Relatively few Jews lived in the
United States while George Washington was President. There were 1,350 at that time, constituting 0.03 percent of the national population and the total number did not reach 50,000 until 1850. Today, Jews account for less than two percent of the population and hold more than 30 seats in Congress.
At first, they were
Sefardic immigrants who were later supplanted by German Jews who would then be overwhelmed by the arrival of
East European Jews between 1880 and 1920.
There is a lot of excellent in-depth information available to Jewish genealogists researching from the comfort of their home --- using their home computer. Since most of us have limited income, the cost of traveling to a resource and the cost of telephoning can be a problem, however, I've discovered a wonderful work-around and am happy to share this point of information with you.
This program works for those researchers who live in the US, though I have been in contact with a Jewish scientist living in
Donetsk, Ukraine, who tells me he uses this program to call his sister in
San Francisco. Hopefully this will work for those of you who live outside of the
US. If it does work for you, please let me know so I can share the good news with others.
The program is called Skype and can be obtained for free at www.skype.com
I recently added
a camera to my computer and now I can not only speak with my nephew in
Melbourne, but we see each other as we discuss our Margulis family with
him.
Data.Gov is a government directive agency dataset that will continue
to grow as agencies submit datasets required under the Open Government
Directive through the end of the day of January 22, 2010. The site
breaks down by: Catalogs; State/Local and FAQs. http://www.data.gov/ogd/
Political Contribution List - offers one to search for people who contributed money to various political campaigns by zip code or by name. http://www.votenet.com
Search Engines
If you are searching the US for records information, there are many places you can check out - on the Internet - right now! There is always "one more way" to find information i.e. by name; by country; by city; by county, by birth; by emigration information, by occupation or profession and more. Don't ever give up your search for your roots! Somewhere, someplace, your ancestors have left a paper trail. You can also find a list of search engines at my Genealogy web page. Click Here
Another great web site to locate people: Alumni.net - and it is free! http://alumni.net
Try these search sites - also check out the search sites at my 'Search' page
A commercial search site operated by Northern Light is specially designed for government customized searches, and is a powerful, easy to use site with links to thousands of government web sites. They offer a Day pass for $5.00 to an Annual Pass for $250.00. http://www.usgovsearch.com
Four exhibits containing 168 articles, each one illustrated, of Jewish heroes and heroines of America, in war and in peace, from colonial times to the present http://www.fau.edu/library/depts/judaica9.htm
Jewish Museums in the U.S. -
A complete list of every Jewish Museum is available by writing to The National Foundation for Jewish Culture, 330 7th Ave., 21st floor, New York, NY 10001, or cal (212) 629 0500. Ask for the free list of the 60 institutional members of the Council of American Jewish-Museums.
Latter Day Saints (LDS) (Mormon Church) Family Search site
Obituary Look Ups - Ida Selavan Schwarcz idayosef@barak-online.net states in a posting to JewishGen Discussion group on 12/8/02 the following: "As a former reference librarian at Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, I often encountered this question (re the notion of obituaries of Jews who died in the New York area).
None of the New York newspapers, including the ones in Yiddish, commonly carried obituaries of ordinary people. If the dead person was well-known, or had died in mysterious circumstances, or had died at a very old age, there might be a write-up. Also, sometimes the families put paid death notices in newspapers. In smaller towns, where there were just one or two Jewish funeral homes, all Jewish dead were mentioned in death notices."
SHG Resource Network - information available by State by clicking on the state of interest from the map http://www.statehousegirls.net/
State Links - Welcome to the ultimate source of authentic and reliable information about the US States on the net. The links in this directory will guide you to the official sites of the states you are looking for. http://www.123world.com/usstates/index.html
Traveler - any traveling salesman was commonly called a 'traveler'. In. In the US, there were trade associations for each, i.e.: The Shoe Traveler Association; The Hat Travelers Association.
US Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts - the PACER Service Center is the Federal Judiciary's centralized registration, billing, and technical support center for electronic access to U.S. District, Bankruptcy, and Appellate court records http://pacer.psc.uscourts.gov/index.html
Vital Records Search for any State - Vital records information for the United States - U.S. Map, States & Territories, Guidelines, Birth, Death, Marriage and Divorce are available using the links http://vitalrec.com/index.html
Some of the States' archives have searchable data on line. There are mailing lists and newsgroups for every state, and just about every county. http://www.rootsweb.com/~jfuller/internet.html
Lookup volunteers can be found either at the USGENWEB pages or here, at random acts of genealogical kindness http://www.raogk.org/
Pretrieve - a site to search for Public Records of US individuals for most states http://www.pretrieve.com
Western United States in the early days ... early Jewish settlers were miners, explorers, gunslingers, suppliers, store owners and yes, even cowboys. There was a song written "I'm a Yiddish Cowboy" that was written by Tough Guy Levi, would you believe?
Jews came to the American West in the 16th century, when they were expelled from Spain. Many of these Conversos came to what was then called New Spain which later became Mexico in 1821. From there, they spread to what is now Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. And from there, they spread across the West.
Yearbook Searches - Joe Bott has a large collection of Yearbook images on his web site called Dead Freds Genealogy Photo Archive. This is a free, fun web site devoted to helping you visualize your heritage and offers a searchable database that contains thousands of identified photos, as well as mystery photos for genealogy enthusiasts looking for long-lost relatives. http://www.deadfred.com
Probably one of the first sites to review, after you determine that you have determined a specific known relative to research --- and you know they were born, married or died in a particular state. There maybe a modest fee. Lots of links as well are offered. http://vitalrec.com/index.html/A
Thousands of other Internet sites that may have links to other web research sites are included in the lists that follow.
Books
Most books, CDs, etc. can be ordered through my link to Amazon.com where you will find a huge selection of genealogy and travel books - all by just clicking here > Jewish Genealogy
Note that there are books mentioned under the State information below and if you wish to purchase them you can use my Amazon.com link by clicking here >Jewish Genealogy
"The American Medical Directory & Physicians Guide" contains relevant data on over 500,000 physicians in the United States. Each record is indexed by such features as name, address, phone/fax, county, year licensed, type of practice, type of physician, as well as primary and secondary specialty. Fax : 905-751-0199. (tel: 905-751-0919).
"An Empire of Their Own" a lively group biography of the studio moguls.
"Early American Jews" - authored by Lee M. Friedman and published in 1934. The book has an entire chapter devoted to the Jewish arrival in NY in 1654.
"East Side Story" - from another time, a place of faith and glory. An article published in the November 2003 issue of Hadassah Magazine that would be of interest to genealogist researching in New York City. The Central Synagogue, located at Lexington Avenue and East Fifty-Fifth Street is mentioned.
"From the Synagogues of the Lower East Side" - authored by Gerald R. Wolfe and published by Washington Mews Books in 1978.
"The Frontier Jews" by Rabbi I. Harold Sharfman and published by Citadel Press in 1977 ISBN 0-8065-0649-0 Wealth of information on early Jewish communities in Texas, Pennsylvania, the Great Lakes belt.
"The Handybook for Genealogists, United States of America", Eighth edition published by the Everton Publishers, Inc. in 1997
"History of the Jews of Los Angeles" - authored by Max Vorspan and Lloyd Gartner
"Jewish Homesteaders on the Northern Plains" - published by Indiana Press - a true story of pioneer Rachel Colof.
"On the Lower East Side: Observations of Life in Lower Manhattan at the Turn of the Century" - a collection of articles, documentary sources, and study guides compiled to accompany the course, An Urban Experience: New York City's Lower East Side, 1880-1920. Readers can learn how people coped with, and sometimes prevailed over, the forces of industrialization, immigration, and urbanization. Submitted on JewishGen on 1/28/2004 by Bernard Kouchel koosh@att.net http://www.tenant.net/Community/LES/contents.html
"Quarantine!: East European Jewish Immigrants and the New York City Epidemics of 1892" - authored by Howard Markel -
"Shalom Y'all: Images of Jewish Life in the American South", photographs by Bill Aron. Text by Vicki Reikes Fox and published by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. A Black and white photographic story of the Jews of the Deep South: Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Arkansas. 164 pages.
"Sixty Years in Southern California" - authored by Harris Newmark and describes early Jewish Los Angeles life of the Newmark family.
"Sources in the United States and Canada" (The encyclopedia of Jewish Genealogy, Vol 1) - authored by Miriam Weiner
TheSyllabus of the 2000 International Summer Conference on Jewish Genealogy, contained a valuable compilation of the names of some 800 books on North American Jewish communities. This index created by Joan Rimmon and Hal Bookbinder is especially useful for the time prior to public records being collected. These books will frequently give old synagogue or cemetery records, among other things. This compilation is on-line at www.jewishgen.org/iajgs/bibliography.htmlBuy
from Amazon.comBuy
from Amazon.com
General United States Genealogy Information
Jews can trace their first arrival in North America to the French privateer, St Catherine which brought 23 Jewish refugees from Recife, Brazil to New Amsterdam, which later was renamed New York. Today, near the landing site in Battery Park at Whitehall and State Streets, there is a monument commemorating the settlement of these first Jewish settlers in the US.
The plaque on that monument reads: "Erected by the State of New York To Honor the Memory Of the Twenty-Three Men, Women and Children Who Landed in September 1654 and Founded the First Jewish Community in North America". Further information can be found in "The Grandees: America's Sephardic Elite" by Stephen Birmingham and in Malcolm Stern's "Americans of Jewish Descent".
Global Gazetteer is a great web site. It is a directory of 2,880,532 of the world's cities and towns, sorted by country and linked to a map for each town. A tab separated list is available for each country. www.calle.com/world/
American Jewish Historical Society 15 West 16 Street, New York at the Center for Jewish History (Telephone: 212 294 8303) - links to the Jewish History Ring http://www.ajhs.org
A national effort to preserve and document the unique, rich history of traditional Jewish congregations, individuals, and communities in the United States from Colonial times to the present. www.ajlegacy.org
Archives
U.S. National Archives has biographic records including personal information on more than 2.1 million individuals who were process3ed by the Einwandererzentralstelle (EWZ). The EWZ was established to facilitate the immigration and naturalization of the ethnic Germans who were nominally citizens of other countries of Europe (e.g., Soviet Union, Romania, etc.) during the period 1939-1945. These records are reproduced on approximately 8,600 rolls of microfilm and are available through the US National Archives in College Park, Maryland. for further information contact Laverty Krupnak Lkrupnak@erols.com
Birth, Marriage and Death Records by State - Vital records Information (by State( for pre 1900's) including Birth, Death, Marriage & Divorce information is offered
You can use this siteOrder Birth and Death Records Online!for any statein the U.S. http://vitalcheck.com Military Records (By State) - Jews have served in the US military since the time when the first Jewish settlers arrived in New Amsterdam from Brazil in 1654. Asher levy, Jacob Cohen Henricques and others petitioned New Amsterdam Governor Peter Stuyvesant for the right to be a part of the defense force of the City.
Among the records pertaining to service in armed conflicts, both in the U.S. and abroad, include Civil War, the Spanish-American War, WW I, WW II, and the Korean War. While the extent of information on each conflict varies, each set of records can provide access to valuable information on the veterans who served. Substitute the State's two letter i. d. (mi = Michigan in the example site) for the particular state you are researching http://www.sos.state.mi.us/history/archive/
I found another great search site - though it is a fee based site, it does provide a great service. Images of every tombstone in the following Jewish Cemeteries:
Saratoga Springs, NY: Sharei Tephilah on Weibel St. Springfield, MA: Bnei Israel Anshei Sfard, Kesser Israel, and City of Homes Assn. They are all located on Wilbraham Ave. Utica, NY:
Jonathan's lodge, House of Jacob, House of Israel, Tzvi Jacob, Beth El, all located on Woods Rd. Montreal, Canada: Baron De Hirsch on Savane St. - 20,000 records and images, about a quarter of the entire Cemetery.
Declaration of Intention Documents, which contain detailed information about immigrants who applied for US Citizenship, have been added to the database. High-resolution images of each document can be viewed online. The following 11,000 records have been added recently: Jewish documents from:
Circuit Court District of MA (Boston area) 1906-1910 Kings County (Brooklyn) NY 1906-1910 Oneida County (Utica area) NY 1906-1949 Onondaga County (Syracuse area) NY 1906-1930 Saratoga County NY 1906-1930
Name searches are free, and full access requires membership, with special rates for Societies and Libraries. www.jewishdata.com
Cemeteries - A plan to visit. You will require a pair of gloves and gardening shears; bottles of water and paper towels to wash off the stones. Check in at the cemetery office which usually can be helpful in directing your to the graves you are researching. Bring the names of cousins, aunts, uncles, in-laws and ask about them also, at the office. Also bring a Memorial Book and Yarmulkes to say Kaddish. Leaving a pebble on the top of the tombstone as a sign of your attendance, is a Jewish tradition
Although the JewishGen InfoFiles do not carry the telephone numbers of Cemeteries, they do have the addresses. With the address you can find a telephone number through a 555 1212 call, and armed with that information, a quick call to a cemetery office will generally elicit for you all sorts of information, in particular, whether a Polaroid Photo can be taken of a gravestone/gravesite. The charge is generally $5. Sometimes, for a few more dollars, you can get a map of a given Landmanschaften plot showing all the names/dates of those interred.
Note: I have a "beginning" of listing cemeteries and their location information from around the US. Eventually I hope to have them all listed on this web site.
Perpetual Care - isn't really perpetual. It can last only so long as the cemetery is solvent and able to pay for care taking. In practice, it often lasts a much shorter time, until the cemetery owners note that the survivors no longer come around to that section.
Research Tip: Check university libraries, other organizations that gather manuscripts; check their catalogs. Get old books from a library and get the names listed for a cemetery from them. The key is OLD books. Do NOT violate copyright laws. Old books would no longer be covered by a copyright. Many books were written in the early part of this century that have lists of all the burials in a cemetery. Contact the cemeteries, or synagogues, or JCCs or burial societies by phone, to try to get them to give the lists. Submit lists of names you find in your research to Arline and Sidney Sachs at sachs@axsamer.org who has created the "Cemetery Project" sponsored by www.JewishGen.org
City Directories
For most large and medium sized cities in the US are available on microfilm in the series "City Directories of the United States 1789 - 1935 and can be found in many large public and university libraries. They can also be borrowed through any LDS Family History Center.
Follow the link to see which late 19th & 20th century directories for Baltimore http://www.bcpl.net/~pely/1864 Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Detroit, Galveston, NYC, Newark, Philadelphia, San Francisco, St. Louis, etc. are available to paid subscribers. NYC directories now online include 1890, 1910, 1917 and 1920. Directories can be searched by first name, occupation, street name, and other variables.
R L Polk City Directory - it is NOT a cross-index directory (such as Bresser's) compiled from last year's phone book.
However, it is like a cross-index directory in that you can locate residents using their street address. Today's Polk city directories have 3 sections: residents enumerated by alphabetic street names and number; residents enumerated by alphabetic last names (like a phone book) and residents enumerated by phone number.
Up through the 1970s and early 1980s, a Polk City Directory used to be compiled by enumerators who went door to door in cities and larger towns and villages asking the residents to them the name of the head of the household, his occupation and where he worked, and later on his wife's name (not shown in the earliest publications).
Later on the name of his spouse and names of all residents aged at least 18 plus their spouses' names, their occupation and place of work were added to the listing for that street address. At least through the 1970s, if a woman was listed as the head of household, the listing would show her as a widow, or "Mrs." (to show divorce).
Like any information source, the accuracy of the listing would depend on how well the enumerators did their job and if residents (accurately) answered the questions. And the pay in the 1970s-1980s was low - minimum wage plus a bonus for speed - NOT ACCURACY. If no one gave conflicting information, the publisher would keep the old listing.
The year of the family's first listing will at least give researchers a clue as to when the family moved to that address. From a posting by Barbara Krauss on JewishGen of 2-14-2001. Barbara states that she was an enumerator for 10 seasons.
Federal Gateway Site - Research government related documents and information http://fedgate.org
Flu Epidemic of 1918 - 1919 -at the time, many deaths were attributable, but not noted in death records, to the terrible epidemic that swept through the country.
Freedom of Information Form (FOIA) - you can request a form G639 by calling the INS at 1 800 870 3676. If you need further help, call the INS help line at 1 800 375 5283. Press 1 for the English option, then wait through the first set of six options and press 9 to talk to an agent.
Under Freedom of Information Act (FOIA ), the INS will not release the information unless you can a) prove they are deceased, or b) have a notarized form from them, releasing the information to you.
The INS will accept a statement from you saying they are deceased if you can find their name in one of the Social Security Death Indexes (SSDI) found at Ancestry.Com - RootsWeb.com or LDS.org, etc. and write that they are deceased as proved by being located in the appropriate SSDI. From a posting by Edmond Frost frostedmond@hotmail.com on JewishGen of 3/25/2002
Genealogy Help List - consists of volunteers who are willing to help others by looking up specific items at institutions near them, or help supply other information easily accessible to them. http://www.posom.com/hl
German Jews Traveling Route to the Midwest of US - German Jews bound for the Midwest, generally traveled from New York City by paddle steamer up the Hudson, and thence via the Great Lakes. From the Hudson river they sailed up the Erie (not Welland) Canal of course, then via the Detroit Creek and Lake St Claire into Lake Huron and from there to Lake Michigan and Chicago.
Others continued through the Soo Canal to Duluth, and then headed south through Minnesota. My information related to German Jews in mid-century. The routes changed later in the century as the network of railroads was constructed, offering faster and more comfortable access to the American heartland. I have been told that some Ukrainian Jews disembarked in Nova Scotia and made their way across Canada to Winnipeg. Some Jewish settlers in Minnesota had come from Winnipeg, I'm further told. From a posting to JewishGen by Michael Bernet on 4/2/02
Here is a bundle of Immigrant Arrival records, Ports of Entry information and a lot more. INS Immigration records is: FOIA/PA Unit at Immigration & Naturalization, 425 I St. NW, 2nd Floor, Ullico Bldg., Washington, DC 20536 Actually, the Petition offers a lot more information than the certificate - i.e. information where the petitioner emigrated from, when and the name of the ship sailed. Other information includes where and when their spouse emigrated.
A online searchable database of the Index to Brooklyn Naturalizations (1907-1924) is located in the Kings County Clerk's Office. Over 65,000 names are in this database. The database is accessible through the JGS (NY) homepage located at http://www.jgsny.org
JewishGen SIG Mailing List - a web site listing all of the current SIG's (Special Interest Groups) discussion groups and forums that are sponsored by JewishGen http://www.jewishgen.org/listserv/sigs.htm
Jewish Orphanages in the US - this site, created by Marge-Spears Soloff, includes archival and historical information of over 100 Jewish Orphanages in 49 cities and 23 states; information about the Jewish child Care Association of New York; Federal, State and New York City police census lists and other material http://www.hnoh.com/
Library of Congress American Memories Collection -
Hereis a large collection of photos from the turn of the century. The Library is composed of three large buildings; Madison, Adams and Jefferson Buildings. The Madison and Jefferson are the more important facilities to your research. http://rs6.loc.gov/ammem/detroit/dethome.html
Check out these sites for further details. This site will give you the call numbers for any publications you wish to review. http://lcweb.loc.gov/homepage/online.html
Interlibrary Loan Program - an excellent source for rare books is the U.S. Library of Congress, but the institution will not loan books that are in poor physical condition because of the risk of further damage. A new service is being tested to overcome this problem. These fragile documents are being scanned and offered to interlibrary loan members on the Internet. http://www.loc.gov/rr/loan/digitaldocs.html
The American Folklife Center - at the Library of Congress is seeking audio and video recordings, letters, diaries, photographs, maps, home movies, drawings -- anything that helps you tell your story about your WW I or II or other war stories. For a project kit, applications and more detailed information on ways to participate: write to the Veterans history Project, Library of Congress/American Folklife Center, 101 Independence Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20540-4614. The center offers advice and sample questions to students and family members who wish to interview veterans for oral histories. www.loc.gov/folklife/vets
The Research and Reference site - read about the rooms you will most likely be using: http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/
Main Reading Room (for called books); Microform Room (for City Directories); Local History and Genealogy Room for Newspapers and Periodicals Room (for obits). (The Hebraic Section) http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/amed/hebraic.html#top
Suggested Plan to Visit the Library of Congress: From the Second Street Researcher Entrance of the Jefferson Building (have Photo i.d.) go directly to Room G-40 to obtain a free researcher card. Leave any briefcases in the Cloak Room. Take the elevator to the first floor. Present your card at the desk in the hall and enter the Main Reading Room.
