Norway - Part 2 - Salomon David Selikowitz

Salomon David Selikowitz

Mr & Mrs Selikowitz

In the 1923 census, it is noted that Jacob was employed by “Selikowitz”.

Mary worked for Selikowitz too. She often spoke of the family and from how she spoke; I think that she had a crush on one of the family’s sons. Together with her photographs she had a formal portrait of Mr. & Mrs. Selikowitz, given to her when she left Norway, and inscribed “In friendly remembrance – S. D. Selikowitz and wife – Norway”.


With that photograph went a story that went basically like this. “In Oslo I worked for Mr. Selikowitz (at which point she showed the picture of Mr. & Mrs.). They had a very big family. One year at the Pesach Seder the two younger sons decided to play a prank on their father. They borrowed a live goat and when, during the Seder the part came to open the front door to allow the Prophet Elijah to enter, the goat, which had been left outside the front door rushed in. Consternation ensued. Mr. Selikowitz was NOT amused".

During my research, I found details of the Selikowitz family in the 1910 census. In my correspondence with the Jewish Museum in Oslo, I asked about the family. This is the reply that I received.

“The Selikowitz-family was a big and influential family in Oslo before the war. Salomon David Selikowitz (b. 1869 in Sidik, Lithuania) had come to Norway from Lithuania in 1895, and established a manufacture wares store at Calmeyers gate 6, a few years later. He married Cecilie Rothenberg (b. in Sweden 1878) and the couple had 10 children, 5 boys and 5 girls. One daughter, Pauline, died as an infant. The youngest, Arnold, was born in 1912. Salomon David died in Oslo in 1940. The rest of the family managed to escape to Sweden in 1942 and thus survived the Shoa. The eldest, Julius (b. 1898), married Esther Levinsohn; Josef (b. 1899) married Olga Wilk; Heiman (b. 1900) was an amateur boxer and never married); Jacob (b. 1902) left for Sweden before the war; Rachel (b. 1903) married Willi Alexander; Rosa (b. 1904) married Marcus Levin; Lotta (b. 1906) married Axel Scheer; Makka (b. 1907) married Bernhard Goldberg and Arnold (who served as a dental surgeon on allied ships during the war) married Rachel Jaschzik.. Enclosed photos of Selikowitz’ business in Calmeyers gate 6 (he owned the entire building) and the whole family together during Pesach (around 1920).”

Those pictures are reproduced here.

The whole family at the Seder

Calmeyers gate 6

Of course, the Pesach picture is particularly interesting especially because of Mary’s story.

Note too that Axel Scheer (one of Mottemende’s sons) married into the family.

The 1910 census

 Also reproduced is details of the 1910 census. The name of Signe Hoff is also recorded. Her occupation is shown as a “maid” (Tjenestepike).

The Selikowitz family has also been recorded separately on the Geni.com website.

For the location of Calmeyers gate 6 see the Map of Oslo page.