Leo Finkelstein Papers

An article about the music group "Sanctimonious Seven" that Leo Finkelstein joined when he started learning piano after his retirement from pawnbroking.

Tags: fiddle, Leo Finkelstein, Leon Feldman, music, Nancy Brower, piano, polka, Sanctimonious Seven

Julie Nixon in front of Finkelstein pawnshop, Asheville Citizen-Times, undated

A clipping from the Asheville Citizen Times showing Julie Nixon standing in front of the Finkelstein loan office.

Tags: 1970, Asheville, Citizen Times, Finkelstein, Julie Nixon, loan, newspaper, office, Politics

Retired Pawnbroker Enjoying Slower Pace, Asheville North Carolina, November 15, 1983

A newspaper clipping about Leo Finkelstein's life after he retired and a brief overview of his career as a pawnbroker.

Tags: 1983, Asheville, Bible, Depression, Harry Finkelstein, Leo Finkelstein, retired, Sanctimonious Seven

Group of children in front of car, Asheville, NC, 1910s

An antiquated photo of a group of children in front of a car.

Tags: 1910, Asheville, car, children

Plaque, Lion of Judah Award Presented to Leo Finkelstein, 1997

Tags: achievement, award, Jewish Community, Judah, Lion, plaque

Father of Leo Finkelstein in front of car, circa 1910

A photograph of Leo Finkelstein's father in front of a car.

Tags: 1910, car, Harry Finkelstein

Deputy sheriff certificate for Leo Finkelstein, 1936

Leo Finkelstein's Deputy Sheriff certificate.

Tags: 1936, Buncombe County, certificate, Deputy, North Carolina, Sheriff

Asheville, NC Convention badge for Leo Finkelstein, 1933

An NC State Convention badge for Leo as "Exalted Ruler."

Tags: 1933, Asheville, badge, Convention, Exalted Ruler, Land of the Sky

Pawnshops Here Could Furnish Good Museum

This article explains the life of a pawnbroker from bizarre items (like a stuffed bear), rich clients who pay interest just to keep their winter coats safe over the summer, con artists, and a minister who scraped by pawning his Bible every Monday and retrieving it every Saturday evening.

Tags: Asheville, bear, Bible, coat, epilepsy, interest, minister, money, museum, pawnbroking, sewing machine, wealthy

Photocopies of Leo Finkelstein's scrapbooks

A conglomeration of papers Leo collected over his lifetime, from newspaper clippings about a bookmobile and his father's death to letters from the Buncombe County library. It includes pictures from the Asheville Lions Club and Leo's years serving the military.

Tags: Buncombe County, Harry Finkelstein, Leo Finkelstein, library, Lions Club, loan office, military, newspaper, photograph, scrapbook, twentieth century

Photocopies of Leo Finkelstein's scrapbooks, Rhine, Bookmobile

A conglomeration of papers Leo collected over his lifetime.

Tags: 20th century, bookmobile, Buncombe County, loan office, pawnbroking, scrapbook

Poor Man's Bank drafts, edited

Leo Finkelstein's account of Asheville in the early twentieth century, how the Jewish community functioned, and pawnbroking during the Depression.

Tags: Asheville, cenutury, dawn, Depression, dime, Flanders, Greenville, Hebrew, Lions Club, orthodox, overcoat, rabbi, Silver Shirts, Tokyo Rose

I Remember When

Leo Finkelstein's handwritten account of his memories as a part of the Lions Club.

Tags: 1930, Havana, history, Lions Club, memory, remember, World War II

History of Lions Club

Historical reports from the time when Leo served as historian of the Lions Club.

Tags: 1987, army, fellowship, history, Lion's Roar, report, South Pacific, World War II

Letters from Leo original text

Letters of correspondence between Leo and the Lions Club where he describes his military training. He talks about his daily schedule, his comrades, his longing for home, and his new perspective on life.

Tags: Air Force, army, Camp Croft, corporal, duty, jungle, letters, Lions Club, Miami Beach, military, Phillipines, poetry, Smoky Joe, Tishomingo, World War II

World War II Diary, 1943 - 1945

Leo's diary that he kept during the war. It includes handwritten entries, pictures of civilians he met, autographs, and a list of the places he went.

Tags: autograph, civilians, diary, Places I've Been, World War II

"Trip to California with Mr. and Mrs. Harrison, 1933," photographs

A collection of photos taken in a desert-like area with two couples and a little girl.

Tags: 1933, cactus, California, desert, Harrison

Financial Statements, 1945 - 1995

A record of Leo's financial statements, what he held in his pawnshop, the interest he charged, and the worth of the items.

Tags: bank, finance, interest, money, pawnbroking, savings, Wachovia

"Lions," Lions Club notes and ephemera

Records from Lions Club meetings from 1998 with tidbits about Leo's health and involvement in the community. It also includes information about Leo's swing band, the Sanctimonious Seven.

Tags: 1998, Asheville, Doc Watson, Lions Club, program, Sanctimonious Seven, sheet music

"History," Nashville Bar Association Memorial Service, 1998, birthday cards, correspondence in shorthand

Various memorabilia from Leo Finkelstein's life, including handwritten letters, flyers, Lions Club and Beth ha-Taphila information, and newspaper clippings.

