We know little about Rachael Frank, wife of Harry Levin (1833) and mother to many children. Even her name and place of birth is uncertain, due to conflicting evidence, but most evidence points to Lithuania.
Of the death records for six of her children, one lists Russia, one Germany, the rest list Lithuania as her place of birth. Most give her first name as Rachael, but one lists Rose and one lists Neohma.
Looking further at census records, we don't find her in any US censuses, so there is no evidence that she came to the US. My guess is that she stayed behind with her daughter Minna, who never emigrated. The census records of her children from 1900-1930 list her place of birth as Russia, Poland, Lithuania and Germany, and her language as Hebrew, Yiddish and German.
The son who claimed she came from Germany and spoke German in censuses also had Germany listed in the death record. There is some evidence that this claim was an effort at assimilation, not an uncommon practice during this time period.
Will we ever learn more about Rachael? Given the opening of archives in Lithuania the past decade, it is possible. However, records were not well kept in the 1880s and 1890s in that area, so who knows?
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