Research Question
Who were the parents of Mildred Elizabeth Tabor, born 14 March 1897 in Atlanta, Georgia, and appearing as the daughter of William and Sadie Tabor in New York records?
Mildred Elizabeth Tabor appeared in New York records as the daughter of William and Sadie Tabor, but the family did not behave like an ordinary record trail. William Tabor could not be found before or after the few records tied to Sadie and their children, Sadie’s reported age and birthplace shifted, and Mildred’s own marriage record named her father not as William but as Isidor Waldman Tabor. This proof summary explains why the best-supported conclusion is that Mildred’s parents were Sadie/Sarah Simmons and Isidor Waldman Teschner.
This page is a compact public summary. Full citations, search detail, alternate candidates, and extended conflict analysis are provided in the complete proof document.
Download the full proof: Who Were the Parents of Mildred Tabor?
Short Answer
The best-supported conclusion is that Mildred’s mother was Sadie or Sarah Simmons, born about 1859 in New York City, daughter of Abraham Simmons and Rachel or Rachael Simmons, and that Mildred’s father was Isidor Waldman Teschner, son of Wolfgang Teschner and Henriette Waldman. In the Tabor records, Isidor appears under the name William I. Tabor, Isidor Wm. Tabor, or Isidor Waldman Tabor.
The evidence does not rest on one direct statement. It rests on the accumulation of many records that point in the same direction: the rare Isidor Waldman name, Sadie Simmons’s marriage to Moss Aarons with Isidor W. Teschner as witness, records naming Mildred’s father as Isidor Waldman Tabor, the absence of a separate William or Isidor Tabor record trail, the overlapping New York geography, Isidor Teschner’s travel and opportunity, and DNA matches into both the Simmons and Teschner families. Taken together, the evidence supports the conclusion that Mildred Elizabeth Tabor was the daughter of Sadie/Sarah Simmons and Isidor Waldman Teschner.
Why This Was a Problem
The 1900 census presents William and Sadie Tabor as a conventional married couple living in Manhattan with children Frank and Mildred. It reports that they had been married for eight years, that William was born in Pennsylvania to German-born parents, and that Sadie was born in Maryland to English-born parents.
That apparent clarity breaks down quickly. No convincing earlier records were found for William Tabor or Isidor Tabor. Sadie’s reported age, birthplace, and marriage history conflict across records. Sadie Simmons married Moss Aarons in 1894, while Isidor Teschner was already married to Esther Levy. Mildred’s later marriage record did not name her father as William Tabor at all, but as Isidor Waldman Tabor.
The result is not a simple record-to-record match. It requires correlation, negative evidence, DNA evidence, and conflict resolution.
Evidence Summary
The Tabor Records
The Tabor records tie Mildred to a small cluster of names that recur in different forms. The 1900 census names the father as William I. Tabor and the mother as Sadie Tabor. Mildred’s marriage record names her parents as Isidor Waldman Tabor and Sadie Simmons. Walter Henry Tabor’s 1901 birth record names his parents as Isidor Wm. Tabor and Sadie Tabor. Arthur Tabor’s 1898 birth and death records connect a child of the same family to Isidor Tabor and Saddie Simons or Saddie Tabor.
Taken together, the Tabor family records consistently connect Mildred’s mother to the Simmons or Simons surname and connect her father to the name Isidor or Isador Waldman Tabor, even though the 1900 census calls him William I. Tabor.
The difficulty is that no convincing earlier or later record trail was found for a separate William Tabor or Isidor Tabor who fits these facts. The apparent Tabor identity is therefore less useful as a surname trail than as a set of clues: Isidor, Waldman, German-born parents, a July 1865 birth timing, New York and Pennsylvania associations, and a relationship with Sadie Simmons.
Sadie Simmons
The strongest candidate for Mildred’s mother is Sarah or Sadie Simmons, daughter of Abraham and Rachel Simmons.
