Cincinnati, Ohio - Hadassah Records

Manuscript Collection No. 652

1921-1991. 12.5 Linear ft.

ACCESS AND PROVENANCE

The Cincinnati, Ohio - Hadassah Records were received from Lauren Scharf, Cincinnati Ohio in January 1992. All papers donated prior to December 2000 have been arranged and described in this inventory. Lauren Scharf, by the act of donating the Cincinnati, Ohio - Hadassah Records to the American Jewish Archives, assigned the property rights to the American Jewish Archives. All literary rights to material are retained by the individuals and their heirs. Questions concerning rights should be addressed to the Executive Director of the American Jewish Archives. The papers are available in the reading room of the Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives.

INSTITUTIONAL SKETCH top

The Cincinnati Hadassah Group organized in December 1921 and applied to the national group for a charter, which was granted in February 1921. Objectives of the organization included "1. To assist Israel in the absorption and integration of all Jews. . . 2. To provide and promote in Israel a broad program of Health Activities, Social Services and Youth Welfare Work, 3. To foster Zionist ideals in America; further Jewish Educational work and to encourage its membership to study Hebrew, Jewish History, Literature, etc. . . .." The first president was Mrs. Bessie Polansky who remained active in the chapter for the next quarter century. The vice-president was Miss Nan Berman and the secretary was Mrs. Mitchell Miller.

The activities of Cincinnati Hadassah closely paralleled the goals of their national organization. They were extremely active in fundraising for medical facilities in Israel including the Hadassah Medical School on Mount Scopus, the Rothschild-Hadassah Univeristy Hospital and vocational schools. They also supported the Youth Aliyah program and helped to educate Jewish youth through junior memberships and groups such as Young Judea. In later years, they were part of the tree-planting movement in Israel and supported the Jewish National Fund.

Cincinnati Hadassah membership continued to grow. A Chapter board for Cincinnati was formed, and a number of offshoot groups developed. The Avondale Group was the earliest, founded in 1921, and a Business and Professional Group emerged in 1936. By 1965, the Deborah, Szold, and Kadima Groups had all become part of the chapter.

A typical group of the Cincinnati Hadassah Chapter had its own slate of officers, a monthly group meeting and a monthly board meeting. Meetings featured a speaker, such as a local physician or an official at Hebrew Union College, who spoke on a topic relevant to the group's mission. Much time and effort was expended in maintaining and increasing membership and fundraising for National Hadassah. The Chapter board coordinated the groups and acted as the administrative center for the region.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE top

The Cincinnati chapter of Hadassah was formed in December 1921 to support a variety of Jewish causes, both locally and internationally. The Cincinnati, Ohio - Hadassah Records consists of the organizational activities such as minutes, correspondence, committee records, and publicity dating between 1921 and 1991. The papers are divided into seven (7) series:

A. ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS
B. PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS
C. COMMITTEES/ SPECIAL PROJECTS
D. CONFERENCES
E. YOUNG JUDEA
F. PHOTOGRAPHS
G. PUBLICITY

SERIES A. ADMINISTRATIVE RECORDS (1921 - 1988) consists of 8 boxes of material, organized into three subseries: I. Constitutions, II. Groups and III. Membership Rosters. Constitutions are arranged chronologically and cover the years 1955 - 1979. The material in the group subseries contains chapter board minutes (1955 - 1988) followed by individual group minutes and miscellaneous files, arranged alphabetically. Material is arranged chronologically within each folder. The membership rosters (1959 - 1983) are also arranged alphabetically.

SERIES B. PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS (1928 - 1982) consists of 1 ½ boxes of material. It is arranged chronologically by the name of the president. For example, the papers of Esther Benet (president 1948 - 1952) are followed by the papers of Mrs. Richard Bluestein (president 1956-1957). Common types of material found in these records are annotated agendas, speeches given by the president and correspondence. Of special note is a partial journal of a trip to Israel in 1967.

SERIES C. COMMITTEES/ SPECIAL PROJECTS (1931 - 1991) consists of 3 boxes of material. It is arranged alphabetically by topic. Most of the material in this series is related to the annual Donor Luncheon. Folders are arranged chronologically within topic. Common types of material include committee minutes, correspondence and publicity related material.

SERIES D. CONFERENCES (1928 - 1988) consists of 1 ½ boxes of material. It is arranged chronologically and alphabetically within years. Material is included relating to the regional and national conferences- with an emphasis on regional conferences in years where they were held in Cincinnati.

SERIES E. YOUNG JUDEA ( 1938 - 1970) consists of 1 ½ boxes of material. It is arranged alphabetically by subject. Folders are arranged chronologically within topics. Materials include information about conferences, nearprint and a variety of educational materials used for group meetings.

