Notebooks

This collection describes the work and lives of the composer, conductor, and accompanist Warner S. Bass and his wife, the singer Marion Corda Bass. Most prominent among the materials of this collection are the music scores created by Warner Bass; they include works he composed, arranged, orchestrated, transcribed, or performed. Other items include personal documents, correspondence, published sheet music, photographs, essays, notes, concert and recital programs, press releases, and clippings.

The collection contains research material for Marion Freyer Wolff’s book Mother of a Thousand, about the doll maker Edith Samuel. The collection, donated by the author, includes personal letters from Edith to Marion (1930’s-1964) and photographs, mainly showing Edith’s artwork. The content of the collection also contains material about Marion herself, about her parents, Leo and Eva Freyer née Lichtenstein, and other extended family members. Included are papers and correspondence of the Freyer/ Lichtenstein family and genealogy information.

The collection comprises documents related to the Meyer family and Jewish life in Württemberg as well as newspaper clippings from the 20th century. Mostly it features materials about Jewish life in Southern Germany from the 18th century to the 19th century. Moreover, personal notes from Max Meyer on religious topics, Festschriften and items related to the Jewish graveyard in Stuttgart-Hoppenlau are part of the collection.

The collection includes memoirs, poems, notes, correspondence, photographs and clippings pertaining to Miriam Merzbacher-Blumenthal, to her husband Peter and to her mother Ilse Blumenthal-Weiss.'Materials concentrate on the 1940s, when Miriam Merzbacher-Blumenthal and her mother Ilse Blumenthal-Weiss lived in Amsterdam and New York, as well as on correspondence from the 1950s and 1960s.

The Morawetz-Glaser Family Collection documents these two Czech families, and in particular the notable events in the lives of the industrialist and philanthropist Richard Morawetz and his wife Frida (née Glaser) and of their children. The collection includes extensive family correspondence; family writings including diaries, memoirs, and poems; photographs and photo albums; family trees and genealogical research correspondence; newspaper clippings and articles; and official documents and other papers.

Mordecai Gebirtig was born in Kraków (Cracow), Poland on May 4, 1877. He was killed in the Kraków ghetto on June 4, 1942, during the deportation to the Belzec death camp. Gebirtig, a carpenter by trade, became world famous as the poet and composer of a wide array of Yiddish folksongs. His ballads and song-poems were performed by foremost artists of his time, as well as itinerant street singers in the Jewish courtyards of Europe. His songs were heard and admired in the prestigious Yiddish theaters of Poland. Much has been written about Gebirtig, both during his lifetime and in the aftermath of his death. Today, his music and legacy continue to flourish even in countries where Yiddish is not regularly spoken. His book, Mayne lider has been published in the United States, Poland, France, Italy, and Germany. His songs are widely recorded. The collection consists mostly of manuscripts of Mordecai Gebirtig’s songs ranging from the 1920s-1942.

The Nathan Stein Collection consists of the educational and professional papers of this jurist that document the progression of his career. Other papers include two confirmation books, certificates related to his year of military service and for awards given to him, and a few newspaper clippings, including obituaries for him.

This collection comprises Paul Steiner's diaries and notebooks compiled in 1926-1945. It prominently features manuscripts of his writing, which consists of essays with philosophical or political content, short stories, plays and poetry. In addition, the collection holds drafts of letters to Thomas Mann and a few issues of the 'Kulturelle Schriftenreihe des Free Austrian Movement' (Cultural Series of the Free Austrian Movement).

The collection holds two texts about the life of Julius Sofer who worked for the Koh-i-noor button business in Vienna and Prague, as well as several pocket calendars used as diaries by him and his daughter Lisl. Their entries describe the people they met and their daily business. The entries from Lisl provide a glimpse into her preparation to emigrate as well as the start of her new life, as she called it, in the late summer of 1938.

The first three folders contain biographical material about Julius Sofer. Folder 1/1 holds a short biography of Julius Sofer which is part of the book “The boy who wore white stockings,” which tells the story of Peter Pollak, the son of Lilia Sofer and grandson of Julius. Folder 1/2 contains the transcription of Julius Sofer’s memoirs. They consist of a detailed story about his growing up in the small village Frideck, Moravia (Frýdek, Czech Republic) with a focus on his work at several businesses in Vienna. He joined the Koh-i-noor business in 1902. Folder 1/3 holds the death announcement of Julius Sofer, which was published in the newspaper Aufbau on February 1st, 1957.

Folder 1/4 contains empty envelopes which were sent from Vienna to New York during the 1940s. Most of them are addressed to Elizabeth Polk. They all have the censor stamps of the Nazi regime on them. The letters can be found in the Grace Polk Family collection addenda, AR 25489. Additionally, the folder includes a message written in 1946 to Julius Sofer regarding the transport of the belongings of Katharina Sofer in 1940.

