Photographs and Documents
By Danielle G, Brenda S, Jani G.
Photographs and Documents has some amazing artifacts and fascinating items. Some examples of the artifacts are family trees, passports, photographs and so much more. Many of the artifacts are several generations old. One of the documents, like the family tree, is updated every year. You will see an old photo in a newspaper clipping from China, two beautiful family trees, an old pictorial book about Israel, a stunning wedding album, a foreign passport, and a stamp collection. When you examine these documents and photos you can learn so much about life at that time. You can see clothing and surroundings in a photograph, and you can learn so much from reading the details on a passport or certificate. All of these artifacts are very important to the people who own them, because most of these items have been passed down for generations.
Family Tree
Morocco
Bettina G
This family tree is really important to all of my relatives. Each of the families has a copy. It tells where we all came from and how we are all connected.
It is updated every year by my relative, Collin M, and we all get new copies. One of the oldest shuls in Morocco had the family archives. Many years ago, one of our relatives researched the family history and found all the information at the shul. That is when the keeping of the family tree began.
My artifact is significant to my Jewish Heritage because it shows my Jewish roots. This helps me understand where my customs came from and from whom.
Photograph
China
Tzeporah F
The photograph was found by my Great Uncle Harry and his cousin. It is a picture of my great grandparents, David and Sarah with their child, Aaron. They were being released from China under the rule of the Japanese.
The picture shows my great grandpa, my great grandma, and my great uncle in a newspaper article. They were in China on a business trip. When they were on the trip my grandpa was born. A few years later he, his older brother and his two older sisters left China without their parents. My great grandma wasn\'t allowed to leave because she was from Turkey and her papers weren\'t good, so my great grandfather decided to stay with her. While in China, the Japanese were holding them captive and wouldn\'t let them go back, but America was holding some Japanese people so eventually the two countries were willing to exchange prisoners.
My great uncle and his cousin found a newspaper and in it was a photo with two parents and a little kid. There was a caption under it stating that the people in the photo were being exchanged for other prisoners, and they would be heading back to America soon.
History Book
Israel
Ellen D.
The artifact is a pictorial history book of Israel. It is important to my grandma because she got it on her first trip to Israel. It was a gift to her from a friend in Israel. The book has pictures of Prime Minister Levi Eshkol, the Israeli Army, Jerusalem, the desert, rabbis, etc.
This artifact is important to Jewish heritage because it has lots of pictures of wars that the Jews won. This shows the miracles that God has done for the Jewish people. It also shows Israeli spirit, and lifestyle.
Passport
Haiti
Rena G.
This is my grandfather\'s passport from Haiti. He was born in Haiti. He lived there with his entire family, including his two parents and his eight siblings. He moved to America when he was a young boy. There were a few Jewish families in Haiti at the time. If he didn\'t get this passport he would not have been able to come to America and would not have married my grandma. I would have never been born.
This passport belonged to a Jew. Passports are necessary to travel to other countries. If my grandfather didn\'t have this passport he wouldn\'t have been able to come to America and practice Judaism fully.
Stamp Collection
Mexico
Zack K.
My Grandpa Isaac is the person who started the stamp collection while he was in Mexico. He collected stamps from all over the world. He bought them when he went traveling and he ordered a lot when he was home. He had many books of stamps but when he passed away his son, Ronny K., inherited his collection. After a little while my father was too busy so then he passed it down to my brother Zack K. Now my brother is taking over, fixing them and collecting more.
In the stamp collection there\'s different kinds of stamps from all over the world but there\'s also some stamps from Israel. They\'re really pretty and cool. The colors are blue and white and there\'s a picture of a Israeli flag on them.
Family Tree
Tripoli, Libya
Grandmother
This family tree was started by Jake\'s great grandfather over 100 years ago. He was a philanthropist who built yeshivas in Egypt, Libya, and Israel. It shows the family history for 12 generations. It was passed down from generation to generation and my grandmother lent it to me. That is why it is important to my family.
This artifact is part of Jewish heritage. It shows the survival of our people through 12 generations. It shows the rabbis in my family who started yeshivas in Israel.
A Picture of a Tombstone
Tennesse
Sally S.
This tombstone belongs to Aharon A, my great great grandfather. He was living in Georgia and went to Tennessee for a long business trip. He stayed there for several years, and eventually died there. His family found out that he died, and then moved from Georgia to New York. This is very important to my family because this site was found only recently.
This tombstone is in a Jewish cemetery. Some people get buried in a Jewish cemetery and some people get buried in a local cemetery. He was privileged and got buried in a Jewish cemetery. Jewish people prefer to get buried with other Jewish people so there are Jewish cemeteries.
Photograph
Cairo, Egypt
Rosette W.
My artifact is significant to me because I have never met my grandfather and now I have a picture to remember him by. This artifact was taken in 1944. During this time my grandfather was an owner of a steel company. Later in his life Jewish people started getting kicked out of Egypt. My grandfather was included in that group, and he and his family lost everything they had.
It helps me remember how long the Jewish people have lasted through all the exiles. They went through times of the Pharoah in Egypt and they were still living there in that picture.
Wedding Album
Brooklyn, N.Y.
Sophia M.
When my grandmother Merle K. got married my Great Grandmother Gladys made her a wedding album. When she passed away, it was given to my Grandmother Merle. When my Grandmother Merle and mother, Sophia, cleaned out the house they found it and my Grandmother Merle allowed my mother, Sophia, to keep it.
In this album there is a picture of Rabbi Jacob Kassin, the chief Rabbi of the community, marrying my grandparents.