Gift of Rabbi W. Gunther and Elizabeth S. Plaut
Id no. 1050.92, Toy/game, English
Victor Abraham often carried this set in the breast pocket of his suit; he would play at idle moments and amuse himself solving other people's chess problems.
Abraham's granddaughter, Elizabeth Strauss, married Wolf Gunther Plaut in Cincinnati in 1938. The chess set was given by the Strauss family to Gunther. In 1943, he enlisted as a chaplain in the US Army during the Second World War and served until 1945. He brought the chess set with him. As a rabbi, W. Gunther Plaut went on to serve congregations in Chicago, St. Paul, and Toronto.
Discover more about this artifact and other stories from the Museum?s collection in, ?To Life: 36 Stories of Memory and Hope?
http://www.pickmanmuseumshop.com/tolif36storo.html.