Rabbis

Manuscripts and research notes on Jewish history, including the emancipation of the Jews, nineteenth century emigration of German Jews to the United States, Jewish education, and the Jewish communities of Heidelberg, Goettingen, Frankfurt am Main, Magdeburg, and especially Cologne and vicinity, including manuscripts of eighteenth-century chroniclers.

The bulk of this collection consists of materials docmenting the research of Alexander Altmann on German and German-Jewish history, particularly the philosophy of Moses Mendelssohn.

Records of the Consistoire Central des Israélites de France, as well as of the local consistories for the departments of Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin (Alsace) and Moselle and Meurthe-et-Moselle (Lorraine), in Strasbourg, Colmar, Metz and Nancy, including minutes, tax-lists, lists of rabbis, cantors, and notables, censuses of Jewish communities, and correspondence.

This collection contains personal and family documents of the noted rabbi and scholar Arnold Lazarus, and is particularly strong in documenting his time as a German field chaplan in World War I.

The Arnold Tänzer Collection documents the work and life of this German rabbi. Prominent topics of this collection include Moritz Lazarus, Jews in the German military, and the Jewish communities of Göppingen and Württemberg. The papers consist of manuscripts, official documents, diaries, correspondence, clippings, and a few photographs.

This collection is composed of the papers of Arthur Bluhm, chief rabbi of Krefeld, Germany between 1928 and 1938, and rabbi of Temple B'nai Israel in Amarillo, Texas. It documents his professional life and also holds records related to the Krefeld Jewish Community and the Jews in Westphalia. In addition, the collection contains the papers of Abraham Sutro, chief rabbi of Westphalia from 1815-1869.

Collection contains a copy of the published memorial book and its English translation. The first generation described in the book is Rabbi Yehuda, the son of Rabbi Eliezer Halevi Mintz, the Askenazi Rabbi in the city of Padua, Italy, who died in the Hebrew year 5269 [1509]. The book, which covers the years 1461-1920, was translated from Hebrew by S.J. Sacks.

Collection consists of first day of issue stamps issued by the U.S. Post office. Included with each stamp is a biographical or historical sketch of Jewish history as it relates to the stamp's theme. Sketches are organized alphabetically by subject.

The collection contains bylaws, circulars, guiding principles, lectures, minutes, newspaper articles, and proclamations pertaining to the German representative organization “Centralverein”.

Circulars, pamphlets, clippings, reports concerning the Centralverein deutscher Staatsbuerger Juedischen Glaubens, and Eugen Fuchs, its cofounder.

Correspondence, including letters from Leo Baeck, Salo Baron, Julie Braun-Vogelstein, Martin Buber, Werner Cahnmann, Max Dienemann, Ismar Elbogen, Erich Fromm, Hermann Fürnberg, Nahum Glatzer, Nahum Goldmann, Max Gruenewald, Max Grunwald, Siegfried Guggenheim, Ernest Jones, Hermann Kesten, Guido Kisch, Adolf Kober, Franz Kobler, Joachim Prinz, Lessing Rosenwald, Ingrid Warburg, Alma Mahler-Werfel, and Franz Werfel.

Rabbi in Waco, Texas. Primarily correspondence with other American rabbis on matters pertaining to religious divorce.

The collection consists of materials relating to Jewish religious life in Europe from the 1830s to the 1930s. Topics include: marriages, births, divorces, deaths, bar mitzvahs, holidays, the Sabbath, daily customs, ritual slaughter (shehitah), ritual baths, mezuzahs, prayers, rabbis. Items include: marriage contracts, divorce deeds, wedding invitations, birth announcements, bar mitzvah speeches, New Year's cards, correspondence, photographs.

The collection documents the time David Cedarbaum spent serving as a Jewish military chaplain in the Marianas during World War II.

Various archival materials from archives in Hesse, Nuremberg, Trier, Oldenburg, Regensburg, Maarburg, Mecklenburg, Frankfurt, Cologne, and Luebeck, pertaining mainly to the history of conversion and assimilation of Jews in Germany. The materials were collected by Deborah Hertz for her research on the book “How Jews Became Germans”.

Consists primarily of Hebrew language Responsa, including: replies to practical questions involving Jewish law and ritual submitted by congregants and other Jews in the communities Drucker served as a Rabbi; correspondence with prominent American Orthodox rabbis, among whom are Rabbis Jacob Joseph, Solomon Jaffe, Jacob Ridbaz and Hayyim Jacob Vidrowitz; and newspaper clippings regarding on Drucker's career, family and communal activities.

Eliyahu Guttmacher was a rabbi, Talmudic scholar, mystic, communal leader, and early Zionist. During his lifetime he was known as the Tsadik of Grätz and thousands of Jews flocked to him for blessings and advice. Guttmacher was also known for his support of Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Kalischer, an early Zionist, and for his extensive collection of funds for institutions in Palestine. The bulk of the collection consists of several thousand kvitlekh (written requests to a rabbi asking for a blessing or advice). The kvitlekh were received from Jews residing in Poland and other, mostly European, countries. They reflect the social history of European Jews in the mid-19th century and relate to financial, medical, and family problems. In addition, the collection contains the following: general correspondence, including inquiries relating to religious matters, family correspondence, legal documents such as court and government papers, bills, certifications by unidentified authors, discussions on Jewish law by unknown authors, amulets, business documents, and receipts for contributions to charitable institutions in Palestine.

