Title: Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith
Dates: 1919-2004
Collection Number: MSS 10838
Quantity: 3 feet
Abstract: Contains letters written during WWI, family history materials, photographs, and ephemera that belonged to the Kidder County (ND) couple.
Provenance: The Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith Papers were donated to the State Historical Society of North Dakota by Diane Haugen in August 2000. Additional material was donated by Marlys Orluck in September 2005.
Property rights: The State Historical Society of North Dakota owns the property rights to the collection.
Copyrights: Copyrights to materials in this collection remain with the donor, publisher, author, or author's heirs. Researchers should consult the 1976 Copyright Act, Public Law 94-553, Title 17, U.S. Code and an archivist at this repository if clarification of copyright requirements is needed. Permission to use any radio or television broadcast portions of the collection must be sought from the creator.
Access: This collection is open under the rules and regulations of the State Historical Society of North Dakota.
Citation: Researchers are requested to cite the collection title, collection number, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota in all footnote and bibliographic references.
Related Collections:
MSS 10778 Milton R. Goldsmith Papers
MSS 10837 Haugen Family Papers
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH
Lawrence Goldsmith was born February 25, 1909, in Goodrich (ND) to Milton and Olive (Everett) Goldsmith. He was one of five children on the farm home northwest of Tuttle (ND): Ione, Dale, Ivan and Dorothy. He attended grade school about 2 ½ miles from his home in Norwest Township and finished 8th grade there. He attended high school in Arena (ND) while working for his room and board by taking care of cows. He then attended Steele High School and also worked from his room and board. He played basketball at both schools and was in band and choir. He graduated in 1927.
After graduation, Lawrence attended the Normal and Industrial College in Ellendale (ND) until he received his certificate to teach grade school. In the fall of 1927 he began teaching in the school near the Harry Ulfers farm in Burleigh County. He rode horse to school each day from the farm. He later taught in Kidder County in Northwest Township. During his years of schooling and teaching, he worked on the farm with his brother Dale.
In the early fall of 1938 he bought the Gamble Store in Tuttle (ND) from Henry Kremenesky. In 1940 Florence Strube opened the Tuttle Beauty Shop in the post office building. At the time, Lawrence was renting a room in the same building and he and Florence got acquainted. They were married April 5, 1942. Florence was born May 3, 1907. They operated the Gamble store for a few years, as well as the Case dealership, until Lawrence was called into the army in June 1942. Lawrence’s father and sister Ione managed the store until he returned from the Army in October, 1945. He built a new store in 1947.
Lawrence completed basic training at Camp Lee (VA), and then was transferred to Camp Rucker (AL), where he trained to be a laboratory technician. He was then promoted to Corporal. He was sent to Atlanta (GA) for further training in the laboratory. Florence had been living in Georgia with or near Lawrence, but returned to ND to give birth to their son Burdell Lee on June 29, 1943. In December 1943 his hospital unit was shipped overseas and worked in London until the end of the war. While Lawrence was in England, his son got pneumonia and passed away on October 3, 1944. Lawrence’s unit returned to the U.S. in late September 1945 and he was discharged October 15, 1945. He went back to the store, and operated it for another 17 years until the fall of 1962 when they sold it and moved to Jamestown.
Lawrence and Florence celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary April 5, 1992. Lawrence passed away July 8, 1997 and Florence died on August 12, 2004.
