Communal Records | Jewish LifePartially online Limmud Archives Limmud’s first conference programme, 1980 Limmud is a Jewish communal organisation based in London and founded in 1980. It launched its archive programme a couple of years ago and has been working on cataloguing material it already holds as well as encouraging people who have played a part in Limmud’s story, either as an organiser, a volunteer, or a participant to help fill the gaps in its collection. Read more about that here: Limmud Needs You! Archive Description The Limmud Archive holds records and ephemera documenting 44 years of conferences, festivals and other activities in the UK and internationally. The archive material centres around the yearly Limmud festival, for which programmes exist from 1980 to the present day, as well as regional events and international programmes of education. Some of the highlights include programmes from the early 1980s Limmud Conferences, as well as some of the early editorial content that supports them, such as ‘Limmud Life’ and the first ‘Limmud Journal’ from 1983. The archive also contains financial, administrative, marketing and constitutional records. Audio-visual and photographic material also forms part of the archive, as well as ephemera including posters, postcards and merchandise. An online catalogue is to be launched in 2025, with some digitised material available. Limmud is looking to deposit the archive with an appropriate collecting repository. Access Information The archives are currently stored off-site and access is at the discretion of the Project Archivist. One month advance notification is required to access the archives and enquiries can be made to the project archivist at the following address: martin@limmud.org. You’ll need photographic ID containing details of your home address. Online / Digital Accessibility Online catalogue for the archive to be launched Autumn 2025. Digitised material available in 2026. Street Address Shield House, Harmony Way, London, NW4 2BZ https://limmud.org/
Communal Records | Cultural | Jewish Life | ReligionPartially online Leo Baeck College Library The Victor Tunkel Jewish Music Collection • Leo Baeck College Library Leo Baeck College Library, part of Leo Baeck College, contains 60,000 volumes exploring Jewish civilisation. The great texts of Jewish tradition are supported by traditional commentary, cutting-edge scholarship and reference works. Jewish history, thought, practice and culture are explored through professional, academic and popular literature. Texts come from across the religious spectrum, around the world and throughout Jewish history. Its archival holdings includes material relating to leading figures in British and Progressive Jewry, local history, Jewish life and culture. Archive Description The Library’s Archive Collections preserve sermons, lectures, eulogies, photographs and papers recording the thinking and practices of rabbis, scholars and teachers who have had an impact on British and Progressive Jewry. This includes Rabbis John Rayner, Israel Mattuck, Willy Wolff, Vivian Simmons, Bruno Italiener, and H.I. Bach, Samuel & Stephen Krauss, Irene Bloomfield and Cantor Samuel Alman. It also holds some of their personal libraries as well as those of Rabbis Leo Baeck, Albert Friedlander, Sheila Shulman, Lionel Blue and others. The Leo Baeck College Audio Archive includes over 1200 recordings of lectures and seminars given at the college between 1985 and 2005. Delivered by rabbis, academics and professionals they present a fascinating picture of British Jewish life and learning. The Library holds the Victor Tunkel Jewish Music Collection which includes sheets music, musicology, cantor’s manuscripts, Tunkel’s papers and concert programmes. Other Special Collections include rare books going back to the 16th century with a significant inheritance from the Hochshchule institute in Berlin along with other material that survived the Holocaust. The collections contain more than 6000 pamphlets reflecting 150 years of European Jewish thought, and specialist collections in biblical commentary, Anglo-Jewry, liturgy, Progressive thought, Wissenschaft des Judentums and Jewish pedagogy. Access Information The archives are open to members of the general public through in-person appointments. Appointments are usually available Monday-Thursday 10am-4pm during the College’s teaching terms. No identification is required but appointments need to be made a few days in advance. Online Accessibility An online catalogue is available but different archival collections have been catalogued to different levels. Item level cataloguing is available through the library catalogue and details about each collection is available on the Archive Collections pages. Online enquiries can be submitted by email at: library@lbc.ac.uk. Digital Collections Rabbi John Rayner’s Sermons and Lectures are available online as well as digital editions of the magazine, Manna: the Forum for Progressive Judaism. Street Address Leo Baeck College Library80 East End RoadLondonN3 2SY https://lbc.ac.uk/library-resources/
