Life Story
Sarah “Sadie” Simmons was born in Manhattan on 15 March 1859, the daughter of Abraham Simmons and Rachel or Rachael Simmons.1 Her parents belonged to an English Jewish immigrant world of trade, movement, and reinvention: Abraham had come from England to New York before Sarah’s birth, and later records place him in cigar work while Sadie and several of her sisters entered garment-related trades.2, 4
Sadie’s childhood record trail moved quickly from New York to Baltimore. The 1860 and 1870 censuses place Sarah with Abraham and Rachel Simmons in Baltimore while still reporting New York as Sarah’s birthplace.3 That Baltimore childhood matters because Sadie’s later records often made her Maryland-born. The birth record points to New York, but the Baltimore claim was not random: she spent much of her childhood there, and the Simmons family context made Maryland a familiar answer.
By 1880, Abraham and Rachael Simmons were back in New York City with their children. Sarah Simmons, age twenty, was in their household and was working as a dressmaker.4 The household was one where skilled work mattered: Abraham worked in cigars, while Sarah and other Simmons daughters were connected to dressmaking, hatmaking, millinery, or related trades. That occupational pattern later became one of the small but important points connecting Sarah Simmons with Sarah or Sadie Tabor.
In 1892, a newspaper account placed Sadie Simmons in a public romantic dispute with Isaac “Ike” Silverblatt, the son of a Harlem cigar dealer.5 The episode is used here only as context. It suggests that Sadie was still moving within New York’s Jewish neighborhood and trade world shortly before the more difficult Philadelphia, Aarons, Teschner, and Tabor record trail began.
By the early 1890s, Sadie’s life became harder to trace. Her son Frank Tabor was later associated with a Pennsylvania birth, and the proof argument places Sadie in the Philadelphia orbit before she returned to New York.8 On 29 June 1894, Sadie Simmons married Moss Aarons in New York City. The marriage record named her parents as Abraham and Rachel Simmons and gave her address as 210 East 70th Street.6 The 1897 New York City directory later placed Abraham Simmons, cigarmaker, at that same address, strengthening the connection between the bride and Abraham’s family.7
The 1894 marriage record also carries the most important bridge into the Tabor problem: the first witness was Isidor W. Teschner.6 This profile treats Moss Aarons as Sadie’s documented legal husband. It does not list Isidor Waldman Teschner as a spouse, because no marriage record for Sadie and Isidor, William Tabor, or Isidor Tabor has been found. Instead, the evidence supports a relationship between Sadie and Isidor that later appeared in records under the Tabor name.
By 1900, Sadie appeared in Manhattan as Sadie Tabor with William I. Tabor and children Frank and Mildred.8 The record presents the household as a conventional marriage, but the proof argument shows why that surface reading is fragile. Later child records named the father not only as William I. Tabor, but also as Isidor Tabor, Isidor Wm. Tabor, and Isidor Waldman Tabor. Arthur Tabor’s 1898 birth and death records connect the family to both Isidor Tabor and Sadie or Saddie Simons/Tabor.9, 10 Walter Henry Tabor’s 1901 birth record names his parents as Isidor Wm. Tabor and Sadie Tabor.11
Sadie remained visible in New York after the Tabor household changed shape. By 1905, William or Isidor Tabor had disappeared from her household, and Sadie was enumerated with her children in Manhattan.12 In 1910 she was again in Manhattan with Frank, Mildred, and Walter and was recorded as widowed.13 A 1917 city directory listed Sadie Tabor as a dressmaker and described her as the widow of William Tabor, a useful record of her later public identity but not proof that a legal William Tabor marriage or death existed.14
Mildred Elizabeth Tabor’s 1915 marriage record is one of the clearest statements linking the Tabor children back to Simmons. It named Mildred’s mother as Sadie Simmons and her father as Isidor Waldman Tabor.15 That statement does not solve every problem by itself, but it aligns with the 1894 Sadie Simmons marriage record, the Isidor W. Teschner witness signature, and the Tabor child records. In 1930, Sadie was still living in Queens in a household connected with Mildred.16 Sadie died in Queens on 17 March 1931, according to her New York City death certificate.17
Sadie’s life moved through several worlds: the English Jewish immigrant trades of her parents, a Baltimore childhood, New York garment work, a brief and uncertain Philadelphia chapter, and finally the difficult Tabor household in which her children carried a surname that concealed as much as it revealed. Her profile is therefore both a family biography and an identity reconstruction.