Source:
“The Goldsmith Family History,” 2nd Edition, 1995
North Dakota Death Index
BOX / FOLDER INVENTORY
Box 1:
1 Correspondence, 1927-1943
2 Florence Goldsmith’s diaries, 1983-1991
3 “Goldsmith Family History,” 2nd edition, 1995
4 Wedding scrapbook, 1942
5 Burdell Lee Goldsmith’s baby book, 1943
6 Documents:
Lawrence Goldsmith High School Diploma, 1927
Florence Goldsmith Hairdresser Licenses, 1951-1952
Certificate of Appreciation from Selective Service System to Lawrence Goldsmith, 1953
7 Miscellaneous:
Souvenir booklets from Fairview Public School that list students, Balfour Township, McHenry County, District 16, 1919-1921
Goldsmith Hardware letterhead
Lawrence Goldsmith Poem, “Hope,” 1944
Calendar Book of Birthdays
Cards
Lawrence’s wallet with photographs, ca. 1940s
Florence Goldsmith memorials, 2004
Box 2:
1 Audio recordings of Lawrence Goldsmith in the choir and delivering sermons at the Nazarene Church (Jamestown ND), ca. 1960s-1970s
2 Photographic slides (10838-001 – 10838-004) (see photographs inventory below)
(loose) VHS: Family movies, 1950s and golden wedding anniversary, April 5, 1992
Box 3:
Photograph album (10838-005 – 10838-157): Lawrence, Florence and Burdell Goldsmith and members of the Strube and Goldsmith family, Tuttle (ND), and images taken during Lawrence’s military training in GA, 1943-1944
Box 4:
Photographs (10838-158 – 10838-192)
Box 5:
Photographs (10838-193 – 10838-204)
Florence Strube Goldsmith’s diploma from cosmetology school, 1929
PHOTOGRAPHS INVENTORY
10838-001-004 Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith with Goldsmith Hardware parade float, ca. 1960s
10838-005-157 Lawrence, Florence and Burdell Goldsmith and members of the Strube and Goldsmith family, Tuttle (ND), and images taken during Lawrence’s military training in GA, 1943-1944
10838-158 Steele High School band, ca. 1926
10838-159 Florence Goldsmith outside the Moore Hotel, Tuttle (ND), 1940s
10838-160 Lawrence Goldsmith portrait in uniform, ca. 1943
10838-161 Lawrence Goldsmith portrait in uniform, ca. 1943
10838-162 Ollie [last name unknown] standing next to automobile, May 1942
10838-163 Ione, Milton, Ivan, Florence, Darwin and Douglas Goldsmith, ca. 1940s
10838-164 Lawrence Goldsmith in uniform outside building on military training base, ca. 1943
10838-165 Lawrence Goldsmith in uniform, ca. 1943
10838-166 Hand colored photograph of Florence Goldsmith, ca. 1943
10838-167 Lawrence Goldsmith, ca. 1940
10838-168 Hand colored photograph of Lawrence Goldsmith, ca. 1943
10838-169 Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, ca. 1943
10838-170 Portrait of Florence and Birdell Leo Goldsmith, ca. 1944
10838-171 Portrait of Lawrence and Birdell Leo Goldsmith, ca. 1944
10838-172 Florence Goldsmith outside Flo’s Beauty Salon, Tuttle (ND), 1940s
10838-173 Florence Goldsmith next to automobile, Tuttle (ND), 1940s
10838-174 Florence Goldsmith, Tuttle (ND), ca. 1955
10838-175 Landscaping at Army training base, ca. 1940s
10838-176 Lawrence Goldsmith in uniform, 1943
10838-177 Lawrence Goldsmith in uniform, 1942
10838-178 Lawrence Goldsmith, Tuttle (ND), ca. 1955
10838-179 Dorothy and Lawrence Goldsmith, Tuttle (ND), ca. 1940s
10838-180 Milton Goldsmith with grandsons Douglas and Darwin, Tuttle (ND), 1947
10838-181 Lawrence Goldsmith with fish from the day’s catch, ca. 1950s
10838-182 Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith inside Gamble Store, ca. 1960
10838-183 Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith at convention, 1961
10838-184 Florence, Lawrence, Ivan, Dorothy and Dale Goldsmith, June 25, 1989
10838-185 Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, July 5, 1948
10838-186 Milton, Olive, Dale, Ione and Lawrence, Tuttle (ND), July 1942
10838-187 Freshman high school class at Arena: Lawrence Goldsmith, Walter Boelter, Jake Mehlhoff, Ralph Leach, Ottilia Brose, Bertha Kopp, Wanda Pehl and Bill Wutzke, 1925?
10838-188 Florence Goldsmith, ca. 1942
10838-189 Florence Goldsmith outside Flo’s Beauty Salon, Tuttle (ND), ca. 1942
10838-190 Florence Goldsmith outside Flo’s Beauty Salon, Tuttle (ND), ca. 1942
10838-191 Florence Goldsmith, 1945
10838-192 Florence Goldsmith, ca. 1945
10838-193 Lawrence holding Burdell Goldsmith, ca. 1943
10838-194 Portrait of Milton and Joe Goldsmith, 1940s?
10838-195 Portrait of Ivan and Gladys Goldsmith, 1940s?
10838-196 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, silver wedding anniversary, April 5, 1967
10838-197 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, silver wedding anniversary, April 5, 1967
10838-198 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, golden wedding anniversary, April 5, 1992
10838-199 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, possibly on their wedding day, April 5, 1942
10838-200 Portrait of Lawrence Goldsmith, 1992
10838-201 Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, with Florence’s parents Lillian and Ernest Strube on the Goldsmith’s wedding day, April 5, 1942
10838-202 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, silver wedding anniversary, April 5, 1967
10838-203 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, ca. 1977
10838-204 Portrait of Lawrence and Florence Goldsmith, golden wedding anniversary, April 5, 1992
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