SERIES F. PHOTOGRAPHS (1940 - 1987) consists of 1 ½ boxes of materials. Most photographs are undated and unlabeled. They have been arranged loosely into subject categories and arranged alphabetically. Approximately ½ of the photographs have been removed from the historian's scrapbooks from series G. These photographs are in the order that they were removed from the scrapbooks.

SERIES G. PUBLICITY (1933 - 1988) consists of 9 boxes of material. The series has been arranged alphabetically by subject and include brochures, newsclippings, publications, programs and the historian's scrapbooks.

BOX AND FOLDER LISTING top

Box  Folder    Contents

SERIES A. ADMINISTRATIVE FILES. 1921- 1988.

Subseries I. Constitutions. 1955 -1979.
1       1               Constitutions. 1955-1979.
        2               Model Constititions/ Bylaws  from National Hadassah. 1961

X-412                   Group Certificates. Szold Group and Young Matrons Group. 1978; n.d.

Subseries II. Groups. 1921-1988.
1       3               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1955 - 1959.
        4               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1959 - 1962.
        5               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1963 - 1964.
        6               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1964 - 1965.
        7               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1966 - 1971.
        8               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1972 - 1973.

2       1               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1974 - 1979.
        2               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1980 - 1981.
        3               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1982 - 1985.
        4               Chapter Board. Minutes. 1986 - 1988.
        5               Avondale. Minutes. 1921 - 1933.
        6               Avondale. Minutes. 1933 - May 1952.

3       1               Avondale. Board Minutes. 1936 - 1946. 
        2               Avondale. Minutes. 1952 - 1961.

4       1               Business and Professional [B. &. P.] Group. Minutes. 1936 - 1941.
        2               B & P. Minutes. 1942 - July 1949.
        3               B & P. Minutes. August 1949 - July 1951.
        4               B & P. Minutes. September 1951 - 1953.

5       1               B & P. Minutes. 1954 - 1961.
        2               B & P. Minutes. 1962 - 1965.
        3               B & P. Minutes. 1966 - 1968.
        4               B & P. Minutes. 1969.
        5               B & P. Minutes. 1970 - 1971.

6       1               B & P. Minutes. 1972 - 1974.
        2               B & P. Minutes. 1975 - 1980.
        3               B. & P. Presidential Correspondence. 1969 - 1971.
        4               B. & P. Rosters. 1949 -1978.
        5               Deborah. Minutes. 1973 - 1981.
        6               Deborah. Misc.  Records. 1977 - 1981.
        7               Esther. Minutes. 1950 -1951.

7       1               Esther. Minutes. 1952 - 1953.
        2               Esther. Minutes. 1954 - 1956.
        3               Esther. Minutes. 1957 - 1959.
        4               Esther. Minutes. 1960 - 1964.
        5               Esther. Rosters. 1959 - 1961.

Subseries 3. Membership Rosters. 1959 - 1983.
7       6               Membership Rosters. 1960 - 1961.
        7               Membership Rosters. 1962 - 1964.
        8               Membership Rosters. 1964 - 1965.
        
8       1               Membership Rosters. 1965 - 1966.
        2               Membership Rosters. 1966 - 1967.
        3               Membership Rosters. 1967 - 1968.
        4               Membership Rosters. 1968 - 1969.
        5               Membership Rosters. 1969 - 1970.
        6               Membership Rosters. 1970 - 1971.
        7               Membership Rosters. 1974 - 1975.
        8               Membership Rosters. 1983.
        9               Membership Rosters. N.d.
        10              Officer Lists. 1970 - 1982.
        11              Attendance Books. 1961 - 1965.

X-412                   Lifetime membership book. n.d.


SERIES B. PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS. 1928 -1982.

9       1               Benet, Esther. Annotated Agendas. 1948 - 1951; n.d.
        2               Benet, Esther. Correspondence. 1946 - 1951.
        3               Benet, Esther. Speeches. 1948 - 1951; n.d.
        4               Bluestein, Mrs. Richard. Notes. 1956 - 1957.
        5               Reports to the President. 1965 - 1969.
        6               Slavney, Betty. Notes. 1978 - 1980.
        7               Freeman, Barb. Notes. 1980 - 1982.
        8               Fox, Debbie. Record Book. May 1982 - August 1982.
        9               Fox, Debbie. Record Book. September 1982 - December 1982.
        10              Fox, Debbie. Record Book. January 1983 - May 1983. 

