Metadata: Vilnius City Orphans' Court
Collection
- Country:
- Lithuania
- Holding institution:
- Lithuanian State Historical Archives
- Holding institution (official language):
- Lietuvos valstybės istorijos archyvas
- Postal address:
- Mindaugo 8, 03107 Vilnius
- Phone number:
- +370 5 219 5320
- Email:
- istorijos.archyvas@lvia.lt
- Reference number:
- 783
- Title:
- Vilnius City Orphans' Court
- Title (official language):
- Vilniaus miesto našlaičių teismas
- Creator/accumulator:
- Vilnius City Orphans' Court
- Date(s):
- 1817/1916
- Language:
- Russian
- Extent:
- 5,123 files
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
-
The collection contains materials of the Vilnius City Orphans' Court including minutes of the court hearings, income-expenditure books and financial documents, correspondence of the court administration, custody cases concerning individuals and their children, and alphabetical lists of cases that were heard by the court.
The collection contains numerous Jewish-related records. An important part of these records relates to the appointment of guardians for widows and orphans. For example, a file from 1818-1847 contains papers on the appointment of guardians for the widow Zaidler (inventory 1, file 2), a file from 1824-1842 deals with the appointment of guardians for Zelman and Sara Iuhelson (inventory 1, file 5), and a file from 1826-1836 deals with the appointment of guardians for the Katsenelebaugen family (inventory 1, file 14). A file from 1901-1911 includes materials about obtaining custody for the mentally incapacitated burgher Sholom Palevsky from Kobrin (Kobryn) (inventory 1, file 5128). Materials from 1908-1911 refer to obtaining custody for the young son of the deceased Aron Sheinok (inventory 1, file 5136). A larger proportion of records deal with establishing custody of the property of widows, orphans and others. A file from 1880-1883 relates to establishing custody for the property of a minor, Gera London (inventory 1, file 2426). Records from 1890-1892 deal with establishing custody for the property of deceased Basia Isefson (inventory 1, file 5402). The main reason for establishing custody was complete or partial lack of legal or economic capacity. Usually, in the cases of orphans at the meeting of the Orphan's Court, the city head informed the court about children left without parental care. In the case of the death of both parents, the children were invited to a court session in order to question them about existing relatives, debts or property held by their parents. As a rule, preference for the appointment of guardians was given to the closest relatives.
A large proportion of the files in the collection relate to court decisions regarding homes to be brought under state administration. For instance, a file from 1826-1838 includes documents regarding the house of Gershon Morie (inventory 1, file 12). A file of 1848-1849 contain papers on establishing state administration for the home of Meer Iudelevich (inventory 1, file 760). A file dated 1839-1849 includes a request by Reuven Mihelovich to transfer a promissory note (Weksel) in his favour for 200 rubles (inventory 1, file 285). A file from 1843-1845 contains materials regarding Leibovich’s financial claims against the nobleman Epinsky (inventory 1, file 480).
- Archival history:
- Information about the archival history of the collection is unavailable.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The Vilnius City Orphan's Court was established in 1835 as part of the Ministry of Justice. It was a collegial body consisting of the mayor and several members elected for 3 years by the local council. The court was a tool for providing social assistance and dealt with the care of young orphans, widows and their property. It provided care for nobles, honorary citizens, merchants, meshchane (burgher estate) and peasants who owned real estate in the city. It operated until the occupation of Vilnius by the Germans during the First World War in 1915.
- Access points: persons/families:
- Isefson, Basia
- Iudelevich, Meer
- Iuhelson, Sara
- Iuhelson, Zelman
- Katsenelebaugen
- London, Gera
- Mihelovich, Reuven
- Morie, Gershon
- Palevsky, Sholom
- Sheinok, Aron
- Zaidler
- Subject terms:
- Financial matters
- Legal matters
- Orphans
- Real estate
- Welfare
- Wills
- System of arrangement:
- The collection consists of one inventory that is arranged in chronological order.
- Finding aids:
- Detailed inventories are available on the website of the Lithuanian Chief Archivist Service.
- Links to finding aids:
- https://eais-pub.archyvai.lt/eais/faces/pages/forms/search/F3001.jspx
- Yerusha Network member:
- Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People
- Author of the description:
- Ilya Vovshin, Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People, 2020