Guide to the Carl H. Thoma Papers and Photographs 1883-1952
- Repository
- Heinz History Center
- Title
- Carl H. Thoma Papers and Photographs
- Creator
- Thoma, Carl Henry (1895-1962)
- Collection Number
- MSS 1173
- Extent
- 2.5 linear feet (1 box + O/S)
- Date
- 1883-1952
- Abstract
- Carl Henry Thoma was born in Pennsylvania on January 24, 1895 to Paul Thoma and Elizabeth (née Wittmer) Thoma. After attending Carnegie Institute of Technology, Carl Thoma lived and worked in Pittsburgh, eventually owning and operating a restaurant and bar. The Carl H. Thoma Papers and Photographs contains a selection of Carl Thoma's financial records, official documents, and family photographs. The photographs highlight Carl and Marie Thoma's travels, the family's German heritage, and their life living and working in Pittsburgh.
- Language
- The material in this collection is in English and German.
- Publisher
- Heinz History Center
- Address
- 1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org
History
Carl Henry Thoma was a Pittsburgh, Pa. native of German heritage who owned and operated his own bar and restaurant. Thoma was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on January 24, 1895 to Paul and Elizabeth (née Wittmer) Thoma. Paul Thoma, originally from Germany, immigrated to the United States in 1873 and was eventually naturalized in 1883. He owned Paul Thoma's Restaurant and Bar, located at 3813-3815 Penn Avenue in the Lawrenceville area, where the growing Thoma family also resided. Elizabeth Thoma was born in Pennsylvania to two German immigrants. Several members of the extended Thoma family lived nearby in the Lawrenceville and Homewood neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, Pa. Before the death of Elizabeth Thoma, the couple had three children who survived infancy: Carl Henry, Margaret Katherine, and Edward Wittmer.
Carl H. Thoma graduated from Pittsburgh Central High School in 1912 and continued his education at the Carnegie Institute of Technology. While in school, Thoma served as class vice president and treasurer of the Fulcrum Club. He graduated in 1916 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Commercial Engineering.
After graduating, Thoma lived at 101 South St. Clair Street in the East Liberty area of Pittsburgh, Pa. and worked at several different businesses, including the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Rail Road as well as the Duquesne Light Company. On August 30, 1919, he married Marie E. Lance at the William Penn Hotel. For their honeymoon, the couple traveled across the country, visiting friends and family and seeing a variety of national parks. Carl and Marie Thoma primarily resided at the house they purchased at 2724 Crosby Avenue in the Beechview area of Pittsburgh, Pa. According to available records, they did not have any children.
Carl H. Thoma died on January 31, 1962 due to an acute coronary occlusion. He passed away at home with his wife. Marie E. Thoma passed away in 1973. They are buried side by side in St. Peter's Cemetery in the Lincoln-Larimer-Belmar neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pa.
Scope and Content Notes
The Carl H. Thoma Family Papers and Photographs contains materials created by Carl H. Thoma and his family, including personal papers, photographs, a scrapbook, photo albums, property records, professional papers, and financial records. The collection includes documents such as Thoma's college diploma and draft registration card, as well as a selection of his business papers, including property deeds, civil service application correspondence, and an appointment book. In addition, the collection incorporates Paul Thoma's naturalization certificate, financial and property records, and a photograph of Paul Thoma's Restaurant and Bar in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pa.
This collection also consists of hundreds of photographs of the Thoma family and their friends, with some of the photographs collected into scrapbooks, including one commemorating Carl and Marie Thoma's 1919 honeymoon trip via Pullman car across the United States. During this trip, the couple visited Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon, and various cities in California including San Francisco, Pasadena, San Diego, and Long Beach. Additionally, Carl and Marie Thoma also visited Mexico, spending time in Tijuana; included in the scrapbook is an image of the couple in front of the United States Customs Office along the border between the two countries. The other two photo albums, one belonging to Carl Thoma and the other to Marie Thoma, contain a wide range of images of the Thoma family over the years, including photos of relatives in Germany and the extended family in the United States. Specifically, Carl Thoma collected several photographs of the July 4th Flag Raising of 1918 in the Homewood area of Pittsburgh, Pa. Also contained in one of the photo albums are images of "Camp Wewoka," a summer camp for boys in Fayette County, Pa. run by the Young Men's Christian Association.
Of particular interest are items displaying the Thoma family's German heritage, such as a handwritten note in German, a German prayer book, and scrapbook pages displaying photos taken of the Thoma family at "Camp Teuton," a family summer celebration remembering their German roots. Additionally, this theme appears in Carl and Marie Thoma's honeymoon scrapbook, where they note that the German-owned Busch Gardens in Pasadena, Ca. was closed to the public during World War I due to anti-German sentiment. Also worthy of note is a collection of photographs from all over Pittsburgh depicting the St. Patrick's Day Flood of 1936, specifically including several images of the damaged offices of the Duquesne Light Company where Carl Thoma worked at the time. Additional images document flooding in the Manchester and North Side neighborhoods of Pittsburgh, including Western Penitentiary, and two fires that took place on the North Side during the flood. Finally, there are also images of the Leuzinger and Lance families, relatives of Marie Thoma and the ancestors of the donor. Marie Thoma's photo album, "Snap Shots," contains several photographs of her Leuzinger family members.
Conditions Governing Access
None.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift from Carol Moyer, a relative of Marie Thoma, in 1986.
Archives accession # 1987.0058
Preferred Citation
Carl H. Thoma Papers and Photographs, 1883-1952, MSS 1173, Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
Preliminary processing by Rebecca Johnston on 7/25/2018.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Separated Materials
1916 Carnegie Institute of Technology Yearbook transferred to Library; selection of items transferred to Museum (Acc. Nos. 87.1.1-87.1.9).
Subjects
- Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad Company.
- Duquesne Light Company.
- Pittsburgh Central High School.
- Thoma, Carl Henry (1895-1962)
- Thoma, Paul.
- Thoma, Marie E. Lance.
- Lawrenceville (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- East Liberty (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- Manchester (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- North Side (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- Pittsburgh (Pa.)--Flood, 1936.
- West (U.S.)--Description and travel.
- Beechview (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- Homewood (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
- California--Description and travel.
- Civil service.
- German Americans--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
- Germany--Emigration and immigration.
- Floods--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh--1936.
- Railroad travel--United States.
- American flag.
- Camping.
- Recreation & travel.
- Yellowstone National Park.
- Bars (drinking establishments)--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh.
- Fourth of July celebrations.
- Grand Canyon (Ariz.)