Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls records
Scope and Contents
The Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls administrative records include minutes, committee reports, campaign literature & publications, correspondence, yearbooks, scrapbooks, and photographs. Of particular note are the records on World War II refugees. Records of the Rosa Coplon Home and materials from various local and national organizations are also included.
Dates
- circa 1930-2001
- 1935-1994
Creator
- Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls (Organization)
Language of Materials
Collection material in English.
Terms of Access
The Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls Records, circa 1930-2001 (bulk 1935-1994), are open for research.
Copyright
Copyright of papers in the collection may be held by their authors, or the authors' heirs or assigns. Researchers must obtain the written permission of the holder(s) of copyright and the University Archives before publishing quotations from materials in th collection. Most papers may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures unless otherwise specified.
Historical Note
Organizing in 1935 under the direction of Louis Silberberg and Franklin C. Wisbaum, the Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls took as its purpose, the "acting as a financial, coordinating and supervising body and instrument for the collection and distribution of funds," in order to end the multiplicity of appeals that prevailed previously. With an individual or family able to give to one fund, monies were then distributed to member agencies and ending the near constant calls for funds. The Jewish Federation of Niagara was governed by a board of directors, fifteen elected directors and fifteen other members who represented every Jewish organization in the city as well as the rabbis, or lay spiritual leader of Beth El Niagara Falls and Temple Beth Israel, Niagara Falls.
Over the years a number of prominent Niagara Falls Jews led the Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls including Samuel Simmer, Samuel Wolkind, Rabbit Samuel Porrath, Abraham R. Hushner, Dr. Boris Golden, Dr. Alexander Slepian, Jack A. Gellman, Mortin Dimet, Bernard Sax, Morton Abramowitz, Dr. Norton Shapiro and Robert Wisbaum. The scrapbook collection contains references to many of these individuals.
May Chinkers served as Executive Secretary from the 1930s to 1952 when she became the Executive Director and served to February 1974. Miriam Schaffer was Executive Director from February, 1979 through June, 1984. Linda Boxer was Executive Director from July, 1984 through July, 1989.
The Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls was officially dissolved in 2003 and its records were transferred to the Foundation for Jewish Philanthropies.
Extent
37 Linear Feet (10 cartons, 3 flat boxes, 7 card file boxes, 12 large flat boxes, 1 oversize flat box)
Abstract
The Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls administrative records including minutes, committee reports, publications, correspondence, yearbooks, scrapbooks, and photographs. Records of the Rosa Coplon Home are also included.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged in eight series:
- Business Records
- Rosa Coplon Home
- United Jewish Appeal
- Subject Files
- Refugees
- Youth
- Scrapbooks
- Miscellaneous
Acquisition Information
Collection was received from the Foundation for Jewish Philanthropies in February 2012. This collection is part of the Jewish Buffalo Archives Project, a collaboration between the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Buffalo and the University Archives in the University Libraries, State University of New York at Buffalo. The Jewish Buffalo Archives Project was founded in late 2007 under the auspices of the Bureau of Jewish Education of Greater Buffalo with a seed grant from Jewish Philanthropies. The Archives Project collects mainly twentieth century documentation relating to the diverse histories, religious traditions and cultures of Jewish communities within the Greater Buffalo area of Western New York, encompassing the geographic areas of Erie and Niagara Counties and partners with the University Archives at the University at Buffalo to make these records accessible. The collection is housed in the University Archives.
New bulletin, 1984 was donated the University Archives by Alan H. Simon, March 21, 2020.
Accruals and Additions
No further accruals are expected to this collection.
Processing Information
Processed by Karen Spencer, February, 2012.
Source
- University Archives (Repository, Organization)
- Jewish Buffalo Archives Project (Organization)
- Title
- Finding Aid for the Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls records
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by Karen Spencer.
- Date
- 2011
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Undetermined
- Script of description
- Code for undetermined script
- Language of description note
- English
- Sponsor
- The records of the Jewish Federation of Niagara Falls were surveyed in 2009 with funding from the Documentary Heritage Program of the New York State Archives, a program of the State Education Department. The arrangement and description of the collection was made possible, in part, by a second grant from the Documentary Heritage Program of the New York State Archives in 2011/2012.
Repository Details
Part of the University Archives Repository
420 Capen Hall
Buffalo New York 14260-1674 US
716-645-2916
716-645-3714 (Fax)
lib-archives@buffalo.edu