Oral History Interview with Alfred Thal, 1976 October 1

"Alfred Thal discusses his immigrant parents' homestead in what was then the U.S. territory of North Dakota, and he provides details about his education, marriage, and employment. Thal mentions his involvement in the Jewish community in Bismarck, North Dakota, and his assistance in building the synagogue there. He also recounts his his work documenting Jewish history, including his recording of a number of oral histories, in North Dakota, and he discusses the process that this work entailed.

Alfred A. Thal was born to German immigrants in 1899 in Dodge Township (?), North Dakota. His parents were homesteaders in what was was then the U.S. territory of North Dakota. Thal studied dairy processing at the University of Wisconsin, although he did not obtain a degree. He worked in dairy processing, then became a salesman selling surgical instruments and hospital supplies, and later sold scrap metal and automobile parts. He married Bertha Rigler in 1925, and they had two children. Thal was actively involved in the Jewish community in Bismarck, North Dakota, and he coordinated several projects documenting Jewish history in the state. He died in 1981. "