Selma Cohen Litman - 09-July-2001 -€“ Weaving Women'€™s Words

About this film

Oral historian Marcie Cohen Ferris interviewed Selma Cohen on July 9, 2001 in Baltimore, Maryland as part of the Jewish Womenâs Archive "Weaving Women's Words" project. A devoted mother and wife and an influential saleswoman, Selma Litman was born in 1917. Although her father, one of the few Jews in Russia to have gotten a college education, died when she was just 20 months old, Selma was raised on stories that her mother and siblings regularly shared about him. As the youngest girl in the family, Selma was encouraged to pursue a commercial course of studies to prepare her for the work world. After working as a secretary, Selma married her high school sweetheart, Harry Litman, in 1940, and became the leading saleswoman in Sonia's Bridal Shop, her husband's family business. Sonia's provided Baltimore brides from many different ethnic groups with wedding dresses before becoming popular in the Jewish community in the 1960s. A devoted mother to Dana and Jeffrey, Selma balanced working at the store with caring for her children and managing an active household that included frequent entertaining and vibrant Jewish holiday celebrations. Selma Litman passed away on May 25, 2002. Selma Litm…

Directors & creators

Jewish Women's Archive

Subjects

Motherhood; Fashion

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