Family History | Historical Documents | Holocaust | Interfaith relations | Local History | ReligionPartially online Lambeth Palace Library Lambeth Palace Library is the historic library of the Archbishops of Canterbury. The vision of Lambeth Palace Library is to collect, preserve and make accessible the memory of the Church of England, so that its cultural and religious history can be explored and enjoyed by all. Archive Description Lambeth Palace Library’s archives are broadly religious with a strong element of institutional corporate records. The library holds a large and varied collection including manuscripts, Archbishops’ archives, records of the central institutions of the Church, archives of churchmen and societies, and printed books. Much of the Jewish-related archival material held focuses on the interface between the Church of England and Judaism, and can be found in the Archbishop Papers, papers of other bishops/churchmen/societies, and manuscripts. Online Accessibility An online catalogue for Lambeth Palace Library’s collections can be found here. The Library also has a research guide to its Jewish holdings available here. Digital Accessibility Over 30,000 images and fully digitised volumes from Lambeth Palace Library collections can be viewed online. Access Information Access to the Library’s collections is freely available to the public. We strongly recommend that readers book an appointment at least two days in advance of any visit. On their first visit, users must register as a reader. Registration is valid for two years and allows access to all classes of material, with the exception of some restricted material. Opening hours: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 10am -5pm, Tuesday 11am-5pm, Thursday 10am-7.15pm Check website for dates of closure and detailed information regarding ID requirements, Reading Room rules, order limits, fetching times, restricted material, and facilities. Enquiries can be made by email to archives@churchofengland.org Street Address Lambeth Palace Library15 Lambeth Palace RoadLondonSE1 7JT https://www.lambethpalacelibrary.info/
Cultural | Holocaust | ReligionPartially online JMI Archive Jewish Music Institute (JMI) is the home of Jewish music in the UK, dedicated to the celebration, preservation and development of the living heritage of Jewish music for the benefit of people of all ages and backgrounds. The organisation supports musicians playing Jewish music across the UK enabling them to preserve this traditional heritage, create new work and reach the widest audiences both domestically and internationally. Archive Description The JMI Archive is a unique and valuable research tool which documents Jewish music from the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries in the UK and overseas as well as the activities of The Jewish Music Institute itself over the last 40 years. It includes records, CDS, LPs, tapes, books, programmes, memorabilia and much more. We hope that the archive collection will be of value to communities, organisations and academic researchers at local, national and international levels. The JMI collection is currently managed by JMI staff members. Access Information JMI is in the process of fully cataloguing and digitising the archive with the aim of making the entire archive accessible by the end of 2025. Access to much of the material is currently restricted because the majority of the archive is currently held in storage Some archive material can be accessed at the JMI office at SOAS. This is by appointment only and must be arranged with a JMI staff member in advance by emailing jewishmusic@jmi.org.uk Street Address Jewish Music InstituteSOAS University of LondonThornhaugh StreetRussell SquareLondon, WC1H 0XG jmiarchive.org
Commercial | Communal Records | Family History | Historical Documents | Jewish LifePartially online Dorset County Archive The Dorset County Archive is a local government archive, held in the Dorset History Centre, Dorchester. It holds material on Jewish local history, communal records, and family history records. Archive Description Dorset History Centre is dedicated to preserving, sharing and celebrating the rich heritage of Dorset and brings together two services: Dorset Record Office and Dorset County Local Studies Library. It was awarded Archive Service Accreditation by The National Archives in 2018. The Centre cares for over 1,000 years of records on 8 miles of climate-controlled shelving in Dorchester – ranging from Council records to personal collections, as well as books, pamphlets and other publications. The Centre’s records reflect the diversity of Dorset’s population in its collections, services and engagement. Within its records, many minorities can be researched and Jewish residents, patients, office-holders, businesses etc can be identified. However, some of the collections are more specific to Jewish life in Dorset. These records mainly reflect Jewish communities in Bournemouth including a recorded talk about the heyday of Jewish hotels and back copies of the magazine ‘Ruach’ which contain lots of reminiscence and history going back to the 1940’s when the community was being established, as well as holding the first-person account of Harry Grenville and his life as a child in Nazi Germany and his move to England via the Kinder Transport. Access Information The archives are open to members of the public and can be accessed through pre-booked appointments. Documents must be pre-ordered using the archive catalogue. It is open Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Appointments should be booked in advance. Enquiries can be made to: archives@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/. Digital Accessibility The archive catalogue can be found online. Visitors may access any digital or hard copy material during a visit, or ask for materials to be shared with you, however there may be a small fee for this service. Street Address Dorset History CentreBridport RdDorchesterDT1 1RP https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/libraries-history-culture/dorset-history-centre