Folder 1/5 holds some documents related to the S.S. President Roosevelt which traveled from Hamburg to New York in 1938. Hans-Gunther Pollak and his wife Elizabeth (Sofer) were onboard. Included are a list of passengers and the menu of the Gala dinner, as well as a deck plan.

Folder 1/6 holds two saving books from Harry George and Elizabeth Polk. They show the initial deposit of $4,340.- which was transferred from a Swiss account by Julius Sofer to each of his children. The entries show that it was used to cover large expenses, but also some larger withdrawals, which were probably used to pay for affidavits and later for a down payment for a house. Moreover, it includes the membership card for the Humanitas Lodge (Free Mason Lodge) of Julius Sofer and two printed address books of members of the club including Julius Sofer.

Folder 1/7 holds two address books. One includes many names from all over Europe but also notes from presumably Julius Sofer’s work around 1900. The other one was used in New York.

Three folders hold pocket calendars that were used as diaries. Folder 1/8 holds three pocket calendars. One was used by Julius Sofer, and two are from Lisl. The notes in the 1936 calendar describe the weekly meetings of Misses Sofer and Mister Pollak (Lisl’s later husband Hans-Gunther Pollak / Harry Polk) as well as their engagement in October. Folder 1/9 holds four pocket calendars that were used as diaries in 1938 and 1939. According to notes two of them were used by Lisl. She wrote about her immigration to New York under the title “start of a new life” in the calendar for 1938. Folder 1/10 holds two pocket calendars that were used as diaries by Julius Sofer in 1941 and 1944 containing aphorisms and addresses. The diary from 1944 also shows his finances from 1946 to 1948.

The Renate Bridenthal Family Collection primarily documents the lives and especially the emigration experiences of Renate Bridenthal's parents, Elchunon and Irene Rubin. Papers of Irene Rubin are prominent in the collection and include restitution correspondence and her writing. Documents related to Renate and her brother Harribald's early lives and emigration is are also present. The collection consists of extensive personal and restitution correspondence, official documents, newspaper clippings regarding Irene Rubin's death, drafts of her writing, and three albums.

The collection includes correspondence; poetry and manuscript drafts; official, educational and military documents; sermons; newspaper clippings; family trees; notes; and a few photographs.

This collection documents the life and work of Richard D. Loewenberg, a German physician who immigrated via Shanghai to the United States. Contained are several of his manuscripts on general as well as medical topics, offprints and clippings of his published articles, correspondence, poems, personal documents, notebooks and diaries.

This collection consists of Richard M. Sheirich’s materials pertaining to his research on Richard Beer-Hofmann’s private correspondence and works. In addition to the original papers, correspondence, notes, and photos of Richard Beer-Hofmann and his family that Richard M. Sheirich gathered, the collection contains Sheirich’s correspondence with Richard Beer-Hofmann’s daughter Miriam Beer-Hofmann Lens, his and other scholars’ works on Beer-Hofmann, several photocopies of the original Beer-Hofmann papers, and Sheirich’s notes.

This collection contains the documents of diplomat Richard Straus, his wife Elaine, and his son Alan in addition to documentation on his extended family members, especially including members of the Straus, Heimberger, and Niedermann families. The most prominent topics in the collection relate to Richard Straus's role as diplomat, family members' emigration and Holocaust experiences, and Alan Straus's early life, although material relating to family members' lives in Germany prior to the 1930s is also present. The collection includes extensive personal family correspondence and photographs; official, educational, and professional documents; family members' writings as well as articles about them; childhood and educational memorabilia; and documentation related to the deaths of family members.

The collection consists of personal papers, records from educational institutions and articles written by Robert Simon. Also included are items related to Simon’s burning of his draft card to protest the Vietnam War, including court records, personal notes and correspondence. The collection reflects the role in modern American society of a young Jew involved in liberal causes and the literary world.

The Robert Lowy Family Collection details the immigration of the Lowy family to the United States via Belgium. It also features the restitution of the family for its losses and the education of Robert (Ralph) Lowy. Many family members are remembered through the collection's numerous photographs. Aside from photographs and photo albums, the collection includes much correspondence, official documentation, notes and notebooks and some educational certificates of Robert Lowy.

This collection consists mainly of correspondence between family members of Rose Wegner, predominantly of her mother Gertrud Leon's letters from Berlin to Rose in New York in the years 1938-1942. The recent correspondence between Peter Leon and Beate Niemann deals with the past of Beate's Nazi parents and their connection to the Leons.

The collection contains materials relating to Ruth Jacobsen, a Hidden Child of the Holocaust and the first female projectionist in New York. A lot of the collection is dedicated to Jacobsen’s attempt to cope with her past as a Hidden Child and sharing her testimony with others through her art. The collection is arranged into four series and six subseries. Materials in the collection include manuscripts, collage books, photographs, artworks, correspondence, and notebooks.

