Sephardim

Aaron Lopez (1731-1782) was a member of the Converso (converted) community of Portugal. In order to freely practice Judaism, he and his family left Portugal and relocated to British North America, settling in Newport, Rhode Island and later, Massachusetts. He began a successful mercantile business and eventually became a key supplier of the American revolutionary forces.

The collection contains numerous shipping records along with correspondence and accounts with merchants, mercantile families, and firms including Henry Lloyd of Boston, Henry Cruger of Bristol, George Hayley of London, William Stead of Sheffield and New Bedford whaler Joseph Rotch. The collection contains manifests, mercantile accounts, notations, correspondence and inventories of estates for several of the children of Aaron Lopez.

The collection documents professional activities of Edouard Roditi as a art historian and critic and consist of manuscripts, notes, research files, and a wealth of art catalogues, press release, photographs, and exhibit invitations.

The collection consists of correspondence, articles, documents, publications and other materials gathered by Elie Faust-Levy personally and arising from her work as a journalist and as managing editor for the Women's American ORT Reporter. One major topic in the collection is the dissent in the American Jewish community during the 1970's concerning the controversial organization Breira, an associate of which was one of Levy's contributors at the Reporter. Contains articles produced by Breira, (1975-1976), internal publicity and membership information, copies of InterChange, a Breira publication (1975-1977), and mailings relating to it (1976-1977), as well as materials from a 1977 Breira national membership conference. Also includes articles relating to the debate about Breira in the Jewish press (1977-1978), as well as Levy's own, and ORT's internal correspondence regarding their involvement in the controversy, based on a 1977 article in Vol. 27, no. 3 of the Reporter by a writer linked to Breira. The American Sephardic community is the other major topic in the collection, and included are materials from several Sephardic organizations from the 1970's, such as the American Sephardi Federation, the Sephardic Caucus at the 1972 American Zionist Federation, and the Central Sephardic Jewish Community of America. There also are publications and correspondence of The Foundation for the Advancement on Sephardic Studies and Culture, established to promote the Sephardi heritage. Of particular interest are materials relating to the organizations's response to Stephen Birmingham's depiction of American Sephardim in his 1971 book, The Grandees, of which Levy had written a review. Several Sephardic American periodicals and newsletters, or articles on Sephardic American Jewry in Jewish periodicals (1972-1976) are also included.

The collection documents the lives of the Fellman and Taranto families of Long Beach, New York, and Washington, D.C., particularly Rosalind Fellman; her father, Sidney Fellman, who was a dentist and the longtime president of the Yom Tov Hebrew Congregation; her mother, Suzanne Taranto Fellman; her grandparents, Harry and Pauline Fellman and Isaac and Alegra Taranto; and her uncles, Milton Fellman and Maurice Taranto. There is also information about the Yom Tov Hebrew Congregation, with which the Taranto family in particular was closely involved.

The collection documents the life of Saul Candiotti's maternal and paternal grandparents from their immigration from Turkey to the U.S., their marriages, and a glimpse into their lives during WWII and membership in the Keter Zion Angora Society.

This collection contains the research of University of Miami professor of photobiology and medical researcher Elli Kohen. Professor Kohen was a prolific writer in a variety of topics ranging from photobiology to the history of cats to the study of Ladino and Sephardic Jewry. The bulk of this collection contains his notes and drafts of essays and book chapters on the history of Sephardic and Turkish Jews.

Isaac Bitton (1926- ) was born in Lisbon, Portugal. He immigrated to Palestine in the early 1940s where he would go on to serve in the Jewish Brigade of the British Army and later the Israeli Defense Force. He and his family moved to the US in 1959, eventually settling in Woodstock, Illinois. He was a successful executive and philanthropist. This collection contains correspondence and addresses related to the efforts of Isaac Bitton in the restoration of the Jewish cemetery in Faro, Portugal and the recognition of Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes in the aid given to Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany. The collection also contains some material related to his work with the US government, in particular the Small Business Administration.

This collection contains the work of Sephardic scholar and poet David Fintz Altabé. The bulk of this collection consists of lectures and several poems, in addition to a newspaper clipping.

