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Are You Bored?
Have you watched all the television there is to watch? Have you solved every jigsaw puzzle you can find? Are you looking for something to do?

Then why not volunteer remotely for the Rauh Jewish Archives?

The archive always needs help compiling databases. Databases might seem ho-hum, but they are rocket fuel for research. Databases take historic documents to new heights, making information easier to find and to analyze. Researchers all over the world depend on them to make sense of the past.

Do you have a connection to a certain congregation, neighborhood, time period, or subject? Projects can be tailored to your interests, availability, and technological skills. All you need is a computer and some stick-to-it-ness.

To learn more about these special at-home volunteer opportunities, please contact Eric Lidji at rjarchives@heinzhistorycenter.org or 412-454-6406.
June 12: Two Cities, One Story
"Two Cities, One Story" is a new online series where we partner with a Jewish archive in another city to tell one story from American Jewish history.

The first installment will take place on Friday, June 12, at 10 a.m. Told in collaboration with Jeremy Katz of the Cuba Family Archives at the Breman Museum in Atlanta, it will look at the life of Rabbi Jacob Rothschild.

"Jack," as he was known locally, was a Pittsburgh boy who grew up at Rodef Shalom Congregation in Shadyside. After joining The Temple on Peachtree Street in Atlanta in 1943, he became a leading Jewish figure in the Civil Rights Movement, working alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others. He fiercely advocated for Civil Rights from the pulpit, leading to an infamous bombing of his synagogue in 1958. Although there were thankfully no fatalities, it was one of the worst acts of antisemitic violence in American history, up to that point. 

Using materials from the archives in Pittsburgh and Atlanta, we will follow the path of Rabbi Rothschild’s education, apprenticeship, and legendary career.
[IMAGE: An article from the Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph on April 25, 1937, announcing that Pittsburgh native Rabbi Jacob Rothschild had been hired as an assistant to Dr. Solomon B. Freehof of Rodef Shalom Congregation.]
Featured Cookbook: "FSM Family Fare"
Most of the cookbooks in our collection come from organizations, but a few come from families.

In 1983, Roshie (Harrison) Schoenberger and her daughter Leah organized a cookbook project as part of a reunion of the Finkelstein, Sykes, Mamolen, and related families.

"FSM Family Fare" included recipes from family members living in many small towns throughout central Pennsylvania, in the general area of Williamsport and Harrisburg. Some of the small towns represented in this cookbook likely have little to no Jewish presence today, making this a wonderful document of Jewish life.

The cookbook was reprinted in 2017, in an effort to expand its offerings.
A copy of the 2017 edition was donated to the archive by David Berman, a member of the FSM clans and an avid genealogist of that region. Our featured recipes come from Sylvia Berman of Emporium, Pa. and Sadye Harrison of Lewistown, Pa.

Mrs. Berman provided a tomato conserve with walnuts and raisins. Mrs. Harrison provided a recipe for pickles—tomato or cucumbers.

The Rauh Jewish Archives is placing a special focus on Jewish cookbooks throughout 2020. If you have a copy of a cookbook published by a Jewish individual or a Jewish group in Western Pennsylvania, please contact Eric Lidji at 412-454-6406 or eslidji@heinzhistorycenter.org .
The Rauh Jewish History Program & Archives was founded in 1988 to collect, preserve, and make accessible the documentary history of Jews and Jewish communities of Western Pennsylvania. You can help the RJHPA continue its work by making a donation that will directly support the work being done in Western Pa.
Visit Online

The Senator John Heinz History Center is currently closed to the public, however we have you covered with an array of virtual history offerings. 
A proud affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, the  Senator John Heinz History Center  is the largest history museum in Pennsylvania and presents American history with a Western Pennsylvania connection.