Metadata: The Social-Cultural Society of the Jews in Poland
Collection
- Country:
- Poland
- Holding institution:
- The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute
- Holding institution (official language):
- Żydowski Instytut Historyczny im. Emanuela Ringelbluma
- Postal address:
- ul. Tłomackie 3/5, 00-090 Warszawa
- Phone number:
- +48 22 827 92 21
- Email:
- secretary@jhi.pl
- Reference number:
- PL 312/325
- Title:
- The Social-Cultural Society of the Jews in Poland
- Title (official language):
- Towarzystwo Społeczno-Kulturalne Żydów w Polsce
- Creator/accumulator:
- The Social-Cultural Society of the Jews in Poland
- Date(s):
- 1950/1967
- Language:
- Polish
- Yiddish
- English
- Russian
- Hebrew
- German
- French
- Spanish; Castilian
- Italian
- Extent:
- 317 files; 7 linear metres
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Photographic images
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
-
The collection contains materials produced in the years 1950-1967 by the Social-Cultural Society of Jews in Poland. The records were divided in two parts: the Main Board and local offices. The materials of the Main Board are organisational files, which include: statutes, newsletters, circulars, minutes, reports and propaganda materials. Domestic and foreign correspondence was arranged chronologically. This was followed by the personnel files of Social-Cultural Society of Jews employees, such as: lists of names, attendance lists, correspondence, business trip registers and vacation plans. Another group of documents are personal records, which include: correspondence from private persons with requests for help, arranged in alphabetical order; applications for awards and lists of names of decorated individuals; requests to reproduce documents.
Another small group of documents are financial records: cash reports, budget estimates (for the years 1951, 1957), correspondence on financial matters (including contracts, invoices) and medical assistance (requests for medicines, prescriptions). Another extremely valuable group of documents is the correspondence related to searches for people, which is part of the Records Department. Only one archival unit is the correspondence of the Repatriation Department. Another group consists of records belonging to the Department of Education, such as: various minutes, curricula in schools with the Yiddish as a language of instruction, documentation of club rooms, personnel records (application declarations for teacher training courses, name lists of teachers from individual schools), documentation of summer camps, documentation of educational institutions in alphabetical order by town name. Only two archival units deal with publishing materials, which include correspondence regarding the publications of "Idish Bukh".
In the part containing the records of Social-Cultural Society of Jews field offices there is documentation of Social-Cultural Society of Jews branches arranged alphabetically according to the names of the town: Białystok, Bielawa, Bielsko-Biała, Bydgoszcz, Bytom, Częstochowa, Dzierżoniów, Gdańsk, Gliwice, Jawor, Jelenia Góra, Kalisz, Kamienna Góra, Katowice, Kłodzko, Kraków, Legnica, Lubawka, Lublin, Łódź, Nowy Sącz, Nowa Sól, Olsztyn, Pieszyce, Płock, Przemyśl, Rzeszów, Sosnowiec, Strzegom, Szczecin, Świdnica, Świebodzice, Tarnów, Wałbrzych, Warsaw, Włocławek, Wrocław, Ząbkowice, Zgorzelec, Ziębice, Żary. There are organisational (including correspondence), personal and financial files. The catalogue ends with applications from various years for the "Folks-Shtime" correspondent course arranged in alphabetical order (some with photos attached); and the last archival unit in the collection includes miscellaneous notes and fragments of texts.
