Jewish Community of Stockholm
- Judiska (Mosaiska) församlingen i Stockholm (JFST)
Web Source
Extent and Medium
315 linear meters.
Textual material such as protocols and minutes, financial and statistical records, correspondences, and reports and memos, and periodicals and ephemera. There are also a smaller amount of photographs and drawings.
Biographical History
The Jewish Community of Stockholm was founded by the seal engraver and merchant Aaron Isaac, who came from Mecklenburg to Stockholm in 1774 and, in the following year, received the king's permission to settle there with his family. Soon thereafter, relatives and friends arrived, and thus, the community was founded.
The Stockholm congregation is organized as an Einheitsversammlung, open to all Jews regardless of religious orientation. The congregation has three synagogues: The Stockholm synagogue (originally Reform, today mainly Conservative), and Adat Jeschurun and Adat Jisrael (Orthodox).
Archival History
In the mid-1980s, the Jewish Community of Stockholm deposited most of its older archival holdings with the National Archives to be organized, indexed, and made accessible for research. This work, however, was initiated first in 2001 and finished in 2007. Certain parts were also microfilmed and digitized.
Several supplementary deliveries have been made after that. The deliveries were intended to include documents dated until 1979, but exceptions exist.
The Jewish Community's deposit includes its own administrative archives with various committees, boards, and sections, as well as archives from many foundations, associations, and individuals associated with the community.
Acquisition
The archive belongs to the Jewish Community of Stockholm and was deposited with the Swedish National Archives in the mid-1980's.
Scope and Content
Archivists at the National Archives have archival holdings have organized and cataloged the holdings into over 80 sub-archives. The overarching structure is as follows:
1 Central archive 2 Church records 3 Community bodies 4 Funds and foundations 5 Organizations and associations 6 Business organizations 7 Rabbis and other staff 8 Personal archives 9 Music sheets 10 Image and photo collections
The Central archive includes the administrational records and documents related to the community's core activities.
Until 1910, the community had the official duty to keep population records for its members in Stockholm. These records and other registries are listed in a separate archive section.
Separate archive indexes have been created for 25 different community bodies. These include various departments and committees involved in refugee aid and relief work, particularly in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. The financial documents for community bodies may be found both in the respective body's archive and the Central archive.
Close to 25 sub-archives contain archives of various associations and clubs, such as the Jewish Club, The Jewish Women's Club, the Jewish Student's Club, B'nai Brith, and the local branches of international organizations such as the Women's International Zionist Organization and World Jewish Congress.
Among the eight archives from the community's rabbis is the archive of Chief Rabbi Marcus Ehrenpreis, who led the community during the time of the Holocaust.
System of Arrangement
The archive has a hierarchical and thematic structure. It is catalogued according to the Swedish Archive standard:
A = minutes; B = documents generated by the authority, outgoing documents; C = diaries and diary registers; D = ledgers, lists, registers, inventory registers, etc.; E = correspondence, incoming documents; F = subject-specific documents; G = accounts; H = statistics; J = maps and drawings; K = photographs; L = newspaper clippings; Ö = other documents.
Conditions Governing Access
Access to the archive must be approved by the general secretary of the Jewish Community of Stockholm. The application form can be found on the community’s website: https://jfst.se/fler-tjaenster/oevriga-tjaenster/slaekt-och-personforskning/
Finding Aids
The archive that this collection is a part of has been cataloged by the Swedish National Archives.
The index can be found in a folder at the archive and in the archive’s database NAD (Nationell Arkivdatabas):
Sources
The National Archives Database (NAD)
Yerusha.eu
Carlsson, Carl Henrik. Källor till judarnas historia i Sverige: arkivguide. Skrifter utgivna av Riksarkivet 44. Täby: Riksarkivet, 2022.
Rules and Conventions
EHRI Guidelines for Description v.1.0