Klein family.

The Klein family rose to prominence in Baltimore thanks to the family's store, Klein's. Opened in 1927 by Joseph Klein, the store in an old building on S. Charles St. was a hardware store that served the south Baltimore community as well as traders and craftsmen from Anne Arundel County going to and from the Cross Street Market. The Klein family, including Joseph, his wife, and their four children, lived on the top two floors of the building, and the hardware store which included a furniture repair shop, was located on the first floor. Joseph Klein (Yale Kulishzewski) was born in Czarist Russia ca. 1882. In 1904, he married Sarah (b. ca. 1884 in Russia) and they emigrated to the U.S., settling in south Baltimore. He was known to his south Baltimore friends as Joseph Klein. An experienced cabinetmaker, he bought the property on S. Charles St. by taking out a mortgage with the Bevan Street Permanent Building Association. Shortly after opening the hardware store and furniture repair business in 1927, Klein hired Walter Roberts, an African American man, as a general helper and delivery man. They worked together for more than twenty years and died the same year in 1949. At that time, Joseph's children Anne and Harry took over the family business. After Harry died in 1993, Anne ran the store by herself until it closed in 2002. The store remained at 912 S. Charles St. and continued to serve south Baltimore with items for small businesses and homeowners.

From the description of Klein family papers, 1904-1975 and undated. (Jewish Historical Society of Maryland Library). WorldCat record id: 74986185