Go to the Book Service Desk and fill out your call slips for books. This can take up to one hour, so while waiting go to the Microfilm Room (near the Main Reading Room).
Here you will find City Directories in "help yourself" drawers. Fiche and Microfilm readers and printers are located here and in the loft area. Have $1.00 bills to purchase a "printing card".
The Madison Building has a snack bar in the tunnel and a cafeteria on the 6th floor with limited hours for visitors.
Library of Congress: Map Collections 1544 - 1996; Military Maps. Environmental Maps. Maps that "record the evolution" of American cities. This site offers more than 4.5 million old and new maps. http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml
Prices vary depending on the size of the map and the type of reproduction, but the basic charge for oversize photocopies is $2.00 per linear foot ($5.00 minimum) plus shipping and handling.
Maps and more Maps - are available at the Library of Congress which has hundreds of volumes of Sanborns, from around the US. www.loc.gov
Free Maps from The US Library of Congress - Contact: Dr. Stephan Paczolt, Sr. Technical Information Specialist, Reference Section. E-mail requests: maps@loc.gov Another contact is Michael J. Klein, Senior Reference Librarian, Geography and Map Division, The Library of Congress.
Maps - Electronic Map Library site (California State University, Northridge) collection of digital atlases based on census data http://130.166.124.2/library.html
Green Map System - Helps locate eco-friendly information and businesses, from museums to grocers to renewable resources. http://www.greenmap.com/home/home.html
Over 550,000 Jews were inducted in the United States Armed Forces during the World War II. From 1940 until war's end, a total of 311 rabbis were commissioned. Of these, 267 served in the Army, 43 in the Navy and one in the Maritime Service.
The National Jewish Welfare Board (JWB), in October 1941 met to track Jewish participation in WW II. This information had never been done before and thus these Board members established the Bureau of War Records (BWR). The laws of the US government prevented the government from gathering statistics on the religious affiliation of America's citizens and no one had ever attempted to that time, determine how many Jews lived in the US.
There is an excellent and informative article about this subject published on page 18 of the American Jewish Historical Society magazine in their Fall/Winter 2003 issue entitled "Archival Treasure Trove: The Bureau of War Records". www.ajhs.org/
"American Jews in World War II" - Volume Ipublished by Dial Press in 1947 and authored by I. Kaufman; Volume II was compiled by the Bureau of War Records of the National Jewish Welfare Board under the direction of Dr. Louis I. Dublin and Dr. Samuel C. Cohs. The list is set up by state.
Access to Archival Databases System. This particular database is the "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938 - 1946". It has records for close to 9 million enlistees in the U.S. Army for WWII. You can search for individual names or by state and county, or a combination. Wildcards are permitted, too. To search by state and county. Click on SEARCH, then select ALL SERIES, the Army file is the sixth entry down. From there it's pretty self-explanatory. Be sure to select the state and county codes from the code lists - don't type the place names in. There are other databases in the ADD. http://www.archives.gov/aad/index.html
American Battle Monuments Commission - listing of names of those killed in various wars starting with the Mexican War and continuing to the Viet Nam War http://www.abmc.gov
American War Library - a large list of veteran information and links to other military information http://members.aol.com/veterans
Most Bremen, Germany lists were destroyed when the U.S. 8th Army Air Corps, 487th Bombardment Group (Heavy) bombed Bremen on September 26th, 1944 and again on February 24, 1945 during WW II.
Burial files for U.S. servicemen killed in action. These burials were handled by the Quartermaster General and are kept separate from service records - thus were not lost in the 1973 file. The National Archives in Washington, D.C. has a Military Archives Section. You need to fill out a form and it will take about a month to receive any available information at a cost to copy of about $10.00. Here is the address:
Military Archives Division National Archives and Records Administration Washington, D.C. 20408
Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, D.C.
Kenneth Poch, spent years cataloguing Jews in Arlington National Cemetery. He eventually collected about 2,700 names among the 250,000 graves, as well as data about family members.
Draft Registration - World War I - Men, born between 1886 and 1900 were required to register. 24 million were registered, including aliens, who were required to register, but were not subject to induction and those who volunteered or were already in the military, did not register.
The first registration included men born between June 6,m 1886 and this form's information included birth date, exact birthplace, occupation, previous military experience and nearest relative. There were a total of five draft registrations held.
The second registration included men born between June 6, 1896 and June 5, 1897 later adding those born up to August 24, 1897. Included on this form were the country of origin and father's birthplace.
The third registration included men born between September 12, 1873 and August 25, 1897 and later to September 12, 1900. This registration form now included occupation, country to which alien is subject and nearest relative. All draft forms required name, residence, date of birth, race, citizenship, where employed, a physical description and a signature. The cards are sorted by State, then County.
There are over 8,000 microfilm reels at the National Archives and at the FHCs (under the US - World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918). In order to find a name, you need the address of the draft board where the person was registered. Since men could register anywhere, you may need to write to the NARA closest to the city the ancestor lived in at the time. http://www.nara.gov/genealogy/genindex.html
There are 24 million original World War I Draft Registrations in boxes at the National Archives branch in Atlanta. For a $10.00 check made out to Friends of the National Archives, a member will try to locate the original draft registration and mail a copy of the form to you.
Friends of the National Archives, NARA, Southeast Region, 1557 St. Joseph Ave., East Point, GA 30344. They need the address where the person was living in 1917-1918 to locate the record. The 1920 census address usually is the address you are looking for, or look up in the City Directory. Mr. Charles Reeves is the Director of Archival Operations at the Southeast Regional office of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in
Atlanta.
General George S. Patton Web Pages - features text written by Patton, articles about the war, and links to other WWII sites http://www.yorktown.com/patton/
Civil War - One soldier wrote that soldiering is 99% boredom and 1% sheer terror. View an online exhibition and learn more about the Civil War. http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/index.html
WW I - The war to end all wars! This excellent encyclopedia provides everything you need to know about World War I. View a chronology, war statistics and more. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWW.htm
"How to Locate Anyone Who Is or Has Been in the Military" - authored by Richard S. Johnson and published by MIE/Independent Publishers Group. Paperback $19.95
Jewish Chaplains in WW II - there is a comprehensive list of Jewish Chaplains who served in WW II. Entries include date of birth, marital status, name of college graduated from, synagogue associated with and where served in the war. The list is published in The American Jewish yearbook, 1945-46, Volume 47.
Jewish War Veterans - this is a great site that has a lot of information about American Jewish War Veterans starting with 1896 including help in locating people and information about them. Jewish War Veteran's office is in Washington, DC Phone 202-265-6280E MailNMAJMH@nmajmh.org http://www.nichecom.com/~vfw/jwv.html
National Personnel Records Center, Military Personal Records, 9700 Page Ave., St. Louis, MO 63132-5100 Phone (314) 263 3901 (Switchboard) (341) 538 4261 (Army) DSN 639 4261 If you have the WWI U.S. forces Service Number (7 digits number) send for Form PS-180.
Records of Army Officers after 6/30/1917; Enlisted Personnel after 10/31/1912; Air Force after 0/1947 (year Air Force was established); Navy, Marines, Naval Officers after 1902; Enlisted personnel after 1885; Marine Officers after 1895 and Marine Officers after 1904; Coast Guard Officers after 1928; Enlisted Personnel after 1914. The Washington National records Center has Coast Guard records from 1890 to 1929. http://www.nara.gov/regional/stlouis.html
In New York, a list and a map, showing the locations of the 189 draft boards in New York City at http://www.nyjgs.org
The form may be obtained by e-mail at archives@atlanta.nara.gov or mail to National Archives, Southeast (or the name of any other region) 1557 St. Joseph Avenue, East Point, GA 30344 or try NARA's web site at http://www.nara.gov/guide/rg163.html
You can also find the 'New York city World War I Data base (Draft Boards: part of 150, all of 151 and 152) at http://www.jgsny.org/
New York State Archives - published a list of World War I Service Records of those who served from New York State. Check out this site where you can print out a copy of the form to use to order a records search. www.sara.nysed.gov/holding/fact/milform.htm
The Occident and American Jewish Advocate - Contents of Volume 2 for the years
1844-1845. Links included: Barbados, Beth Limmud Society ofKingston, Charitable Society in New Orleans, The Chief Rabbi ofEngland, Conflagration of the Synagogue atCleveland, Ohio, Congregation of Beth Shalome, at Richmond, VA, The Congregation of British Jews, London, The Congregation of British Jews, London,Congregation at Mobile and much more. http://jewish-history.com/Occident/volume2/contents.html
Purple Heart Database - scroll to the bottom of the site where you can search a database for purple heart recipients in alphabetical order. http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~sebring/
"Rabbis in Uniform - The Story of the American Jewish Military Chaplain" - edited by Chaplain Louis Barish (US Army) and published by Jonathan David Publishers in 1962 by the Association of Jewish Chaplains. The book offers a brief history of Jewish Chaplains in the US Military and short stories of many of the chaplain's individual experiences as related by themselves.
The Nizkor Project - a site dedicated to the nearly 12 million victims ruthlessly destroyed by Hitler and his Nazi regime. The site features collections of information about Holocaust - denial and the Holocaust http://nizkor.almanac.bc.ca/
The US State Department - "Jewish Names in Selected U.S. State Department Files (RG59), 1910-1929". This new database can be found at http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/RG59.htm
This database contains nearly 10,000 entries from the Central Decimal Files of the U.S. Department of State, Record Group 59 (RG 59), pertaining to the Protection of Interest, 1910-1929, for selected countries.
This record group consists of correspondence from American citizens or their representatives who appealed to the U.S. State Department for help in tracing relatives, sending money, food and other assistance to family members overseas. Most entries were made during and immediately following World War I.
These records are of significant genealogical value. Many include documents of births, marriages and deaths of US citizens abroad; settlement of the foreign estates of US citizens who died abroad; lists and correspondence of US citizens temporarily or permanently residing abroad. Names of people who were not US citizens were often mentioned and are included in this database.
This database contains 9,724 entries from Record Group 59, covering 1910-1929, for selected geographical locations -- primarily Palestine (2,000 records), Romania (2,000 records), and Austria (4,300 records).
Note that these country designations are complicated by the fact that the time period is 1910-1929 -- which spans World War I, and thus there are two sets of borders, since many national boundaries were changed after WWI. For example, "Austria" in the 1910-1918 period refers to the entire Austrian Empire, and thus includes Galicia and Bukovina (which are today parts of Poland, Ukraine, and Romania).
Where applicable, these records are also searchable via the JewishGen "All Country" databases: "All Hungary", "All Latvia" and "All Lithuania".
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs maintains an web site with links to finding Military records of all kinds. There is one to help locate the burial site of a veteran, as well as how to obtain Military Records for all time periods of U.S. Military history at: http://www.cem.va.gov
The Western Reserve Historical Society located in Cleveland, Ohio has all the WWI Draft Registration cards for Cuyahoga County,Cleveland. The cards are on microfilm and filed by Soundex. The Death Notices from the local Cleveland Jewish Newspapers has been incorporated on a card file. You have to have special permission to search or you maybe able to log in and find some one who will do a lookup for you http://www.case.edu/cgi-bin/database?subject=all
Western Reserve Historical Society 10825 East Blvd. Cleveland, Ohio 44106
US National Archives - Washington DC, holds all of the World War I Draft Registration forms on microfilm as does the Mormon Family History Center (FHC).
VA Claim Number - Call the Veterans Administration 1 800 827 1000. If you have the exact name, SS # and birth date, the database should have a service number and a VA number. As for Form 180 to request military and VA records of download the form from http://www.nara.gov/regional/mpr.html
U.S. Search - search property records by using the following link
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Veterans of World War I of the U.S.A., Inc., PO Box 8027, Alexandria, VA 22306-8027. This organization's records may be of value. You might also check with your State Historical Society or State Archives.
World War II Alien Registration - in 1940, in response to distant threats of war, the US required every alien resident to register at their local Post Office. A two page (AR-2) form was filled out and then sent to the INS. Once process, the AR-3, or Alien Registration Receipt Cards (AR3) was torn off and mailed back to the registered alien.
The alien then carried the AR Card to show compliance with the law. This form contains the name used upon entry to the US, maiden names, nicknames, aliases, address, date of birth, place of birth (city, province, country), citizenship, sex, marital status, race, physical description, port and vessel/carrier of last arrival in the US, class of admission, date of first arrival in the US, number of years in the US, occupation and employment and much more.
Registration from July 1940 to April, 1944 with numbers below 12,000,000 are on microfilm at INS, searchable by name, date of birth and place of birth. The forms are subject to the Freedom of Information Privacy Act.
WW II Honor List of Dead and Missing published by the War Department, June, 1946 and State Summary of War Casualties, U.S. Navy, 1941-1946 is available at the New York Public Library and there may be available at other Public Libraries. There is a volume for each state.
WW II Preservation Society - dedicated to preserving the memory of the veterans and civilians involved in WW II by collecting and archiving interviews and research http://www.cybercreek.com/cybercity/WWIIps/
WW II - the greatest battle in history contains the battles of the war, the atom bomb, a picture gallery and more http://www.cyberplus.ca/~chrism/
WW II U.S. Veteran Website contains a chat room where you can talk with other veterans, a place to look for lost war friends and a spot to post your stories and pictures http://ww2.vet.org/
Workmen's Circle
The Jewish Book Center of The Workmen's Circle 45 East 33rd Street New York, NY 10016 Phone: 917 648 7916 212 880 6800 Ext. 285 Fax: 212 889 8519
General U. S. Information continued
National Fraternal Congress of America offers information about past and present fraternal organizations http://www.nfcanet.org
National Archives and Records Administration - This site offers aids, guides and research tools that will prepare you for an actual on-site visit http://www.nara.gov/genealogy/
Buying Microfilm - Available Microfilm and Microfilm Rental Program. The latest price quoted was $34 a roll for domestic orders and $39 a roll for foreign orders. You can either buy an entire film or 'rent' a film also for $3.50. Most U.S. Libraries also participate in this program. LDS microfilms CANNOT be purchased. http://www.nara.gov/research/ordering/micrordr.html
National Museum of American Jewish Heritage www.nmajh.org
NaturalizationsRecords from non-Federal courts: This is a Federal Web site and if the years you need aren't in this batch, then start with the County Clerk's Office for whatever County you are interested in. http://www.nara.gov/genealogy/natural.htm
There are now 49 cities identified in 23 states and over 100 Jewish Orphanages listed at www.hnoh.com
Painting (Portraits) Database
The database contains an image and information describing every known portrait, photo, daguerreotype and woodcut of an American Jew painted before 1865. http://www.ajhs.org/research/loeb/
The National Archives located at The National Archives Building in Washington, DC, has passport applications through 3/31/1925. They only have the indexes though through 1923. Contact Civil and Old Military Reference Staff (202) 501 5395. The State Department Passport Services has passport application from 1925 to the present and indexes for 1923 to 1925. http://travel.state.gov/passport_records.html
Death Certificates in most cities may have a place for mother's maiden name. The Death registration is taken at the time that the funeral arrangements are being made.
Many mistakes have been noted, so the information cannot always be considered necessarily accurate. Marriage Certificates also may include the mother's maiden name. These forms are usually filled out by the people involved - with their personal knowledge of their history. Vital Record Information in the US http://vitalrec.com/index.html
Reverse Directory Information - for all United States and Canada. There are six regions available --- the sixth being Canada. http://www.iacrdp.org/region1.shtml
Southern Jewish History - a peer-reviewed journal sponsored by the Southern Jewish Historical Society. Contact Dr. Mark Bauman, Editor, 2517 Hartford Drive, Ellenwood, GA 30294 Phone: (404) 366 3306 or Rachel B. Heimovics, Managing Editor, Journal of the Southern Jewish History, Southern Jewish Historical Societyrachelheimovics@worldnet.att.net http://www.jewishsouth.org/
St. Albans List - arrival list of emigrants from Canada into the US. The US government maintained lists of people crossing the border from Canada covering 1895 to 1954. Information is similar to ship passenger manifests and are indexed. These lists are available at the US National Archives in Washington, several of the Regional Branches and via the FHS. Further information is available at http://www.jewishgen.org/infofiles/faq.html
10 great places to share history of the Jewish faith -Samuel Gruber, author of "American Synagogues: A Century of Architecture and Jewish Community", has named synagogues of architectural significance in New York City, Baltimore, Brenham, TX, Tucson, Portland, OR, Newport, RI, Los Angeles, Cleveland, Glencoe, IL, Easthampton, NY, in a list he provided to USA TODAY's Shawn Sell, here's the article: http://tinyurl.com/b3q7v http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/10great/2005-09-29-synagogues_x.htm?csp=34
The US GenWeb Project - a group of volunteers working to provide Internet websites for genealogical research in every county and every state of the United States http://www.usgenweb.org
U.S. Department of State, Jerusalem, Jaffa, and Haifa Consular Post Records Database - includes more than 9,000 entries and was compiled from U.S. National Archives Record Group 84, Foreign Service Post Records of the U.S. Department of State for Consular Posts: Jerusalem (1857-1935) Jaffa (1867-1917), and Haifa (1872-1917). Few of the original records were indexed, and many were disposed of in 1950.
Vital records Information (by State( for pre 1900's) including Birth, Death, Marriage & Divorce information is offered
Change the last two letters to the state you are interested in. This site is also excellent to check by state for vital records http://vitalrec.com/#territories
Volunteers Around the U.S.A. - a web site, offering a list of people living around the United States, who are willing to help you in your research at little, or no cost, by state http://raogk.rootsweb.com/listing.htm
Bais Chana Institute of Jewish Studies - founded in 1971 and is the world's first yeshiva exclusively for women. The founder and dean is Rabbi Manis Friedman www.itsgoodtoknow.com
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research,
(Yiddisher Visnshaftlekher Institut) 15 West 16th St. (between 5th & 6th Avenues) New York, NY 10011 Phone (212) 246 6080 Fax (212) 292 1892
The following information is setup based on specific information relating to a specific state. If you know of other sites that would be of value to others, please let me know via an e-mail Email Jwebindex@gmail.com
Alabama
Birmingham -
Knesseth Israel Beth-el Cemetery 320 11th Ct. North Birmingham, AL
Birth Certificates before 1908 - Most counties just registered births in ledgers. Some county court houses may have kept some records, but the best source is:
Department of Archives and History 624 Washington Ave. Montgomery, AL 36130 Telephone: (334) 242 4363
Most of their information comes from census records.
Dothan
Reform Temple Emanue-el was established about 80 years ago. Larry Blumberg, chairman of Dothan's Blumberg Family Jewish Community Services offers $50,000 to families who move to Dothan, remain five years and join the synagogue in a move to bring Jews back to the town. http://www.bfjcs.org/
There is a Jewish population of 1,000 out of a total of 200,000 residents. There are two synagogues; Temple B'nai Sholom http://home.hiwaay.net/~tbsholom/
Ahavas Chesed, a Conservative synagogue dates back to 1894. Dr. Norman Berger is the president and Rabbi Steve Silberman conducts services. The Reform congregation is Sha'arai Somayim and also the Spring Hill Avenue Temple dating back to 1844 making it the oldest congregation in Alabama. The Rabbi is Donald Kunstadt.
