Slotkin, Morris, 1911-1990

Eugene L. Armbruster (1865-1943) was a resident of the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn and worked at a cigar box manufacturing company in Brooklyn. He was born in Baden-Baden, Germany in 1865, immigrated to the United States in 1882, and settled in Brooklyn. Armbruster was also an amateur historian and photographer. As an amateur historian, he published several books and pamphlets including The Eastern District of Brooklyn ; Long Island: It's Early Days and Development ; and The Wallabout Prison-Ships, 1776-1783 . As an amateur photographer, Armbruster focused on documenting locations throughout the Northeastern United States and Canada, though his dominant subject was the New York City area, including Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, as well as areas of Long Island. His subjects were often street scenes, houses, and churches, among others. He also extensively photographed Coney Island, circa 1910. Armbruster was married and had two children. He died on September 21, 1943 and is buried at Lutheran Cemetery in Queens.

Morris Slotkin was born in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn on January 16, 1911. His parents were Isadore and Ida Slotkin who emigrated from Russia. Morris Slotkin's father, whose original surname was Pustulof (or a variation of it), was informally adopted by the Slotkin family after immigrating to Brooklyn. Morris Slotkin was active in the Brooklyn-based Boy Scout Troop 26 from 1923 to 1953. After graduating high school, he worked as a librarian at the New York Public Library until the Second World War (WWII). Following the war, he returned to Brooklyn and worked for the federal government. The Slotkin family moved to Lancaster, PA in 1953 and then to St. Louis, MO in 1955. Morris Slotkin remained active in the Troop 26 Alumni Association until his death in 1990.

From the guide to the Morris Slotkin collection of Eugene L. Armbruster photographs of Williamsburg, Circa 1920s, (Brooklyn Historical Society)