The Salomon Benedikt Goldschmidt Family Collection encompasses family papers and genealogical information on the family, documenting several generations of the Goldschmidt family as well as the related Porges von Portheim family. Included are short memoirs and diaries along with official and legal documents and two genealogical works with numerous family trees. Other items include account books, newspaper clippings, and a few letters and photographs.

The Sartorius Family Collection holds documentation on the history of the Sartorius family, along with its related families. Most of the collection consists of family trees and correspondence concerning family genealogy, although memoirs and biographical articles are also present, as are a number of family photographs. The collection especially provides information on the family's origins in Germany and lives in the American South, including family members' service in the Confederate forces during the Civil War, in addition to some information on parts of the family who resided in France.

The Schweitzer Fürstenheim Family collection holds the papers of the interrelated Schweitzer and Furstenheim families, most prominently focusing on the lives of the attorney Ulrich Schweitzer, his parents Hugo and Charlotte Schweitzer, sister Isabel, and Charlotte’s father Franz Furstenheim. Papers of some related family members are also included. The collection contains the family’s comprehensive correspondence especially during their separation from 1937-1946, along with documentation of their lives in Germany and the United States, immigration, professional papers, extensive photographs, personal papers, and other documents. Ulrich Schweitzer’s professional work is also documented.

The Seligsohn Kroner Family Collection consists of material that reflects the life and work of the philosopher Richard J. Kroner (1884-1974), his wife Alice Kroner née Kauffmann (1885-1968), their daughter Gerda M. Seligsohn née Kroner (1909-2002), and their son-in-law Rabbi Rudolf Seligsohn (1909-1943). The collection primarily consists of correspondence relating to the emigration experiences of each of the family members. In addition, the collection contains personal documents, newspaper clippings, off-prints of the philosophical writings of Richard Kroner, photographs, a photo album, and a few paintings.

Shirley T. Joseph was a feminist Jewish activist involved in a number of advocacy groups and community organizations working locally (in Buffalo, New York), nationally, and internationally. She attended three of the United Nations’ World Conferences on Women (in 1980, 1985, and 1995), and the bulk of the collection documents these events in the records of various planning committees, personal correspondence, official UN documentation, collections of news clippings, and Joseph’s own notes, speeches, and articles.

This collection consists of materials gathered by Simon Dubnow, an influential political thinker, educator, writer, activist, and preeminent historian of Russian Jewry. The materials reflect central subjects of his historical research, such as communal organization, persecutions, and Hasidism, as well as pressing issues of his time, most significantly pogroms and the question of Jewish emancipation. Much of the material comprises information meticulously copied and sent to Dubnow by individuals throughout the Russian Empire for the purpose of aiding his research. The collection demonstrates Dubnow's importance in helping to establish the idea of Jewish ethnographic history.

This collection holds the papers of Stephen J. Fraenkel, a civil engineer. Much of the collection focuses on his experiences in Germany in the 1930s and his first years in the United States, as well as on his attempts to receive restitution from the German government. Papers in this collection include correspondence, photographs and postcards, certificates and diplomas, and articles written by Stephen J. Fraenkel or pertaining to his profession.

The Sussmann-Hirsch Family Collection sketches the history of the Hirsch family from 1859 until 1980. The collection centers on the correspondence and memories of Sigmund and Rosa Hirsch, Herbert Hirsch and Lilli Sussmann. Most of the documents date from the First World War.

The Suzanne Schrag Collection holds papers of Suzanne (née Fuchs) and Paul Schrag, as well as papers of family members, especially Suzanne's parents and Paul's maternal uncle Nathan Sulzberger. Much of the collection focuses on the lives of family members, especially as documented in their extensive family correspondence. Prominent is also the unpublished writing of Paul Schrag and Nathan Sulzberger, notably the memoirs of Paul Schrag and short stories of Nathan Sulzberger. Some official documents, especially those pertaining to the education of Paul and Suzanne Schrag are also present, along with a few photographs, notes on genealogy, and other papers.

Uriah Phillips Levy rose to the rank of Commodore in the United States Navy despite religious hostility. He succeeded in abolishing corporal punishment in the Navy, and is credited for preserving Thomas Jefferson's estate, Monticello. His papers consist of correspondence, financial and legal records, publications, papers, newspaper articles, a notebook, and a book.

The Victoria (Zetlin) Russman Pordes Collection holds the correspondence, personal, and professional papers of Victoria Pordes, along with other members of her family, especially her sister Anna (Zetlin) Jarosik. Much of the collection consists of correspondence, notably the personal family correspondence between Zetlin siblings. In addition, the collection includes official, and educational papers, postcards, photographs, scrapbooks, tourism materials, immigration and citizenship papers, notebooks, address books, diaries, and other items.