Selma
Temple Miskan Israel dates back to 1899. Once a congregation of 150, it has 30 members today.
Tuscaloosa
Index to the Tuscaloosa Gazette, a major newspaper from 1875 to 1902
More than half of the coastline of the
entire United States is in Alaska.
Most of the Jews who came to Alaska and Yukon during the gold rushes, were merchants who supplied nearly half of all the goods brought into the area at frontier towns. Some were traders who peddled goods throughout the wilderness and others hit it rich or not as prospectors and land speculators. A good many were immigrants from Eastern Europe accustomed to harsh climates. Some were from established American and Canadian families
Rabbi Yossi Greenberg, head of the Lubavitch Jewish Center of Alaska, estimates there are more than 5,000 Jews of various stripes among the state's population of about 627,000.
"Finesilver's Gold" - In 1894, nineteen year old Jacob Finesilver walked from the
Ukraine to join the Yukon Gold Rush. A year later, his bride also made a perilous journey, accompanied by an Indian, across Alaska's notorious Chilkoot Pass. A novel about the author's grandparents' life in early Alaska. www.micahbooks.com
Select the year 1998 for 'back articles' and then Wednesday, August 26, 1998 issue. Although the Yukon is not part of Alaska, I thought the story is well worth reading. There is also a Jewish historical Society of the Yukon and there is research of at least one Jewish cemetery.
Anchorage
There is a Jewish Presence
here with an aggressive Reform synagogue
www.frozenchosen.org
Leona G and David Bloom Southwest Jewish Archives at the University of Arizona - POB 210055, Tucson, AZ 85721 The Bloom Archives no longer exists as it once was. They do not have an active staff, according to Alfred Lipsey, of the Jewish Historical Society of Southern Arizona. e-mail sglogoff@bird.library.arizona.edu
Marriage Index records (1727 to 1900) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
Shema Arizona - adds a Jewish voice to Arizona's history. Shema (sheMA) means "hear" in Hebrew. With this site you can hear some of Arizona's Jewish history. http://www.asu.edu/lib/archives/shema/index.html
Sixty-three oral histories conducted by the Arizona Jewish Historical Society provide a valuable and unique resource for understanding how American Jews in the early 20th century pulled up roots, continued a tradition of migration, and became western Jews.
Temple Beth Israel - is a resource center for genealogy the Metropolitan Phoenix area including a copy of Encyclopedia Judaica available on CD-ROM
Tombstone - this is the town where the "Gunfight at the OK Corral" took place. Just outside of this small town, there is the Boothill Graveyard cemetery, and within the cemetery is a Jewish section that was restored in 1983. It is quite interesting to see and well worth the time.
Helena - there was a synagogue here with only eight elderly members still living in the town. The town was originally settled by a group of Jews that that originally arrived here in the 1840s. One of the torah scrolls from the synagogue was donated to the Vinnitsa community in Ukraine.
Birth, Death and other such records - If you wish to order a certified copy of a record from the State Office of Vital Records, you may write to either of the following addresses:
State Department of Health Services Office of Vital Records, P.O. Box 730241, Sacramento, CA 94244-0241 or
State Department of Health Services Office of Vital Records 304 S Street Sacramento, CA 95814
To contact Customer Service Department(916) 445-2684or (916) 445-1719Cost is about $11 to $13.00 for a birth certificate. www.dhs.ca.gov
The California Death Index is available at many public Libraries (1940-1995) and at local FHC (1905-1939 and 1940-1968). The index gives the date of death and other information which can be used to obtain a copy of the death certificate. If you are sure of the date of death, you can obtain the death certificate from Sacramento without the extra information. For vital records in California write to:
Department of Health Services Office of the Registrar of Vital Statistics 304 S Street P O Box 730241 Sacramento, California 94244=0241
If the exact date isn't known, an additional fee will be charged for each 10 years searched. Make check payable to: Office of Vital Records and Statistics.
California record fees and policies. The policy is much more restrictive if one wants an "authorized certified copy." If you do not need the information for death benefits, driver's license, etc., the "informational certified copy" that they will now provide people who are not direct descendents may be enough for genealogical purposes. The State Legislature has added a new fee of $2.00 to existing certified copy fees for birth and death certificates. The cost to obtain a certified copy from the RR/CCs Office for a birth record is now $18.00 and the cost of a death record is $13.00. For further information, call 562 462 2137
"The fastest way to obtain a vital record in California is to order it from the County Recorder in the office where the event occurred. While processing times vary widely, most counties answer these requests within a week, and processing time is almost a matter of days or weeks, rather than months. (there are a few exceptions, particularly the large counties like Los Angeles, which take longer) Prices will be similar to those at the state level, although the presence or absence of local surcharges may change the price a bit from county to county."
"Most counties in California now have websites, and you can generally get instructions on how to order vital records from the counties from their websites. If you are in a big hurry, you can also order the certificate with a credit card from the Vital Check network www.vitalcheck.com
"These requests are usually handled with some priority, so waiting is usually less. There is a fee for the credit card use (usually $5.00), and almost all the counties in California participate in the network. Just one note about VitalChek - if you do use it, fax or phone in your request; don't use the online ordering mechanism. Between 25% and 50% of the requests sent through the online ordering system seem to get lost the first time. This often delays the order being processed."
"While procedures differ from state to state, ordering through the local vital records office is usually faster than ordering through the state vital records office in most states. Check with the particular location whenever you order vital records to see if there is a local office that can issue the certificate; they are often more responsive than the state, and sometimes charge lower fees." From a posting on JewishGen by Ted Gostin
Jewish Community Center of the Desert - a Jewish Community Center - WOW (With Out Walls) - holds programs and events in different locations all around the Coachella Valley (which includes Palm Springs). http://www.desertjcc.com/
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Jewish News Weekly of Northern California, formerly The Jewish Bulletin of Northern California www.jewishsf.com
Los Altos - Congregation Beth Am 26790 Arastradero Road Los Altos Hills, CA
Los Angeles
The city's full
name is El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Pociuncula -
and can be abbreviated to 3.63% of its size: L.A.
The LA County Clerk's Department Headquarters, which contains the birth-marriage-death records, is located at 12400 Imperial Hwy in Norwalk (800-815-2666). The births-marriage-deaths office is in the basement.
The staff there are very helpful; you should be able to search and not have to purchase. They do have a limit on how many records you can search at a time. If you call them for information you may wish to ask them about this, since it may help you to plan before you go. The Brides Index is in this office.
"If you are searching for deaths try to get as much information as possible about exactly where in Los Angeles the person lived at the time of death, and whether that place was part of the City of Los Angeles at the time. The records are kept separately for deaths in LA City and LA County, and if you are not sure you may find yourself having to look through both books."
There is an estimated Jewish population of between 550,000 and 600,000 - second only to New York - stretching from the near edge of the desert to the Pacific Ocean. The first known Jew was a Jewish-German tailor Jacob Frankfort in 1844 and in 1850, Los Angeles became a city with a total of 8 Jews out of a population of 8,624. The other 7 Jews were either German Jews or Polish merchants. In 1854 they and the additional newly arrived Jews formed the Hebrew Benevolent Society. A year later they created the first Jewish cemetery in Chavez Ravine where today's Dodger Baseball Stadium sits. If interested in more LA history, I refer you to an article written by Joan Tapper in the June/July 2008 issue of Hadassah Magazine.
American Jewish University (formed when the University of Judaism merged with he Brandeis-Bardin Institute) - includes the 120,000 volume Ostrow Library. Located at 15600 Mulholland Drive; Phone 888 853 6763 www.ajula.edu
Breed Street Shul - located in Boyle Heights, an old, established section of the metropolitan area of Los Angeles. The synagogue was built in 1923 and is in the process of being restored. The building was closed when the population moved west. There is an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times at http://www.latimes.com/living/2000123/t000124349.html
Hollywood Forever Cemetery (Hollywood Memorial Park)is located in a slightly shabby neighborhood north of Paramount Studios on Gower Street, where Peter Lorre and Benjamin 'Bugsy' Siegel are buried
Jewish Life - the history of Jewish life in greater Los Angeles from its beginnings in 1850 through the present http://worldjewishlife.com/
Los Angeles area maps are archived at Cal State Northridge
Los Angeles Jewish Home For The Aging - Home of Peace was started in 1855 in Boyle Heights and was located at 4334 Whittier Blvd., Los Angeles 90023 Phone 323 261 6135. It is now located in Reseda (since the 1950s) at 18855 Victory Blvd, 91335
Marriage Licenses - There is no* online index...but there are some (few) places where one may access a fiche index covering--only--about 1960-1988 (or can't recall, could be 1998). This is a California-wide index.
**At** the Los Angeles County. recorders office itself, I believe one can do some looking up of names on their computer for L.A. Co. filings, but it's not on the web, you have to be there. From a posting by Bartlett Meyer, Los Angeles
* An on-line marriage list for all of California. The bride-indexed lists (searching by bride's surname) are available free for the years 1949-1985. Search can be limited by county. There are also groom-indexed lists available to "premium" searchers -- fee based." From a posting by Stephanie Weiner San Diego, CA laguna@sciti.com http://www.vitalsearch-ca.com
Museum of Tolerance at the Simon Wiesenthal Center - 9786 West Pico Boulevard: 310 553 8403 www.museumoftolerance.com
Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 North Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA. 310 440 4500.
Grace Cohen Grossman, curator of Judaica and American www.skirball.org
Valley Cities Jewish Community Center, 13164 Burbank Blvd., Van Nuys, CA
Info about the early days of Monterey County. Contact the history departments at Monterey Peninsula Community College in Monterey and Hartnell College in Salinas. Temple Beth El in Salinas may have some historical records (membership lists, tribute books, bulletins etc.) and there is a Jewish cemetery in Salinas. Another possibility would be to scan past issues of the Salinas Californian and Monterey Herald. Judah Magnes Museum in Berkeley has a rich repository of California Jewish history.
Jewish Resource on the Web - Silicon Valley www.jewish.org
Orange County
Jewish pioneers in early Anaheim owned many businesses and were active members of the community.
Morris L. Goodman, who was born in Bavaria in 1819 and immigrated to the
United States around 1840, opened Goodman & Rimpau Dry Goods Emporium with
Theodore Rimpau in Anaheim.
There is an article in the weekly edition of the Anaheim Gazette (September 18, 1880) that the Jews closed their stores in observance of Yom Kippur. This caused the newspaper to report "Owing to the closing of many of the stores on account of it being a Jewish holiday, the town was abnormally quiet and dull." www.jewishorangecounty.org/historical
Jewish Federation Campus of Orange County - 250 E. Baker Street, Costa Mesa
"A Home on the Range: The Jewish chicken Ranchers of Petaluma" - a video about the emigrants who came to northern California from Eastern Europe with no agricultural background. Mostly leftists and atheists, they formed a choir and a drama group, but voted for a synagogue to get the tax credit. Bonnie Burt Productions www.jewishchickenranchers.com
B'nai Israel Cemetery, 430 Magnolia Ave., Petaluma, CA 94952, Phone 707 762 7560. Contact: Ann Weinstock. For information on the old (Gold Rush time) cemeteries, e-mail magnes-pr@eb.jfed.org Contact Susan Morris, Director Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. Berkeley, CA 94705 Phone 510 549 6950
The San BernardinoCoroners office maintains a website for the State of California for people who have died and whose remains have not been claimed. The website if fully searchable and lists name, age if known, place of birth if known, and place of death (city; at home; or the name of the hospital) and last known address. Some have birthdates listed. The URL is: www.unclaimedpersons.com
If you are looking for someone whose last known address or whereabouts was in California, and they seemed to have "disappeared", then perhaps this website is for you. Adelle Weintraub Gloger Shaker Hts., Ohio agloger@aol.com
There are2 Jewish CemeteriesinSan Bernardino County- one is just east ofPomonaand is the Evergreen CemeteryinBloomingtonand the other one is in the City of San Bernardino.
San Diego
Beth Eliyahu Torah Center (Sephardic)
5012 Central Ave.
Suite C
Bonita, Ca 91902 dsrugo@aol.com
Congregation Beth Israel - Towne Center Drive at Golden Haven Drive. This reform temple is the oldest and largest congregation in the region. The Rabbi is Benjamin Kamin. http://www.cbisd.org/
Livermore-Amador Genealogical Society - In addition to general information about this area of Alameda County, there are cemetery and mortuary records; http://www.1-ags.org/
PlanItJewish™ - provides easy access to local and national Jewish event programming in Northern California http://plaitjewish.com/
Located at 122 South San Fernando Blvd., Burbank, CA (818) 843 7247. The Library collection includes over 9,000 volumes of family and local histories, as well as over 2,500 bound volumes of genealogical periodicals and a microfiche collection of California vital records of deaths from 1940 to 1989 and marriages from 1960 to 1985.
Vital Records - write to Department of Health Services, Office of the Registrar of Vital Statistics, 304 S Street, PO. Box 730241, Sacramento, CA 94244-0241 Phone (916) 445 2684 Cost of a Birth Certificate is $13.00.
The fastest way to obtain a vital record in California is to order it from the County Recorder in the office where the event occurred. While processing times vary widely, most counties answer these requests within a week, and processing time is almost a matter of days or weeks, rather than months. (There are a few exceptions particularly the large counties like Los Angeles, which take longer). Prices will be similar to those at the state level, although the presence or absence of local surcharges may change the price a bit from county to county. Most counties in California now have websites, and you can generally get instructions on how to order vital records from the counties from their websites.
The Jewish Consumptive Relief Society - (JCRS) National Jewish Hospital were more likely to treat patients with money, and more likely German Jews. The JCRS was established when so many poor Jews arrived in Denver and were unable to obtain service; that the Orthodox Russian Jewish community made them a tent city on the West side of town. Some of the JCRS Annual reports are available for viewing at the main branch of the Denver Public Library, they include patient names. It is true that National Jewish Hospital began serving tuberculars sooner, unfortunately there were more than enough patients to make both organizations necessary. From a posting on JewishGen by Karen Lozow
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Marriage Index records (1727 to 1900) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
The National Jewish Hospital was most likely to treat patients with money and more likely German Jews. The JCRS was established when so many poor Jews arrived in Denver and were unable to obtain service that the Orthodox Russian Jewish community made them a tent city on the West side of town. Some of the JCRS Annual reports are available at the main branch of the Denver Public Library and they include patient names. This information was submitted to JewishGen Digest by Karen. You can contact her atkslden@aol.com on - 4/25/99. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Jewish_Medical_and_Research_Center
There are two books available listing all burialsin these counties in Connecticut: Hartford, Litchfield, Tolland, Middlesex and New London. http://www.accessgenealogy.com/connecticut/
Connecticut Death Records - death records from 1949 to 1996. It includes dates and places of birth and death, father's surname, occupation, and last address. Many libraries now offer free access to the Ancestry web site. www.ancestry.com http://www.state.ct.us/exec.htm
TheConnecticut Jewish Genealogy Society meets at Temple Emanuel, 150 Derby Avenue in Orange, CT. It also meets at the United Synagogue, 205 Mohawk Drive, West Hartford. Contact: Marcia Meyers at marciarthur@msn.com or Georgia Haken at gwhaken@yahoo.com http://www.geocities.com/jgsct/
Naturalization Information - All pre-1906 naturalizations in Connecticut (and in the five other New England States) are now at the National Archives branch in Waltham, Massachusetts http://www.jewishgen.org/jgsgb/bostres.htm
Service Records, Connecticut, Men and Women in the Armed Forces of the United States During World War 1917-1920 published by the Adjutant General of the State. Along with a brief military record, the roster shows the person's name, race, serial number and address at time of enlistment. Contact: Werner S. Hirsch, Curator, Jewish Historical Society of Greater New Haven for possible assistance whirsch869@aol.comor whirsch@snet.net The JGS web site http://pages.cthome.net/hirsch/
Hartford Courant Archives Scroll down a bit on the web page and you will find a 'Search' form. Select the information at this search box http://www.ctnow.com/
New
Haven
"Back to the Land: Jewish Farms and Resorts in Connecticut" 1890 to 1945; published in 1998 by the State of Connecticut Historical Commission and the Jewish Historical Society of Greater
New Haven, P.O. Box 3251, New Haven, CT 06515-0351. (202) 392 6125 (office) and (203) 392 5860 (archivist. Copies are available from the Jewish Historical Society of Greater New Haven, Warner S. Hirsch is the Curator whirsch@snet.net
TheJewish Historical Society of Greater New Haven has its own site which offers a listing of all burials (up to the early 1930s) in the two oldest Jewish cemeteries in New Haven. These listings will eventually be modified to include ALL the Jewish burials in the greater New Haven area http://pages.cthome.net/hirsch/hale-jgs.htm
Jewish Center of Greater New Haven - located on Amity Road in Woodbridge and the New Haven Public Library's Main Branch on Elm Street in New Haven and the Jewish Historical Society located in Southern CT State University in New Haven offer a collection of books on various Jewish subjects.
TheJewish Historical Society of Greater New Haven, Inc. -
Werner S. Hirsch is the Curator whirsch@snet.net offers cemetery listings, photos, Table of Comparative Hebrew Alphabets,
New Haven information and "Gravestone Do's and Don'ts at http://pages.cthome.net/hirsch/
New
London
"Jews in New London, Connecticut - A Goodly Heritage: The Story of the Jewish Community In New London 1860-1955" - authored by Ester Sulman with the Collaboration of Leonard J. Goldstein and published in New London, CT in 1957.
Waterbury
The Bronson Library has City Directories from 1860 to 1990. It is located at 267 Grand Street. Phone: 203 574 8225
Delaware
1930 Census for Delaware can be found at Ancestry.com
Jewish Historical Society of Delaware - the Society maintains a 350 linear foot archives of records, photographs and memorabilia relating to the people and institutions of the Delaware Jewish Community http://www.hsd.org/jhsd.htm Marriage Index records (1740 - 1920) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
The first Jewish senator, David Levy Yulee was elected in 1845. 'Florida Jewish'- a comprehensive resource and guide to Jewish communities: synagogues, kosher restaurants, and more. www.floridajewish.com
Comptroller's Office Phone Numbers:
Broward County 1 800 298 0485 Miami Dade County - 1 305 810 1111 Palm Beach 1 800 837 7946
Death Index from 1935, 1945, 1950-55 and from the mid 1940s to 1998 are on line at Ancestry.com. www.ancestry.com These records were obtained from the Florida State Office of Vital Statistics which has a death index from 1877 to 1998.
Jewish Museum of Florida - 301 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach FL 33139 www.jewishmuseum.com
Ft. Lauderdale (Broward County)
Broward County - Jews have lived here since it was swampland and now is home to Florida's largest Jewish population
Broward County includes Fort Lauderdale and many nearby cities including Hollywood and Plantation. Check out this no fee, no registration web site which offers scans of actual County record scans http://www.broward.org/cri03300.htm
David Posnack Jewish Community Center - 5850 S Pine Island Road, Ft. Lauderdale (at Sterling Rd)
JGS Broward County (Fort Lauderdale) - contact Bernard Kouchel koosh@worldnet.att.net The Society has it's own web site and offers links to the Ellis Island Database, the Florida Atlantic University Libraries, the Directory of Jewish genealogical societies, LDS Family History Center addresses and more http://jgsbroward.org/
Cuban Hebrew Congregation (now Beth Shmuel) - Miami Beach's largest synagogue for Cuban Jews (at one time it had 1,000 members - now it has 500). There are an estimated 6,000 Cuban Jews in Miami.
