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Collection Guide: Oral Histories

American Jewish Historical Society

Archival Highlights

American Soviet Jewry Movement Oral Histories Collection (I-548)

The collection contains of a CD-ROM with video and audio files of eleven oral history interviews with activists of the American Soviet Jewry Movement, former Refuseniks and Prisoners of Conscience.

Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds oral history collection (I-59)

The collection includes interviews with 26 individuals actively involved in the development of the Jewish Federation movement.

Oral Histories Collection in the Hadassah Archives (I-578/RG 20)

The Hadassah Oral Histories consist of audio cassette recordings and typed transcripts of oral history interviews as well as related correspondence and research documents. Interviewees include notable members of Hadassah’s National Board, the Honorary Council, Hadassah Medical Organization (HMO), Youth Aliyah, Machon Szold, and Hebrew University, among others. Discussions cover such topics as Hadassah roles and achievements, Jewish upbringings, education, and family.

Towards a Meaningful Snapshot: COVID-19 Oral Histories (I-609)

A study of Covid-19’s impact on Jewish organizations and communal leaders was conducted by the American Jewish Historical Society from 2020 to 2021. Interviews with 36 individuals carefully selected by a board of advisors took place via Zoom video conferences, the final product being a video recording of each interview with an accompanying transcript for accessibility.

United Jewish Appeal-Federation of New York collection (I-433) 

The Oral History Project in Series V. includes the sound recordings and typed transcripts of the interviews conducted as part of the Oral History Project. The topics covered by the interviews include a wide range of events and experiences, from pre-World War I schools in New York and the deprivations of the Great Depression to activities during World War II, the post-war flourishing of Jewish communal organizations in New York, and the Soviet Jewish immigration to the United States and Israel in the 1980s and 1990s. There are 262 oral histories accessible online.

Library Materials