Postcard Kinsale Charles Fort
Around 1906, Harry Rosehill arrived in Cork with his younger sister, May, who was just 12, while Harry was 9. Their father, Syer Lebh, who had travelled with them, later returned to Russia, possibly to help save other family members from the anti-Jewish pogroms that were occurring at the time.
Their uncle, Ernest, had been a boy soldier in the Tsar's army but deserted and eventually made his way to Cork before Harry and May made the journey. Ernest became a piano tuner before opening his own music shop, where Harry would later work. The shop was initially located on the Grand Parade and later moved to 58 St. Patrick's Street.
Harry's son, Fred, initially studied medicine at University College Cork (UCC) but eventually abandoned that path to stay and work in his father's business. Over time, Harry became one of the foremost commercial traveling businessmen in Munster. He later ran a toy store and established a picture framing shop.
Fitzgeralds Park on The Mardyke
When Harry's best friend, Solomon Marcus, moved to London to join his sons, David and Louis, who had already left Cork, Fred bought Marcus's framing business. Unfortunately, Marcus Framing closed earlier this year (2024), marking the end of the oldest picture framing business in Ireland.
We are delighted to have several postcards from the Rosehill business in our collection, a reminder of the importance of the Jewish community in business in Cork.
We are unsure if Fred or Ernest took the actual photographs, but it still is great to have this collection to remind us of the shop and business. Part of Cork’s rich culture history
