Collection of c. 40 volumes of assorted financial, institutional, and charitable records emanating from a variety of Jewish organizations from New York City’s Lower East Side.

(AMERICAN-JUDAICA).

New York City

1901-1966 (though principally from the first half of the 20th century)

This collection provides a snapshot of the day-to-day workings of a number of Jewish institutions from Manhattan’s Lower East Side, a neighborhood which was, for decades in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the beating heart of American Jewry. These synagogues, landsmanschaften, and a variety of charitable endeavors from free loan societies to those organizations dedicated to feeding the hungry or subsidizing health care, each maintained numerous ledgers. These volumes may be mined for a broad range of institutional history. Some contain names and addresses in addition to amounts pledged or donated; others contain membership applications and questionnaires. Still others document the income and expenses in granular fashion. A bill (in English) for 10,000 pounds of coal sits next to a receipt (in Yiddish) for 150 yarmulkes. . Includes material from the following organizations (inter alia): Bnei Jacob-Anshei Brzezan, Congregation Ahavath Jeshurun, Shevet Achim-Anshei Slonim, First Warschauer Society, Hungarian Congregation B.H.H., Bnei Tomashov, Rozwadorer Chevra-Bnei Moshe Horowitz, East Side Ladies Lechem Aniyim Society, Gemilut Chasadim Hevra Tiferet Achim Sfard Anshei Polin, Independent Slonimer Benevolent Society, and Workmens Circle. A true treasure trove for a researcher of this seminal period in the history of the Jews in New York.