Documents & Photos
These are some of our documents and pictures. They show how important our heritage is. They also show how our ancestors came here from different countries. The artifacts include newspaper articles from World War II about escaping the concentration camps and others are the passports our ancestors used to get here. The pictures show portraits of our grandparents taken long ago. We also have a replica of the Dead Sea Scrolls which connects us to our ancient past.
Ancestors
Russia
Aunt
They're my ancestors and it is important to know about my family history. This picture lets me get to know my ancestors better. When I am older, I will get to show this picture to my children.
This artifact is significant because it shows the history of Russian Jews. It also lets people know a little bit about their lives and how important family is.
V-mail, Articles & Photograph
New York
Grandmother
The letters are between my Grandmother and her father, my Great Grandfather when he was a doctor in World War II. The photograph shows my great-grandfather with his mother (my Great-Great Grandmother) his wife (my Great-Grandmother) and his daughter (my Grandmother) the day before he left for the war.
These articles are important to me and my family because my Great, Great, Uncle was a soldier in WWII, and my Great, Grandfather was a doctor in the war. When I look at the letters from my great Grandfather to my Grandmother when he was in the war for 4 years, and the article about my Great, Great Uncle freeing some of the Jews from the concentration camps, I know that they are real, and that they were from my ancestors and it makes me feel personally connected to WWII and the Holocaust.
Photograph
USA
Grandfather
This photograph, taken in about 1900, shows my great-great-grandparents Moshe B. and Taube Esat Glazer B. - along with their children at the time. The boy in the front middle - with his arm on his father's leg - is my great-grandfather Joseph B. who was born in 1895 and is judged to be about 5 years old at the time of the photograph. Moshe and his wife came to US in 1893. I think they only had one child when they moved. Joseph (my great-grandfather) was born in the US. The picture taken in Merrimak, Massachusetts. Moshe was a Used Goods Dealer and a Farmer. Then he went into Real Estate.
It is a picture of a Jewish family that came to the USA. They came from the province of Galicia which was a part of the Austrian/Hungarian Republic. Galicia was a town near Lenberg which is now L'viv. If Moshe and his 4 brothers did not move to the United States, my parents would never have met and I would not have been born!
Passport
Russian
Louis F.
The artifact was past down to my grandfather from his grandfather and it will one day be passed down to me. My great great grandparents walked from Russia to a dock and took a boat to Ellis Island and got to New York City.
The significance of the passport to Jewish Heritage is that it represents all the Jewish Immigrants. Russian Jews came to America for religious freedom and hopefully a better life. The reason we are here today is because Jewish people traveled to the United States.
Dead Sea Scrolls
Israel
Sandra G.
This Dead Sea Scroll was given to my grandmother by her uncle. When he went to Israel for the first time, this is what he got for the family. It's important to my grandma because it helps her remember him.
The Dead Sea Scroll is important to Jewish Heritage because it is the oldest living form of the Bible. It shows that people way back when still believed in G-D.
Picture
Russian
Louis F.
It's a picture of my great great grandparents. They used almost all the money they had to get to America.
It's a picture of a Jewish man and woman. The significance of the picture to Jewish heritage is that it represents all the Jewish immigrants. Russian Jews came to America for religious freedom and hopefully a better life.
Photograph of my Grandparents and Great-Grandparents
New York
From my Mom
This is significant because it shows my grandparents getting married with my great grandparents standing by. It shows how my family started. This photograph is important because it shows that my grandfather was in the army during WW II, a big war.
Both my grandparents and great-grandparents were Jewish and were married in a Jewish ceremony performed by a Rabbi.
Passport
Palestine (Jerusalem)
Gary E. (father)
The artifact shows that my family is truly from Israel. It also shows when and how my great grandpa came to America.
My great grandpa was from Israel. He came to America in 1915. He was luckily safe during the Holocaust.
Selig Family Photos
Schweinshampten, Germany
Grandpa Benjamin Selig
The first photograph shows the family store and residence owned by my Great Grandfather, Emil Selig in Schweinshampten, Germany. The family's name, "SELIG" appears on the building. My Great Grandfather Max, his siblings and his father Emil, all appear in the photo. The photo was taken around 1908. In 1924 my Great Grandpa Max left Germany and came to the United States in search of a better life. The rest of the family stayed in Germany, but in the 1930s my Great Grandfather helped them escape from Germany and come to the United States. In the year 2000 my Grandfather Ben visited Germany and found the family home and store in which his father had lived. It was still standing. The building, as it appeared in the year 2000, is depicted in the second photo.
These family photographs show my family's history in Germany before they came to the United States. However, in a larger sense, they also represent the history of the Jewish people. So many Jews were forced to abandon their homes and businesses because of religious persecution. These photographs pay tribute to our past and help us to remember.
Naturalization Certificates
Philadelphia, PA
Norma & David L.
These papers are the certificates of naturalization of my Grandmother's parents on my father's side of the family. They are significant because without them, I wouldn't be here today.
These are significant to Jewish heritage because my Great-Grandparents became citizens of the US, which increased the Jewish population here. They came to the US from Russia in search of a better life for their family. My great-grandfather was a learned Torah scholar and found a community once they arrived here.
Picture
New York
Mom & Dad
This is a picture of our great grandparents who my brother and I never saw or met. We probably would have loved them twice as much.
The picture reminds us of our Jewish past and heritage.
Family Photos
America
My pictures
These pictures are the oldest pictures our family has of our relatives. They are very special and reflect the beginning of the growth of our family in America.
Looking at these pictures, our family can connect with the past. We can identify with some of the people and this makes our bond to the past and our Jewish family heritage more meaningful and stronger.