Jewish Genealogical Society of Orlando - Contact: Sim Seckbach at sseckbach@aol.com or 407 644 3566 or Jay Schleichkorn PTJAY@aol.com
Beth Shalom Memorial Chapel 640 Lee Road Orlando, FL Telephone: 1 407 599 1180
Kehilat Beit Israel - the Cuban born Rabbi Joseph Mont is written up in an interesting story about this 'converted' Jewish congregation' in the December, 2002 issue of Hadassah Magazine. A web site in Spanish may be of interest www.gacetaanusim.com
Orlando - for information, call the Federation at (407) 645 5933
Jewish Genealogical Society of Southwest Florida - Kim Sheintal is President. They meet at the JCC, 582 S. McIntosh Road, Sarasota
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the three large funeral homes which serve Floridians http://www.jfda.org
Polk County - there aren't too many Jews in the area, but you will find a Conservative and a Reform congregation. The Conservative shul (Temple Emanuel) in Lakeland. The Rabbi is Eddie Fox, formerly a cantor. Winter Haven has the Beth Shalom with about 65 families as members.
Jewish Genealogy Society of Tampa Contact Mark Baron mark-baron@yahoo.com or Marion Benet (813) 968 3263 or Bill or Sally Israel (727) 343 1652 E-mail JGSTampaBay@yahoo.com
Tampa Bay area - has over 50,000 Jews living in the area. Contact the Federation at (813) 264 9000 for information. Gulf Coast Jewish Family Services, 14041 Icot Blvd. Clearwater, FL
Georgia
Jews came to the South as early as the late 17th century in Charleston, S.C., and settling in Savannah, Ga. soon after. Samuel Nunes, a doctor who arrived in Savannah with 41 other Jews from Europe in 1733 became Georgia's first public hero and is credited with saving the infant colony from extinction by a ravaging epidemic. The first Jewish governor in America, David Emanuel was elected in 1801.
In 1960, there were 167 Jewish communities in the South, 98 of which had Jewish populations of between 100 and 500 people. By 1997, that number had dropped to 141, with only 62 communities averaging between 100 and 500 Jews.
TheSephardi Heritage, Vol. II: The Western Sephardim. David A Reed has a list of surnames from this book. dak.reed@which.net
A stretch of Holcombe Bridge and Spalding Roads, in an area dubbed 'Little Russia" - a mini-version of 'Little Odessa' in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn - has a string of Russian businesses, groceries and restaurants. Dimitriy Goroshin is the publisher of 'Russian Town', a regional monthly magazine. http://www.russiantown.net/
Atlanta
Eighty percent of Atlanta's Jewish population comes from somewhere else. German Jews began arriving in 1845. See an excellent article authored by Roni Robbins in the November 2008 edition of Hadassah Magazine for further details.
One of the nation's wealthiest communities, is home to the city's oldest and largest Conservative synagogue, Congregation Ahavath Achim, which dates back to 1887. There is also, along Peachtree Street, The Temple; Atlanta's oldest synagogue, founded by German immigrants in 1887. The Reform Hebrew Benevolent Congregation is a national historic site.
Dunwoody
Located about 20 miles north of Atlanta, the majority of Jewish communal services are located here. Other Jewish concentrations are in Cobb County and Sandy Springs.
Norcross
Bukharian Jews are creating a self-contained neighborhood here and in Acworth. The King David Community Center serves about 160 Bukharian families.
Sandy Springs
The majority of South African Jews live in Sandy Springs located about 30 miles northeast of Atlanta and attend both Congregation Beth Tefilah and Congregation B'nai Torah.
Savannah
Jewish Settlers of Savannah, GA., 1733 - a summary of a discussion on the Jews of Savannah is available in the archives of JewishGen Digest. The date of the summary is 11/19/99 and it begins on Page 4.
Less than an hour's drive north of Tallahassee, Fla, the town's Jewish history is similar to that of many small towns around the Us and Canada. The first Jews arrived from Germany around 1885 and were followed later from by other Jews from Eastern Europe. The first services were conducted in a vacant hall above the public library. In 1905 the Congregation Sons of Israel of Thomasville, GA was formed with three classes of members: those paying $1 per month; those paying $2 and donors paying $5 per month. Construction of the B'nai Israel synagogue, now located on Vine St. was begun in 1913. There are Jews living here to this day.
Toco Hills
About 1,000 Iranian Jews live in the Orthodox enclave in this community located five miles northeast of downtown Atlanta. Congregation Netzach Yisrael conducts services in Hebrew and Farsi. Another synagogue, Congregation Ner Hamizrach, also was founded by Iranian Jews.
Vidalia
The synagogue, Congregation Beth Israel, was built in the shape of a perfect Jewish star with a turquoise sanctuary divided by a mechitz, to separate men from women. The synagogue boasts the title of one of the smallest in the US. It began with 14 members when in began in 1969, through a donation from a visiting New York merchant. Now, only 7 members remain drawing additional Jews from neighboring towns. The president is Ben Smith along with his wife Sarah are the contacts in this town.
Hawaii
The first Jew, according to Hawaiian
records was a "jew Cook " that was brought on board the whaling vessel
Neptune in 1798 along with the Hawaiian king for a welcome visit.
By the middle of the 19th century, Jewish traders from England, Germany
and the US came to Hawaii as planters or suppliers to sugar
plantations. An article by Alan M. Tigay about Honolulu was
published in the January 2009 issue of Hadassah Magazine.
Today, Hawaii's Jewish population is
estimated at about 10,000 with about half in or around Honolulu and the rest
on Maui, Kauai and Hawaii.
Jewish Community of Kauai - The Jewish Community of Kauai is the only Jewish congregation on the island of Kauai, Hawaii, also called "the Garden Island," the westernmost island of the Hawaiian Island chain. We are unaffiliated and open to meet with and learn from all Jewish peoples and resources. http://www.jewishcommunityofkauai.org/
Linda Lingle was the first Jewish governor of Hawaii.
Jews in Idaho were often called 'homesteaders' as they were the first given land by the United States government.
Illinois
Champaign
Year Book - the 1918 Yearbook "ILLIO" from the University of Illinois is available to access - Keyword is UI http://www.deadfred.com
Chicago
Next to Warsaw, Chicago has the largest
Polish population in the world.
Jews came to Chicago, from Prussia, Austria, Bohemia and parts of Poland as early as 1832. they settled first, along Lake and Clark Streets. An excellent article, written by Deborah Hale-Shelton, was published in the June/July 2003 issue of Hadassah Magazine.
The Great Chicago Fire began on Simchat Torah - October 8, 1871, not far from Maxwell Street. Five synagogues and 500 Jewish families died, 300 among them destitute. German Jews moved south along Michigan Avenue. In the early 1900s, Russian and Polish Jews fleeing from Europe and numbering as many as 55,000, began moving into the area.
Jews started to move out from the downtown area by 1910 and could be found in Lawndale, Albany Park, Humboldt Park, Logan Square and Rogers Park. The greater
Chicago metropolitan area today is home to 270,500 Jews according to estimates available from the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago. There are 125 synagogues and seven Jewish community centers.
American Jewish Artists Club (established in 1930) - located at 6301 N. Sheridan road, #8E, Chicago, IL 60660
Asher Library (Spertus Institute) has a collection of Jewish Books http://www.spertus.edu
Beth-El Cemetery is located on Pulaski Avenue, south of Peterson. If you need a look up, Mimi Katz has offered to do one by contacting her at geveretk@core.com
Books
"Chicago and County: A guide To Research" - authored by Loretto Dennis Szucs, published by Ancestry in 1996 - a reference work. It is a very comprehensive book and includes: Adoption records; cemeteries in Metropolitan Chicago; Census Records; Court Records and research in Cook County; Historical Libraries and Museums in Cook County; Land and Property Records; Military Records, National Archives - Great Lakes Region; Naturalization Records, and more. The Jewish Genealogical Society of Illinois has a copy in their library and you can also request it through inter-library loan from your local library.
"History of the Jews of Chicago" authored by H. L. Meites and published by the Chicago Jewish Historical Society and Wellington Publishers, Inc. Chicago 1990.
"A Jewish-Chicago Records Survey: Guide to the records ofthe Jewish Community Institutions of West Rogers Park, Chicago, Illinois", authored by Irwin M. Berent and published by Asher Library, Spertus College of Judaica in 1984.
"The Jews of Chicago: From Shtetl to Suburb" - authored by Irving Cutler and published by The University of Illinois Press.
Chicago Birth Certificates can be obtained by writing to: Illinois Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Records, 605 W. Jefferson St., Springfield, IL 62702. Chicago birth registers available for 1871 to 1915; Chicago birth certificates from 1878 to 1922 and Chicago death certificates from 1878 to 1915 are available.
Chicago Historical Society - 1601, North Clark St., Chicago, IL 60614-6099 Phone: (312) 642 4600 Fax: (312) 266 2077. Deborah King is a Research specialist. http://www.chicagohistory.org
The CHS does not do any personal research, but it does allow researchers access to their files, or you can write for a copy of their catalog. http://www.chicagohs.org/
Chicago Jewish Archives - the repository for Chicago's Jewish history http://www.spertus.edu/
Chicago Jewish Tour - exploring the city's Jewish roots is sponsored by the Chicago Jewish Historical Society - for details call - Telephone 1 312 663 5634
Chicago Shoah Museum (The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center. It is a 65,000 square-foot facility that will house permanent exhibitions chronicling life before, during and after the Holocaust. http://www.ilholocaustmuseum.org/
Chicago Street Name Changes and Enumeration Districts for the censuses in Chicago - the site includes maps and ward lists as well. http://alookatcook.com/
Chicago Telephone Books - The Newberry Library web site offers an overview of this library's collections and more. This library provides an inexpensive and first class service. The link will search the Chicago Daily News. http://www.newberry.org
Chicago Tribune - a complete web site includes an Obituary link, maps and a Archive Search link http://www.ChicagoTribune.com/
Congregation Bais Tefilah, 3555 W. Peterson Ave., Chicago, IL 60659 ygb@aishdas.org
Cook County Archives, Daley Center, 50 West Washington, Room 1113, Chicago, IL 60602 Phone: (312) 603 6601 Fax: (312) 603 4974 http://www.cookctyclerk.com/
At the Cook County Archives you can search for: Naturalizations, 1871-1929, for a few states near and including Illinois. Search by Soundex code.
Law and Chancery, Cook County - covers divorce, business, industry, labor; medical, sports, name changes; and more. There are separate films for plaintiff and defendant. Search by surname, using microfilms that cover these years:
Probate Incompetents - search by surname, using microfilms that cover these years: 1911-1939; 1940-1957; 1958-1963; 1962-1964
Probate/Minors and Conservators - search by surname, using microfilms that cover these years: 1871-1915; 1916-1921
Probate/Minors Index - search by surname using microfilms that cover these years: 1911-1939 (4/20/1911 to 12/31/1939); 1940-1962; 1962-1963; 1963-1964; 1965-1966
Probate/Minors and incompetents - search by surname, using microfilms that cover these years: 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976
Probate, 1871-1963, Cook County. Search by surname, using microfilms that cover these years: 1911-1928; 1928-1935; 1936-1943; 1944-1951; 1952-1953; 1952-1953; 1954-1955; 1956-1959; 1960, 1963, 1964-1965 (possibly years before 1911)
Criminal Felony Cases, Cook County - search by surname using microfilms that cover these years: 1927-1934 and more not known at this time. There is also a computer with records from the 1980s to the present on Bond, Chancery, Child Support, Civil, Criminal (felony, misdemeanor), Domestic Relations, Law, Probate, Traffic Division. This information supplied by Daniel Kazez in the JewishGen Digest dated 1/16/01
County Clerk for Cook County, 1311 Maybrook Sq., Maywood, IL 60153 Illinois Dept. of Public Health, Division of Vital Records, 605 W Jefferson, Springfield, IL 62702 dmorse@ccgate.sos.state.il.us
County Clerk, Cook County Vital Statistics, David Orr, PO Box 642570, Chicago, IL 60664-2570.
Jewish Home For The Aged - The Chicago Historical Society has the complete records of the Jewish Home for the Aged, from 1899 to 1971 when it was closed.
Jewish Waldheim Cemetery, 1800 S Harlem, Forest Park 60130. Phone 708 366 4541 (Chicago) is actually three or four separate companies in charge of the hundreds of small to large Landmanschaften cemeteries that comprise the Waldheim Cemetery Co. The largest of the cemetery managers is Barnett Joseph Schwartzbach and can be reached at 800 222 4541. http://www.graveyards.com/waldheim/
Over three hundred cemeteries make up Jewish Waldheim, totaling over 175,000 burials. Most of these cemeteries have their own gates of stone or brick, sometimes with iron doors, bearing the name of the cemetery. Here is the contact address and telephone and fax numbers that have been reported as being successful in obtaining information from the company:
Waldheim Cemetery Company 1400 Desplaines Avenue Forest Park, IL 60130
"Waldheim Jewish Cemeteries in the Chicago suburb of Forest Park, Illinois is a large Jewish cemetery that contains over 200,000 graves and where of each of the separate Landsmanshaftn and synagogue plots are referred to as a "cemetery". The Piser Weinstein Menorah Chapels' cemetery map refers to these societies collectively as the "Jewish Waldheim Cemeteries". From a posting by Ada Green
Kehilath Anshe Maariv (Congregation of the Men of the West) - was Chicago's first Jewish congregation in 1847 and founded by a group of Bavarian Jews. The synagogue was built at Clark and Jackson Streets in 1851. B'nai Sholom, the city's second-oldest synagogue, merged with Kehilath Anshe Maariv, to form K.A.M. Isaiah Israel.
Marks Nathan Orphan Home (Orthodox) was established in 1906 on the Northwest side of Chicago, and moved later in 1912 to 1546-1558 S. Albany Albany Park in 1926.
Maxwell Street - where East European Jews settled in the 1800s and early 1900s and where I bought a suit from a Jewish merchant which turned into 24 pound brown Kraft paper when I was later caught in a rain. It was similar to the lower East Side ofNew York in looks. There is a 'new' Maxwell Street Market, just east of the old one.
Newberry Library - located at 60 W. Walton (312-943 9090) in Chicago, offers a link to their Genealogy Collection. The research library houses one of country's biggest collections of pre-1800 Hebraica and also has a family-history section with many Jewish resources. The Newberry Library web site offers an overview of this library's collections and more. This library provides an inexpensive and first class service. The will search the Chicago Daily News. http://www.newberry.org
Poor Jews Quarter - also known as the 'Near West Side' of Chicago. It was home to tens of thousands of Jews and to a huge outdoor market of fruits, vegetables, live chickens, fish, jewelry and junk.
Ryerson Library (Art Institute of Chicago) www.artic.edu
Sentinel Newspapers - around the time of the Jewish New Year, hundreds of Chicago residents paid to have a New Year's greeting printed in the newspaper in English (not Yiddish). The greetings are alphabetical by surname, and include an address. A great resource if you are looking for family.
South Side Hebrew Congregation - formerly located in a community about 10 miles south of the downtown area until 1970 when it moved to 150 E. Huron St., Chicago 60611-2999 Phone: (312) 787 0450 The Chicago Historical Society may have some of the older records prior to its move.
Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies 618 South Michigan Avenue 60605. Reference Librarian is Dan (312) 322 1700 (1741) or (312) 922 8248 Fax: (312) 922 6406 e-mailsijs@spertus.edu The Institute offers a Jewish Museum; a Jewish gift shop and the Asher Library - all open to the public. www.spertus.edu/
Silverman & WeissMortuary - (708) 366 0125; Free Sons of Israel (708) 366 1190 at Waukegan, Other Jewish Cemeteries at Waldheim are Rosemont Park, Oak Woods, Westlawn, Jewish Oak Ridge, Jewish Graceland, Morton Grove and Mt. Mayriv-Isaiah Israel.
West Rogers Park - this neighborhood became Jewish immediately after WW II and was overwhelmingly so by 1952. It is estimated that there were as many as 48,000 Jews living there in the 1960s and then declining to about 30,000 today. This area remains the heart of Chicago's Orthodox community.
Elgin - Year Book - the 1918 Yearbook "Maroon, Elgin High School, Elgin is available to access - Keyword is ELGIN http://www.deadfred.com
Glencoe - North Shore Congregation - 1185 Sheridan Road in Glencoe 847 835 0724 www.nsci.org
Highland Park
Obituary Index for the years 1874-2005 is maintained by the librarians of the Public Library of Highland Park - a northern suburb of Chicago. It lists obituaries that appeared in those years in at least four local papers. http://www.highlandpark.org/obits/a.html
Morton Grove/Niles Drohiczyn Cemetery - affiliated with the Kehilath Jacob synagogue of which Benny Goodman was a member. The file is VM2621 http://data.jewishgen.org/viewmate/toview.html
Quincy - there is a Jewish cemetery and a Temple
Skokie
Skokie - located about 15 miles northwest of Chicago and was once the scene of a neo-Nazis attempted demonstration in 1978. Holocaust Memorial Foundation of Illinois - 4255 W. Main www.hmfi.org
Skokie Public Library 5215 Oakton St. Skokie 60077 Phone: (847) 673 7774 Fax: (847) 673 7797. The library contains their newspaper index file including an obituary file. Click on "Services". http://www.skokie.lib.il.us
Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD) has vital records, divorce, residence, real property, personal property, naturalizations, estates, school attendance, court actions, paupers, professions. Most, but not all, of their records begin with 1877. IRAD Information Services, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL 62756; Telephone 217 785 1266 There is a minimal charge if you request a search, but there are some limitations.
Professional Directories - Illinois State Archives retains a "Register of Licensed Pharmacists (1881-1952)." Entries include name, place of business, age, place of birth [foreign country noted], cause of registration [examination, etc.], date of registration, amount paid and certificate number.
Telephone Books Lookup - Available for lookups are the 1931, 1937 and 1942 Chicago Phone Books; Arlington Heights area for 1946 and 1951: Mundelin area around 1950s. Also a few yearbooks: 1914 Whiting HighSchool (IN) 1945 Lyons Township (La Grange) IL; 1943 Brookfield/Riverside High School; Roosevelt High School 1932. Contact: Kathy Lang Brnshpr@aol.com
Indiana
Allen County Public Library - Fort Wayne Historical Genealogy Department has the second largest genealogy collection in the US. Sue Kaufman, the Librarian at the library, can be contacted at Historical Genealogy Department, Allen County Public Library, Box 2270, 900 Webster St., Fort Wayne, IN 46815 or via e-mail:skaufman@acpl.lib.in.us Phone: (260) 421 1225 http://www.acpl.lib.in.us
The Library holds the largest public library collection of genealogical materials in the world. Its Family Histories collection includes more than 38,000 volumes of compiled genealogies on American and European families, almost 5,000 genealogies on microfiche, and numerous family newsletters plus Census records and military records. For further contact, phone the department or e-mail Curt Witcher, Manager, Historical Genealogy Department-ACPL at cwitcher@acpl.lib.in.us
Diane Freilich and Stan Finkelstein in an article published in the 'Generations' Magazine' published by the JGS of Michigan, reported in Volume 16, Number 2 Summer 2001, about a trip that nine members of the JGS of Michigan took to the library on May 20, 2001
"The Jewish Community of Indianapolis" - authored by Judith Endelman, and published by Indiana University Press
La Porte County Marriages: to 1850; La Porte County Marriages: 1850-1865+ 1890 La Porte City Directory: La Porte County Cemetery Data; La Porte County Obit Index; Weekly Vital Statistics; La Porte Land Records; Union Soldiers Of La Porte (Civil War); La Porte High School: Classes of 1869-2000
South Bend Area Genealogical Society - resources include 1870, 1880 and 1910 census records; a combined index to St. Joseph County; Coroner's Records Index 1879-1960; Grave Registration Project; St. Joseph County Cemetery Inscriptions - Book Series Index; Wills and Probates Index of St. Joseph County and Studebaker Corporation Employee List http://www.rootsweb.com/~insbags/
Year Book - the 1920 Yearbook "Modulus Huntington High School, Huntington, Indiana is available to access - Keyword is HHS http://www.deadfred.com
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Marriage Index records (1851 to 1900) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
The State Historical Society of Iowa published a reprint of the Board of Immigration booklet entitled Studies In Iowa History: 'Iowa: The Home for Immigrants'. This booklet, published in January, 1970, offers useful State information for the benefit of immigrants.
