Margaret Elizabeth (Brown) Rohde
In 2023, I finally fulfilled a long-held dream of visiting Paris, where my mother lived as a girl from 1927-1941. My son John, who was there for a post-doc research position, and his wife Mandeep were my hosts. Even though my visit was short, we managed to see a lot of the famous sights and enjoy the city ambiance. It was wonderful to walk on the same streets Mom once knew and especially meaningful to see the École Normale de Musique where she went to school and the house in Garches where she had lived.
When I returned, I enjoyed taking a deep dive into the box of memorabilia Mom had saved. She, and her mother before her, saved everything from their life in France: letters in French and English, concert programs, school reports and compositions, day books, and much more. It’s amazing to think that all of this came with them across the ocean when they left in 1941. I almost filled a small notebook jotting down facts and interesting material, thinking to write some kind of memoir. I also revisited the photo albums and scrapbooks from those times, which have fascinated me ever since I was young. And I was also happy to find a folder of typewritten college essays, recalling school in Paris and wartime experiences.
But it as been difficult to know what to save and what to let go. Writing the memoir has me wondering how much to include, and what others would find interesting. If I didn’t have family, I might not be doing this at all! But here it is, and I only intend to save one small box of stuff. The rest will live online for whoever wants to see and read.
Mom and her family left Europe in June, 1941, as the US was about to enter WWII. She kept in close contact with her French friends and teachers, but never returned until 1968 (by herself) and then in 1971 (with my dad.) Now I have 3 sets of pictures of the École, and the places where Mom lived: black and white photos from the old scrapbooks, color slides from her trip in 1968, and my new iPhone images! I wish I could tell her that I finally made it!
Arriving in Paris in 1927, the first place the family rented was at 13 Quai Carnot in St. Cloud, across the Seine River from Paris. The old house had once been a pottery factory. Now the old houses along the river and the tree-shaded sidewalk are all gone.
In 1935, they moved to a larger house with a yard at 8 Rue de Rio, in Garches, a nearby suburb. Mom’s brother Bob had found the place for rent while out bicycling. Today, the street and the pleasant neighborhood still look much as they did in the 1930’s.
In 1988, Mom’s brother Bob visited Paris and took these photos I recently found while looking through a box of old pictures. I especially like the backyard photo from the house in Garches, which Mom’s family enjoyed so much.
The Ecole Normale de Musique hasn’t changed much over the years from the outside. I wished I could have gone inside but they were on summer break!
To see more photos, follow these links!
- My 2023 trip to Paris
- Mom’s 1968 slides
- Grandma Brown’s Scrapbooks: 1919-1941
To continue the story:
- A Paris Memoir
- A Paris Gallery, for photos to accompany the memoir
Finally, the heart of Mom’s story is in her music. A list of pieces she worked on during her student days and beyond, can be found here.
A complete list of all the pages for this memoir, can be found here.