Nathan Gershon was born in Atlanta, Georgia. His parents, Isaac and Rachel, immigrated to the United States from the Minsk area in what was then Russia. His family belonged to the Ahavath Achim congregation. His father was originally a peddler and then he started a grocery store. Dr. Gershon attended a one-room cheder in which he began his Jewish education after which he attended public schools and then went to medical school at Emory University. During World War II he enlisted in the Navy and became a medical officer in the Marines. He was in the Battle of Gaudalcanal, landing on the beach right after the first wave of Marines. When he returned to the States he married Shivra Karesh in Charleston, South Carolina and they had four children. He discusses his childhood and parents, his family's Jewish observances, the role of Ahavath Achim and Rabbi Harry Epstein in his Jewish education, his public school education, instances of antisemitism in the academic and medical community, the impact of the Leo M. Frank case, the Jewish organizations, social activities for Jewish youth (A.Z.A.), his experiences at Emory, his internship at Grady Hospital and his specialization in ears, nose and throat medicine in which he became prominent in the Atlanta community. He also comments on his professional life and the challenges of his professional career in medicine and shares his thoughts on Israel.

Nathan Isaac Gershon (Dr.) (1912 - 1997) - Oral History

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