Interview with Helen Goldfarb, August 27, 1985

Interview Summary

Helen Goldfarb was born in New York in 1909, and by the time of her interview she had been living in Lexington, Kentucky for fifty years. In this interview, Helen Goldfarb talks about her childhood growing up Jewish in New York, and her life after moving to Lexington with her husband and first-born child because of the effects of the Great Depression. Mrs. Goldfarb recounts a time in New York as a child when she experienced anti-Semitism firsthand; another girl in her neighborhood sang an anti-Semitic rhyme directed at her. Helen recalls how she, along with her dear friend Alice, “beat those kids up.” During the interview, Helen also touches upon the subject of the Jewish community in Lexington during the mid-20th century, and how her social life was with both Jewish and gentile families. Later, she tells a story of the time she was in Louisville with her young child during a polio epidemic, and how dreadful it was for her being cooped up in that apartment for weeks on end. Near the end of the interview, Helen talks about the generosity of Lexington’s Jewish community her family benefited from when they were having financial struggles. Mrs. Goldfarb goes on to finish the interview with a few stories about her late husband Benjamin Goldfarb, and the generosity he showed in both his professional and Temple life.

Interview Keyword

Temple Adath Israel Great Depression Louisville (Ky.) Polio Marriage Entrepreneurship Small business--Ownership Small business--Kentucky Jewish businesspeople

Interview LC Subject

Jews--Kentucky--Lexington. Race relations--Kentucky--Lexington Childhood Jewish children Jews--Identity. New York City (N.Y.) Anti-Semitism Antisemitism Lexington (Ky.) Jewish families. United States--Economic conditions--1918-1945. Jewish women--Kentucky--Lexington Judaism. Religion Families Depressions--1929--United States Discrimination

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.