This collection contains the personal papers of Evelyn Klapholtz. The bulk of this collection consists of genealogical information and material related to her family. There is additional material related to the sephardic community in New York City.

This collection documents the events surrounding Sepharad ’92, an event and an international Jewish committee to commemorate the five-hundredth anniversary of the Jewish expulsion from Spain as part of the Spanish Inquisition. The committee, headquartered in New York City, developed programs that sought to educate the public through a variety of approaches about the expulsion and the relocation of Spain’s Jewish population throughout the world. Such programs included educational curriculum, exhibitions, interfaith gatherings, concerts, and conferences.

Sephardic House was established in 1978 as a correction to the often-overlooked contributions of the Sephardic community to American-Jewish culture. The Records of Sephardic House documents the administrative, programming, and publishing activities of Sephardic House since its founding. Such documents include financial records, meeting minutes, correspondence, artist portfolios, press releases, photographs, slides, and much more.

The bulk of this collection consists of correspondence to Hendricks & Brothers, 1833[?]-1851. Also included are business cards from various Hendricks-Tobias family enterprises, correspondence to Harmon Hendricks, and correspondence to several members of the Tobias family.

The collection documents the work of Henry Besso and reflects various aspects of his professional life, personal research and writings in the field of Sephardic culture, Spanish language and linguistics, and Sephardic and Spanish history. Collection also documents Besso's involvement with Sephardic organizations and communities. Collection includes audio materials, brochures, booklets, clippings, conference procedures, correspondence, government publications, minutes, notes, photographs, printed matter, reports, speeches, and writings and translations by Henry Besso and others.

Records of several Jewish communities assembled by Jacob Jacobson.

The collection pertains to the Portuguese Jewish Jessurun family in 19th century Hamburg, including business and private documents.

The Papers of Reverend Abraham Lopes and Mrs. Irma Robles Cardozo contain various materials reflecting the personal and professional lives of Rev. and Mrs. Cardozo, including Rev. Cardozo’s position as Hazzan at Congregation Shearith Israel in New York City and Irma Lopes Cardozo’s numerous philanthropic activities. In addition, there are various materials relating to Sephardic communities throughout the world, honors the Cardozos received, and individuals who had an important influence upon them.

This is a compilation of items collected by Aviva Ben-Ur, mainly in photocopy format, including historical essays about Sephardic Jewry and Ladino, newsletters, maps, and poems.

The David Ribacoff papers consistsphotographs and the personal and professional correspondence and papers of David Ribacoff. The papers highlight David Ribacoff’s involvement with the American Sephardi Federation and other Jewish organizations.

The collection documents the work and correspondence of Joseph A. D. Sutton and reflects various aspects of his life, personal research and writings in the field of Syrian Jewish culture and society, mainly as the Syrian Jews made their way in the United States. The collection also documents the Syrian Jewish experience of the immigrants who came to America and settled, as they are described in his two books: Magic Carpet: Aleppo-in-Flatbush and Aleppo Chronicles. An extensive portion of the collection examines the Syrian community which settled in Brooklyn, including articles by colleagues as well as correspondence.

The collection documents the work and correspondence of Joy Zacharia Appelbaum and reflects various aspects of her life, personal research and writings in the field of Sephardic Jewish culture and society, mainly as they made their way here in the United States. Collection consists in large part of a large array of newspaper and magazine articles describing Sephardic life in various areas of the world, and especially in the United States. An extensive portion of the collection examines the various customs and traditions found among the Sephardim, including customs for the Jewish Holidays (and especially Passover). The collection also includes a significant quantity of information about the American Sephardi Federation, focusing a great deal on its conventions and activities in the late 1980s to early 1990s. There is also a sizable amount of information about the Sephardic communities in the Ottoman regions of Turkey, Greece, and the Balkans, with a considerable amount of material that focuses on the Quincentennial celebrations held to commemorate the expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492.

This collection contains the personal and professional papers of Victor D. Sanua, including published and unpublished articles, materials used in researching these articles, correspondence, and documentation of the various organizations with which Professor Sanua was involved. These materials reflect his work as a psychologist and his active involvement with the history of Jews from Egypt. In addition, there are various materials relating to various Sephardic communities, Israel and the Middle East and cultural factors in mental illness, particularly among Arabs and Jews.