Partially online Manchester Archives and Local Studies with the Greater Manchester County Record Office Manchester Archives and Local Studies with the Greater Manchester County Record Office is the archive repository for the City of Manchester. It holds a rich collection of records documenting multiple aspects of the history of the Jewish Community in Manchester and the Greater Manchester region. Archive Description In the archives holdings are: Religious Records – The archive holds records of multiple synagogues in Manchester, which can include, accounts, committee and council minutes, photographs, membership books, ledgers, correspondence amongst many others. The largest of the collections is the Manchester Great and New Synagogue in which the archive holds boxes covering 25 meters. Personal Papers: These collections contain personal, family and estate papers donated by members of the Jewish Community in Manchester such as diaries, memoirs and correspondence as well as holding collections documenting the lives of refugees. Associations and Societies – The archive has many different collections relating to associations and societies linked to the Jewish Community, some include: Manchester Jewish Literary and Social Society; Manchester Jewish Pharmacist Association; Soup Kitchen Committee of the Jewish Poor of Manchester and Jewish Women’s Discussion Group. Genealogy – For example: the Jewish Chronicle, a London based Jewish weekly newspaper; marriage registers for North Manchester; burial records and school admission registers. Manchester Naturalisation Society – This collection consists of a cash book for the society dated 1896-1909 which details names and payments made to the fund. Once sufficient funds had been received a ballot would be held to put forward individuals to receive their naturalisation papers. Images and Sound – The local image collection brings a visual aspect with many photos relating to the Manchester Jewish community and the Sound Archive contains oral histories with Greater Manchester’s Jewish communities. Access Information The majority of these archives are open to members of the general public, however, where archive records contain personal or medical information of an individual is given there may be some restrictions on access in place. These are made clear on the archives catalogue. Visitors can view many archives in the search room, ground floor, Manchester Central Library by appointment. Alternatively, the archive has a research service where staff can research a particular area and send copies of relevant material. The archive search room is open: Monday to Wednesday 9am – 5pm, Thursday 9am -8pm, Friday to Saturday 9am to 5pm. ID confirming name, address and signature are required to sign into the search room. Bookings can be made via the online booking form available on the website as well as by email. Staff can also help visitors book to view archives in central library or over the phone. The archive requires one working days’ notice to retrieve the items, and some of the collections are held offsite and it can take up to 2 weeks to retrieve these items. Online Accessibility There is an archive catalogue available online and the archive has a local image collection that is available online which is free to view, however there is a charge to purchase a hardcopy of a photograph. Street Address Manchester Central LibrarySt Peters SquareManchesterM2 5PD https://secure.manchester.gov.uk/info/448/archives_and_local_history
Partially online Parliamentary Archives The Parliamentary Archives are a national public sector archive, held by the UK Parliament. The Parliamentary Archives do not specifically collect archives relating to religious or ethnic groups, but as a reflection of British society it holds relevant records as part of its collections, and holds legal records, personal papers, Parliamentary discussions of the Holocaust, and records of legislation concerning the Jewish communities of the United Kingdom. Archive Description Parliamentary records are at the heart of British democracy. They have embodied our liberties, rights and responsibilities for over five hundred years. The Parliamentary Archives help Parliament work more efficiently and openly, enabling it to make decisions and act as effectively as possible. The Archives aims to inspire everyone with the compelling story of Parliament, people, and communities from 1497 up to the present day. The Archives is a shared service of both Houses of Parliament, based in the House of Lords but jointly funded by both Houses. It provides innovative and expert information management, preservation, access and outreach services enabling anyone in the world to use Parliament’s records. The Archives contain many of the most important constitutional records in the UK, such as the Bill of Rights, the 1832 Great Reform Act and the Death Warrant of Charles I, as well as four million others. The collections are a rich and exciting resource for exploring local, national and international history from the fifteenth century to the present day and can be broken down into six main groups: House of Commons House of Lords History, art and architecture of the Palace of Westminster Societies and Staff Private Papers The UK Parliament Web Archive Access Information The archive is open to the public, by appointment. They are open Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm. Photographic ID is required, and more information can be found on their website. Appointments should be made at least five working days in advance with: archives@parliament.uk Online Accessibility An online catalogue is available for the Archive collections. Street Address Parliamentary ArchivesHouses of ParliamentLondonSW1A 0PW https://archives.parliament.uk