Year Book - the 1915 Yearbook "Checoukan" from Cherokee County High School, Columbus, KS. is available to access - Keyword is CC http://www.deadfred.com
Filson Club Historical Society - offers a collection of diaries, books, public records, family histories and more regarding Kentucky http://www.filsonclub.org/window.html
The first documented Jew to settle in New Orleans was Isaac Rodrigues Monsanto in either 1757 or 1758. He emigrated from the Netherlands and traded goods for a living. New Orleans had essentially no Jews until after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase ceded the territory to the United States. Jews arrived as Spanish and Portuguese traders who had migrated up from the Caribbean in the 1700s. Jews at first suffered from the "Black Code," a policy the French introduced in 1724 which promised to expel Jews who practiced Judaism openly. A century later, Jacob Solis arrived from New York and founded the first congregation in 1828. The Touro synagogue was the second synagogue to be opened and has moved several times. There are about 10,000 Jews living in New Orleans before the hurricane Katrina devastated the community and about 80 percent were affiliated in some way with the Jewish community. Jews mostly lived in in uptown and Metairie portions of New Orleans.
"The Early Jews of New Orleans" by Bertram Wallace Korn reviews the New Orleans Jewish history from 1873 to 1840
"Landsman: A Novel" - authored by Peter Charles Melman and published by Counterpoint Press. New Orleans had one of the largest Jewish communities during the 19th century and the South, especially Louisiana, was more welcoming to the Jews than most parts of the North. Nearly 3,000 Jews fought for the Confederacy. The books tells the story of a Southern Jew, his illegitimate son of an impoverished servant and a wealthy Jewish planter. Most of the story is revealed through the joining of the Confederate Army
Judah Touro, son of Isaac Touro who was the rabbi of Newport, Rhode Island's Congregation Yshuat Israel, was the first to have lived in the city after 1800. He founded the congregation Nefutzoth Yehuda synagogue which later merged with the city's firs synagogue, Sha'arai-Chasset to form Touro Synagogue. It is the city's leading Reform congregation. During the early nineteenth century, Jews from Germany and Alsace came to live here. An article in the May 2002 issue of Hadassah Magazine authored by Renata Polt offers a great deal of information and can be found in the archives of the magazine at http://www.hadassah.com
It is reported in New Orleans that the well-known wealthy Israelite, Judah Touro, Esq., intends giving a piece of ground for the building of a Synagogue, and a further donation towards the building. "This gentleman some years since behaved in so handsome a manner to a Christian congregation whose church was sold, that we have every confidence that he will now do the same to his Israelitish brothers in their hour of need."
Genealogical Research Society of New Orleans, PO Box 51791, or PO Box 71791, New Orleans, LA 70151
Godchaux Family of New Orleans - compiled by Paul L. Godchaux, Jr. in 1971 and on file at the Jacob Bader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives, Cincinnati Campus, Hebrew Union College, Jewish Institute of Religion. The parents of Leon Godchaux (aka the 'Sugar King'), were Paul Godchot and Michelette Lazard.
Paul was born in 1781 in Herbeviller; married Michelette in 1815; and died in Herbeviller, date unknown. Michelette was born Jan 1, 1790 and died on November 10, 1878. Leon Godchot was born June 10, 1824 in Herbeviller and died in New Orleans on May 18, 1899. He married Justine Lamm of Aie, France on May 24, 1851 in New Orleans. She was born April 8, 1835 in Aie, France and died December 29, 1906 in New Orleans.
Louisiana State Library, State Capitol Ground, Baton Rouge, LA (USA) 70804
Monroe Volunteers are creating an archive of any and all materials that relate to families who have ever lived in Northeastern Louisiana. Contact Rachel Unkefer runkefer@cstone.net
New Orleans Public Library, 219 Loyola Ave. New Orleans, LA 70112
If you are researching in the New Orleans area you may be able to find a death on either the Jefferson Parish Library obit index (just a few years in the 1970s) or the Louisiana Division obit index of the New Orleans public library - both indexes are very limited but they give the date of death as well as the date of the obit.
"If you have worked with Louisiana you know that records are not public - there is a 50 year wait on deaths and 100 years on births. A commercial site has deaths indexed thru 1949. This policy may be a problem for them with so many records destroyed by Katrina - I tried to contact a cemetery and funeral home and they had lost their records. This policy leaves a lag between the time when most people would have been in the SSDI - especially women." From a posting by Carolyn Lea
TheWilliams Research Center of the Historic New Orleans Collection is located at 410 Chartres St. New Orleans, LA 70130 in French Quarters. (504) 598-7171 Hours: 10AM-4:30PM Tues- Sat. E-mail wrc@hnoc.orgThey have all 1930 census for Louisiana and city directories from 1822 on.
Orono - Year Book - the 1916 Yearbook "University of Maine is available to access - Keyword is UM http://www.deadfred.com
Maryland
Note: Baltimore City is not part of Baltimore County nor any other county.
Advocate (published 1885-c.1893) and the Critic (published 1888-1893), two 19th-century Baltimore newspapers. They are available on microfilm in Maryland University collections.
B'nai Israel Congregation - 6301 Montrose Road, Rockville, MD 20852
Bnei Israel Congregation - 3701 Southern Avenue
Halfway Hagerstown Hebrew Cemetery - located near Williamsport, MD John Drayman Draystar@aol.com has a list of the grave markers (both given names and surnames, years, ages, etc.) in the Jewish section of the cemetery in Halfway. Hagerstown's Jewish population did not have a cemetery located immediately in the town. Instead, the residents mostly buried their departed in the Jewish section of the Halfway Cemetery, which, as is indicated by its name, is located halfway between Hagerstown and Williamsport.
Jewish cemetery information in the United States can be found her and then to the link to the cemetery page http://www.jewishgen.org/
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Jewish Genealogy Society of Maryland Contact Dick Goldman JGSMaryland@aol.comThe web site for this society where you will find Maryland Resources and other links http://www.jewishgen.org/jgs-maryland/ Jewish Historical Society of Baltimore - Contact Virginia North; they will do research for a small fee.
15 Lloyd Street, Baltimore 21202 Phone: 410 732 6400 Jewish Historical Society of Maryland http://www.jhsm.org/
Marriage Certificate Information - Department of Health and mental Hygiene, Division of Vital records, Box 68750, Baltimore, MD 21215, or contact Maryland State Archives - Annapolis. for Marriage License Information.
Marriage Index records (1740 -1920) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
Maryland State Archives Vital Records - these include birth, adoption, marriage, divorce and death records. Fees vary depending upon the request. All adoptions after May 31, 1947 are sealed and can only be opened with a court order. Birth Records for the 23 counties from 1898-1978 and for Baltimore City from 1875-1978. Death Records from 1898 to 1987 for 23 counties and for Baltimore City from 1875-1987.
Mikro Kodesh Beth Israel Cemetery, Baltimore, is part of a group of cemeteries known as "Bowleys Lane Cemeteries". Their address is 6700 Bowleys Lane, Baltimore, MD 21208.
Sol Levinson and Bros. Inc. - the only Jewish Funeral Directors in Baltimore at 8900 Reisterstown Rd., Pikesville, MD 21208 Phone 1 800 338 1701
"Resources for Jewish Genealogy in Boston" - this site offers many links for researchers. The book may also be purchased from Amazon.com by using the link to your left. http://www.jewishgen.org/jgsgb/bostres.html
American Jewish Historical Society at Brandeis is located in Waltham, MA.
Amherst
The Yiddish Book Center offers a self-guided tour. Located on the campus of Hampshire College, the Center has a web site www.yiddishbookcenter.org
Boston Jewish Advocate - obituaries - contact the Boston Public Library http://www.bpl.org/
"Boston Jewish Advocate" - on-line wedding announcements database. The index contains the full names of brides, grooms, the issue date and when published, home towns and parent's names covering January 1976 through May, 1997 with 3,800 entries. Copies can be obtained from microfilmed issues of the Advocate. http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/advocatew.htm Boston Marriages Database available at http://www.jewishgen.com
Boston Matzo Baking Company employees as featured in "They Came for Good: A History of the Jews in the United States Documentary"
Boston Public Library - 666 Boylston St., Boston, MA 02116; telephone (617) 536- 5400 or (617) 859-2018. Address" c/o Research Library Office P.O. Box 286 Boston, Massachusetts 02117.
Boston Public Library selected Jewish Sources in the Micro text Department - the information on file includes newspaper sources, genealogical sources, magazines, biographies, Jewish communities and more http://www.bpl.org/WWW/microtext/jewishsources.html
The Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Boston - a nonprofit organization of individuals interested in genealogical research. It conducts monthly educational programs and publishes the Mass-Pocha. 617-796-8522 info@jgsgb.org www.jgsgb.org
Micro text department has microfilm copies of the Revere Journal from 1881. www.bpl.org
Other Boston newspapers, TheGlobe, The Herald and the Transcript may also be available http://www.bpl.org
Old West End - many poor Jews settled here in the early 1900s. The slums of the West End, along with most of its streets, were cleared in the 1950s and replaced with high-rise apartment buildings.
Year Book - the 1909 Yearbook "Emersonian" from Emerson College of Oratory, Boston, MA. is available to access - Keyword is EM http://www.deadfred.comCape Ann
Melrose, Massachusetts Jewish Cemetery - there is a Vilkomer Cemetery Section in this cemetery. A list of names are included on the Jewish Cemetery CD-ROM offered by Avotaynu. It is listed under Everett Vilkomer (10768) Melrose (Route 99). Everett is a part of Boston. The Vilkomer Cemetery is managed by the Jewish Cemetery Association of Massachusetts. www.avotaynu.com
Massachusetts, State
Jewish Cemetery Association of Massachusetts, Inc. Request a copy of "Guide to Jewish Cemeteries". 1 800 752 JAM http://www.jcam.org
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Marriage Index records (1633 to 1850) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
Massachusetts State Vital Records - Office Registry of Vital Records and Statistics, 150 Mt. Vernon Street, 1st Floor, Dorchester, MA 02125-3105 Phone: (617) 740 2606 Fax: (617) 825 7755
Naturalization Information - All pre-1906 naturalizations in Massachusetts (and in the five other New England States) are now at the National Archives branch in Waltham, Massachusetts http://www.jewishgen.org/jgsgb/bostres.htm
New Bedford
Located in southern Massachusetts, about 50 miles from Boston and is/was an international port which handled some immigrants.
An well written article about New Bedford and the surrounding towns was
published in the August/September 2008 issue of Hadassah Magazine.
Morris Sederholm
and Molly Horvitz were married here in 1921. Morris worked for Molly's
father in the Horvitz's store which sold goods needed for whaling such as
oilskins, waterproof boots and canvas bags. Jews were involved in the
whaling industry in the region, though in a minor way, from the second half
of the 18th century.
It was a major international port by the 1800s - Nathaniel Hawthorne was the Customs Officer of Salem in the first half of the 1800s.
Springfield
Bnei Israel Anshei Sfard, Kesser Israel, and City of Homes Association, located on Wilbraham Avenue - a commercial site offers an on-line database www.jewishdata.com
Detroit Jewish News - one of the largest Jewish newspapers in North America. It has been published for over 60 years. The paper has a staff of 50 and a weekly readership of 50,000 http://www.detroitjewishnews.com/
Genealogy Help List - a site that will help you find information about a State's resource and also will lead you to volunteer researchers who may offer you their assistance in researching their particular city, county or state http://www.didian.com/
High School Year Books - TheJewish Historical Society of Michigan has over 600 year books that also includes middle/intermediate/junior high school books, as well as 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th and 50th class reunion books as well as Hebrew Day Schools, Sunday Schools and Private Schools in addition to the public schools.
Ironwood
There is a Jewish cemetery and in 1995, there were just two Jewish families - Howard Rosen and Eddie Rovelsi. The Sharey Zedek synagogue and congregation originated in 1892. Services were held in Ironwood and Hurley, Wisconsin, the town directly down the street. Rabbi Rein, grandfather of my long time school friend Sheldon Rein, was the first Rabbi. From a posting by Carol J. Lieberman on Sept. 20, 1995.
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Jewish Genealogy Society of Michigan - Contact Fred Apel fredapel@usa.net Marc D. Manson mdmcousa@aol.com or Linda Hinshon e-mail Bearina103@aol.com (248) 443 1943 This Society has a collection of various Yearbooks of Detroit Central High School. The JGSMI Library is located at Temple Beth El 7400 Telegraph Road at 14 Mile Road, West Bloomfield. The librarian is Gayle Saini www.jgsmi.org
The Jewish Historical Society of Michigan has PDF files available online for 55 complete Journals dating from January 1962 to Fall 2001. The Fall 2001 Journal is 76 pages. There is also a journal index, but note - I found family members in the journals who are not indexed in the master index. From a posting on JewishGen on 1-30-2004 by Carol Hirschmann Borthwick
Michigan Department of Community Health Death Records (GENDIS) Available on the Internet with 148,000 Michigan death records from 1867-1880 and portions of 1881 and 1882. http://www.mdch.state.mi.us/gendisx/index.htm
The Jewish
Agricultural Society helped a number of immigrant Jews purchase fruit
orchards in the area. Friends and family came visiting in the summer
contributing money for seeds and equipment. The hospitality business soon
proved more profitable than the fruit. By the 1930s, Fidelman's and other
Jewish resorts drew thousands every year to South Haven, known as "The
Catskills of the Midwest.
Stockbridge Project, Ingham, Livingston, Washtenaw and Jackson counties
Jews came to Minnesota as early as 1849. Even though Jews were barred from farming in Russia, many were more attuned to the pace of rural life. At its peak in the 1930s, the Jewish population reached 50,000 in Minnesota and the Dakotas. But the Jewish presence in the Dakotas and rural Minnesota didn't last. Taking advantage of the Homestead Act, many farmed the land for five years before taking title to it, then sold it to go into 'business'. "It was such a difficult life, farming. They just didn't stay. It's so arid. You're not going to get a good crop very often. Who would your kids marry? And the schools only went up to the eighth grade." You can read more about this interesting time and the exhibit at http://www.startribune.com/viewers/qview/cgi/qview. cgi?story=83854986&template=metro_a
Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies - located at the University of Minnesota developing a web site for Minnesotans and the Holocaust. Dr. Stephen Feinstein id Director of the Center.(612) 626 2235 Fax (612) 626 9169 www.chgs.uma.edu
Genealogy Help List - a site that will help you find information about a State resource and also will lead you to volunteer researchers who may offer you their assistance in researching their particular city, county or state http://www.didian.com/
Genealogy / Immigration - from links to other sites to Birth, Marriage and Deaths by County is available from the start page of www.About.com
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest - 1554 Midway Parkway, Saint Paul, MN 55108 (651) 523 2407 or 651 637 0202. E-mail history@jhsum.org Bill Wolpert and Katherine Tane were the co-presidents in 2005. Susan Hoffman is the Archivist. www.jhsum.org
TheJHSUM archives is now located at the Elmer L. Andersen Library, 222 21st Avenue South, Minneapolis, on the University of Minnesota campus and is available to scholars and researchers. The Library houses more than 1.5 million volumes of archival materials, books, manuscripts, illustrations and artifacts in a climate-controlled, protected environment. Linda Schloff was the curator and was replaced after twp decades of service by Susan Hoffman in August, 2008. The offices are located at 4330 S. Cedar Lake Road in Minneapolis. Telephone 1 952 381 3360 E-mail history@jhsum.org www.jhsum.org
Minnesota Historical Organizations (MHO) - links to County Historical Societies, Chapters, and Local Organizations and more http://www.mnhs.org/preserve/mho/
Minnesota Historical Society Press - the Society publishes both scholarly and general interest books that contribute to the understanding of Minnesota and Midwestern history and culture. http://www.mnhs.org/market/mhspress/
Minnesota Jewish Women Historical Site - The Jewish Agency for Israel named this web site as a top site, according to the editor for the Jewish Agency for Israel. This site depicts the experiences of Jewish women in establishing homes on the prairie www.jewishwomenexhibit.org
Minnesota Newspapers Directory - links and contact information for all Minnesota newspapers http://www.minnews.com/
Minnesota Obituary Links - this site includes: Minnesota Obituary Archives Search Engine, Southeast Minnesota Obituary Index Search Engine, Cemetery Inscriptions Search Engine, Death Index, Ancestry - Minnesota State Databases and more http://www.obitlinkspage.com/obit/mn.htm
Naturalization Records - Park Genealogical Books - a commercial genealogy and local history specialists, offers a range of materials to assist family history researchers including County map of Minnesota; various forms and information on naturalization records.. http://www.parkbooks.com/Html/res_nat9.html
Sephardi Minyan - a group of Sephardic Jews who get together at the Kenesseth Israel synagogue in St Louis Park to daven in Sephardic style. The group consists of Jews from Lebanon, Egypt and other Sephardic Countries. E-mail Joseph Israel at: sephardiminyan.mn@gmail.com
"An Echo In My Blood: The Search for a Family's Hidden Past" - authored by Alan Weisman, who was born and raised in the North side of Minneapolis.
"Galveston: Ellis Island of the West" - authored by Bernard Marinbach.
"The Jewish Community of North Minneapolis" - authored by Rhoda Lewin and published by Arcadia Publishing - 128 pages in paperback form $19.99. This book details how those poor emigrants arrived penniless in their 'New World shtetl' also faced bleak job prospects, "because they could not speak English and knew nothing about America except what they'd read or heard." I, and my wife Shirley personally endorse this book, for we both grew up on the northside of Minneapolis and experienced that "wonderful" lifestyle - only we didn't realize it until after reading Rhoda Lewin's book. By the way, we do not know Rhoda Lewin personally.
"Jewish Pioneers of St. Paul 1849-1874" - authored by St. Paul author Gene H. Rosenblum. This is a book about the first Jewish families to settle in Minnesota and in St. Paul - especially the Westside of St. Paul. Rosenblum, a retired St. Paul lawyer, is one of the founders of the Jewish historical Society of the upper Midwest. Publisher Arcadia Publishing Co.
"Jews in Minnesota" - the first of a three-part series devoted to ethnic celebrations is based on books published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press and authored by Hyman Berman and Linda Mack Schloff. Telephone: 651 296 6126
West Side Jews- "The Lost Jewish Community of the West Side Flats" authored by Gene Rosenblum - a book and history of the Jewish West Side of St. Paul
Duluth
Duluth - Ashland Cemetery: Phil Sher is the repository of all information about the Duluth cemeteries as well as the records of the Ashland cemetery. He has catalogued most of the Jewish cemetery information in Duluth. He can be reached but not online at (218) 722-8617 or 218-724-5917. Source: Carol Lieberman pp002909@interramp.com Gmilos Chasodim (Free LoanSociety of Duluth) - incorporated in April 1925. The purpose of the organization was to lend money to those who were unable to obtain loans at banks. Money was lent free of interest. The organization operated solely as a charitable and benevolent society. It would lend, upon application, anywhere from $10 to $2,000. The organization was chartered with 100 members. The first Board of Directors of the organization were Dr. M. Z. Kassmir, president; M. Cook, first vice-president; A. Horovitz, second vice president; B. J. Cook. treasure; B. Garon, financial secretary and Hyman Segal, recording secretary. Other members and Directors were L. Zalk, I Helstein, F. Labovitz, I. B. Aarons, J. E. Rocklin, Charles P. Meyers, J. Altman, S. M. Kaner, Harry Davis, F. Keil and S. B. Copilowish.
