Records of the Jewish Colonization Association
Scope and Content Note
This a partial inventory of the Records of the Jewish Colonization Association. Only Series III: JCA Activities in Russia and Series IV: JCA Activities in Galicia have been described here. Included in this series are reports on JCA colonies, cooperative savings and loans societies, agricultural schools, vocational and technical schools, carpentry workshops, mechanized embroidery factories and weaving factories. For the rest of the inventory please refer to a hard copy located at the YIVO Archives.
The JCA records in this collection pertain to JCA activities in Argentina, Palestine, Russia, Galicia (Poland), Canada, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Cyprus and Germany. The largest part of the collection pertains to JCA colonies in Argentina. The reports relate to all aspects of the colonies' development and include information on harvests, droughts, surveys of land, education. The smaller part, JCA sponsored projects and colonies in Europe, Palestine, Canada includes reports on JCA colonies, cooperative savings and loans societies, agricultural schools, vocational and technical schools, carpentry workshops, mechanized embroidery factories and weaving factories.
Dates
- 1898-1913
Creator
- Hias-Ica Emigration Association (Organization)
Language of Materials
English, Russian, Yiddish, Polish.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open to the public. Permission to publish part or parts of the collection must be obtained in writing from the YIVO Archives.
Conditions Governing Use
There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact:
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011
email: archives@yivo.cjh.org
Historical Note
The Jewish Colonization Association was founded in 1891 by Baron Maurice de Hirsch and incorporated in London as a joint stock company. JCA headquarters were in Paris until 1949 when they were transferred to London.
The JCA assisted Jewish emigration and agricultural colonization throughout the world and sponsored vocational and agricultural schools, local manufacturing industries, savings and loan societies in Europe and elsewhere. The passage of the Immigration Quota Act in 1924 greatly decreased the opportunities for Jewish immigration. To deal with the situation of economic depression and anti-Semitism and to assist immigration, the United Evacuation Committee was formed by JCA jointly with Emigdirekt and the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (AJDC). In 1927, HIAS (Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society), the JCA and Emigdirekt formed HICEM, a migration organization, which had about 57 committees in over 20 countries.
Although emigration from poverty stricken Europe was JCA's most important goal, the organization assisted communities throughout Europe by setting up agricultural colonies and schools, cooperative savings and loan societies, vocational and technical schools in Poland, Russia, Rumania. The JCA sponsored the establishment of colonies in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Palestine, Cyprus and Turkey. In the United States Baron de Hirsch established the Baron de Hirsch Fund and founded the agricultural school of Woodbine and cofounded the Jewish Agricultural Society. The JCA also distributed several thousand loans to immigrants. From 1965 JCA cooperated with the United HIAS Service contributing to the Special Rescue Program for transportation of immigrants from Eastern Europe and North Africa.
Extent
3.75 Linear Feet
Abstract
This is a partial inventory of the Records of the Jewish Colonization Association. Portion of JCA records described here pertains to JCA activities in Galicia and Russia only. Included here are reports on JCA colonies, cooperative savings and loans societies, agricultural schools, vocational and technical schools, carpentry workshops, mechanized embroidery factories and weaving factories.
Arrangement
The collection was originally arranged by Zosa Szajkowski in the 1970s and was inventoried as part of the Records of HIAS-HICEM I, Section XXXVI. In 2001, under a grant from the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) in New York, archivists Gunnar Berg and Fruma Mohrer revised and expanded the finding aid.
- Series III: JCA Activities in Russia, 1902-1909
- Series IV: JCA Activities in Galicia, 1899-1907
Acquisition Information
The records were received by YIVO in 1948. The arrival of the collection was reported in the News of the YIVO, Issue 36 Page 8 (Yiddish side).
Microfilm
This collection has been microfilmed and is available on four Microfilm reels MKM 15.166 - 15.169.
- Agricultural education
- Banks and banking, Cooperative
- Baron de Hirsch Fund
- Civilian relief
- Communal welfare organizations
- Education -- Russia
- Factories
- Galicia (Poland and Ukraine)
- Handicraft
- Jewish Colonization Association
- Jewish education statistics. Research report
- Jews -- Agriculture
- Pogroms -- Russia
- Reports
- Savings and loan associations
- Vocational education
- YIVO Archives
- Title
- Guide to the Records of the Jewish Colonization Association 1898-1913 RG 236
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Processed by Zosa Szajkowski, 1970s.
- Date
- © 2007
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Description is in English.
- Sponsor
- Finding Aid expanded and revised by Gunnar Berg and Fruma Mohrer with the assistance of a grant from the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), New York, 2001. Finding aid, Series: Galicia and Russia, edited, encoded and posted online thanks to a grant from the Gruss Lipper Family Foundation.
Repository Details
Part of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research Repository