Records of Social-Cultural Society of Polish Jews branch offices:
Białystok – archival units 142-155;
Bielawa – archival units 156-163;
Bielsko-Biała – archival units 164-166;
Bydgoszcz – archival units 167-168;
Bytom – archival units 169-171;
Częstochowa – archival units 172-175;
Dzierżoniów – archival units 176-185;
Gdańsk – archival unit 186;
Gliwice – archival units 187-189;
Jawor – archival unit 190;
Jelenia Góra – archival unit 191;
Kalisz – archival unit 192;
Kamienna Góra – archival unit 193;
Katowice – archival units 194-197;
Kłodzko – archival units 198-200;
Kraków – archival units 201-207;
Legnica – archival units 208-212;
Lubawka – archival unit 213;
Lublin – archival units 214-217;
Łódź – archival units 218-226;
Nowy Sącz – archival unit 227;
Nowa Sól – archival unit 228;
Olsztyn – archival unit 229;
Pieszyce – archival unit 230;
Płock – archival units 231-243;
Przemyśl – archival unit 244;
Rzeszów – archival unit 245;
Sosnowiec – archival units 246-247;
Strzegom – archival units 248-250;
Szczecin – archival units 251-255;
Świdnica – archival units 256-263;
Świebodzice – archival units 264-265;
Tarnów – archival units 266-271;
Wałbrzych – archival units 272-276;
Warsaw – archival unit 277;
Włocławek – archival unit 278;
Wrocław – archival units 279-299;
Ząbkowice – archival units 300-301;
Zgorzelec – archival unit 302;
Ziębice – archival units 303-304;
Żary – archival units 305-314;
”Folks-Shtime” (announcement for a correspondence course) – archival units 315-316;
Miscellaneous – archival unit 317.
- Archival history:
- The Social-Cultural Society of Polish Jews documents were transferred by the Society to the Jewish Historical Institute Archive in the late 1960s. There is no information on the original volume of the collection and or whether it was reduced or not. During the first initial processing, the documentation of the Central Committee of Polish Jews from before the establishment of the Social-Cultural Society of Polish Jews was not separated from the collection and the records were not properly arranged. A schematic card index was prepared. The collection was reorganised for a second time in 2012-2013.
- Administrative/biographical history:
- The Social and Cultural Society of Jews in Poland was formally established in 1950 as a result of the merger of the Central Committee of Polish Jews and the Jewish Society of Culture and Art (ŻTKS). Its establishment was related to the dissolution of independent Jewish institutions. The Social and Cultural Society of Jews took over the network of clubs, the Idish Bukh publishing house and magazines from the Central Committee of Polish Jews. The main positions in the organisation were occupied by communists. The goal was to involve Jews in building socialism, meet their cultural needs, and support Jewish artists and scholars. As part of its educational activities, TSKŻ was to develop a network of schools, kindergartens, community centres and orphanages. The activity of TSKŻ revived considerably in 1956 with the influx of repatriates from the USSR. March '68 brought a breakdown in the dynamics of the organisation's development. In 1970, the process of rebuilding the Social and Cultural Society of Jews began, but it lacked significant impact. Currently, the Social and Cultural Society of Jews in Poland has 2,700 members and 16 branches in Poland.
- Access points: locations:
- Białystok
- Bielawa
- Bielsko-Biała
- Bydgoszcz
- Bytom
- Czestochowa
- Dzierżoniów
- Gdansk
- Gliwice
- Jawor
- Kalisz
- Katowice
- Kłodzko
- Krakow
- Legnica
- Łódź
- Lublin
- Nowy Sącz
- Olsztyn
- Pieszyce
- Płock
- Przemysl
- Rzeszow
- Sosnowiec
- Strzegom
- Świdnica
- Świebodzice
- Szczecin
- Tarnów
- Wałbrzych
- Warsaw
- Włocławek
- Wrocław
- Żary
- Ziębice
- Subject terms:
- Education
- Publishing
- Welfare
- System of arrangement:
- The collection is divided into two main parts: documents of the board; documents of 41 local branches, arranged alphabetically according to town names.
- Finding aids:
- A digital catalogue (2013) is available in Polish. There is also an index of names for selected archival units.
- Links to finding aids:
- http://www.jhi.pl/uploads/inventory/file/148/TSKZ__325.pdf
- Yerusha Network member:
- The Taube Department of Jewish Studies of the University of Wrocław
- Author of the description:
- Monika Taras; The Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute; March 2018