Research Notes
Birth Year and Birthplace
Sarah Simmons’s birth record supports a Manhattan birth on 15 March 1859 to Abraham and Rachael Simmons.1 Later Sadie/Sarah Tabor records often made her several years younger and Maryland-born.8, 13 The conflict should be preserved, not smoothed away. The Baltimore claim is understandable because Sarah spent childhood there and because younger Simmons siblings were associated with Baltimore, but the stronger birth evidence points to New York.
Sadie Simmons and Sadie Tabor
The conclusion that Sadie Simmons and Sadie Tabor were the same woman rests on correlation rather than one direct certificate saying so. The 1894 marriage record names Sadie Simmons’s parents as Abraham and Rachel and places her at an address later tied to Abraham Simmons.6, 7 The Tabor child records then repeatedly connect the mother to the Simmons or Simons surname.9, 15 No better post-1894 record trail has been found for a different Sadie Simmons, wife of Moss Aarons, who explains the same evidence.
Moss Aarons and Isidor Waldman Teschner
Moss Aarons was Sadie’s documented husband in 1894.6 Isidor Waldman Teschner was already married to Esther Levy, and no marriage record has been found for Sadie and Isidor, William Tabor, or Isidor Tabor. The Tabor name appears to have functioned as an alternate identity in records connected with Sadie and the children. New York divorce law made divorce difficult, public, and expensive in this period, which helps explain why a family might use protective names and conventional household claims even when the legal situation was different.20, 21
DNA Evidence
DNA evidence supports, but does not replace, the documentary proof. The public source cards summarize matches from a Mildred Tabor descendant to descendants of Levy and Sarah Simmons of Aldgate, London, and to descendants of Jacob and Rachel Teschner.18, 19 That pattern fits the proposed parents, Sadie/Sarah Simmons and Isidor Waldman Teschner. It must still be handled cautiously because Ashkenazi Jewish endogamy can make relationship estimates more tangled than they first appear.
Religion and Burial
Sadie’s religious identity should remain an open note rather than a tidy conclusion. The Simmons and Teschner evidence places Mildred’s ancestry within Jewish families, while later family and burial context points toward Christian or Lutheran affiliation. One possible explanation is that Sadie’s relationship with Isidor Teschner, while both were legally tied to other spouses, strained her ties to her earlier family or religious community. That remains interpretation, not a direct record statement.
Death and Burial
Sadie’s New York City death certificate records her death in Queens on 17 March 1931.17 Some handwritten details on the copied certificate remain difficult to read from the available image and should be checked against a clearer copy before being used for firmer claims about residence, informant wording, or burial particulars.
Evidence Timeline
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Birth in Manhattan
Sarah Simmons was born to Abraham and Rachael Simmons.
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Baltimore childhood
Census records place Sarah with Abraham and Rachel in Baltimore while still reporting New York as her birthplace.
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Back in New York
Sarah Simmons was living with Abraham and Rachael Simmons and working as a dressmaker.
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Silverblatt newspaper dispute
A newspaper account places Sadie Simmons in a public breach-of-promise dispute in New York-related circles.
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Marriage to Moss Aarons
The marriage record names Sadie's parents as Abraham and Rachel Simmons and was witnessed by Isidor W. Teschner.
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Tabor household in Manhattan
Sadie appeared as Sadie Tabor with William I. Tabor and children Frank and Mildred.
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Walter Henry Tabor birth
Walter's birth record names his parents as Isidor Wm. Tabor and Sadie Tabor.
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Widowed Tabor identity
Sadie appeared without William/Isidor in census and directory records and was later described as widow of William Tabor.
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Mildred's marriage record
Mildred's marriage record named her mother as Sadie Simmons and father as Isidor Waldman Tabor.
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Queens household
Sadie appeared in Queens in a household connected with Mildred.
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Death in Queens
Sadie's New York City death certificate records her death in Queens.
Family Group Sheet
- Spouse / family connection
- Moss Aarons is Sadie's documented husband. Isidor Waldman Teschner is treated as a well-supported relationship and Tabor-identity connection, not as a proven legal spouse.
- Children and direct-line notes
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- Frank Tabor - associated with Sadie's Tabor household; his exact paternal identification remains cautious.
- Mildred Elizabeth Tabor - direct-line child; father identified in the proof argument as Isidor Waldman Teschner under the Tabor identity.
