The Lahav Jewish Heritage Project is an archiving project managed by the Tyne & Wear Archives, and held in the Discovery Museum, Newcastle upon Tyne. It holds material about the Jewish community of Newcastle.

Archive Description

The Lahav Jewish Heritage project was initially established in 2017 to collect, preserve and celebrate the rich history of the Jewish community in North East England, from the 1700s to the present day. The project is jointly managed by Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums (TWAM) and Newcastle Libraries in partnership with members of the Newcastle Jewish communities. Within TWAM the project is run jointly by Tyne & Wear Archives and by Discovery Museum. The project was made possible by a generous bequest from the Ron Lahav Marital Trust (from which the project takes its name) to Newcastle City Council in 2017.

Tyne & Wear Archives hold a very significant collection of archives which document the heritage of the unique and varied Jewish communities, organisations and individuals from across the region. The records include official and administrative records from a large number of now closed synagogues, the records of the Representative Council of North East Jewry, cemetery and ChevraKadishas records, educational records and have a particular strength in documenting the story of Jewish business, charitable, cultural and leisure organisations which developed in the region. The Lahav Jewish heritage project has further enhanced these collections with the additional of a significant number of oral histories and a documentary film.

Access Information

The Tyne & Wear Archives Searchroom is open to members of the public. Some of the Jewish records in the collections require permission from the depositor for access. Some records have restrictions placed on them to comply with data protection regulations.

Access is via the public searchroom at Discovery Museum in Newcastle. Copying and paid research services are also available. For more info please email: archives@twmuseums.org.uk

To visit the archive booking must be made at least 7 days in advance via the online booking link on the website.

Digital Accessibility

The Archives currently have a small amount of digital material available, and digitisation is planned to increase this amount. A photographic survey of Jewish gravestones from North-East cemeteries is available online. An catalogue is also available on the archive website.

Street Address

Tyne & Wear Archives
Discovery Museum
Blandford Square
Newcastle
NE1 4JA