Alan Saliman Family Papers

The history of the Saliman family in the Denver area dates to the immigration of the family patriarch Paul Michael Saliman (known as Michael.) As did most Jewish families, Michael and his wife Bessie Radetsky Saliman settled on the west side near Sloan's Lake in 1886. Paul Michael pushed a cart through the alleys of Denver collecting rags and junk to re-sell, finally developing a business of collecting, cleaning and recycling milk bottles for local dairies. Michael Saliman was a leader of west Denver and when he died in 1910 it was said that "all of West Colfax shut down." All of the sons of the marriage enlisted and served in WWI, and all returned after the armistice. Michael and his son Isidore founded the Eastern Iron and Metal Company.The family grew and married other prominent jewish clans in the area including the Handlers, Suppersteins, Freidmans and others. Isadore Saliman's son served in the United States Navy in the Pacific during World War II. Numerous Denver businesses were developed including moving companies, kosher butcher shops, and even helped develop a toy business. Representative of the Jewish immigration in America, the decendents of Paul Michael, became doctors, dentists, accountants. The story of the Saliman clan shows how a Jewish family, starting with nothing, became successful. The collection contains marriage documents, travel documents for Yetta Shidler, metal mirror, Kiddush cup, and two large family trees. The collection is connected to B236, the Saliman Family Papers and B342, Michael Saliman Papers and Religious Objects.