Jewish Fellowship News - published in Duluth by Temple Israel. 1602 E. Second Street, Duluth, MN 55812
PhilSher is a good local contact for information about the Duluth, Superior and Iron Range Jews. 25 East 1st Street, Duluth, MN 55802 (218) 722 5563
So called because the area contained so much iron ore.Eveleth had a small Jewish population and a synagogue that was sold to a carpenter's shop and later destroyed. Chisholm synagogue was demolished and Hibbing's synagogue was converted into a church.
Iron Range Research Center is not on-line, but plans to be in the near future. Contact is: Deb Fena debf@ironworld.com
B'nai Abraham - the remaining synagogue in Virginia, Minnesota built in 1907. My grandfather, Theodore Soloski was one of the founding members and many of my mother's family are remembered with Yahrzeit plaques on the interior walls. B'nai Abraham is located at 328 S. 5th Street. There are only two remaining members as of 6/1/02.
Virginia's My maternal grandmother, Feige Cohen Soloski bought a home in Virginia, after the death of my grandfather, Theodore Soloski in 1901. The house was located on Chestnut Street, just one block away from the Main Street and close enough to the iron mine that the company had to move her home several times as they dug more and more iron out of the ground.
Behind my grandmother's home, and facing Main Street, was Zimmerman's Grocery. Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman were Aunt and Uncle to Bob Zimmerman (Bobby Dylan). Bob is also a distant relative since his Uncle Max Zimmerman was married to my first cousin Minnie Margolis. My Uncle Abe Margolis, Minnie's father, didn't know that the family name was misspelled for many years.
Minneapolis
Minneapolis - my home town. What would you like to know about the Northside from the late 1930s to 1956? Contact Ted Margulis at Jwebindex@gmail.com I know something about St. Paul, Duluth, Virginia, Hibbing and International Falls, Minnesota as well. Also Superior, Wisconsin.
Some of the Jews of the Ukraine were relocated to Minneapolis and to other cities of the US Midwest through the Port of Galveston, as part of the historic Galveston Movement. This took place between 1907 and 1913. Later Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, came to Minneapolis and most were destitute. As many as 40% were actually penniless, having spent all their money just to cover the cost of passage.
Adath Jeshurun Congregation - Rabbi is Harold J. Kravitz. The synagogue offers a Web magazine, Keren Or Tel. 952 545 2424 www.adathjeshurun.org
American Jewish World - published every Friday by AJW Publishing, Inc. 4509 Minnetonka Blvd., Minneapolis, MN 55416. Mordecai Specktor, Managing Editor. Email amjewish@isd.net
Hodroff & Sons Funeral Home
(Hodroff-Epstein Funeral Home) has records dating back to the late 1920's when it was opened in Minneapolis. They will take phone calls. http://www.hodroffepstein.com/
Minneapolis Talmud Torah - was established in 1894 as the Hebrew Free School of Minneapolis and was located at 613 Fifth St. North. Later is was housed by Keneseth Israel, the first North Side Synagogue. I was a graduate of this famous school that taught the old style with melamdim (teachers) who spoke Yiddish and a cheder atmosphere. On April 17, 1915, The Talmud Torah celebrate a new building on the corner of Fremont Avenue North and Eighth Street - the building I was most familiar with and the wonderful teachers including: David Turchick, Joe King, Mar Center, Mrs. Black, Mr. Heilicher and Mr. Kaiser, the principal.
Minneapolis' Temple Israel Sisterhood Cook booklet - published sometime between 1910 and 1920 has many names mentioned. Carol Zsolnay has a copy. gmz262@nwu.edu
North Side Jewish Sheltering Home for Children - located on the Northside of Minneapolis, it was established in 1919 until the early 1960s. Approximately 1,000 Jewish children received hospitality and nurturing while living in the home.
WebPals - provides world wide web access to the resources of the Member Libraries of Minnesota's Statewide Project for Automated Library Systems http://www.pals.msus.edu/webpals/
St Paul
St Paul - the twin city to Minneapolis. The first Jews to settle in the Territory of Minnesota were Edwin and Charles Elfelt in 1849. Other pioneer Jewish families include the Gundelfinger, Hurshler, Hirsberg, Koritowsky, Lowitz and Schuster. St. Paul was originally settled by relatively prosperous German Jews who came to this capital city in the mid 19th century.
Beth Jacob Congregation - Mendota Heights
The Immigration History Research Center (IHRC) of the University of Minnesota at 826 Berry Street, St. Paul . E-mail BODLE002@TC.UMN.EDU
Mt. Zion Temple was established in 1856 by German Jews at 10th and Minnesota Streets.
It was the state's first first Jewish congregation in Minnesota Territory
and was established by eight families and several young single men. A
boo celebrating the 150th anniversary has been published: L'Chaim! Mount
Zion Temple Celebrating 150 years, 1856-2006 and was edited by Mary Ann
Barrows Wark, Nancy Melamed and Holly Cogen Ross with scrapbook pages by
Faye Kelber.
Sons of Jacob was established in 1874 by emigrants from Eastern Europe and was originally located at Robert and 13th Streets.
Temple Israel - historical data from the Temple's archives has been compiled on a CD-Rom by Roland Minda, a Minneapolis public relations executive and son of Temple Israel's long-serving famed Rabbi Albert Minda. Further information is available from the Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest http://www.hamline.edu/~jhsum/
Mississippi
France and the Deep South are well known for their connections. In the Jewish cemetery in Biloxi, only one gravestone remains, that of Michel Levy, born in Paris in 1880. A story about Michel, who was apparently from Poland is described in an article in Revue du Cercle de Genealogie Juive #68 at www.genealoj.org
Jews came to the South as early as the late 17th century in Charleston, S.C., and settling in Savannah, Ga. soon after.
Indianola - located in the Delta has one Jew - Leanne Silverblatt, a fourth-generation resident.
Macy Hart is the president of the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life located in Jackson, Mississippi.
Natchez - once had a thriving Jewish community, still holds a Passover seder attended by about as many non-Jews as Jews. At its peak, around the turn of the 20th century, Natchez was home to several hundred Jews. Today there are only 13 members of its synagogue. But when the boll weevil plague tore through the cotton plants, the Jewish population -- most of whom were involved in the cotton business --- took a hard hit, according to Natchez native Jerry Krouse in an article by Rachel Pomerance published in The American Jewish World.
United Hebrew Congregation, 13788 Conway Road, St Louis.
Washington - western suburbs of St. Louis
B'nai Amoona Congregation, 324 S. Mason Rd., Creve Coeur, MO 63141 Kol Am Congregation, 14455 Clayton Rd., Ballwin, MO 63011 Tpheris Israel Chevra Kadisha, 14550 Clayton Rd., Ballwin, MO 63011 Traditional Congregation, 12437 Ladue Rd., Creve Coeur, MO 63141 United Hebrew Congregation, 13778 Conway Rd., Creve Coeur, MO
Montana
The Jewish population of Montana is estimated at 2,500 in 2009
Bozeman - a Mikvah has been opened in the city - the first in this state and will be serving Jewish residents from Wyoming, Idaho, North and South Dakota and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. It is housed in the back yard of the Chabad House.
Montana Historical Society - has a list of 225 burials from 1865 to 1978 in the Jewish burial ground, Home of Peace Cemetery in Helena. www.his.state.mt.us/
University of Montana, 1910 'Sentinel' Missoula, MT Year Book. Student photos have been uploaded to Dead Fred's Genealogy Photo Archive. http://www.deadfred.com
To pull up all the information and images added, type UOM in the photographers slot in "Detailed Search". To see a list of the other annuals uploaded, go to http://www.deadfred.com/search/annuals.html
Marriage Index records (1727 to 1900) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
The immigrant Jewish population of Omaha, during WW I was roughly 15,000
Las Vegas - there are an estimated 75,000 Jews with 19 congregations, three Jewish day schools and three kosher restaurants. Did I mention slot machines? The area's oldest congregation is Temple Beth Sholom which was founded in 1946 and has a membership of over 700 households. Congregation Ner Tamid is Las Vegas' oldest and largest Reform temple.
Naturalization Information - All pre-1906 naturalizations in New Hampshire (and in the five other New England States) are now at the National Archives branch in Waltham, Massachusetts http://www.jewishgen.org/jgsgb/bostres.htm
New Jersey
Books
"Jewish Agricultural Colonies in New Jersey, 1882-1920" - authored by Ellen Eisenberg, a Professor of History at Willamette University and published in 1995 by Syracuse University Press and in the newsletter of the Philadelphia Jewish Archives Center. E-mail pjarch@balchinstitute.org www.jewisharchives.net
"The Land Was Theirs" - authored by Gertrude Dubrovsky is a book about the Jewish farmers in New Jersey.
The Society offers a copy of the latest issue of the 'The Gatherers' newsletter. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader, version 3 or later, to open the file. Most likely, Adobe Acrobat has already been installed on your computer. If it has not, you may download it, free of charge, from http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.
Bergen Records - located at Bergenfield Municipal Building, North Washington Avenue, Bergenfield, NJ 07621 The Record Newspaper - the major newspaper in Bergen county Located on River Road in Hackensackhttp://www.northjersey.com
Cape May
Cape May County Historical Society Route #9 Cape May Court House, NJ 08210 Phone: 609 465 3535 http://www.cmcmuseum.org/
Congregation Anshe Emeth - a traditional synagogue in South River, Middlesex County. It is located in the Borough of South River, County of Middlesex http://www.anshe-emeth.org/
The county seat and the county offices are located there. North Bergen is in Essex County, NJ and is near the Lincoln Tunnel - just outside of midtown Manhattan, NY.
Iselin
Forest Lawn Cemetery - Hebrew Cemetery Section Telephone number 757 441 1752. They are helpful and have a card file of all the burials right there in the office and will look it up for you.
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County. The Office of County Clerk: 595 Newark Avenue, 07306. Phone: 1-201 795 6112
Jersey City Library has all of the city directories in hard cover as well as a very valuable, but incomplete handwritten index of the Jersey Journal newspaper.
Located in Ocean County. The county seat is Toms River. The Ocean County Historical Society is located at 26 Hadley Avenue, Toms River, NJ 08753. (908) 341 1880. Research hours: Tuesday through Thursday 1 to 4. A Funeral Home Index Card system is available. TheCounty Library is nearby and has some area small newspapers on microfilm on the 2nd floor. In 1920, Jewish chicken farmers appeared in Lakewood.
The Southern New Jersey Jewish Gen. Society meets here.
Millville
Down Jersey Folklife Center - a museum, archive, library and resource center for documenting and conserving traditional life in southern New Jersey. Located at Wheaton Village in Millville, NJ. their holdings include photographs of the old Jewish community and the books about Jewish farmers. Open daily from 12 to 5. Jack Shortledge is the director.
Newark - the following cemeteries are located at the intersection of Mt. Olivet Avenue and McClellan Street, south of Newark, NJ airport, just off Routes 1 and 9. The plots are as follows:
Beth El; Congregation Lev Tov; Newark Progressive; Erste Bershader K.U.V.; Congregation Agudath Israel; Talmud Torah of Newark; Gomel Chesed; B'nai Israel Cemetery Assn.; Elizabeth Jewish Cemetery; Erste Bolochover; First Robishower and Chelmer K.U.V. (located on McClellan St.); Old United Newark Erste Rzeszower Anniex; Erste Rzeszower K.U.V.; Israel Verein K.U.V.; Klausner Borispoler Progressive Society; Louis Brandeis Lodge; Rosemont Memorial Park; Gomel Chesed Annex; Reim Ahuvrim; Ind. Newark Lodge #22; Congregation Beth Joseph.
Grove Street Jewish Cemetery - a historic and much neglected cemetery with graves going back to the founding of the Newark Jewish community - the oldest in New Jersey.
Newark Public Library - located on Washington Street - has the surname index to the now defunct Newark Evening News, listing every surname that appears anywhere in the paper, sorted alphabetically by year.
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
New Jersey Department of Health - for death certificates a contact is Kathleen Johnson (609) 984 3459
New Jersey Historical Society - located in Newark, may have research material of interest.
New Jersey State Archives - located at 185 West State Street, Trenton, NJ 08625-0307. Hours: Tuesday through Friday 8:30 to 4:30. Open for research: Births: June, 1878 to 1923; Marriages: June, 1878 to 1940; Deaths: June, 1878 to 1940. This State archive does not collect church records.
Later Vital Records are not open to public search. All vital records from June, 1878 to the present are maintained by the New Jersey Department of Health, State Registrar Search Unit, PO Box 370, Trenton, NJ 08625-0370. They will only search their records if you have exact information http://www.state.nj.us/health/vital/vs11.htm
Publicly accessible microfilms of New Jersey death records at the New Jersey State Archives in Trenton go up only through 1940.
Birth, Marriage and Death Records In New Jersey
There will no longer be year before and year after searches. The Search Unit Staff will search the requested year and the requested year 'only' in response to a customer request.
The Bureau of Vital Statistics will no longer accept a request to search or certify a birth, marriage or death record within our files unless the person who is making the request is able to provide the following information:
a) The 'exact' name that is currently recorded on the birth, marriage or death record (first, middle last)
b) The 'exact' place of birth, marriage or death (city)
c) The 'exact' date of birth, marriage or death (month day year)
d) The mother's maiden name
e) The father's name (when recorded)
There is no exception to this rule
In so many words, but without actually saying it, New Jersey is limiting vital records only to those who have enough knowledge of the person whose record they are requesting that they would be assumed to be a next-of-kin or other very close relative.
Passaic County Clerk's Office, Passaic County Administration Bldg., 401 Grand Street, Paterson, New Jersey 07505. For information on naturalizations that took place around the early 1900's, write to this address and include a $5.00 check - last known fee.
Passaic County Historical Society - may have research material of interest.
The NJ Archives holdings include Vital Stats from 1848 -78; Vital Stat Records & 1878-1923 Birth Certificates (Cabinet 1-3). Cabinet 2 has Marriage certificates from 1878 to 1940 Cabinet 3 holds Death Indices from 1878-1900 & Death Certificates from 1878 to 1940; Cabinet 5 holds NJ Censuses from 1820 - 1915; Cabinet 7 Holds Military; Cabinet 8 has Early State Records, deeds, tax, road returns; Cabinets 9, 10 holds Pre 1901 Wills; Cabinet 14,15 holds Court records Supremen, Prerogative & Chancery; Cabinet 16 Modern State Records, Federal Records (HABS); Cabinet 17 Municipal Records; Cabinet 18 - 34 holds Country Records and Cabinet 38 - 45 holds Newspapers. From a posting by J. Lowenkron
A Baron de Hirsch Fund agricultural settlement established in 1891 and is located at the southernmost end of New Jersey in Cape May County. More information about the Jewish cemetery located here can be found at the Vital Records at the state capital in Trenton. Joan Breslow has information about this town webjoan@earthlink.net
A reference list for New Jersey agricultural settlements is being compiled by Joan Breslow webjoan@earthlink.net
The Woodbine Brotherhood Synagogue was dedicated on November 29, 1896. Sabato Morais and Marcus Jastrow were two of the original founding members. On June 8, 2003 the synagogue was rededicated. There is a Museum of Woodbine heritage and Beth Judah in Wildwood, a congregations of Singers. www.thesam.org
New Mexico
Books
"History of the Jews in New Mexico" - authored by Henry J. Tobias
The first Jewish settlement along the Santa Fe Trail, opened in 1821. At the time, The Santa Fe Trail consisted of western Kansas, eastern Colorado, the Texas panhandle and New Mexico to Santa Fe. New Mexico's Jews (Reform Jews from Germany) were traders. According to recent historical research, 'Conversos,' Spanish Jews coerced into converting to Christianity, arrived in the 'Land of Enchantment' as far back as the late 16th century. Many of them were fleeing the Inquisition. The German Jews arrived in the 19th century. (See my Book page for books on this fascinating subject)
In 1880, with the advent of the railroad, the Santa Fe Trail ended and some of the Jewish population moved on to California; to the gold mines.
The second Jewish settlement in New Mexico was in Albuquerque. The first and third mayors were Jewish. There is still a Jewish presence in Las Vegas, New Mexico. In 1910 there were 11,000 Jews living in the town, today there are about 20-25 living in and around the immediate area.
Albuquerque
Albuquerque - is the home for about 8,000 Jews, mostly employed by the U.S. Government. The city has one Reform, one Conservative and one Chabad synagogue and three that call themselves Independent.
TheNew Mexico Jewish Link - is the Anglo-Jewish newspaper and it has a web site www.swcp.com/~the_link/
Jewish Federation - for information about Jews of New Mexico, call them at 505 821 3214
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
Jewish Historical Society is located in Albuquerque and was organized in 1985 to pursue the fascinating and often amazing story of the Jews of New Mexico http://www.nmjewishhistory.org/
La Cruces - has a Jewish presence and a synagogue.
Las Vegas (The Meadows) - the state's oldest town and the wool capital of the US, is home to Montefiore Synagogue built in 1886 and the first Jewish cemetery in New Mexico. At one time, there were 800 Jews in the town, and today there are some 25 Jews now living in the community. There is still a synagogue in Las Vegas.
Los Alamos - has a Jewish presence and an unaffiliated, egalitarian synagogue.
Marriage Index records (1727 to 1900) contain information about the union of two families; the groom's name, the bride's maiden name, the county and date of marriage and sometimes more. A CD is available from www.UltimateFamilyTree.com/online
Ranchos de Tao has a Jewish presence and a synagogue.
Roswell has a Jewish presence and a synagogue.
Santa Fe - the first Bar Mitzvah ceremony took place in Santa Fe in 1876. There is a Traditional Reform Congregation and a Reform Temple. There is also an Orthodox Congregation, a Renewal shul, a Chabad Jewish Center and a group called Hama Kom run by Rabbi Malka Drucker.
There is an exhibition at Santa Fe's Governor Palace which spans the immigration of Ashkenazi Jews who originated in Europe and who came to New Mexico with the opening of the Santa Fe Trail just after the US's invasion and occupation of the territory during the Mexican War in the mid-19th century through the founding of the state's long-awaited synagogue in 1884.
New York
Because there are so many pieces of information about the State of New York, what I have attempted to do with New York page section to make searching this page easier is to categorize the many subjects by either by city or by state. And within each City or by State, you will find sub-categories by Subject. Bear with me until it is all straightened out.
On April 20, 1777, New York State became the first political entity in over 1,200 years to grant full citizenship and civil rights to Jews. The New York State Constitution of 1777 gave full freedom of religion and conscience to all and eliminated all religious restrictions on voting and office holding. Although the U.S. Constitution of 1789, guaranteed the same rights, the other twelve original states restricted the right to vote and hold office on the state and local level to those acknowledging the divinity of Jesus Christ. It took many years for these states to liberalize their constitutions. Not until 1868 did North Carolina, under Reconstruction, grant Jews full political equality. It was the last of the original colonies to do so.
