The Story of the Golden Nutshell


 

 
From Peter White, via Mickey Harris:

"Jake and Tinie Henley, and their children David and Linda (this is the Aunt Linda who Holly [Hickler] and children once visited in New York City and who I saw in New York when I was at Columbia in 1966-1968) gave to Jacob and Rosa Stein Miller a present at their 50th wedding anniversary party (the invitation said "No Presents").  This present was a golden nutshell inside of which was an oval of gold inscribed on the front "1854.. Fifty Years.. In a nutshell... 1904.. with love from... Jake. . ...... . Tinie" and on the back "Jake. . ......... David.. ......... Henley".  Inside the nutshell, attached side to side with the gold oval were 35 oval pictures (perhaps 2 inches x I inch, the same size and shape as the gold oval) which more-or-less represent the descendants of Jacob and Rosa, most of them living and attending the party.  Someone had written names on the back of each picture (very helpful!), including the later married names of some of the girls.  I saw this amazing collection of photographs and the gold oval at S. Miller Harris's house in Quakertown, PA, on July 5, 1999.  Apparently Miller also had the gold nutshell, but we didn't see that.  This collection of pictures helped me identify all of the William W. Miller children for the first time and also gave the clue that his middle initial W. was for Wolf....

...These 35 pictures account for all of the living descendants of Jacob and Rosa Miller in 1904, plus two of the three who had died before 1904: son Emmanuel and grandchild Baby Rose. One other grandchild died in 1888 and is not pictured -- Betram Miller (1887-1888). No other grandchildren were born, so this is a complete set. The pictures include Rosa, 6 children, 5 spouses of children, 21 grandchildren, 1 spouse of a grandchild (Aaron Miller), and 1 great-grandchild (Florence Miller Traub)."


 

 
Webmaster's notes:  Below, and in the pages to follow, are the pictures from the Golden Nutshell, along with the available information Peter White provided about them.  Mickey Harris and Rob Winans did a lot of work getting these pictures in digital format and retouching them so that we can get a good look at these people.  -- Joan ("Jo") Wikler


 

Rosa Stein Miller (the matriarch),her son Simon Miller (later to be known as "Daddy Fahler"), his wife Hettie Herzberg-Miller (later to be known as "Bockie"), and their four children: Jean, Claire, Prue, and Baby Rose.

Unless the death date is wrong, Baby Rose died one year before the party, so it is poignant that she was included in the picture set.

There is no picture of Jacob Miller (the patriarch) in the collection from the Golden Nutshell. This is strange, because it is his and Rosa's anniversary in whose honor the Golden Nutshell was made.

  Rosa Stein Miller, age 74
9/16/1830-8/18/1908
 Simon Miller ("Daddy Fahler"),
age 42
, born 1862
Hettie Herzberg-Miller ("Bockie"),
age 37, born 1867

Jean Miller, age 13 
born 1891
Claire Miller, age 10 
born 1894
Prue Miller, age 7
born 1897
Rose Miller, born 1902,died 1903*

 

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