- Arthur Tabor - born and died in Manhattan in 1898.
- Walter Henry Tabor - born in Manhattan in 1901; birth record names Isidor Wm. Tabor and Sadie Tabor.
Photographs
Photograph Index
Images embedded in the story are gathered here with the additional family photographs connected to this profile.
Documentary Base
Sources
birth record
[1] 1859 Manhattan Birth Record: Sarah Simmons
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: "New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:27YK-MV2 : 11 February 2018), Sarah Simmons, 15 Mar 1859; citing Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, reference v 5 p 547, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,315,313.
Access: FamilySearch database entry, accessed through citation in the proof document.
- Gives Sarah Simmons's birth date as 15 March 1859 in Manhattan.
- Names Abraham and Rachael Simmons as Sarah's parents.
- Creates a conflict with later records that made Sadie younger and Maryland-born.
passenger list
[2] 1853 Passenger List: Abraham Simmons on the Devonshire
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island), 1820-1957, year 1853, arrival New York, New York, microfilm serial M237, 1820-1897, microfilm roll 128, line 1, list number 649, Abraham Simmons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 7 May 2019), citing Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897, microfilm publication M237, National Archives at Washington, D.C. Also, New York, Index to Petitions for Naturalization filed in New York City, 1792-1989, Abraham Simmons; Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 7 May 2019), citing Soundex Index to Petitions for Naturalization filed in Federal, State, and Local Courts located in New York City, 1792-1989, National Archives at New York City.
Access: Ancestry digital images, accessed 7 May 2019, as cited in the Mildred Tabor proof document.
- Places Abraham Simmons in New York before the 1859 birth of Sarah Simmons.
- Supports the English immigrant context of Sarah/Sadie's parents.
- Does not by itself prove Sarah/Sadie's later Tabor identity.
census
[3] 1860 and 1870 U.S. Censuses: Sarah Simmons in Baltimore
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: 1860 United States Federal Census, Baltimore Ward 10, Baltimore, Maryland; Sarah Simmons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 24 Apr 2019). Also, 1870 United States Federal Census, Baltimore Ward 10, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: M593_575; Page: 478A; Family History Library Film: 552074, Sarah Simmons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 24 Apr 2019), citing National Archives and Records Administration census schedules.
Access: Ancestry digital images, accessed 24 Apr 2019.
- Places Sarah Simmons with Abraham and Rachel Simmons in Baltimore.
- Explains why later Sadie records may have used Baltimore as a birthplace even though Sarah was born in New York.
- Supports continuity between Sarah Simmons of Abraham's household and Sadie/Sarah Tabor.
census
[4] 1880 U.S. Census: Abraham and Rachel Simmons Household, New York
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: 1880 United States Federal Census, New York City, New York, New York; Roll: 890; Page: 97A; Enumeration District: 484, Abraham Simmons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing Tenth Census of the United States, 1880, NARA microfilm publication T9, Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Places Sarah Simmons in the household of Abraham and Rachael Simmons.
- Identifies Sarah as a dressmaker, matching a recurring occupation in the Sadie/Sarah Tabor evidence.
- Provides a pre-1900 anchor for the Simmons identification.
newspaper
[5] 1892 Newspaper Account: Sadie Simmons and Isaac Silverblatt
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: "Breach of Promise," The Philadelphia Inquirer, 14 January 1892, page 3, column 1; digital image, Newspapers.com (http://newspapers.com : accessed 31 December 2019).
Access: Newspapers.com image, accessed 31 December 2019, as cited in the Mildred Tabor proof document.
- Places a Sadie Simmons in a public romantic dispute shortly before the Philadelphia and Tabor record trail.
- Connects the reported Sadie to a Harlem cigar-dealer family context.
- Should be used cautiously and without sensationalizing the newspaper's framing.
marriage record
[6] 1894 Marriage Record: Sadie Simmons and Moss Aarons
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: New York, New York Marriage Record, 29 June 1894, Sadie Simmons & Moss Aarons, certificate number 7913, New York Department of Records, obtained 30 Aug 2018.
Access: New York Department of Records certificate copy, obtained 30 Aug 2018.
- Names Sadie Simmons's parents as Abraham and Rachel Simmons.
- Places Sadie at 210 East 70th Street.
