Meier Hirsch Collection.
Subject
- Hirsch, Meier, 1765-1851 (Person)
Genre / Form
Occupation
Topical
- Title
- Guide to the George Salomon Collection circa 1976-1981 AR 4955
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Processed by Turnheim
- Date
- © 2011
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Revision Statements
- January 24, 2012 : Links to digital objects added in Container List.
Repository Details
Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository