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Finding aid prepared by Marilyn Henry with the assistance of a grant from Marshall
Weinberg in her honor.
Archives of The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Inc.
Email: archives@jdc.org
| ID Code: | NY AR191921 |
| Creator: | American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee |
| Title: | Records of the New York Office of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, 1919 - 1921 |
| Inclusive Dates: | July 1, 1919 - December 31, 1921 |
| Extent: | 30 linear feet |
| Location: | American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, New York Archives |
The collection comprises 290 numbered files from the New York Headquarters records
of JDC, supplemented by the papers of the following JDC personnel: James N. Rosenberg, Dr. Cyrus Adler, Dr. Boris D. Bogen, Mrs. Harriet B. Lowenstein Goldstein, Joseph Marcus, Alexander A. Landesco, Dr. Israel Friedlander, and Rabbi Bernard Cantor; and by the records of JDC's European Headquarters; the records of the JDC Landsmannschaften Department; and the records of Prisoners of War in Siberia aided by JDC.
The material consists primarily of correspondence, cables, minutes, and transcripts of JDC meetings and conferences, reports, and interviews of JDC representatives and others pertaining to JDC's relief activities and its organization. The collection contains documentation on prevailing conditions across the globe, including news dispatches and articles, field reports, eyewitness accounts, diaries and memoirs, and some lists of victims. There are records of the transmission overseas of individual remittances, the collection of funds in the United States, and the distribution of funds and supplies abroad.
The collection vividly depicts the chaotic post-war political, economic, and social conditions in Eastern Europe, Palestine, and other areas; the plight of uprooted Jewish refugees and war orphans and the stranded Jewish prisoners of war in Siberia; and the proliferation of anti-Semitic attacks and ghastly pogroms, particularly in the Ukraine. At the same time, it describes the major role that JDC played in bringing the suffering of Jews overseas to the attention of the public and the outpouring of support that followed; and it details JDC's cooperation with government offices and agencies, and with humanitarian non-sectarian and Jewish organizations, as it responded to the misery and dislocation of this turbulent time.
This period--January 1, 1919 through July 1, 1921--saw the establishment of JDC's overseas organization, and several units of relief workers were sent abroad. Substantial materials document the work of Dr. Israel Friedlaender and Rabbi Bernard Cantor, who were murdered while on a mission for JDC.
After July 1, 1921, emergency relief activity was largely discontinued, except in Russia, and JDC activities and programs focused on rehabilitation and reconstruction. A new operational system was developed, and five functional departments were organized to target different areas of need: medico-sanitary improvements, childcare, economic reconstruction, refugee care, and cultural and religious institutions.
The material consists primarily of correspondence, cables, minutes, and transcripts of JDC meetings and conferences, reports, and interviews of JDC representatives and others pertaining to JDC's relief activities and its organization. The collection contains documentation on prevailing conditions across the globe, including news dispatches and articles, field reports, eyewitness accounts, diaries and memoirs, and some lists of victims. There are records of the transmission overseas of individual remittances, the collection of funds in the United States, and the distribution of funds and supplies abroad.
The collection vividly depicts the chaotic post-war political, economic, and social conditions in Eastern Europe, Palestine, and other areas; the plight of uprooted Jewish refugees and war orphans and the stranded Jewish prisoners of war in Siberia; and the proliferation of anti-Semitic attacks and ghastly pogroms, particularly in the Ukraine. At the same time, it describes the major role that JDC played in bringing the suffering of Jews overseas to the attention of the public and the outpouring of support that followed; and it details JDC's cooperation with government offices and agencies, and with humanitarian non-sectarian and Jewish organizations, as it responded to the misery and dislocation of this turbulent time.
This period--January 1, 1919 through July 1, 1921--saw the establishment of JDC's overseas organization, and several units of relief workers were sent abroad. Substantial materials document the work of Dr. Israel Friedlaender and Rabbi Bernard Cantor, who were murdered while on a mission for JDC.
After July 1, 1921, emergency relief activity was largely discontinued, except in Russia, and JDC activities and programs focused on rehabilitation and reconstruction. A new operational system was developed, and five functional departments were organized to target different areas of need: medico-sanitary improvements, childcare, economic reconstruction, refugee care, and cultural and religious institutions.
Copyright held by The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Inc. Other
intellectual property rights may apply. The publication of JDC records in any format
requires the written permission of the JDC Archives. Users must apply in writing for
permission to reproduce or publish manuscript materials found in this collection.
For more
information contact: archives@jdc.org
Repository, Title of Collection, Folder number, Title of item, Date of item.
Example: JDC Archives, Records of the New York Office of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee,
1919 - 1921, Folder #63.3, Information Service Letter No. 20.10, 08/01/1920.
The main categories of arrangement are:
This
subcollection focuses on the composition, structure, operations, leadership and personnel
of JDC, JDC committees, and JDC administrative departments and is divided into the
following two record groups:
New York Headquarters
Administration
Records describe expanding JDC committee development, assignments, and
commitments to undertake relief activities for impoverished Jews in various
locations abroad; conferences addressing the needs of Jews and Jewish communities
overseas; fundraising campaigns and the use of publicity materials to raise public
awareness; procedures for the transmission of relief funds and individual
remittances.
Overseas Administration
This
subcollection deals with JDC's relationship and cooperation with the United States
Government, departments, and agencies; with JDC constituent member organizations,
other
private Jewish organizations, landsmannschaften (immigrant fraternal associations),
commercial agencies and businesses, and non-sectarian humanitarian agencies.
This
subcollection treats the functional activities of JDC in this period and documents
efforts
to assist orphans and children; to support rabbis and cultural and religious institutions;
to provide aid for emigrants, and care and relief for the displaced and the vulnerable;
to
set up medical facilities and public health services to combat disease, infant mortality,
and unsanitary living conditions; to distribute supplies and kosher provisions; to
respond
to personal appeals for help in locating and assisting family members; and to organize
up
trade schools, training programs, and loan societies; to supply tools and machinery;
and
to help rebuild homes and shattered lives. The Subject Matter subcollection is divided
into the following nine record groups:
The documents
in this subcollection detail JDC's efforts to alleviate suffering and rebuild devastated
communities; they are organized in record groups that are arranged alphabetically
by
country or region. When the amount of material for each country or region warrants
further
classification, the record group may be broken down into series.
Records describe overseas relief efforts, communal conditions, and appeals for
funds; the establishment of JDC's EUREXCO (European Executive Council), with
headquarters in Paris; the end of emergency relief activities, the closing of
JDC's overseas branches and committees, and the reorganization on a functional
basis.
Arrangement and collection-level description of the 1919 - 1921 Collection was originally
produced by Eleanor Mlotek in 1969. Marilyn Henry updated the finding aid in 2009
using
current descriptive standards and practices, but did not renumber files or modify
arrangement.