This Tucker family portrait was taken in Santa Ana in the 1920s, a few years after they had moved to Orange County. Abraham and Jennie were originally from Poland and immigrated to the U.S. when they were teens. They were married in 1913, and their three older children, Samuel, Annie, and Harold, were born back east. The two youngest, Lillian and Irving, were both born in Santa Ana, where Abe was in the produce business. He was also the shamas (a volunteer who helps coordinate services) of Temple Beth Sholom for many years. The Tuckers were one of original families of TBS and were instrumental in the very early attempts to create a cohesive Jewish community. They were named “Family of the Month” in a 1956 temple bulletin, which wrote that “The temple’s… roots were sown with faith and determination by such pioneers as lovable, enduring Mom and Pop Tucker.”
Dalia Taft is the archivist of the Orange County Jewish Historical Society of Jewish Federation Orange County and highlights images from the Society’s archives every month. For more information, please visit www.jewishorangecounty.org/historical. You can also contact Dalia at historical@jfoc.org or at (949) 435-3484, ext. 296.