Commercial | Cultural | Family History | Holocaust | Jewish Life | Local HistoryOnline World ORT Archive Radio workshop at ORT Bramson, Marseilles, France, 1962 • World ORT Archive Archive Description The World ORT Archive (WOA) exists to preserve the historical record of World ORT’s activities and to place these activities into the context of contemporary Jewish History. World ORT’s governance, fundraising activities and operations have left a paper trail of documents and photographs that tells the story of a prominent Jewish organisation participating in the major historical events of the period. The archives include documents, reports, correspondence, films, videos, objects, and photographs that provide a valuable insight into all the organisation’s past activities. WOA’s document collection includes records of World ORT (formerly World ORT Union), its governing bodies and associate organisations world-wide. It includes minutes of meetings, reports, correspondence, fund-raising and PR, research and development, administrative and financial records. The archive also contains several small collections of personal papers, from former staff members and students. These include correspondence, photographs, press cuttings, diaries, certificates, and reference letters. WOA’s photographic collection documents a Jewish organisation’s involvement in Jewish working life, education, and vocational training across the globe from the 1920s to the present day. Its holdings illustrate the hardships and triumphs of the Jewish people throughout modern history. In many cases these photographs are the only remaining record of past communities, places, and events. The ORT film collection is a unique record of the organisation’s contribution to the development and advancement of Jewish education and vocational training in the 20th century. The films document ORT activities among Jewish communities worldwide. Many feature communities that have since disappeared e.g., North Africa and Iran. ORT, also known as the Organisation for Rehabilitation through Training, is a global education network driven by Jewish values. It promotes education and training in communities worldwide. Its activities throughout its history have spanned more than 100 countries and five continents Access Information The archive can be accessed online. Physical access to the archive must be requested via the World ORT Archive email: archive@ort.org http://ortarchive.ort.org
Jewish Life | Local HistoryOnline BFI National Archive The BFI National Archive is the national collection of film and television, allowing access through their public programme, in venue and online resources. Archive Description The BFI’s vast collections include moving image and associated material relating to Jewish life in Britain since the early 1900s, work by Jewish writers, directors and actors, and dramatic representations of Jewish people on screen. These include collection such as ‘Oy Britannia’, a curated collection of 70 titles about Jews in Britain is available from the BFI National Archive for free public viewing in the Mediatheque at BFI Southbank. It brings together documentary records of Jewish life in the UK and artists’ work confronting the 20th century Jewish experience, while recognising the vibrant contribution of Jewish writers, directors and actors to film and TV culture in this country. The earliest surviving depictions of Jewish characters in British cinema offer a disturbing insight into anti-Semitic representation, yet prejudice was later tackled head-on in features like Loyalties (1933) and newsreels documenting the anti-fascist movement of the 1930s. Access Information The archive itself is not open to the general public but access to archive material is possible in venue and online. The archives can be accessed in person at the BFI Reuben Library & BFI Mediatheque (both located at BFI Southbank). A Research Viewings service is also available for access to titles not available commercially, online or via BFI Reuben Library & BFI Mediatheque – more about this can be found here. Digital Accessibility The BFI National Archive holds more than a million films and television programmes, tens of thousands of which have been digitised from their original film and videotape formats with more in progress. It also holds digitised stills, posters, designs and other documents preserved in BFI Special Collections. The collection can be searched online here. The Archive also holds a free curated collection of films from the BFI National Archive and partner archives around the UK entitled ‘Jewish Britain on Film’. The collection spans more than a century and includes newsreel items, home movies, early fiction shorts, feature films, TV drama and documentaries with 80 titles free to view and further titles available to rent. This collection is accessible from the UK only. A Jewish Britain playlist is available to international viewers via the BFI YouTube channel. Street Address BFI SouthbankSouthbank CentreBelvedere Road, Bishop’sLondonSE1 8XT https://www.bfi.org.uk/bfi-national-archive
Cultural | Historical Documents | Middle Eastern Jewry | Religion | SocialOnline Cairo Genizah Collection The Cairo Genizah Collection is a publicly accessible research collection housed in the Cambridge University Library. Its collection of manuscripts contains information on Jewish history, religion, and culture. Archive Description The Cairo Genizah Collection is an enormous collection of medieval and early modern Jewish manuscripts, formed principally from the Taylor-Schechter Collection of more than 193,000 fragments removed from the Ben Ezra Synagogue in Fustat, Old Cairo, by the Cambridge scholar Solomon Schechter in 1896–7. Further fragments have been added from the Lewis-Gibson Collection (jointly owned with the University of Oxford) and the Jacques Mosseri Genizah Collection, currently on loan in Cambridge. The material has been cleaned, conserved, and digitised. It is accessible both online and for consultation and viewing in person. The collection contains a broad array of texts, encompassing all genres of literature, from sacred to profane, as well as a remarkable documentary archive of letters, legal deeds and other writings of everyday life, allowing us to reconstruct in great detail the literary, economic and social history of the Jews of Egypt over centuries. Particular treasures include not only the earliest known copies of many Jewish sacred texts, but also the autograph writings of major medieval figures such as Moses Maimonides and Judah ha-Levi. Access Information The collection can be accessed for research purposes in the Manuscripts Reading Room by holders of a University Library reader’s card. More information about the University Library readers card can be found on the Cambridge University Library website, as can University Library opening hours. Members of the general public can view the collection as part of a pre-booked visit, hosted by a member of the Genizah Research Unit. These visits can be arranged Monday-Friday during office hours (9.30–5.30) and Saturdays and Bank Holiday access is also sometimes possible. These visits should be scheduled at least two weeks in advance, and the collection can be contacted at: genizah@lib.cam.ac.uk. More information on access requirements can be found on the collection’s website. Online Accessibility The Cairo Genizah collection is almost completely digitised, and can be accessed online via The Friedberg Jewish Manuscript Society web portal following a free registration. Digital catalogues of the material can be found on the Cambridge University Library website in two collections: The Genizah Collection and the Lewis-Gibson Collection Street Address Cambridge University LibraryWest RoadCambridgeCB3 9DR https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/departments/taylor-schechter-genizah-research-unit