The Yiddish Book Center's

Wexler Oral History Project

A growing collection of in-depth interviews with people of all ages and backgrounds, whose stories about the legacy and changing nature of Yiddish language and culture offer a rich and complex chronicle of Jewish identity.

Ruth (Warshavsky Zeitlin) Dropkin's Oral History

Ruth (Warshavsky Zeitlin) Dropkin, poet and daughter-in-law of Celia Dropkin, was interviewed by Christa Whitney on May 25, 2016 in Brooklyn, New York.

This interview was conducted in English.

Ruth (Warshavsky Zeitlin) Dropkin was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1918. Ruth (Warshavsky Zeitlin) died in 2020.

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Video highlights from this oral history

Childhood Neighborhood in East New York, Brooklyn

2 min

Meeting Celia Drokin at a Bungalow Colony

3 min 20 sec

Family Remembrances of Celia Dropkin

1 min 57 sec

"A Voice That's Worth Hearing": Celia Dropkin's Poetry

4 min 8 sec

Reading Celia Dropkin's Poem Tsu May Zun (To My Son)

3 min 47 sec

Thoughts on Yiddish

2 min 19 sec

Celia Dropkin's Painting Debut

1 min 41 sec

A Soapbox on Every Corner: Memories of the Depression

2 min 11 sec

Artifacts related to this oral history

Painting of Horse and Buggie, Fruit Seller on Celia's Street in New York, by Celia Dropkin

Landscape Painting of a Snow Covered Town by Celia Dropkin

Landscape of a Beach with Buildings, Painted in Florida in the 1920s by Celia Dropkin

Snow Scene Painting with Cars and House by Celia Dropkin

Colorful Snow Landscape Painting of New England Town by Celia Dropkin

Landscape Painting of Snowy Scene, Trees, Cars, Buildings by Celia Dropkin

Landscape Painting of Building and Treetops, Colorful Sky, Winter by Celia Dropkin

Beach Landscape, Palm Trees and Ocean, by Celia Dropkin

Bust of Samuel (Shmaye) Dropkin

Still Life of Flowers in a Pitcher by Celia Dropkin

More information about this oral history

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