Communal Records | Jewish Life | Local History | ReligionPartially online Birmingham Hebrew Congregation Collections Architectural drawing • Birmingham Hebrew Congregation The Birmingham Hebrew Congregation Collections are a selection of archival collections held by Birmingham Archives & Collections, Library of Birmingham as part of Local Authority archives. The collections contain a wealth of information about Jewish life in Birmingham and the community’s involvement with the arts, social work, politics, business, charities and societies. Archive Description Birmingham Archives & Collections holds a number of Jewish collections including the records of the Birmingham Hebrew Congregation, mainly relating to Singers Hill Synagogue and the Hebrew School/King David School. The archive includes minutes of the committees which governed the synagogue including Council, whose minutes date from the 1820s and are the oldest in the collection. The collection also includes school records, correspondence belonging to the Secretary of the synagogue, marriage and death registration records, plans of the synagogue, the schools, and other buildings owned by the Congregation, ledgers, cashbooks, and other records of synagogue finances along with photographs that date from the 1940s and some published material such as orders of service. Other Jewish collections includes the papers of The Birmingham Jewish Literary and Arts Society which grew from a number of Jewish arts societies set up in Birmingham in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and personal archives such as Zoe Josephs, the founder and leading personality of the Birmingham Jewish Historical Research Group. Access Information The archives are open to members of the general public and can be accessed by appointment at the Wolfson Centre for Archival Research, Level 4, Library of Birmingham. The archives are open Tuesdays 11am – 7pm, Wednesday and Thursday 11am – 4.30pm. Proof of current address and a signature, such as a driving license is required and it is necessary for users to request documents a week in advance. Appointments can be made with the archive at this email address: appointments@birmingham.gov.uk. Digital Accessibility A full archive catalogue is available online, and a list of the Jewish collections can be found here. The archive also holds scanned material, some of which comes from the Jewish collections. Street Address Library of Birmingham,Centenary Square,Broad St,BirminghamB1 2EA https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/archives
Local HistoryPartially online Sheffield City Archives and Local Studies Library The Sheffield City Archives and Local Studies Library is a local authority archive open to the public that holds records and reports concerning the city’s historic Jewish population dating from the mid-nineteenth century onwards. Archive Information The archives hold general records such as local newspaper reports relating to the Jewish community and obituaries of local Rabbis and Jewish Community leaders from 1851 onwards, pictures and photographs relating to Sheffield’s Jewish community, Sheffield Year Books which list local synagogues and Jewish community associations and committee members, the Sheffield Jewish Journal from 1946-1980, and Sheffield Trade and Street directories which including reference to members of Sheffield’s Jewish community and businesses. They also hold a range of published historical books and articles relating to different aspects of local Jewish community, and personal and business papers of members of the local Jewish community, for example Abraham Simon Graham (birth name Guttenberg) (1872-1958) a waterproof garment dealer and amateur poet. A full list of records can be found on the research guide on Sheffield’s Jewish community which is available to download via their webpage: The archive will soon be expanding it’s holding with the substantial archive of records from the Sheffield Central Synagogue which date back to the 19th century Access Information The archives are open to the public and can be accessed through their two separate service points: Sheffield City Archives for original archival sources and Sheffield Local Studies Library for secondary sources and printed or published material. Sheffield City Archives is open Mondays, Tuesdays and Saturdays 9.30am – 5.30pm, while Sheffield Local Studies Library is open Wednesdays 1pm – 8pm, Thursdays 9.30am – 5.30pm, Fridays 9.30am – 5.30pm and Saturdays 10am – 4pm. The archive requires researchers to register for which they need to show two forms of ID including proof of address and a signature. It is not strictly necessary to give advance notice but a proportion of the archives holdings are held in offsite storage for which up to two weeks’ notice is required before they can be made available. The archive recommendeds that researchers contact us in advance to make sure that documents of interest can be made available on the day. It can be contacted at this address: archives@sheffield.gov.uk, Digital Accessibility Sheffield City Archives’ online catalogue can found here, and the Sheffield Local Studies Library’s online catalogue can be searched on their website by choosing ‘Local Studies Library’ from the relevant drop-down menu. The archive’s photograph and picture collection is digitised and freely available to consult online . Street Address Sheffield City Archives:52 Shoreham StreetSheffieldS1 4SP Sheffield Local Studies Library:Central LibrarySurrey StreetSheffieldS1 1XZ https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/home/libraries-archives/access-archives-local-studies-library List of [Jewish] Refugees in Sheffield, 1939 This plain sheet of paper may look everyday but it is actually from one of the most poignant items in the collections […] 19 Jul 2024 Collection Encounter: Jewish Life in Sheffield Collection Encounter: Records of Jewish Life in Sheffield, 1849-1976