At the foot of Manhattan Island, across the street from the Staten Island ferry, is a small park with a flagpole. On the flagpole is a plaque honoring these first Jewish settlers. Further uptown, in Chinatown, near Chatham Square and Worth Street, behind an apartment building is an old Jewish cemetery which has grave sites going back to the 17th century and which probably contains the graves of some of these settlers or their descendents. There is a plaque on the wall outside which identifies the organization that maintains the cemetery and which may have additional information. From a posting by Irwin Nack on 12/26/97
Adams
Located just south of Watertown and approximately 60 miles north of Syracuse, there is a website for genealogy and history of this location. The website includes Adams, South Jefferson County and some Jefferson County surnames, and a great deal of history. Adams was established in 1800. http://www.bestplaces.net/city/Adams-New_York.aspx
This site is an aid for family historians and begins with an essay on New York's 350 year Jewish history since colonial times. It includes numerous listings of and links to government resources, Jewish institutions and organizations, public libraries with noteworthy genealogical collections and services, museums, historical and genealogical societies, Family History Centers, College and University archives and other organizations.
Books
"A Burial Place For The Jewish Nation" - authored by Rosalie S. Phillips. Volume 18, published by the American Jewish Historical Society.
"American Almanac, New York Registry and City Directory" - published by Longworth in 1840. It contains 37,000 names, occupations, and place of residence of all heads of families, firms, etc.
"Better Than Gold: An Immigrant Family's First Years in Brooklyn" - author Fannie Silver
"Brownsville, The Birth, Development and Passing of a Jewish Community in New York" - authored by Alter F. Landesman and it is pocketbook format.
"Cemeteries in the New York Metropolitan Area" compiled by David M. Kleiman
"For Them, Life in America Began in 1944, Behind a Fence". It is about a group of about 1,000 Jews brought to the US from Italy in 1944 and kept in an internment camp in upstate New York for seven months after the war was over until President Truman allowed them to apply for citizenship. The article mentions the emotions of the US official charged with choosing who would be allowed to travel on the ship. I believe a free registration is required to view articles on the NY Times web site New York Times. From a posting to JewishGen by Andrew Blumberg on 7/21/03 http://tinyurl.com/hmcm
"The History of the First Russian-American Jewish Congregation, The Beth Hamedrosh Hagodol" authored by J.D. Eisenstein and published in 1901, which details the fascinating -- and humorous -- history of one of the early synagogues founded in New York City. Available to read at the American Jewish Historical Archives at the Center for Jewish History in New York City.
"The Landmarks of New York, II" with an index by Barbaralee Diamonstein printed in 1993 and is cataloged under historic buildings -- New York. The LC# is F128.7 D56 The book offers lists of sites designated by the NY City Lands Preservation Commission in 1993, and a list of sites heard by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, but not designated from January 1982 to June, 1993
"Lower East Side In Vintage Photographs"
authored by Oscar Israelowitz & Brian Merlis. The book offers over 100
photographs from 1880 to 1960 and includes images of pushcarts, synagogues,
people, tenement life and much more.
"Lower East Side Weddings: Dressed for America" - Elizabeth Block has written a paper for her graduate class in American Studies at Columbia University which includes photographs. She has offer to send a copy via e-mail by just asking via her e-mail address blockeliz@aol.com
Back in the Bronx - an e-magazine that comes out occasionally http://www.backinthebronx.com/ This site also offers "The Bronx Tracking Service" for a nominal fee.
Bronx - The Bronx Board is an exchange of information that, though not genealogical interest, may be of interest to those who are researching Bronx. You never know! Although it deals mostly with recollections of life in the Bronx through about the 1970s, you can find old class pictures from the 30s as well. http://www.bronxboard.com
"Welcome Back To Brooklyn Special 15th Anniversary" - authored by Oscar Israelowitz and Brian Merlis. Come back in time to Brooklyn, when life was simple. When you could take the trolley to Ebbets Field and watch the Brooklyn Dodgers play an exciting game of baseball or take the Brighton Line down to the Steeplechase in Coney Island. 168 pages www.israelowitzpublishing.com
1927 Brooklyn Directory - Steve Axelrath of Littleton, Colorado has a pocket sized 1927 Brooklyn directory and has indicated he would do lookups.
Bobover Yeshiva B'nai Zion - a powerful and numerous group in Borough Park that owns an entire block on 48th St. On Shabbat and other celebrations, the street is closed off. 4909 15th Ave., Brooklyn 11218 Phone: (718) 853 7900 or Bobov Worldwide, 1609 Kings Highway, Brooklyn 11230 (718) 375 5868Brooklyn Board - for displaced and nostalgic Brooklynites http://softech-consulting.com/brooklyn/
Brooklyn Board of Education 110 Livingston Street Brooklyn, NY
Brooklyn City Directory - these directories were published until 1913, and then resumed publishing again in 1933. Phone books are available beginning in the 1920s, but most people didn't have phones until after WWII. Check this site. There is a charge for their services. You can also call them at 800 444 0799 for further information. There is listed on the above site, a business directory for Brooklyn for 1917 and 1920-21, published by R. L. Polk. www.citydirectories.psmedia.com
Brooklyn Hebrew Orphan Asylum - 300 children's names and dates of birth are listed or for any other individual information on any particular child as to parent's birthplace, e-mail Marge Spears-Soloff at MSpearssol@aol.com www.hnoh.com
Brooklyn Jewish Institutions - Talmud Torah of Flatbush is a medium sized orthodox synagogue on Coney Island Avenue, between Avenue J and Avenue I. In the forties, the Rabbi was Max Mintz. Neighbors included the Yeshiva of Flatbush and the Young Israel of Flatbush, all on the same block, which was technically in Midwood, not Flatbush.
Brooklyn Maps from 1905 do not show the enumeration districts. The New York Public Library email is mapref@nypl.org
Brooklyn Naturalization Index - The JGSNY created an online searchable database of the index to Brooklyn Naturalizations (1907-1924) located in the Kings County Clerk's Office. Phase I is complete and contains 253,400 names and is accessible at http://www.jgsny.org
Brooklyn Marriage Certificates - The maximum number of years you can request is five years. You need the groom's name since all indexes by bride's name since 1907 have been lost.
Brownsville - a section of Brooklyn with stores along Pitkin Avenue, many temples and even Yiddish theater. Further information about the area may be available from the Hebrew Educational Society located in Canarsie and the Brooklyn Public library (Grand Army Plaza Branch). The Brooklyn Historical Society is also a probable resource.
County Clerk's Office (Brooklyn) State Supreme Court, Kings County (Brooklyn) 360 Adams Street, Room 0079 (Cross Streets: Johnson, Court & Joralemon Streets) Brooklyn, NY 11201
History of Brooklyn - The Post-War Years - thousands of white middle class residents abandoned Brooklyn for Queens, Long Island's Nassau County, Staten Island, and New Jersey. Whole Jewish communities fled their old neighborhoods and moved to Flatbush, Borough Park, Eastern Parkway, and Brighton Beach http://www.thirteen.org/brooklyn/history/history5.html
Jewish Child Care Association (JCCA) has been serving children and families since 1822. These are the places that are the successor to and still might hold records for:
Hebrew Orphan Asylum; Hebrew Benevolent & Orphan Asylum Society; Hebrew Sheltering Guardian Society; Hartman-Homecrest; Home for Hebrew Infants; Fellowship House; Jewish Children's Clearing Bureau; Brooklyn Hebrew Orphan Asylum; Girls Club of Brooklyn; Children's Day & Night Shelter; Wayside Day Nursery; Childville; Children's Service Bureau; Jewish Youth Services of Brooklyn; Hebrew National Orphan Home; Israel Orphan Asylum; Gustave Hartman Home; Daughters of Zion Hebrew Day Nursery.
They are affiliated with UJA-Federation of New York, United Way of New York City; Council of Family and Child Caring Agencies; Council on Accreditation of Services for Families and Children and are located at Jewish Child Care Association of New York, 575 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 Phone (212) 371 1313 Fax: (212) 371 1275 Contact: Ms. Leona M. Ferrer, Coordinator, Quality Assurance
JCCA -Jewish Child Care Association serving children & families since 1822 120 Wall Street New York, NY 10005 Tel: (212)425-3333 * Fax: (212)425-9397 Attn: Leona M. Ferrer, Disclosure Coordinator JCCA or http://www.jewishchildcareny.org/ or e-mail HNOHAlumni@aol.com
Labor History Site - The Tamiment Institute Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives are house at New York University at www.nyu.edu/library/bobst/research/tam
Machon Yichussin is located in Borough Park, Brooklyn, and is a genealogical institute that is used by Hassidic families to establish "noble" ancestries for their sons and daughters looking for a shidduch. It is located near 14th Avenue and 49th Street and could be a informative genealogical place for ancestry information. http://www.machonchana.org/
Maimonides Hospital - was formerly known as Zion Hospital or Mt. Zionand is located at 4802 10th Avenue in Boro Park, Brooklyn. Phone (718) 283 6000 or Department of Fund Raising (718) 283 7041 . http://www.maimonidesmed.org/
Buffalo
Buffalo Adoption Records, for some years, are available in a notebook in the public library. Check with the librarian for Allen E. Jewitt's "Adoption's" (sic) recorded in Erie Country Hall, Buffalo (1874-1900) Hamburg, NY: Allen E. Jewitt, c1984
Note: If Erie County Hall has adoption records from the 19th century, perhaps other county clerks in New York State do as well, according to Cynthia Van Ness, MLS, Roots: The Buffalo, NY Genealogy Forum http://www.bfn.org/~roots/
Kutsher's Country Club is located in the Catskills at Monticello, New York 12701 - Ignore any password requirements. www.kutshers.com
Cemetery Information
"The JewishGen Online Worldwide Burial Registry (JOWBR) is a good first step, the burial societies that are listed for NYC are not cemeteries, but rather are Landsmanshaftn and synagogue plots within a much larger cemetery. They are part of a larger entity, but are not the whole entity in itself. Most of the larger NYC Jewish cemeteries contain hundreds of thousands of burials and thus it is not humanly possible for any single individual or group of individuals to catalog an entire cemetery.
It is more realistic to catalog the burial societies for one's ancestral shtetl, family circle, or synagogue. For instance, in the JOWBR listing under Queens, NY, there are 30 burial societies listed for Mt. Hebron Cemetery and 35 for Mt. Zion Cemetery. In actuality, these are just a small portion of the total amount of societies in these two cemeteries, which at last count are 846 and 764 societies, respectively. Thus the NYC burial societies listed in the JOWBR are still just a minute drop in the bucket for any given cemetery and cannot be construed to represent the entire cemetery. In all, there are over 10,000 burial society plots in the New York Metropolitan area, includingLong Island and northern and central New Jersey." You can search for them by town name and keyword. Posted by Ada Green on 9/7/04 http://www.jgsny.org/searchcity.htm
To find out where a relative is buried in New York City, the most efficient method would be to get a copy of the death certificate of the individual. If you do not know the date of death, it is best to narrow down to a decade or so, as it will cost less to order the copy of the certificate from either the Municipal Archives* or Department of Health, if you can give them a range of years (you have to pay for every year searched). If you do not have access to the published NYC Department of Health Death Indexes to search for the date of death, then narrow down by finding records such as census, city directory and telephone books to place the person in time. *Deaths before 1949 are available at Municipal Archives for a fee of $5.00
Burial Records - New York State Department of Insurance keeps records of disbanded burial associations. New York State Insurance Dept. ATT: Liquidation Bureau, 123 Williams St. New York, NY 10038.
"In NYC a burial society is not a cemetery by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, the majority of NYC burial societies have plots in more than one cemetery. Thus the bottom line is that care must be taken in what is referred to as a NYC cemetery." Posted by Ada Green
Riverside Memorial Chapel - located at 180 West 76th Street, corner of 76th and Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan. It is one of the oldest memorial chapels in the tri-state area. It services Long Island, central and northern New Jersey and Westchester County.
Hebrew Free Burial Association, 224 West 35th Street, Room 300 New York, NY 10001 (212) 239 1662 Fax: (212) 239 1981 Contact: Amy Koplow Executive Director. They hold records going back many years of any Jewish person whose families might not have had monies for burial with chronological records and alphabetical files. They helped bury some of the victims who died in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fireof 1911 and who are buried in Mt. Richmond Cemetery in Staten Island, NY http://www.hebrewfreeburial.org
Jewish Funeral Homes of America web site lists the larger Jewish funeral homes http://www.jfda.org
AMap of New York Area Jewish Cemeteries (a large graphic file that may take a few minutes to load) http://www.jgsny.org/
The reason there are only a few cemeteries in New York City (Manhattan) is that a law was passed in 1865 forbidding new burials in New York. Thus cemeteries exist mostly in the outer boroughs and on Long Island.
Baron Hirsh CemeteryStaten Island - located at 1126 Richmond Avenue, Staten Island, NY. Within this cemetery is the Mogilev plot.
Bayside Cemetery is located 80-35 Pitkin Avenue in Ozone Park, Queens, New York 11417. Phone (718) 843 4840 It is reported that the cemetery appears to be badly kept.
Beth David CemeteryLong Island - Elmont, Long Island, New York (516) 328 1300. Try not to visit the cemetery on Friday as they close early and are quite busy. They are open 8:30 to 4:00 Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday. The offer a map and help find a grave. For a small fee, they will take photos and send it to you. Ada Green ada.Green@postoffice.worldnet.att.net has cataloged the two cemetery plots for the Chaim Hersch Weiss First Janower Sick and Benevolent Association (Chaim Hersch Weiss Erste Yanover KUV) The Beth David Cemetery Elmont - is in disrepair.
Beth Haim of Congregation - Cypress Hills, Long Island.
Cypress Hills Cemetery - located at the Brooklyn-Queens border has a very long history. It is an interdenominational cemetery with approximately 12 Jewish sections. The Jewish sections are in poor condition.
Dutchess County Jewish Cemeteries - the seven biggest Jewish cemeteries of Dutchess County : Beth-El, Children of Israel (Schomre Israel), Vassar Historic, Schomre Hadath, Vassar Temple, Hebrew Benevolent and Beacon Hebrew Alliance. Contact Pamela Weisberger pweisberger@hotmail.com for more information (by specific request) on burials in these locations.
Long Island Montefiore Cemetery - will take Polaroid photos for approximate $7.50 per headstone.
Long Island National Cemetery (Military) - located at 2040 Wellwood Avenue, Farmingdale, NY 11735. Phone: (516) 454 4949
Machpelah Cemetery - 101 East Broadway, New York, NY 10002 - holds records, except for the last ten years, are by date of death. Their records are for the last 200 years.
Mokom Sholom Cemetery (Ozone Park) - publishes "The Jewish Interest Magazine" which is on-line. Bayside (718-843 4840) and Acacia (718 845 9240) cemeteries are also listed sometimes, as Bayside and they are all on the same block. Mokom Shalom, and possibly Bayside are locked 24 hours and you may need to have an appointment to be let onto the grounds. http://www.jewishinterest.com
Montefiore Cemetery, St. Albans, Queens, NY - Ada Green ada.Green@postoffice.worldnet.att.net has cataloged the two cemetery plots for the Chaim Hersch Weiss First Janower Sick and Benevolent Association (Chaim Hersch Weiss Erste Yanover KUV)
Mt. Olivet Cemetery, 65-40 Grand Avenue, Maspeth, NY 11378 Phone: (718) 326 1777 This cemetery was previously known as Mt. Olive and located in what was then known as Nassau Heights. The Jewish Mt. Zion Cemetery is only about two miles north and is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 to 4 pm.
Mt. RichmondCemetery - 420 Clark Ave., Staten Island, NY 10306 (718) 667 0915
Mt. Zion Cemetery - located (PO Box 780355), 59-63 54th Avenue, Maspeth, NY 11378-1298; Tel: (718) 335 2500. Photographs of stones could be provided to people who live out of the area. It has been reported that the 'quality of their photos is not great'.
Contact Karen Grego is KarenG@mountzioncemetery.com. They also provide copies of burial cards. New Montefiore Cemetery - located on Long Island
Pinelawn is a military cemetery located about 45 minutes east of New YorkCity in Suffolk County
Rocky Mount - there are about 60 Jewish burials in 3 cemeteries in the town according to Linda Moore, the Cemetery Supervisor. She has recorded birth and death dates, plot location and occasionally, a snippet of information. The names in the list are: Baker, Edwards, Epstein, Fox, Fuerst, Gold, Goldstein, Klitee, Klitzner, Kluger, Levy, Margolis, Meyer, Minski, Noble, Novey, Raskin, Rosenbloom, Shugar, Spirt, Sugar, Sulton and Weller. Burials occurred from 1936 through 1997. Linda is at moore@ci.rocky-mount.nc.us
Staten Island (Richmond Hill Cemetery) - the New York Jewish Week on February 8, 2002 carried a story by Jonathan Mark about this cemetery where 55,000 indigent Jews have been buried since 1909. http://www.thejewishweek.com
The cemetery is owned and maintained by the Hebrew Free Burial Association 224 West 35th Street, Room 300 New York, NY 10001 Fax: 212 239 1981 Rabbi Shmuel Plafker is responsible for burials. Many of the victims of the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire were buried here.
Washington Cemetery - located at 5400 Bay Parkway at MacDonald Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11230. Phone: 718 377 8690. The records are not computerized but the staff is very helpful with the paper records. The Jewish Genealogical Society of New York has a database of burial societies on its web site. You can search by town or by part of the society name. It will return the cemetery and location within the cemetery of the plots owned by the society. Records can be retrieved alphabetically by deceased's last name, chronologically by date of burial and by burial society. Their books and cards are in chronological order and unless you are willing to search large ledger books day-by-day and year-by-year, it will take you a very long time. Maps are available, but you need to write them to get the one (s) you want. The area is safe and the cemetery is in wonderful condition and huge. Have the date of death or burial before you go. http://www.jgsny.org
Wellwood Cemetery - located in Pinelawn, New York
Death Certificates
Death Certificates - (for deaths before 1949) Records and Information Services, NYC Municipal Archives, 31 Chambers St. New York, NY 10006 (212) 788 8590. You can go there, look for your individual in the indexes, and obtain a copy of the death certificate. This certificate could give you the name of relatives, where the person is buried and a date to use for newspaper obit or death notice. It might also have a Social Security Number.
"A searchable index of the death records for New York City, 1891-1911. Search by exact spelling of a given name or surname, Soundex, or "begins with ...". If you use Soundex, be aware that the database is indexed by Russell Soundex, so you must be aware of different first letters that may be used for your surname. For example, the name Kornfeld could also be spelled Gornfeld or Horenfeld. You would have to do a search for each starting letter."
"Most important, if you find an ancestor, the database gives you the death certificate number. With that number you can order the death record from NYC Archives for only $6.00 per record. Without it, the cost would be much higher. From a posting by Ron Doctor on JewishGen 4-5-04 www.italiangen.org/NYCDeathSearch.stm
"In the New York City all-borough index to deaths for 1940, I found a person in whom I am interested, who died 16 September 1940. However, the certificate number is No. 28 and the borough code is coded that the death occurred "Out of City"." From a posting by Sam Schelman
"I had the same situation occur when researching my ggm. The "Out of City" reference means that the person died somewhere else and was brought back to the city for burial. My ggm was visiting her children in Norwich, CT, when she had a heart attack and died. She was brought back to NYC and buried in Mt. Zion cemetery in May, 1936."
"My ggm's NYC death certificate states that she died in Norwich and gives the death certificate number. I suggest that you first look at the death certificate for clues, but absent this information, if you know where the person was buried - the cemetery (from the NYC certificate), ask the cemetery to check their records and to tell you if they have the actual place of death, then contact that locale for the death certificate." From a posting by Marlene Bishow mlbishow@mindspring.com
Draft Registrations from WW II - from the fourth draft call in 1942 known as the 'Old Men's draft registration' and applied to men who were born in 1877-1897 (ages 45-65). The area covered by the records at the New York Regional Branch of the National Archives covers the boroughs of New York City, State of New Jersey and Puerto Rico. An example can be found at http://www.avotaynu.com/WWIIDraft.htm
At this time, there is nothing of genealogical value at Ellis Island except for the American Immigrant Wall of Honor® donor list and The American Family Immigration History Center™ At the present time, Ellis Island does not have birth or death records.
