London, Hannah Ruth, 1894-

Author Hannah R. London was born in Boston on January 2, 1894, daughter of Abraham and Goldie Freeman London. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1916 and married Benjamin M. Siegel in 1923. She published three books: Portraits of Jews by Gilbert Stuart and Other Early American Artists (ca. 1926), Shades of My Forefathers, a book of silhouettes of early American Jews (1941), and Miniatures of Early American Jews (1953).

Further information about London can be found in Their Exits and Their Entrances, A Memoir of the London Family (1972), by London's sister, Bessie London Pouzzner (A/P879) at the Schlesinger Library.

From the description of Papers, 1923-1977 (inclusive). (Harvard University). WorldCat record id: 232007213

Hannah Ruth London was born to Abraham and Goldie (Mickleshanski) Freedman on January 2, 1894, in Boston, Massachusetts. She was one of five children of Lithuanian parents, and was descended on her mother's side from the well-known Jewish family, the Abravanel-Mickleshanskis. London was educated in public elementary and high schools in Boston, and then attended Radcliffe College, graduating in 1916. After graduation, she worked as a recreational counselor for several settlement houses in Boston and New York City, before being hired as the assistant to Frank Bayley, an antiquarian art dealer and collector who ran the Copley Gallery in Boston. There she began to be interested in early American artists, and embarked upon her lifelong research into "the pictorial representation of early American Jewry."

Finding little published material on the topic, London's research took the form of examination of diaries and family letters, references in little-used works, and correspondence and conversations with numerous people whose lineage stemmed from early American Jews. She presented her first paper on the subject at a 1921 meeting in Philadelphia of the American Jewish Historical Society, whose membership included many descendants of Colonial American Jewry, and who, subsequently, encouraged her work by inviting her to examine their family portraits. London went on to conduct comprehensive research into early American Jewish portraiture, locating and identifying numerous portraits of Colonial American Jews, including some by American master painters such as Gilbert Stuart and Thomas Sully. Her research brought her into contact with many art historians, curators, collectors, and historians of renown, such as Lawrence Park and A.S.W. Rosenbach. London's work was published in 1927 in the limited-edition Portraits of Jews by Gilbert Stuart and other Early American Artists. This work was reprinted in 1969.

London's research led her to also study silhouettes and miniatures of early American Jews, particularly those of silhouettist Augustin Edouard and miniaturist Edward Greene Malbone. Her work in these areas was documented in Shades of my Forefathers, published in 1941, and Miniatures of Early American Jews, a 1953 imprint. These two works were reprinted in 1970 as a single volume entitled Miniatures and Silhouettes of Early American Jews. London also lectured on her research in American Jewish portraiture, and published articles in journals such as Daughters of the American Revolution and National Historical Magazine.

London married lawyer Benjamin Siegel in 1923. After a brief period in Cincinnati, the couple settled in the Boston area. Their only child, Robert Enoch Siegel, nicknamed "Bud", was born on June 5, 1925. He served in the Army in World War II, and was killed in France in 1944. London and her husband petitioned the War Department to award Robert the Bronze Star, but, despite countless appeals, their application was denied. In 1968, when the army broadened its criteria for conferring this citation, Robert was finally awarded the medal.

In 1949, London wrote a short play in memory of Robert, entitled Immortal Son, which was performed at Emerson College in Boston in 1958. She also wrote an autobiographical account of her life, which contains much information about her research into American Jewish portraiture. This work was published in 1980 and is entitled A Girl from Boston.

Hannah Ruth London died in 1988 in Brookline, Massachusetts.

Source: Hannah Ruth London, A Girl from Boston (Cambridge: Schenkman Publishing, 1980).

• Jan. 2, 1894: Born in Boston, MA
• 1916: Graduated from Radcliffe College
• 1917 - 1918 : Recreational counselor for settlement houses in Boston and New York City
• 1920: Begins working at The Copley Gallery, Boston and embarks upon research into American Jewish portraiture
• 1921: Presents first paper on early American Jewish portraiture at Philadelphia meeting of The American Jewish Historical Society
• 1923: Marries Benjamin M. Siegel
• 1925: Son Robert Enoch Siegel born
• 1927: Portraits of Jews by Gilbert Stuart and other Early American Artists published
• 1941: Shades of my Forefathers published
• 1944: Robert Siegel killed in action in France
• 1953: Miniatures of Early American Jews published
• 1969: Portraits of Jews by Gilbert Stuart and other Early American Artists republished
• 1970: Shades of my Forefathers and Miniatures of Early American Jews republished as a single work
• 1971: Husband Benjamin Siegel dies
• 1980: Autobiography A Girl from Boston published
• 1988: Dies in Brookline, MA

From the guide to the Papers of Hannah Ruth London, 1919-1990, bulk: 1923-1980, (American Jewish Historical Society)