Commercial | Holocaust | Immigration | Jewish LifePartially online German-Jewish Archives at University of Sussex 'Interior of accommodation at Mikhailowka showing bunks with Nanino on top left (G2.063r)', Arnold Daghani collection SxMs113/5/2/125, University of Sussex. Copyright: The Sussex Weidenfeld Institute of Jewish Studies The German-Jewish Archives are part of the University of Sussex Heritage Collections. Archive Description The establishment of the Centre for German-Jewish Studies at the University of Sussex in 1994 has attracted the deposit of various collections that show the study of political, social, literary and intellectual German-Jewish history. The Centre is part of the Sussex Weidenfeld Institute of Jewish Studies. There is a focus on the history of Jewish refugees and their families to the United Kingdom during and after the Second World War. Many of the collections were donated by families who came to the UK as refugees from Nazi persecution. They brought with them documents which show Jewish life before Hitler came to power. These archival materials show a broad range of Jewish identities. While most families considered themselves assimilated by the 1930s, the material also reveals traces of antisemitism and Jewish segregation. Access Information The archive is open to the public and can be accessed in the reading room at The Keep. Opening hours are available on The Keep website, and two forms of identification must be brought to the archive. The Keep also requires users to fill out an online registration process which can be found here. It is advisable to book a seat in the reading room and order documents to view in advance of your visit Enquiries can be made to: library.specialcoll@sussex.ac.uk. Digital Accessibility Collection level descriptions of the German-Jewish archive are available on the Keep’s website. Some items from the German-Jewish collections are available via JSTOR Street Address University of Sussex Heritage CollectionsThe KeepWoollards WayBrighton BN1 9BP https://www.thekeep.info/
Cultural | Historical Documents | Jewish Life | SocialPartially online Tate Archive The Tate Archive is located at Tate Britain. It is open to the public and free to access. It contains a large collection of documents, photographs, and other material concerning Jewish participation in the cultural life of Britain. Archive Description Tate Archive is the world’s largest archive of British art, holding more than 1,000 collections containing over 20 million pieces. The archive collections comprise a wide range of materials such as letters, diaries, sketches, photographs, exhibition histories, audio-visual material and increasingly, born-digital material – all of which relate to artists, art practice, and art world figures and organisations. Researchers can search for materials of interest from the catalogued holdings by using the online catalogue and browse more than 65,000 digitised items and pieces on their website. Access Information Tate Archive is free to use. To consult collections, researchers just need to register and make an appointment to visit the Hyman Kreitman Reading Rooms at Tate Britain. The Reading Rooms at Tate Britain are currently open Tuesdays and Fridays 11.00–15.00. Email reading.rooms@tate.org.uk or call +44 020 7887 8838 to make an appointment. The archive asks that you bring two different forms of identification as well as a digital or paper copy of your appointment email. The archive has also introduced a free scan and send service for small quantities of information from both our Library, Archive and Public Records collections. This is for individuals undertaking non-commercial research and private study only. For further information, please visit their website. Digital Accessibility Researchers can search for materials of interest from the catalogued holdings by using the online catalogue and browse more than 65,000 digitised items and pieces on their website. Street Address Tate ArchiveTate BritainMillbankLondonSW1P 4RG https://www.tate.org.uk/art/archive
Communal Records | Local HistoryPartially online Plymouth Archives at The Box Pinkas record book from Plymouth Hebrew Congregation/Synagogue, c1762-1849 • Plymouth Archives, The Box The Plymouth Archives at The Box hold the records of the Jewish community of Plymouth as part of the Local Government archives. It holds communal and religious records covering over two hundred years of history, from 1740’s until the beginning of the 21st century. Archive Description The archive holds a large number of collections relating to the Jewish community of Plymouth. Early records cover the beginnings of an organised Jewish community in the city, such as the Plymouth Borough almshouse accounts which includes the rental payments for the Plymouth synagogue which dates to 1804-1806. It also holds the extensive records of the Plymouth Hebrew Congregation between 1795-2005, although this collection his mainly uncatalogued. Other records include school minute books from the Jacob Nathan Congregational School, accounts of the Hebrew Board of Guardians, and the register of marriages from Plymouth Hebrew Congregation. Access Information Access to the archives requires advance booking, which can be made from The Box website . These bookings should be made ideally with one week’s notice in advance. Opening hours are available on the website. Online Accessibility The archive catalogue can be found on the Plymouth City Council website. Any digital images attached to the catalogue are available for free at low resolution – higher resolution images are available for a fee. Enquiries can be sent to imageandfilm@plymouth.gov.uk. Street Address The BoxTavistock PlacePlymouthPL4 8AX https://www.theboxplymouth.com/collections/archives-and-local-studies 1762 Plymouth Pinkus Community Record Book • Plymouth Archive, The Box