The key bridge is Sadie Simmons’s 1894 New York marriage to Moss Aarons. That record names her parents as Abraham and Rachel Simmons and places her at 210 East 70th Street. The 1897 New York City directory places Abraham Simmons, cigarmaker, at the same address. Abraham and Rachel Simmons also appear in the 1880 census in New York with a daughter Sarah Simmons, a dressmaker.
Earlier records push the family back further. Sarah Simmons was born in Manhattan on 15 March 1859 to Abraham and Rachael Simmons. The 1860 and 1870 censuses place Sarah with Abraham and Rachel in Baltimore and record her as New York-born. The Baltimore association matters because later Sadie records repeatedly claimed a Baltimore birthplace even though the birth record and census evidence point to New York.
The age conflict is real but not isolated. The proof document notes that several unmarried Simmons sisters became younger across later records. In that family context, Sadie’s shift from an 1859 birth to an apparent mid-1860s birth is a conflict to resolve, not a reason to discard the identification by itself.
The most important clue on the 1894 marriage record is the witness: Isidor W. Teschner. That witness name links Sadie Simmons, daughter of Abraham and Rachel, to the man whose full name closely matches Mildred’s stated father, Isidor Waldman Tabor.
Isidor Waldman Teschner
The father named in Mildred’s marriage record was Isidor Waldman Tabor. The strongest candidate behind that name is Isidor Waldman Teschner.
The name combination is the first signal. Isidor was not rare, and Waldman was a common surname, but Waldman was uncommon as a given or middle name in the relevant records. Isidor Waldman Teschner also fits several details associated with Isidor or William Tabor: a July 1865 birth timing, German-born parents, New York geography, and a direct connection to Sadie Simmons.
The records also explain opportunity. Isidor Teschner was married to Esther Levy and appears with her in a separate 1900 Manhattan household, only a short distance from the William and Sadie Tabor household. His work history included music publishing, travel to Mexico, and notices placing him or musicians he managed in Georgia and New Orleans. The New Orleans hotel notice for J. or I. W. Teschner and wife, and the Atlanta Mexican Band notices, do not alone identify Mildred’s father. But they make Isidor’s presence in the places and time frame of the Tabor children’s births plausible.
The negative evidence also matters. The proof did not find convincing pre-1898 or post-1901 records for a separate William Tabor or Isidor Tabor who fit Mildred’s father. By contrast, Isidor Waldman Teschner exists in the right network, with the right name, and with a documented relationship to Sadie Simmons before the Tabor child records appear.
DNA Evidence
The DNA evidence is supportive but must be handled carefully because Jewish endogamy can make distant relationships appear closer or more tangled than they are.
Descendants of Mildred Tabor carried significant Ashkenazi Jewish ethnicity. The main test subject used in the proof was a descendant of Mildred; identifying information for living testers is not repeated here. The proof reports DNA matches connecting Mildred’s descendant to descendants of Levy and Sarah Simmons of Aldgate, London, the grandparents of Sadie Simmons. It also reports matches to descendants of Jacob and Rachel Teschner, the grandparents of Isidor Waldman Teschner.
No comparable evidence supported descent from a true Tabor, Tauber, or Aarons line. The DNA evidence therefore does not stand alone as proof, but it aligns with the documentary case: one genetic path points into the Simmons family and another into the Teschner family, matching the proposed parents.
Conflict Resolution
The main conflicts are best explained by false or protective statements in records, especially the 1900 census.
Sadie was likely still legally married to Moss Aarons. Isidor Teschner was legally married to Esther Levy. New York divorce law before 1919 made divorce difficult, public, and expensive because adultery had to be proved. In that context, a second household or relationship could produce strong incentives to obscure names, ages, birthplaces, and the length of a relationship.
The 1900 census likely misstates Isidor’s name, Sadie’s age and birthplace, and the duration of William and Sadie’s relationship. The assumed Tabor identity and shifting personal details likely reduced exposure to social and legal consequences while allowing the children to appear inside a conventional household structure.
This explanation also accounts for the otherwise puzzling records: a father named William I. Tabor in one place, Isidor Wm. Tabor in another, and Isidor Waldman Tabor in Mildred’s own marriage record.