- Includes Isidor W. Teschner as a witness, linking Sadie Simmons to the Teschner identity.
city directory
[7] 1897 New York City Directory: Abraham Simmons at East 70th Street
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: New York, New York City Directory, 1897, U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995, Abraham Simmons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://Ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing Miscellaneous Information and City and Borough Register of Public Departments.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Places Abraham Simmons at 210 East 70th Street, the address Sadie gave when marrying Moss Aarons.
- Supports the identification of Sadie Simmons as daughter of Abraham and Rachel Simmons.
census
[8] 1900 U.S. Census: William and Sadie Tabor Household, Manhattan
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: 1900 United States Federal Census, Manhattan, New York, New York, population schedule, Page 19, Enum District 0894, FHL microfilm 1241121, William Tabor and Sadie Tabor; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing National Archives Microfilm Publication, Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Places William I. Tabor and Sadie Tabor together in Manhattan with children Frank and Mildred.
- Reports William's July 1865 birth timing, Pennsylvania birthplace, and German-born parents.
- Reports Sadie as born in Maryland and married for eight years, details later treated as conflict evidence.
birth record
[9] 1898 Birth Record: Arthur Tabor, Manhattan
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: New York, New York City Births, 1846-1909, database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2WWM-N8J : 11 February 2018), Tabor, 03 Feb 1898; citing Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, reference 5908, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,953,124.
Access: FamilySearch database entry, accessed through citation in the proof document.
- Names a Tabor child born 3 February 1898 in Manhattan.
- Names the father as Isidor Tabor and the mother as Saddie Simons.
- Supports the conclusion that the Tabor child records preserve the Isidor and Simmons identifiers.
death record
[10] 1898 Death Record: Arthur Tabor, Manhattan
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949, database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2W61-5CG : 10 February 2018), Arthur Tabor, 20 Jul 1898; citing Death, Manhattan, New York, New York, United States, New York Municipal Archives, New York; FHL microfilm 1,322,947.
Access: FamilySearch database entry, accessed through citation in the proof document.
- Identifies Arthur Tabor as a child of Isidor and Saddie Tabor.
- Explains the third child implied by Sadie's 1900 census child count.
- Supports the consistency of the Isidor/Sadie Tabor child record cluster.
birth record
[11] 1901 Birth Record: Walter Henry Tabor
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: Certificate and Record of Birth, City of New York, Walter Henry Tabor, Certificate Number 31226, birth 12 Aug 1901, certificate issued 31 Aug 1901, copy obtained from New York City Department of Health 10 Aug 2015.
Access: New York City Department of Health certificate copy, obtained 10 Aug 2015.
- Names Walter's father as Isidor Wm. Tabor.
- Names Walter's mother as Sadie Tabor.
- Extends the Isidor/William Tabor naming pattern beyond the 1900 census.
census
[12] 1905 New York State Census: Sadie Tabor Household, Manhattan
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: 1905 New York State Census, New York State Archives, Albany, New York, State Population Census Schedules, 1905, Election District A.D. 21 E.D. 20, city Manhattan, county New York, page 22, Sadie Tabor; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing New York, State Census, 1905, Population Schedules, various county clerk offices, New York.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Places Sadie Tabor in Manhattan with her children after the 1900 Tabor household.
- Shows William/Isidor Tabor no longer in Sadie's household.
- Provides later-life context but does not independently identify Sadie Tabor as Sarah Simmons.
census
[13] 1910 U.S. Census: Sadie Tabor Household, Manhattan
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: 1910 United States Federal Census, Manhattan, Ward 12, New York, New York, population schedule, page 3A, enumeration district 0605, FHL microfilm 1375037, Sadie Tabor, Frank Tabor, Mildred Tabor, and Walter Tabor; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing National Archives microfilm publication, Thirteenth Census of the United States.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Places Sadie Tabor in Manhattan with Frank, Mildred, and Walter.
- Records Sadie as widowed, a claim treated cautiously because no William or Isidor Tabor death record has been found.
- Reports the children's father as born in England, conflicting with earlier Tabor records.
city directory
[14] 1917 New York City Directory: Sadie Tabor, Dressmaker
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: New York, New York City Directory, 1917, U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995, Sadie Tabor; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://Ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing Miscellaneous Information and City and Borough Register of Public Departments.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Identifies Sadie Tabor as a dressmaker.
- Describes her as widow of William Tabor, a claim that conflicts with the absence of a matching William or Isidor Tabor death record.
