>I'm trying to fill in many holes in my tree! I have a >Greatgrandmother Rose Kagan (or Cohen)who had 4 >children; Charles, Bess, Lea, and Mac. They lived in >Vineland NJ and came from Russia. other family names are >Yanni, Norman and Eli. Any info would be great!"
Not sure if this is a coincidence or not. Our name is Cronan, changed from Cohen. Rumor in the family that Cohen was changed from Kagan. We have a Bess, Lea, and Charles in the family, and in the Jewish tradition those names are all after ancestors. The family origninated in a village that is a part of the world that changed countries depending on the date - sometimes Poland, sometimes Ukraine, sometimes Lithuania, sometimes Prussia, and sometimes Russia (at least that is the story). I'll post here again if I get more verification on the Kagan link.