The Great Hall at Ellis Island
Ellis Island was opened on January 1, 1892 and the original building was destroyed by fire on June 14, 1897. Only some administrative records were lost to the fire, but the passenger arrival manifests are intact. http://www.ellisisland.org/
The originalpre-1897 Passenger Manifests are at the Temple-Balch Center for Immigration Research in Philadelphia. For more information on passenger list research http://www.jewishgen.org/infofiles/faq.html
1891 New York Immigrant Index - a complete Index of 1890 New York Immigrants from Austria, Poland and Galicia is available. Contact Howard Relles rellesh@nycap.rr.com
Ellis Island Births - anyone who was born on Ellis Island can find their own birth certificate. It helps to know your actual birth date. You will find it with the New York City Birth records, (no matter what the courts say, Ellis Island vital records are recorded in New York City). You might also look for the passenger ship arrival of the family just before the supposed birth which might supply some interesting information.
Family History Center
check out this site for research on many aspects of records available, including immigration and naturalization. You cannot get copies of birth records unless it is of your own birth, or you have some legal (official) need for it. There is a health restriction on all birth records after 1909. http://www.familysearch.org/Search/searchcatalog.asp
The Family History Library Catalogue for the New York City directories runs from 1914 to 1936 with the only ones missing being 1919, 1926/27, 1928-30 not published. 1931 is not available.
"Ghetto" Fish Market in 1903 video
The view was photographed from an elevated camera position looking down on a very crowded New York City street market. Rows of pushcarts and street vendors' vehicles can be seen http://www.open-video.org/
The site contains 1,295 1910 names and 1,055 1920 names as well as other important information. The Orphanage began in New York City in 1912 and moved to Yonkers in 1919. It was closed in 1962. This same site now includes 23 States, 49 Cities and over 100 Jewish Orphanages with Historical and Archival information.
1 West Fourth St. (between Broadway & Mercer St.). New York http://www.huc.edu/
High Schools
High Schools in New York City Information - contact Carol Blumenthal Cohen who is a guidance counselor in a NYC Middle School and has copies of the most recent high school directories available at Mamapoof2@aol.com Another source is to write a letter to the Board of Education, 110 Livingston Street, Brooklyn, NY
1939Abraham Lincoln High School Year Book - Joan Parker housemom@att.net has offered to do look ups in this Year Book
Bronx High School of Science - Class of '63 Renee Steinigrsteinig@suffolk.lib.ny.ushas the directory listing all alumni from 1938-1988. There is also a newsgroup alt.alumni.bronx-science
If you are looking for old class pictures in New York City in the 1930s and 40s, try these bulletin boards:
Ithaca - Year Book - the 1916 Yearbook "Cornellian" from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York is available to access - Keyword is CORNELL http://www.deadfred.com
James Monroe High School is now known as Monroe Campus High School and is located at 1300 Boynton Avenue Bronx, New York 10472. Phone (718) 893 2872 or (718) 893 5800. The records secretary is Jeanette Lederman. Include a $3 fee and the name, DOB and year of graduation for a copy of records.
Julia Richman High School in Manhattan Henrietta M. Roth at hennynow@pacbell.net has the January, 1942 Bluebird Yearbook and is willing to do lookups.
If you are searching for a relative who was an officer in either an ILGWU local, or at the national level, or was a delegate to the School of Industrial & Labor Relations, write to the Labor-Management Document Center, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. 14853, Attn: Richard Strassberg, Director. Note: there are no records for rank-in-file members
The HOA (Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York City), was located at 1560 Amsterdam Ave and 138th Street and their records may be available at the JCCA (Jewish Child Care Association) Address and further instructions are at: www.hnoh.com
Other orphanage information may be located at: Deborah Nursery and Child Protectory which had facilities at 95 & 103 E. Broadway, New York; 87 Henry St., New York; and 423 E 83rd St., New York.
Jewish Theological Seminary and Yeshiva University -
(located at 3080 Broadway, New York City) are open late hours and offer a vast collection of Yizkor books. They are opened weekdays until the early evening hours. For a comprehensive list of New York genealogical resources http://members.aol.com/jgsny/resouce1.htm
Cantors Assembly, Jewish Theological Seminary of America
It changed its name to Columbia University and sold its campus to the Rockefellers who built the Rockefeller Center on the site. With the money they bought the larger Bloomingdale Asylum lot and with that money, Bloomingdale bought a larger lot in Westchester and the street it was on was renamed Bloomingdale Avenue. Then it was known as Westchester and then was acquired by Cornell Medical College which was amalgamated to form the New York Hospital, which then combined with Columbia Presbyterian Hospital (Columbia being the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons, a branch of Columbia University), to form the New York Presbyterian Hospital. And adjoining the new (former) Bloomindales, now known as the Cornell Department of Psychiatry, New York Presbyterian Hospital Westchester Division, is a Bloomingdale Department Store which is totally unrelated to the hospital.
Minkovitz (Ukraine) - Independent Minkovitzer Podolar Society - a photo of this society, picturing about 100 people, but no names is available by contacting Bobby Furst at bobby1st@sprynet.com
New York Landmanschaften and Other Jewish Organizations (including many Galician societies) 1487 organizations that are listed in The Jewish Landmanschaften of New York (WPA, 1938) and 918 Landsmanshaftn from the YIVO Landmanschaften Collection. The JGSNY website is linked to it
The institute is a research, study and lecture center whose library and archives offer the most comprehensive documentation for the study of German Jewish history. Located at the Center for Jewish History at 15 West 16th St., New York, NY 10011 lbaeck@lbi.cjh.org Telephone: 212 744 6400 Fax 212 988 1305. There is also two Branches: LBI, London at 4 Devonshire Street, London and LBI, Jerusalem at 33 Bustanai Street 91082 Jerusalem. http://www.lbi.org/
Long Island Vital Records - Department of Health, Vital Records Section, Corning Tower Building, Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12237-0023 Phone: 518 474 3075 Albany office charges a $15 fee.
Mid-Island Y JCC - 45 Manetto Hill Road, Plainview
Patchogue, Long Island, is about one hour east of NYC by car and had a considerable Jewish population in the early part of the 20th century considering its distance and relative isolation. The reason ---Patchogue's lace mills -- attracted a large number of immigrants. It was also a poultry center, especially for ducks. Contact the Patchogue Public Library for more local information.
Mount Pleasant - Hawthorne School Westchester JCCA 1935: 1) Hawthorne School, 44 delinquent dependent Jewish boys; 2. York City and Nassau and Westchester Counties. Operates 2 group residences in White Plains.
1980 Located at 226 Linda Ave., Hawthorne, NY, residential treatment center (22 buildings) for 179 disturbed and problem children (including 18 girls), ages 8-19 under auspices of Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services, NYC. Elementary and High School education on premises. Under Union Free School District #3. Opened in 1906, for delinquent boys. Coed since 1935
Nassau County
Most of Nassau County's vital records are kept by the clerks and/or vital statistics in the offices of the towns of Hempstead, (Town of Hempstead at Town Hall, Registrar and Vital Statistics, Hempstead, NY 11501) Phone: 516 489 5000)
North Hempstead - Town Clerk (516) 869 7650; and Oyster Bay: Births (516) 624 6336; Deaths (516) 624 6337; Marriages (516) 624 6335. Huntington (516) 351 3014; Islip (516) 224 5498; Smithtown (516) 360 7620 Death Records are kept where the death record was filed, not where the person lived.
Nassau County Clerk's office is located at 240 Old Country Road, Minneola, NY 11501 Phone: 516 571 3131 It has been noted that the County Clerk has nothing to do with vital records, but the Nassau County Clerk is also the Clerk of the Court for the Nassau County Supreme Court and most of the records in the Clerk's office deal with court actions, real estate filings and business filings. The town or village, or City Clerk where the person died will have a copy of the death certificate.
Books
There are some great books available on the United States and Jewish genealogy. You can search Amazon.com for any title or subject easily as clicking on this link > Jewish Genealogy
"An Orphan in History: Retrieving a Jewish Legacy" - authored by Paul Cowan and published in 1996. The author discusses his and his wife's role in reviving the then nearly moribund Temple.
"The Luckiest Orphans: A History of the Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York" - authored by Hyman Bogen
"Quarantine! : East European Jewish Immigrants and the New York City Epidemics of 1892" - authored by Howard Markel -
New York City
The term 'The Big Apple' was coined by
touring jazz musicians of the 1930s who used the slang expression "apple"
for any town or city. Therefore , to play New York City is to play the
big time - The Big Apple.
There are more
Irish in New York City than in Dublin, Ireland; more Italians
in New York City than in Rome, Italy; and more Jews in New York
City than in Tel Aviv, Israel
1910 Census Images for New York City. Edward Rosenbaum, President of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Bergen County, New Jersey offers shareware that computerizes the rules of the Ancestry.Com 1910 census images for New York City. http://erosenbaum.netfirms.com
American Hebrew - a New York CityEnglish language Jewish newspaper. Harvard University has a library from 1935-1960. Brandeis University has a library from 1916-1950 and Drew has a library from 1936-1949. It was published from 1932 to 1935 as the American Hebrew and Jewish Tribune.
Belz (Philip & Sarah) School of Music 500 W. 185th St., New York, NY (212) 960 5353 Fax: (212) 960 5359
Cornell Department of Psychiatry, New York Presbyterian Hospital, Westchester Division - located at 21 Bloomingdale Road, White Plains, NY 10605, Phone 1 888 NYH-5700 or (914)682 9100. This hospital was known as "the Lunatic Asylum at Bloomingdale" circa 1874.
The records from the Dept. of Health (New York City) are not entirely useful for genealogy, since they are not copies of the original records, but rather they are abstracts simply certifying the marriage. You should be able to obtain a copy of the original by making a special request. Standard disclaimer: The views of this user are strictly his own.
The way this department works is you can visit their office, pay a small fee (about $15.00) and look through the index books. If you find your individual, you will have a date of death that will help you find an obituary or death notice in the newspapers. With a date of death, you can also order a copy of the individuals SS-5. The cost is higher and the delay longer, if you don't have a SSN, but the search is still possible.
Birth Records - New York City
New York City Birth Certificates - Registration was required but didn't necessarily occur. Birth registration was required in 1880 in NY. However, midwives often didn't bother to fill out the papers, so until births occurred in hospitals, the registration did not, in fact, happen regularly.
Some Births were registered and some not. Fewer would have been registered in 1890 and more in 1910.
New York City Birth Records - Births reported in the city of New York, 1881-1965 Authors: New York (New York). Department of Health (Main Author)
Notes: Microfilm of original records in the Municipal Archives, New York, New York.
An index to Births in the Boroughs of New York City
Names for 1881 - 1919, 1943 - 1945 are arranged by Soundex code number. For the same time period: names beginning with I are listed with E: K is with C; V is with W; Y is with J; Z is with S. Names for 1910 - 1942, 1946 - 1965 are arranged alphabetically. Includes name, date of birth, borough and certificate number. High reduction (42X) microfilm. Use high magnification reader.
Birth Certificate Searching
Birth certificates after l909 are located at the Dept. of Health in New York City. You cannot obtain them unless you are the person on the certificates or you have a death certificate for that person as it is still personal information. 1909 and before records are public information. Municipal Archives at 31Chambers Street, New York, N.Y., 10007; 212-788-8580.
All boroughs
L-Z 1908-1909
(Y is listed with J) (Z is listed with S) 1322461)
All boroughs
A-Z 1910 Manhattan 1911
All boroughs
1912-1913 Manhattan 1914
1322462
Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Richmond
1913, All boroughs 1914, Manhattan 1915
1322463
Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Richmond 1322464
1915 All boroughs 1916
1322464
All boroughs
1917-1918
1322465
All boroughs
1919-1920
1322466
All boroughs
1921-1922
1322467
All boroughs
1923-1924
1322468
All boroughs
1925-1926 Manhattan 1927
1322469
All boroughs
1927-1928
1322470
All boroughs
1929-1930
1322471
All boroughs
1931-1932
1322472
All boroughs
1933-1934
1322473
All boroughs
1935-1936
1322474
All boroughs
1937-1940
13224
All boroughs
1941-1944
13224
All boroughs
1945-1947
13224
All boroughs
1948-1949 All boroughs, A-Laf 1950
1322478
All boroughs
Lag-Z 1950 All boroughs, A-Z 1951-1952 All boroughs, A-Leib 1953
1322479
All boroughs
Leib-Z 1953 All boroughs 1954-1956
1322480
All boroughs
1957-1960
1322481
All boroughs
1961
1322482
All boroughs
1962
1322483
All boroughs
1963
1322484
All boroughs
1964
1322485
All boroughs
1965
1322486
The above information offered in the JewishGen Digest of 5/14/00 by Hillary Henkin
Many births and marriages were not "registered" with the civil authorities in NYC until probably about l910. Midwives did many births and many of them did not register the births of these babies. Also many churches did not always register the marriages with the City but only kept a record in their own church registers. Only for burials were death certificates required. From a posting to JewishGen on 5/21/03 by Diane Jacobs New York
Bloomingdale Insane Asylum
Located in Morningside Heights in upper Manhattan in the late 19th century. It is now the site of Columbia University.
The home of YIVO, (Yiddisher Visnshaftlekher Institut) American Jewish Historical Society, Leo Baeck Institute, Yeshiva University Museum and American Sephardic Federation. It is located at 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011. Note: Entrance is at 22 West 17th Street, between 5th and 6th Avenues. Dr. Rachel Fisher is the Director.
Department of Health Index to Birth, Marriage and Deaths for New York City
The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) restricts access to the indices for vital records (birth, death) as of April 8, 2009. Only authorized personnel are permitted to research the indices. Anyone may pay $15 to have the staff research a specific name for three years. More years requires additional payment. The DOHMH has birth indices/records after 1909 and death indices/records after 1948. (The New York City Municipal Archives has birth indexes prior to 1910 and death indexes prior to 1949. http://www.nyc.gov/html/records/html/vitalrecords/home.shtml
Located on West 16th Street. You will be required to surrender your coat and bags at the counter and they only allow pencil (no pen), paper and/or laptop (without a case) -- in the reading room.
Jewish Community Center - located at the corner of 76th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan.
Riverside Memorial Chapel 180 West 76th St. (corner of 76th and Amsterdam Avenue) is one of the oldest and most respected memorial chapels in the tri-state area. It serves Long Island, central and northern New Jersey and Westchester County http://www.riversidememorialchapel.com/
Jewish Communal Register of New York City (1917 - 1918)
Listed virtually every communal organization in New York. This book also contains a study of the Jewish Population of New York City; Synagogue Pictures and Drawings; Jewish Schools in NYC and Jewish Periodicals http://home.att.net/~landsmanshaft/communal.htm
Offers an "Annual Guide to Jewish Life in New York" issue and it is posted on their web site. Look for the link with the title "Directions" http://www.thejewishweek.com/
The Lower East Side became the epicenter of American Jewish memory after WW II, when knowledge about the Holocaust and the freedom enjoyed by American Jews combined to foster interest in their past. One result was the production of books and films that highlighted the Lower East Side.
East Side (Lower Manhattan) - 'The Street Necrology of the Lower East Side', which is defined by Houston Street, the East River and by the Manhattan Bridge and the Bowery, was a bustling magnet for immigrants in the 19th and 20th century. Check out this site which includes photos and a map at http://www.forgotten-ny.com/streetnecrology/lowereast/lowereast.html
Historic Orchard Street is where it all began for generations of immigrants from around the world. Orchard Street was one of the busiest shopping streets. I found a brochure on Historic Orchard Street Shopping District that offers an explanation of the time. "The character of Orchard Street began to evolve more than two hundred years ago, when travelers from around the world squeezed their hungry families into the tenement buildings that filled lower Manhattan." In search of opportunity, turn-of-the-century newcomers quickly hit the streets selling their wares out of potato sacks slung over their shoulders, becoming the Lower East Side's first business owners. Not stopping there, the upgrade was made to pushcarts, and eventually storefronts, making Orchard Street one of the busiest commercial districts in the world."
This same brochure, which you can pick up at the Visitors Center, 261 Broome Street (between Orchard and Allen Streets, offers a 'Walking Tour. Telephone 1 212 226 9010. Hours 10 am to 4 pm daily. Toll free number is 1-888-825-8374
Norfolk Street is also located on the famous
Lower East Side of New York where many people lived following their journey
to the US.
Things to see on the tour include Kehila Kedosha Janina Synagogue and Museum 280 Broome Street which opened in 1927 to serve individuals of Greek-Romaniote descent. The (former) Municipal Bath House 113 Allen Street. The University Settlement 184 Eldridge Street - the oldest settlement house in America. The First Rumanian American Congregation 89/91 Rivington Street which was originally built as a Methodist church in 1850 but bought by the Jewish congregation a few years later. Sunshine Theater 143 Houston Street closed for many years, but now a movie house that includes 5 screens and features art house films.
Angel Orensanz Center is the oldest synagogue building in New York. Built in 1849 and now serves as a spiritual and cultural center. Essex Street Market 120 Essex Street has been serving the community for over 50 years selling meats, produce and other markets. It was created by then Mayor Fiorello H. La Guardia to bring pushcart vendors together. Beth Hamedrash Hagadol 60 Norfolk Street is the oldest Russian Jewish congregation in the United States. The Lower East Side Tenement Museum 97 Orchard Street recreates life in the tenements in its restored building with apartments typical of the turn of the century. The Eldridge Street Synagogue 12 Eldridge Street erected in 1887 has been restored and celebrated its 120th anniversary of the building's completion. The synagogue, now the Museum at Eldridge Street has exhibit and performance spaces. www.eldridgestreet.org
Tours available Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. The Forward Building 175 East Broadway was once the home to the most successful Yiddish language newspaper The Jewish Daily Forward founded in 1897. At the Visitor Center 261 Broome Street (between Orchard and Allen Streets) more information about the area can be obtained.
A collection of articles, documentary sources, and study guides was compiled to accompany the course, An Urban Experience: New York City'sLower East Side, 1880-1920. Readers can learn how people coped with, and sometimes prevailed over, the forces of industrialization, immigration, and urbanization.
The Museum of Jewish Heritage - Phone: 646 437 4200 A Living Memorial to the Holocaust - located in Battery Park on Manhattan's southern tip. This museum focuses on three themes: Jewish Life a Century Ago; The War Against Jews and Jewish Renewal. The Museum's director is David Marwell. www.mjhnyc.org
The NY Public Library has indices for post 1937 marriages. This will give you the county and certificate numbers you need. They are organized by groom name. Then you can request the record from the Dept. of Health. You will have to have certain signatures if the individuals are still living.
New York City's Lower East Side Tour - there is a free cell-phone walking tour of "the Lower East Side: Birthplace of Dreams" at 1 800 644 3545. To get started, go on-line to www.talkingstreet.com/les.php and print out the list of 13 stops. Next, program the tour's telephone number into your cell phone; you will call in at each site. You will probably recognize the voice you hear as comedian Jerry Stiller.
Virtual Tour of how the people lived in the tenements, on the lower east side of New York, after they passed through Ellis Island www.wnet.org/archive/tenement/
Lower East Side Tenement Museum - located at 97 Orchard Street. The museum, a restored 1863 tenement building, exhibits a model from 1870 and 1915. The museum is open Tuesday through Friday, noon to 5 pm and Saturday and Sunday 11 to 5 pm. http://www.wnet.org/tenement/
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