Sally's Wedding Ring: A Bridge to Her Descendants

Over the years pieces of family jewelry moved from their original owners to me. I have loved having and wearing each and every piece. Several pieces changed in appearance over the years. Some changed by the original owner and some I have changed. All have gained meaning for new generations as I share its story. Each piece belonged to, and was worn by, a family member who preceded me. As I wear each piece I have chances to share, with my descendants, stories about their ancestors. Recently I joined the #52Ancestors 2018 Version sponsored by Amy Johnson Crow.  This story is the first as the writing challenge begins.


Sally Segall, my mother, was born in Chicago on September, 8th, 1908 and Irving Greenfield,my father, then know as Itic Grinfeld, was born in Romania, in December, 1905.  Sally's parents also came from Romania but they met and married in this country If you are a reader of this blog you know that she grew up on the south side of Chicago where her family had a grocery store. Irving, on the other hand, had a more difficult beginning. He came to this country with his mother and one sister when he was 15 in 1920. They were the last of their family to arrive in Chicago. Sally and Irving met at 'get-togethers', sometimes known  Landschaften. These get-togethers provided an opportunity for those with a common background to meet together. In this case it was where many Romanian families gathered to socialize. Sally Segall married Irving Greenfield on September 8, 1929. They married at the Shoreland Hotel on the South Side of Chicago. In many ways they were quite fortunate. He had just begun working as a young lawyer and she, for a time, worked as his secretary. They did not have much money or valuables so they did not have much to lose. As you must have realized, a few weeks after that wedding the world fell apart in the United States and the Great Depression began. Many others, others that had far more than this young couple, lost a great deal.

Sally wore a slim circlet of diamonds as a wedding band. I always made the assumption that she had worn it since the day of her wedding. In fact, considering the time, I am really not sure if she was married with that ring or if she received at a later date. Whatever the fact, it is the ring I remember on her hand during my growing up years at home.

Shortly after WWII, or thereabouts, a new type of ring appeared on my mother's hand and on the hand of many of her friends. These rings were usually worn on the right hand, on the ring finger.  Many families were making a nice living, things in this country were better and life was good. These rings were known as cocktail rings and some of them were quite fancy. They usually had one main stone with other smaller decorative stones around it. That fad lasted for several years and began to pass away. Sally then removed the diamond, the main stone in her cocktail ring and created a new wedding ring.

The question then is what would she do with her original wedding. She had a lovely necklace created that she wore almost all of the time. When she passed away in at the age of 82 in 1991 that necklace, her original wedding band, came to me. I have worn that necklace very often since that time.She, of course, is remembered by all of my children. She knew my first four grandchildren but not the rest. She knew my two brother's wives, their children but none of their grandchildren. Of course, we all talk about her and all the generation of grands heard stories about their great-grandparents. Years passed as they tend to do. 



And, guess what, that next generation, all those grandchildren, started to get married. I had an idea on how to bring Grandma Sally to all of those weddings. Why not have the bride carry Grandma Sally's ring as the 'something old' of that tradition. And that is what has happened. The necklace has been carried, tucked into a glove, worn around the wrist, and, most recently, woven into the bride's bouquet.  The most recent wedding was September 9, 2017 when my 3rd oldest grandson took a bride.As you can see she carried a beautiful bouquet of greens. Look carefully at the image on the right. The necklace chain is wrapped around the stem and the ring can be clearly seen. It has been a wonderful tradition. It is my hope, that when I pass the ring on, the wearer will continue the tradition in each generation of brides. My mother would love this tradition as much as I do. Of that I have no question.

Cocktail Jewelry Photo: www.pinterest.co.uk/nicolethebear/jewelry/