"It must all be recorded with not a single fact omitted. And when the time comes – as it surely will – let the world read and know what the murderers have done." -Emanuel Ringelblum
The archive was created in 1940 at the initiative of historian Dr. Emanuel Ringelblum and with the involvement of the Oneg Shabbat (Joy of the Sabbath – because of their Saturday meetings) organization created by him. The group numbered several people and undertook the task of gathering and developing documentation — broadly defined — on the fates of Jews under the German occupation. The activity of the Oneg Shabbat was completely secret. The inhabitants of the ghetto did not know about it. The Ringelblum Archive is now housed in the collection of the Jewish Historical Institute in Poland.