Conclusion
The combined documentary, negative, contextual, and DNA evidence supports the conclusion that Mildred Elizabeth Tabor was the daughter of Sadie/Sarah Simmons and Isidor Waldman Teschner. The name William or Isidor Waldman Tabor appears to have been an alias or alternate identity used in records connected with Sadie and their children.
The conclusion remains inferential, but it is the reconstruction that best explains the full evidence set: the Tabor child records, the 1894 Sadie Simmons marriage record, the Isidor W. Teschner witness signature, the Simmons family record trail, the Teschner record trail, the travel and geography, the lack of a separate Tabor candidate, and DNA matches into both proposed ancestral families.
Limitations
No marriage record has been found for Sadie Simmons and William or Isidor Tabor. No direct record has been found in which Isidor Waldman Teschner explicitly acknowledges Mildred as his daughter. No birth record has been found for Mildred in Atlanta. DNA evidence is complicated by Ashkenazi Jewish endogamy. The reconstruction depends on correlation, negative evidence, contextual evidence, DNA evidence, and conflict resolution rather than one direct statement.
The argument should remain open to revision if a direct Mildred birth record, a Tabor marriage record, a divorce file, a legal proceeding, or a private family record appears.
Read the Full Proof
For the complete analysis, including full footnote citations, extended timelines, alternate candidates, DNA-match discussion, and conflict resolution, see:
Download the full proof: Who Were the Parents of Mildred Tabor?
Related Profiles
No public profile pages for Isidor Waldman Teschner, Mildred Elizabeth Tabor, or Russell Elmer Tenure are currently available in this site slice.
Sources
census
1900 U.S. Census: William and Sadie Tabor Household, Manhattan
Citation: 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.
marriage record
1915 Marriage Record: Mildred Elizabeth Tabor and Russell Elmer Tenure
Citation: 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.
birth record
1901 Birth Record: Walter Henry Tabor
Citation: 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.
birth record
1898 Birth Record: Arthur Tabor, Manhattan
Citation: 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
1898 Death Record: Arthur Tabor, Manhattan
Citation: 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.
marriage record
1894 Marriage Record: Sadie Simmons and Moss Aarons
Citation: 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
1897 New York City Directory: Abraham Simmons at East 70th Street
Citation: 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
1880 U.S. Census: Abraham and Rachel Simmons Household, New York
Citation: 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.
birth record
1859 Manhattan Birth Record: Sarah Simmons
Citation: "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.
census
1860 and 1870 U.S. Censuses: Sarah Simmons in Baltimore
Citation: 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
1900 U.S. Census: Isidor Teschner and Esther Levy Teschner, Manhattan
Citation: 1900 United States Federal Census, Manhattan, New York, New York; Page: 16; Enumeration District: 0914; FHL microfilm: 1241122, Isidor Teschner and Esther Teschner; 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 Isidor Teschner with Esther Levy Teschner in Manhattan in 1900.
- Creates the key conflict of Isidor Teschner appearing near the Tabor household in the same census year.
- Reports details comparable to the William/Isidor Tabor identity, including the July 1865 birth timing.
census
1880 U.S. Census: Isidor Teschner in the Wolfgang Teschner Household
Citation: 1880 United States Federal Census, Brooklyn, Kings, New York; Roll: 843; Page: 10C; Enumeration District: 046, Isidor Teschner; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 07 May 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 7 May 2019.
- Places Isidor Teschner in the Wolfgang Teschner family.
- Supports the proposed paternal identity behind Isidor Waldman Tabor.
- Connects Isidor to the Teschner family later supported by DNA matches.
DNA evidence summary
DNA Evidence: Matches to Descendants of Jacob and Rachel Teschner
Citation: 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.