Tags: 1999, Beth Ha-Tephila, Centennial Certificate, Community, letters, Lions Club, Memorial Service

"Jack Cole" (fiddler, Lions Club band, "Sanctimonious Seven")

A typed thank-you letter written by Jack Cole addressed to Paula Miall.

Tags: Asheville Citizen-Times, donation, Fritz Albertson, Jack Cole, letter, Paul Miall, Sanctimonious Seven

"Rabbi," Beth Ha-Tephila Bulletin, 1999, fliers and correspondence, 1912

A bulletin from the Asheville reform synagogue, Beth ha-Tephila, which gives information on all the happenings of the Jewish community.

Tags: Beth Ha-Tephila, bulletin, Israel, Jewish life, Rabbi Ratner, Reform Judaism, Shabbat, synagogue

"Cemetery," Low Pollock Memorial Park, 1951 - 1953, Beth Israel Cemetery Committee

Contains the dedication of the Jewish cemetery and memorial park to Lou Pollock, a man who was instrumental in its foundation. Many Jews came to Asheville for health reasons, and died there without any money to be buried. As burial is very important for the Jews, they formed a cemetery committee that buries any Jew of the congregation who dies, regardless of means.

Tags: 1953, cemetery, certificate of shares, Lou Pollock Memorial Park, stock

"Marvin," correspondence (Sylvia Finkelstein's son-in-law)

Letter correspondence between Leo and his son-in-law, Marvin. Marvin asks for money because he cannot support his wife and child with his store job.

Tags: 1955, correspondence, finance, insurance, Leo, letters, loan, Marvin, Patti, son-in-law

"Mrs. Bein," 1972 (Leo Finkelstein's mother-in-law)

Information about Sylvia's mother, Rose Bein, and her death in 1960. Includes letter correspondence between Leo and friends and papers about the inheritance money.

Tags: 1960, Berliner Monument Company, burial, Carola, death, inheritance, Leo Finkelstein, letter, Rose Bein, Sylvia Finkelstein, tax

Paperwork on the selling of 133 Westwood Road, Lakeview Park, Asheville

Information and an appraisal report of Leo Finkelstein's property.

Tags: appraisal report, floor plan, land, tax, valuation, Westwood Road

Users Manuals (clock radio, Dustbuster, life chair, blender)

A packet of user manuals and receipts for various household items.

Tags: La-z-boy, Lowe's, Mountain Respiratory Service, user manuals

Lions Club, Pawnshop notes

Papers kept by the Asheville Lions Club that give an account of Leo in his old age.

Tags: diary, elders, Fritz Albertson, Hebrew United Brotherhood, letter, Lions Club, MountainCARE, newspaper, retirement, Rosh Hashanah, Sanctimonious Seven, Weekly Bulletin

Asheville High School 50th Reunion, 1982 (includes 1922 yearbook)

A copy of the 1922 Asheville High School yearbook and a photo of the 60-year reunion in 1982.

Tags: 1922, 1982, Asheville High School, reunion, yearbook

Scottish Rite Cathedral Program, April 1998

Miscellaneous memorabilia including Leo's involvement in the Valley of Asheville Brethren, his epistolary book Letters from Leo, and a Q & A about pawnbroking.

Tags: 1998, Lambkin, letters, Letters from Leo, Maundy Thursday, pawnbroking, Scottish Rite Cathedral, Valley of Asheville Brethren

Phyllis Finkelstein's illustrations, Misc fliers

Fliers describing important events at the Asheville Jewish Community Center and miscellaneous cards from Phyllis Finkelstein, Leo's daughter.

Tags: Asheville Jewish Community Center, birthday card, business card, drawing, Hanukkah, photograph, Phyllis Finkelstein

Advertisement for Asheville and the Poor Man's Bank

An advertisement for buying Leo's books: Asheville and the Poor Man's Bank.

Tags: advertisement, book, Leo Finkelstein, Poor Man's Bank

Veteran's Administration papers, life insurance policy, medical claims forms, 1971 - 1998

Letter Correspondence between Leo Finkelstein and the Veteran's Administration about medical compensation for injuries Leo received in the war. The Administration claims that his current medical problems have nothing to do with the war, but Leo continues to fight for compensation.

Tags: bursitis, disability income, honorable discharge, life insurance, memorandum, remittance, Veteran's Administration

Correspondence, 1940, Jews in Asheville notes, Autobiography

Description of Jewish life in Asheville at the start of the 20th century. Leo begins with his family history in Russia and explains how his father came to America after a series of unfortunate events.

Tags: dime, Harry Finkelstein, Jew, kruetchma, orthodox, rabbi, Sabbath, South Africa

Speech at U of NC, History Class, March 21, 1998

Leo Finkelstein's family has it roots in Lithuania, but his father had to flee after hitting a Russian soldier on the head. After living in various countries, he settled in Asheville according to the advice of a doctor and opened up a pawnshop on Main Street.

Tags: 1799, Asheville, Beth Ha-Tephila, guns, Harry Finkelstein, history, Lithuania, pawnshop, ruble, Will Haris

Asheville Lions Club in the 1930s and 1940s

Looking back into the past, a member of the Asheville Lions Club reminisces on the "good old days" in the 1930s.

Tags: 1930s, Buncombe County, five and ten cent stores, Jack Cole, Lions Club, victrola

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