The Elk-Zernik Family Collection provides documentation on the lives of several family members, especially Rabbi Max (Meir) Elk, dentist Benjamin Elk, Helmut Zernik and Charlotte Elk Zernik. The collection also holds the written compositions of several family members, including the sermons and articles of Max Elk and the autobiographical writing of Charlotte Elk Zernik. Other material includes a photo album and family photographs, a scrapbook, official papers and certificates, letters, some correspondence and clippings.

The Emil Schorsch Collections documents professional activities of Emil Schorsch, a Rabbi and a communal leader, after his emigration from Germany in 1939. The collection includes brochures, booklets, clippings, correspondence, notes, immigration documents, printed materials, and writings.

The correspondence, newspaper clippings, and official documents contained in this collection chronicle the impact of World War II on the life of Erwin Taenzer, an electrician and the son of a rabbi, and his extended family.

The bulk of the collection consists of letters to Esriel Hildesheimer\ and others from various individuals, mostly rabbis in Germany, Austria-Hungary, Palestine, Eastern Europe, and the United States, and institutions, including Akiba Lehren, David Neimann, Simcha Bunem Sofer, Yeshiva Etz-Hayyim, Adolf Jellinek, and the Oesterreichisch- Ungarisch- Israelitische Gemeinde, Jerusalem. Approximately one-half of the correspondence is transcribed.

This collection holds papers of the philosopher Karl Joël and of various members of the Philippson family. Karl Joël's material includes personal and professional correspondence and a considerable amount of his notes, along with newspaper clippings on him and a few articles. Philippson family material largely focuses on Phöbus, Ludwig and Moritz Philippson's family correspondence and writing. Also present are letters of other family members, a few official documents and notes.

The Frederick Brunner Collection incorporates the research of the banker and LBI board chairman Frederick Brunner. Prominent subjects encompassed in this research include the Rothschild family and the history of Jews in Landau in der Pfalz. Some research on banking history and Jews as bankers may also be found here. The collection contains extensive newspaper clippings, articles, correspondence, notes, genealogical tables and family trees, and a few photographs.

The collection contains primarily photocopies of documents concerning the efforts of the Vida family to emigrate from their home in Gablonz, Sudetenland (today Jablonec nad Nisou, Czech Republic) to the United States. There are also several of Vida's handwritten sermons.

The Germany (Vilna Archives) collection contains materials of diverse provenances pertaining to Jewish life in Germany and, to a much lesser extent, other German-speaking areas of central Europe (Austria, Bohemia, Moravia), from the 16th century until the beginning of the Second World War. It includes correspondence, financial records, official documents, business records, writings, minutes, reports, book catalogs, printed ephemera, occasional clippings, and a handful of photographs. A little more than 60% of the collection comprises personal and family papers, or individual items of correspondence (approximately 140 different name headings); and a little over 20%, portions of the records of the Jewish communities of Darmstadt, Frankfurt am Main, Filehne (Wieleń), Raschkow (Raszków), and Rybnik. The remainder of the collection consists of various printed ephemera and scattered records related to Jewish communities, organizations, or firms, including publishers and booksellers. Also included are some 15 individual older items dating from the mid 16th to the early decades of the 19th century, including Schutzbriefe (residence permits), petitions, and attestations, as well as a mohel book (registry of circumcisions). Especially noteworthy among the personal papers are those of art dealer Josef Sandel, comparative law scholar Ernst Rabel, the Henschel brothers (artists), writer and social activist Lina Morgenstern, engineer Erich Kempinski, and writer and editor Julius Rodenberg. The several rabbis represented include Josef Jona Horovitz, of Hunsdorf (Huncovce) and Frankfurt am Main; Salomon Breuer and Isidor Friedmann, both of Frankfurt am Main; and Wolf Landau, of Dresden.

The Papers of Graenum Berger (1908-1999) document Berger's involvement with Ethiopian Jewry and his efforts to bring about their rescue from Ethiopia through his organization, the American Association for Ethiopian Jews (AAEJ). The Papers also contain materials regarding Berger's other interests-his writings, his travels throughout the world, his community affiliations, his career as a Jewish social work executive, his commitment to Jewish causes, and his commitment to Israel. Also included are personal and biographical materials from his many long-term friendships and associations; correspondence, minutes, reports, clippings, manuscripts, research materials, journal articles, photographs, and publications.

This collection contains some personal papers and a number of printed sermons and essays by Heymann Jolowicz and others; in many cases these materials appear to have been privately printed or printed only in a very limited run.

23 letters from and to Rabbi Heimann Jolowicz

The bulk of the collection consists of musical scores and sheet music, both handwritten by Henry Shotland and printed works he collected. In addition, there is biographical collection compiled by Marianne Shotland and a picture of cantor Leo Kartschmaroff.