Skip to main content

Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore (Mass.) Records

 Collection
Identifier: I-584

Scope and Content Note

The Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore collection consists of one manuscript box of administrative records, plus records from exhibits presented between 1991 and 2002. The focus of the administrative records is primarily on the documentation of loans and gifts to and from the organization. Folders containing correspondence and records documenting organizational events also reveal more about the public operations of the JHCNS. The exhibit records consist of information about the organization’s efforts during the planning process, as well as photographs, documents, and information highlighted in the exhibits themselves.

Dates

  • undated, circa 1870-2008

Creator

Language of Materials

The collection is in English.

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for researcher use. Please contact us to request access or to make an appointment to view this collection at jhcreference@nehgs.org.

Use Restrictions

There may be some restrictions on the use of this collection. For more information contact jhcreference@nehgs.org.

Historical Note

The Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore was founded in 1977 as the North Shore Jewish Historical Society (NSJHS) by Nathan and Sophie Gass. The couple had taken part in an evening of remembrances about Jewish life in Lynn, which was videotaped. The question of what to do with the tape led the Gasses to establish the NSJHS. The organization became an archival repository for the stories of the North Shore Jewish community and developed exhibits, cultural events, and publications to preserve and disseminate the history of the community. In 2001, the NSJHS changed its name to the Jewish Historical Society of the North Shore, and in 2012, the organization reassessed and broadened its mission, changing its name to the Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore (JHCNS) at that time. In 2013, the organization donated their archival collections to the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center at New England Historic Genealogical Society.

Since its founding, the JHCNS has produced numerous exhibits and educational programs on such subjects as Jewish veterans, early Jewish families in Marblehead and Peabody, the history of the Jewish community in Salem, and the history of Temple Shalom of the Congregation Sons of Jacob on the occasion of the shul’s centenary. The JHCNS has also published two books, The Jewish Community of the North Shore in 2003 and A History of Boston’s Jewish North Shore in 2009.

References

  1. Material from the collection.
  2. “Our History and Mission,” Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore, accessed January 16, 2016, http://www.jhcns.org/History.html

Chronology

1977
The North Shore Jewish Historical Society is founded.
2001
The organization name is changed to the Jewish Historical Society of the North Shore.
2003
The Jewish Community of the North Shore is published.
2009
A History of Boston’s Jewish North Shore is published.
2012
The organization name is changed to the Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore.

Extent

2 linear feet (4 manuscript boxes, 1 oversized folder)

Abstract

The Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore (JHCNS) collected the records of the North Shore Jewish community and developed exhibits, cultural events, and publications to preserve and disseminate the history of the community. JHCNS’s records contain administrative documents, such as by-laws, deeds of gift, loan agreements, and fundraising paperwork, as well as documents related to exhibits put on between 1991 and 2002.

Physical Location

Located in Boston, Mass.

Acquisition Information

Donated by the Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore, 2013.

Processing Information

Processed by Shannon Struble, 2016

Title
Guide to the Jewish Heritage Center of the North Shore (Mass.) Records, I-584
Author
Processed by Shannon Struble
Date
2016
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

Repository Details

Part of the Wyner Family Jewish Heritage Center at American Ancestors Repository

Contact:
99-101 Newbury Street
Boston MA 02116 United States
617-226-1245