The Rabbi Salomon L. Vaz Dias papers consist of book manuscripts, synagogue ephemera, sheet music, and audiocassettes.

This collection contains the office records of the American Sephardi Federation. Documents focus on the daily functioning, annual conventions, finances, events, and activities of the ASF. The records consist mainly of correspondence, but also include memoranda, reports, financial records, and other organizational documents, as well as newspaper clippings, publications, and photographic media.

This collection contains the institutional records of the Sephardic Jewish Brotherhood of America, a fraternal organization founded in New York in 1921 to serve and unify the American Sephardic Jewish community. These records primarily pertain to issues of membership, including mortuary and sick benefits, scholarships and access to charitable funds, as well as information about community receptions and various other cultural activities.

This collection contains the institutional records of the Source of Life Benevolent Society, a fraternal organization founded in New York in 1911. These records primarily relate to mortuary benefits.

These records reflect the activities of the World Sephardi Federation (WSF), an organization that sought to address the educational and social needs of the Sephardim both in Israel and the Diaspora. The collection is comprised mainly of memos, reports, correspondence, and newspaper clippings that document both the cultural traditions of the Sephardim in the Diaspora and their political and social standing in contemporary Israel. The collection is primarily in English, although it also contains memos and reports in French. In addition, some of the correspondence is occasionally in Spanish. The newspaper articles and clippings are in Hebrew or English.

The children and descendants of Isaac Mendes and Rachel Levy Seixas included individuals who had a great impact on communal affairs and colonial Jewish life in New York, Philadelphia, Newport, and Richmond. Though this collection does not preserve the total volume of papers produced by every family member, the documents contained herein demonstrate the importance of the family in both Jewish and secular life in late 17th and early 18th century North America.

The collection is valuable to researchers studying the Seixas family; civic, mercantile, and religious contributions of Jews in the colonial era; Jewish communities in New York, Philadelphia, Newport, and Richmond; the importance of religion to Colonial Jews; Jewish participation in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and World War I; Jewish converts to Christianity; Jews as masons; and Congregation Shearith Israel of New York.

Prominent individuals in this collection include: Ephraim Hart, Grace Seixas Judah, Mrs. Jesse Judah, Israel Baer Kursheedt, Sarah Seixas Kursheedt, Hayman Levy, Nicholas Low, Isaac Moses, Naphtali Taylor Phillips, Benjamin Mendes Seixas, David G. Seixas, Gershom Mendes Seixas, Isaac Benjamin Seixas, Isaac M. Seixas, Jacob B. Seixas, Joshua Seixas, and Moses Mendes Seixas.

The collection includes: account records, books, circumcision instructions and register, correspondence, drawings, estate papers, a eulogy, family trees, legal documents, petitions, photographs, prayer books, a sermon, and shipping records.

This collection is arranged into four series: Series I: Family Papers; Series II: Moses Seixas (1744-1809); Series III: Gershom Mendes Seixas (1746-1816) and descendants; and Series IV: Benjamin Mendes Seixas (1748-1817) and descendants.

The Sephardic Home for the Aged served as a nursing and rehabilitation center for the Sephardic Jewish community of New York City from 1951-2014. While this collection spans the institution’s history, the bulk of the records stems from 1988-2011. The largest portions of the collection are the photographs and Board of Directors files. Also included are the by-laws and constitution, general administrative files, event files, and files of the Ladies Auxiliary of the Sephardic Home Association (LASHA).

The collection relates to the life of Jewish refugees, mostly of German and Austrian origin, in Shanghai primarily between the years 1939-1948. It covers many aspects of their experience, including political and cultural events, relief and charity activities, and self-help. The collection originated from the YIVO exhibition that was organized and displayed in 1947 in Shanghai and later in New York. The collection consists of manuscripts, minutes of meetings, correspondence, newspaper clippings, and printed materials.

Collection encompasses an extensive variety of organizations, subjects, and formats and is most useful for genealogists and researchers interested in general information. Researchers looking for a particular publication will also find this collection helpful.