An Explanation of the Five Different Davidson Family Trees - by Ethan Starr (April 22, 2002)
Descendants of Yechezkel Davidson - this is the family tree researched and compiled by Ethan Starr.
Descendants of Chas. Davidson - this is a family tree compiled by cousin Robert Mannheim of Agoura Hills, California. Chas. Davidson and Yechezkel Davidson mentioned above are the same individual. Robert's tree has considerably more detail on the descendants of Rabbi Louis (Yehuda Labe) Davidson (1842-1922) than does the tree compiled by Ethan Starr. Yehuda Labe Davidson on page 1 of this tree is the same individual as Louis Davidson on page 15 of the Yechezkel Davidson tree mentioned above.
Descendants of David Davidson - this tree may also be labeled "Descendants of Abraham Davidson." While I cannot connect this tree to the tree showing descendants of Yechezkel Davidson, I am convinced there is a relationship between the two trees. This relationship requires a somewhat lengthy explanation.
In the course of researching the Davidson family, in 1993 Ethan Starr wrote to an individual who indicated in the JewishGen Family Finder that he was researching the surname Davidson in Chicago. Ed Morris wrote back, providing details of the family he was researching, but none of them matched what Ethan had, so he assumed there was no relationship. But Ethan kept Ed Morris' letter.
In 1995 Ethan Starr was in Des Moines doing genealogy research. Serendipitously, he met cousin Ila Lipsky in the Jewish section of Glendale Cemetery there. Ila mentioned that Kate Kaufman of Chicago was related, but she did not know how.
After a number of years, Ethan examined the possibility that Kate Kaufman was a relative. He located her obit, determined that her maiden name was Davidson, and developed a family tree for Kate Kaufman (which is the Descendants of David Davidson tree). Kate's sister Sarah had married a man named Louis Morris. Suddenly Ethan realized that Morris was also the surname of the man he had written to in California in 1993. He rushed home, found Ed Morris' letter, and all of the names Ed had mentioned suddenly made sense.
Ethan is still unable to connect this tree to the Yechezkel Davidson tree, but given that Ila Lipsky recalled Kate Kaufman as a relative, and that people in both trees hail from the same town in Lithuania (Kalvaria), he feels there is definitely a relationship.
Descendants of Leah Davidson - Also in 1993, via the JewishGen Family Finder, Ethan contacted Joan Barch of metropolitan Washington, DC. This is Joan's tree, as typed into Family Tree Maker by Ethan. Ethan and Joan have suspected there was a connection/relationship here, but couldn't prove it. After Ethan made the connection to Ed Morris mentioned above, he got back in touch with Joan. Though Joan's family also comes from Kalvaria, Lithuania, and is named Davidson, we still can't determine the precise relationship.
Descendants of Jennie Davidson - This tree is also from Joan Barch. It is unknown how Jennie Davidson is related to the Leah Davidson in Joan's other tree.