2nd wave migration

Between 1880 and 1920 Jewish people in the Polish part of the Russian Empire experienced intense oppression. Rape, murder and economic persecution swept across the country. Millions fled their homes and made the difficult journey to Britain.

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The Great Jewish Migration was a tsunami compared to the first wave. Tens of thousands arrived in Britain, most of them exhausted, hungry and penniless. People complained of an alien invasion, accusing these migrants of taking jobs and housing. There were also hostilities from the existing Jewish community, who were afraid of losing their hard won status.

Louis Lebus was a Polish Jewish migrant who arrived in Britain in the 1840s, establishing his successful furniture-making company in Spitalfields.

After his death in 1879, his son Harris took over. The factory outgrew its East End roots and in 1900 he bought 13.5 acres of land on Ferry Lane, Tottenham. Four years later the new factory opened its doors.

The original Lebus furniture style was strongly linked to William Morris’ Arts and Crafts movement, and at its peak the factory employed thousands. Many who worked at the factory over the years were Polish migrants.

Henry Buritsky left Poland with his wife and young son, Henry Michael. Like many Jewish Polish migrants, Henry Senior was a cabinet maker; unlike the others he didn’t head for the East End. Instead he settled in Edmonton, a few miles from the newly established Lebus factory.

Henry Buritsky Junior followed his father into the furniture trade, finding employment at the factory. Like many second generation migrants, Henry rejected the Jewish tradition of arranged marriage for courtship. New leisure activities, like dance halls and cinemas, provided opportunities for young people to socialise, which is probably where he met Rose, a local Walthamstow girl. They fell in love and in 1925 got married. Three years later Pauline was born, but tragedy struck only months later when she died.

In 1930 their second child, Brenda was born; two years after that June arrived. The family moved to one of the newly built houses on Beacontree Avenue, overlooking the lush greenery of Walthamstow forest.

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It was quite a change for Rose, who’d grown up in tenement housing near Walthamstow’s industrial centre. For Henry too it was a huge leap from uncertain beginnings.