Hoyt, Nellie Nelly Schargo, 1920-

Nellie "Nelly" Schargo Hoyt was born January 15th, 1920, in Nicolaeff, Russia. Her parents, Simon and Vera (Rivkind) Schargo were both educated people. Her father attended Leningrad University and her mother attended St. Olga University in Kiev. Hoyt was born in the aftermath of WWI and the Russian Revolution, both of which left Russia devastated for many years. In 1922, her father made some criticisms of the local government, angered government officials, and ultimately moved his family to Berlin.

Hoyt lived in Berlin for several years, and then moved to France, for her secondary education. In Paris, she attended high school, danced with les Ballets de Jeunesse, and studied anthropology at the University of Paris. During the beginning of WWII, she worked at the Musee de l'Homme. She and her parents fled France to escape the horrors of WWII, and arrived in Staten Island, New York. In 1941, after two years at the University of Paris, Hoyt was offered the Harriet Boyd Hawes Scholarship, and attended Smith College, graduating magna cum laude in 1943.

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