- Extends the Sarah/Sadie Tabor record trail after the 1910 census.
marriage record
[15] 1915 Marriage Record: Mildred Elizabeth Tabor and Russell Elmer Tenure
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: Certificate and Record of Marriage, State of New York, Department of Health, Certificate Number 18448, Russell Elmer Tenure and Mildred Elizabeth Tabor, Borough of Manhattan, 21 August 1915, copy obtained from New York City Department of Health 15 July 2015.
Access: New York City Department of Health certificate copy, obtained 15 July 2015.
- Names Mildred's father as Isidor Waldman Tabor rather than William Tabor.
- Names Mildred's mother as Sadie Simmons.
- Connects the Tabor record cluster to the Simmons surname.
census
[16] 1930 U.S. Census: Sadie and Mildred in Queens
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: 1930 United States Federal Census, Queens, Queens, New York, page 21B, enumeration district 0618, FHL microfilm 2341345, Sadie Simmons and Mildred Simmons; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 7 May 2019), citing Fifteenth Census of the United States, 1930, National Archives and Records Administration.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 7 May 2019, as cited in the Mildred Tabor proof document.
- Places Sadie in Queens in 1930, apparently in Mildred's household.
- Provides the last census placement currently cited for Sadie.
- Sets context for the 1931 Queens death certificate.
death certificate
[17] 1931 Death Certificate: Sadie Tabor, Queens
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: New York City Department of Health, Bureau of Records, standard certificate of death no. 7102, Sadie Tabor, died 17 March 1931, Queens, New York; certificate copy ordered from New York City Department of Records and Information Services by Davis Simpson, 2026.
Access: Certificate copy ordered from the New York City Department of Records and Information Services; images held by Davis Simpson.
- Establishes Sadie Tabor's death date as 17 March 1931.
- Places her death in Queens, New York.
- Shows the certificate's informant, physician, undertaker, and burial-permit sections, though some handwriting requires cautious reading.
DNA evidence summary
[18] DNA Evidence: Matches to Descendants of Levy and Sarah Simmons
Needs caution Back to first citationCitation: Private autosomal DNA comparison summarized in "Who Were the Parents of Mildred Tabor?"; Mildred Tabor descendant test subject compared with matches descending from Levy Simmonds/Simmons and Sarah Cohen of Aldgate, London. Living tester names omitted from the public source card.
Access: Private DNA analysis; living tester identities withheld.
- Reports DNA matches from a Mildred Tabor descendant to descendants of Levy and Sarah Simmons.
- Supports, but does not alone prove, the identification of Sadie/Sarah Simmons as Mildred's mother.
- Requires caution because Ashkenazi Jewish endogamy can complicate relationship estimates.
DNA evidence summary
[19] DNA Evidence: Matches to Descendants of Jacob and Rachel Teschner
Needs caution Back to first citationCitation: Private autosomal DNA comparison summarized in "Who Were the Parents of Mildred Tabor?"; Mildred Tabor descendant test subject compared with matches descending from Jacob Teschner and Rachel Wilhelm. Living tester names omitted from the public source card.
Access: Private DNA analysis; living tester identities withheld.
- Reports DNA matches from a Mildred Tabor descendant to descendants of Jacob and Rachel Teschner.
- Supports, but does not alone prove, the identification of Isidor Waldman Teschner as Mildred's father.
- Requires caution because Ashkenazi Jewish endogamy can complicate relationship estimates.
legal context
[20] New York Divorce Law Context, 1850s-1920s
Strong support Back to first citationCitation: Di Long, "Divorce in New York, 1850s to 1920s," University of Georgia, 2007; paper obtained online (https://getd.libs.uga.edu/pdfs/long_di_201312_ma.pdf : accessed 26 Apr 2019). Citation should be reviewed against the original PDF before final publication.
Access: University of Georgia online PDF, accessed 26 Apr 2019 according to proof document.
- Explains why obtaining a divorce in New York could be difficult, public, and expensive.
- Provides context for why Sadie Simmons and Isidor Teschner may have obscured names or relationships.
newspaper article
[21] 1905 New York Tribune Article on Bigamy in New York
Contemporary record Back to first citationCitation: "Ten Thousand Bigamists in New York To-day," New York Tribune, 17 September 1905, page 3, column 1; digital image, Newspapers.com (http://www.newspapers.com : accessed 6 Jan 2020).
Access: Newspapers.com digital image, accessed 6 Jan 2020.
- Provides period context for public discussion of bigamy in New York.
- Should not be treated as statistical proof of the exact number claimed by the article.