Atlas des colonies et domaines de la Jewish Colonization Association en République Argentine et au Brésil [“Atlas of colonies and domains of the Jewish Colonization Association in the Argentine Republic and in Brazil.”]

The Jewish Colonization Association was created on September 11, 1891 by Baron Maurice de Hirsch of Paris. Its aim was to facilitate the mass emigration of Jews from Russia and other Eastern European countries, by settling them in agricultural colonies on lands purchased by the committee, particularly in South America. Settlement began in the pampas of Argentina in the colony of Moisésville. There, it was expected that in time Russian Jewish immigrants would be transformed into gaucho - cowboys. By 1930, the peak of Jewish settlement, over 20,000 colonists were farming land in Argentina. From the maps and graphs in this volume, one may glean important facts and statistics concerning the progress of this noble experiment. The colonies in Brazil were started later in 1904, but did not fare as well as their Argentine counterparts. By 1928 the Brazilian colonies were phased out. See EJ, Vol. X, cols. 44-49.