Linda Levi is Assistant Executive Vice President of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, where she directs the JDC Archives, one of the most significant collections in the world for the study of modern Jewish history.

Ms. Levi is a graduate of New York University and received her MA in Contemporary Jewish Studies from Brandeis University. She has lectured extensively about the JDC Archives, including at previous IAJGS conferences.

“The JDC Archives and What We Have to Offer Jewish Genealogists” (Tues-126), 9:00-10:15 A.M.

Since 1914, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC or “the Joint”) has borne witness to the most pivotal events of twentieth-century Jewish history. The JDC Archives documents JDC operations and activities overseas, serves as a record of life in Jewish communities throughout the world, and testifies to JDC’s mission of providing rescue, relief, and rehabilitation services to global Jewish communities and individuals in need worldwide.

The Archives extensive holdings include eyewitness accounts, correspondence, reports, logs, passenger lists, emigration cards, and more, including an astonishing collection of approximately 100,000 photographs that document the organization’s global activities.

The presentation will include sample documents and photos of interest to Jewish genealogists with a focus on Jewish migration. Participants will learn how the Archives are organized, view examples of rich genealogical records, and discover how to conduct research in its repositories. Learn about the JDC Archives website www.archives.jdc.org and the treasures that await researchers.

Category: Beginning genealogists

Topics: Ashkenazic research, Genealogy and Jewish history related to WW, Holocaust researc, Immigration and migration over the age, Jewish history and culture, Mizrachi researc, Repositorie, Sephardic researc, Specific countries or geographic area, Technology in support of genealogical research

“Searching for Relatives in the JDC Names Database” (Weds-123), 1:30-2:45 P.M.

The JDC Archives Names Database includes more than 500,000 names of individuals who have received aid from the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, the world’s leading Jewish humanitarian assistance organization. This important resource for genealogists and other researchers is drawn from the client lists and index cards of “the Joint,” as the organization is often called, from operations in over 90 countries worldwide.

The Names Index includes numerous lists from the World War II era from as far and wide as British Mandate Palestine, China, Australia, Germany, and South America, among others. The database contains primary source documents as well as and an index and covers activities ranging from 1915-1973.

The presentation will focus on World War II lists of refugees assisted during and after the Shoah, with a particular focus on children, orphans and students.

Category: Beginning genealogists

Topics: Ashkenazic research, Genealogy and Jewish history related to WWI, Holocaust research, Immigration and migration over the ages