Averbuch, Lazarus (1889-1908) Also known as: Jerome Aurbuch

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Mentioned in (4)
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The Chicago Settlements and Social Unrest, May 2, 1908

Unknown (B. F.) to the Editor of the New York Evening Post, May 29, 1908

Autobiographical Notes Upon Twenty Years at Hull-House: Echoes of the Russian Revolution, September 1910

Study of Public Record of Miss Jane Addams, May 17, 1927

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Birth Date

1889

Death Date

1908-03-02

Birthplace

Kishinev, Russia

Biographical Text

Lazarus Averbuch was a young Jewish immigrant who settled in Chicago. He immigrated in 1907, as a teenager, from Austria, where he'd fled to from Russia after being persecuted for being Jewish. Upon arriving in the States, he worked as an egg packer at a produce commission house. Three months later, in 1908, he reportedly went to the house of the Chicago Chief of Police, George Shippy and was killed. Police buried Averbauch's body without a ceremony. However, when the body was scheduled to be exhumed for a Jewish burial, it was discovered that the body was gone. The body eventually found, however, the brain had been removed. Original reports justify the killing of Averbach, stating that he was an anarchist who arrived wielding a knife and pistol and had been selected to assassinate Shippy. However, public outcry, led by Jane Addams, followed these reports and it was argued that Averbach never even owned a pistol and had only gone to Shippy's residence in the hopes of obtaining a letter of good character. Many believed that the killing had been committed based on Averbach's appearance amid a time of increasing unease and antisemitism.

Occupation

Factory worker

Collection

People

Map

Edited By

Hajo, Cathy Moran

Biebrich, Caitlin

Rights

Public domain

Gender

Male

First appears

1908

Bibliography and Links

Bullet in Head, Middlebury Register March 6, 1908, p. 8

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Wikipedia

Citation

“Averbuch, Lazarus (1889-1908),” Jane Addams Digital Edition, accessed August 2, 2025, https://digital.janeaddams.ramapo.edu/items/show/4937.