The American Jewish Historical Society (AJHS)

Happy 4th of July! Pictured: William Rosenwald--Children from Displaced Persons Camps Having Fun in New York City, 1949. Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) collection I-363.
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It's almost July 4th! Here's a picture of children pledging the flag at Cedar Lake Camp, circa 1930.
National Jewish Welfare Board, Records (I-337)

No holds barred. [boys wrestling on a bunk] Camp Wakitan, Murray Sprung , 1920s - 1940s. Photographs of the Records of Hebrew Orphan Asylum of the City of New York (I-42).

European-style caps stand at Northwest corner of Ludlow and Delancey Streets, New York.
Photographer J.B. Lightman, October 28, 1933.
Graduate School for Jewish Social Work (New York, N.Y.) Records (I-7)
#1933

Maxwell House ad - Haym Solomon. Newspaper and Magazine Clippings, 1897-1976, Haym Salomon collection P-41.

old photographic portrait of a young woman seated at a table. American Jewish Historical Society, Museum Holdings

Who Can't Vote in Alabama? Bernard C. Ehrenreich Papers (P-26)

"Madam Who Keeps Your House" Votes for Women. Bernard C. Ehrenreich Papers, P-26

Arnold Schlossberg, Sr. with his dog in front of his family home in Roanoke, Virginia, June 1931.

Pack up, it's time for Camp! HOA photo of boys in camp truck. Hebrew Orphan Asylum of the City of New York records I-42 Residents (Box 89, Folder 3).
#1935

Women's Army Corps - Dishes, 1943. National Jewish Welfare Board I-337
#1943

AJHS recently received a donation of records pertaining to several meetings of the International Conference of Gay and Le***an Jews. The first Conference was hosted in 1976; the materials received at AJHS, cover the approximate dates of 1977-1983. These materials, which have not yet been processed, seem to primarily comprise conference schedules, correspondence, governance materials, photocopies of synagogue liturgy and songs in English and Hebrew, and a single-page “Directory of Jewish Organizations,” which lists both national and international groups. Read our latest blog post from Director of Archival Partnerships Tamar Zeffren: https://ajhs.org/who-are-my-people-records-of-the-international-conference-of-gay-and-lesbian-jews/
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Graphic for Women's Division Campaign material. 1960. United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York collection I-433
#1960

Julie Salamon (New York Times best selling author) sits down with Julie Satow, award-winning journalist and the author of the New York Times bestseller, When Women Ran Fifth Avenue: Glamour and Power at the Dawn of American Fashion. Satow is also the author of The Plaza, A New York Times Editors’ Choice and NPR Favorite Book of 2019. She is a regular contributor to the New York Times, and her work has also appeared on National Public Radio, Bloomberg Businessweek, Travel + Leisure, and elsewhere. For more information visit www.juliesatow.com. June 27th at 12:30pm Eastern, free with rsvp: https://ajhs.org/events/at-lunch-with-julie-satow/
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Woman seated near boy patient, United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York collection I-433

boys hanging out of a train door, one smoking a cigarette, Hebrew Orphan Asylum of the City of New York records I-42

Boys in a tree, Hebrew Orphan Asylum of the City of New York records I-42

The Wreckage Podcast- Episode 4: The Aid Workers
After World War II, organizations like the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), Hadassah, and the United Service for New Americans (USNA) provided critical resources to help evacuate and resettle survivors who were living in displaced persons camps - camps that were often the very same prisons where they were incarcerated during the Holocaust. Hundreds of thousands of refugees came to the United States, Canada, Mandatory Palestine, and other communities around the world due in large part to the advocacy and efforts of these aid organizations to break past restrictive immigration quotas. Available on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, visit our show page: https://ajhs.org/podcast/the-aid-workers/
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Pvt. (1st class) Nathan Friend of New York City enjoys a private session of classical music at the USO Clubhouse in Buzzard's Bay, Mass. (Cape Cod) California National Jewish Welfare Board I-337

Picnic for Ambulatory Patients at Fairfax, California National Jewish Welfare Board I-337
#1945

Twins at the drinking fountain on the roof. Records of the National Council of Jewish Women, New York Section I-469

A ball game in Council House Playground. Records of the National Council of Jewish Women, New York Section I-469

Students watering plants in the greenhouse at the Baron de Hirsch Agricultural School, circa 1900. Baron de Hirsch Fund Records, 1870-1991 I-80
#1900

Men spraying pesticides on plants, circa 1900. Baron de Hirsch Fund Records, 1870-1991 I-80

Image of members outside of the Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Society of America building in NYC. Circa 1920s. Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) collection I-363.
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Y.M.H.A. girls' garden party, Louisville, KY, circa 1910. National Jewish Welfare Board, Records I-337
#1910

Kindergarten children in the garden, Woodbine, New Jersey. Baron de Hirsch Fund Records, 1870-1991 I-80 Circa 1900s

The subject files collection in the American Jewish Historical Society archives contains many snippets and snapshots that give us a peek into the lived experience of American Jews from all walks of life, from many different points in history, all across the country. One such item is the San Francisco Jewish Le***an Gang. The single folder contains only a paper presented by this group at an unnamed conference, dated 1974, and a cursory internet search doesn’t turn up much more information. It lays out the group’s ideology, objectives, and challenges, and is signed merely, “Katz.” Read our latest post from Senior Librarian Megan Scauri: https://ajhs.org/san-francisco-jewish-lesbian-gang-intersectionality-before-it-had-a-name/
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The Center for Jewish History and the American Jewish Historical Society welcome Dr. Miriam Eve Mora for a discussion of her new book Carrying a Big Schtick: Jewish Acculturation and Masculinity in the Twentieth Century. She will be joined in conversation by Dr. Ronnie Grinberg (University of Oklahoma), author of Write Like a Man: Jewish Masculinity and the New York Intellectuals. In person June 18th at 7:00pm, pay what you wish: https://ajhs.org/events/carrying-a-big-schtick-jewish-acculturation-and-masculinity-in-the-twentieth-century/

For 20th-century Jewish immigrants and their children attempting to gain full access to American society, performative masculinity was a tool of acculturation. However, this performance is consistently challenged by American mainstream society that holds Jewish men outside of the American ideal of masculinity. Depicted as weak, effeminate, cowardly, gentle, bookish, or conflict-averse, Jewish men have been ascribed these qualities by outside forces, but some have also intentionally subscribed themselves to masculinities at odds with the American mainstream.

Carrying a Big Schtick dissects notions of Jewish masculinity and its perception and practice in America in the 20th century through the lenses of immigration and cultural history. Tracing Jewish masculinity through major themes and events including both World Wars, the Holocaust, American Zionism, Israeli statehood, and the Six-Day War, this work establishes that the struggle of this process can shed light on the changing dynamics in religious, social, and economic American Jewish life.

Hebrew Orphan Asylum band drilling on the Parade Grounds. United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York collection I-433
#1890