Hannah's father, Michael Greenebaum, was part of the
earliest group of Jews to settle in the frontier city
of Chicago. He had left his small German village at
the age of twenty, planning to return after a few years
of plying his trade as a tinsmith in America. But
after arriving in Chicago in 1847, he realized the
young city's immense opportunities, and sent word for
two of his brothers to join him. Michael Greenebaum
began work as a salesman in the hardware business, and
would later become a successful merchant. In 1848, he
married Sarah Spiegal, whom he had met in New York
while visiting distant cousins. By the time Michael
had coaxed the rest of his family to Chicago in 1852,
Sarah had already given birth to the first Greenebaum
child born in America.
The Greenebaum clan was
large, prosperous and very close. Hannah was born on
January 14, 1858, the fourth of ten siblings. She
grew up in a lively home, always busy with the
"coming and going of grandmothers, grandfathers,
aunts, uncles and cousins." Michael and Sarah
Greenebaum were also a vital part of the community,
and well known for their hospitality. As Hannah
remembered, "Our dining table was seldom surrounded
only by members of the family."
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