DNA evidence summary
DNA Evidence: Matches to Descendants of Levy and Sarah Simmons
Citation: 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.
prison register
Sing Sing Admission Register: Russell Elmer Tenure
Citation: New York, Sing Sing Prison Admission Registers, New York State Archives, Albany, New York; Box: 45; Volume: 93, Year Range: 1929 July - 1929 Dec; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://ancestry.com : accessed 19 Apr 2019), citing Sing Sing Prison inmate admission registers, Dept. of Correctional Services, Series B0143.
Access: Ancestry digital image, accessed 19 Apr 2019.
- Provides historical context for Mildred Tabor's Jewish identity as understood by Russell Tenure.
- Does not identify Mildred's parents directly.
- Should be interpreted cautiously because it records Russell's statement in a criminal-admission context.
legal context
New York Divorce Law Context, 1850s-1920s
Citation: 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
1905 New York Tribune Article on Bigamy in New York
Citation: "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.
periodical notices
Musical Courier Notices: Isidor W. Teschner in Mexico
Citation: Musical Courier, v.36, 1898 Jan-Jun., issue 937, 16 Feb 1898, page 20, column 1, digital image accessed 16 Apr 2019, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015025409528?urlappend=%3Bseq=320. Also Musical Courier, v.40, 1900 Jan-Jun., issue 1041, 7 Mar 1900, page 24, column 1, digital image accessed 16 Apr 2019, https://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015025409759. Also Musical Courier, v.36, issue 937, 16 Feb 1898, page 13, column 2, digital image accessed 16 Apr 2019, https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015025409528;view=1up;seq=863.
Access: HathiTrust digital images, accessed 16 Apr 2019.
- Places Isidor W. Teschner in a music-business role connected to Mexico City.
- Supports the timeline showing Isidor's travel and periods away from New York.
- Provides context for opportunity rather than a direct parentage statement.
newspaper notices
1897 Atlanta Constitution Notices: Mexican Band in Atlanta
Citation: "Mexican Band Coming," The Atlanta Constitution, 14 May 1897, page 2, column 1; digital image, Newspapers.com (http://www.newspapers.com : accessed 3 Jan 2019). Also "Mexican Band Concert," The Atlanta Constitution, 15 May 1897, page 7, column 4; digital image, Newspapers.com (http://www.newspapers.com : accessed 3 Jan 2019).
Access: Newspapers.com digital images, accessed 3 Jan 2019.
- Places the Mexican Band in Atlanta shortly after Mildred Tabor's reported birth there.
- Supports the plausibility of Isidor Teschner's music-business connection to Atlanta.
- Does not directly place Isidor at Mildred's birth.
newspaper notice
1896 Times-Democrat Hotel Notice: J. or I. W. Teschner and Wife
Citation: "Personal," The Times-Democrat, New Orleans, Louisiana, 17 May 1896, page 3, column 3; digital image, Newspapers.com (http://www.newspapers.com : accessed 31 Dec 2019).
Access: Newspapers.com digital image, accessed 31 Dec 2019.
- Reports J. W. Teschner and wife from New York at the Pickwick Hotel in New Orleans.
- Supports the possibility that Isidor W. Teschner was traveling in the South in the period before Mildred's birth.
- Identification as Isidor W. Teschner is contextual and should remain cautious.
death index and obituary
1912 Death Index and Obituary: Isidor Waldman Teschner
Citation: New York, New York, Extracted Death Index, 1862-1948, Certificate 19471, Isidor W. Teschner, index, Ancestry.com, citing Index to New York City Deaths 1862-1948. Also "Obituary Notes," New York Times, 30 June 1912, page 25, column 4, digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 10 May 2019). Also 1910 United States Federal Census, Manhattan Ward 12, New York, New York; Roll: T624_1021; Page: 11A; Enumeration District: 1732; FHL microfilm: 1375034, Isidor W. Teschner and Esther Teschner; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 10 May 2019).
Access: Ancestry index and digital images, accessed 10 May 2019 according to proof document.
- Documents Isidor W. Teschner's death in 1912.
- Provides a terminal point for the Isidor Teschner timeline.
- Contrasts with the lack of a matching death record for a separate William or Isidor Tabor.