10      1               Fox, Debbie. Record Book/Lists. June 1983 - July 1983.
        2               Fox, Debbie. Record Book. August 1983 - September 1983.
        3               Fox, Debbie. Record Book. October 1983 - February 1984.
        4               Correspondence. 1928 -1982.
        5               Presidential speeches.  n.d.
        6               Trip to Israel. 1967.

SERIES C. COMMITTEES/ SPECIAL PROJECTS. 1931-1991.

10      7               An Exhibit on Israel. 1958.
        8               Donor Luncheon. 1935 - 1936.
        9               Donor Luncheon 1959 - 1961.

11      1               Donor Luncheon. 1962 - 1963.
        2               Donor Luncheon. 1964.
        3               Donor Luncheon.  1965.
        4               Donor Luncheon. 1966.
        5               Donor Luncheon. 1971 - 1976.

12      1               Donor Luncheon. Programs. 1931 - 1939.
        2               Donor Luncheon. Programs. 1946 - 1949.
        3               Donor Luncheon. Programs. 1950 - 1959.
        4               Donor Luncheon. Programs. 1960 - 1969.
        5               Donor Luncheon. Programs. 1970 - 1979.
        6               Donor Luncheon. Programs. 1980 - 1989.
        7               Donor Luncheon Programs. 1990 - 1991.

13      1               Financial Secretaries. 1956 -1963.
        2               Fund Raising. 1956; 1970 - 1972.
        3               Fund Raising. 1978 - 1979.
        4               Fund Raising. Anne Frank Benefit. 1979.
        5               Jaffe Orange Sale. 1981 - 1982.
        6               Mount Scopus Dedication Dance. 1975.
        7               Zionist Council. 1963 - 1967.


SERIES D. CONFERENCES. 1928-1988.

13      8               National/ Regional Conference. 1928.
        9               Regional Conference. 1963.
        10              Regional Conference. 1967.
        11              National Conference. 1970.
        12              Regional Conference. 1970.
        13              Regional Conference. 1978.

14      1               Regional Conference. 1979.
        2               Regional Conference. Chairman's Notebook. 1979.
        3               Regional Conference. Planning. 1988.
        4               Regional Conference. Program. 1988.


SERIES E. YOUNG JUDEA. 1938-1970.

15      1               Central States Conference. 1968.
        2               National Conference. 1969.
        3               National Conference. 1970.
        4               Central States Conference. n..d.
        5               Hasacher. 1968 - 1986.
        6               Miscellaneous educational materials. 1968 - 1970.
        7               Miscellaneous educational materials. n.d.

16      1               Notebook. 1938 -1941.
        2               Nearprint. n.d.
        3               Periodicals. Judaean Leaves.  1968 - 1969.
        4               Periodicals. Young Judaean. 1967 - 1968.
        5               Songbooks. n.d.


SERIES F. PHOTOGRAPHS. 1940-1987.

16      6               Boat Ride. July 1967.
        7               Donor Luncheon.
        8               Events (unidentified).
        9               "From Bloomers to Bikinis." n.d.
        10              Israel.
        11              Meetings.

17      1               Membership. 
        2               Membership snapshots. ca. 1961.         
        3               Men.
        4               Miscellaneous groups of women.
        5               Officers of Hadassah.
        6               Orientation. Amberley House. 1970.
        7               Scrapbook. 1962 - 1967.
        8               Scrapbook.  1973 - 1975.
        9               Scrapbook. 1975 - 1976.
        10              Scrapbook. 1976 - 1977.
        11              Scrapbook. 1977 - 1978
        12              Scrapbook. 1978 - 1979.
        13              Scrapbook. 1982 - 1983.
        14              Scrapbook. 1983 - 1984.
        15              Scrapbook. 1984 - 1985.
        16              Scrapbook. 1985 - 1986.
        17              Scrapbook. 1986 - 1987.
        18              Slides.
        19              Stage
        20              Women.
        21              Youth Aliyah.


SERIES G. PUBLICITY. 1933-1988.

18      1               Brochures; programs. 1953 - 1969.
        2               Brochures; programs. 1970 - 1982; n.d.
        3               Brochures; programs. 1983.
        4               Brochures; programs. 1984.
        5               Brochures; programs. 1985.
        6               Brochures; programs. 1986.
        7               Brochures; programs. 1987 - 1988.
        8               Kadima newsletter. 1964 - 1965.
        9               Newsclippings. 1943 -1970.
        10              Publications. B & P Hadassah Bulletin. 1969 - 1980.

19      1               Publications. Hadassah. 1937; 1958 - 1959.
        2               Publications. Hadassah. 1960 - 1962.
        3               Publications. Hadassah. 1963 - 1964.
        4               Publications. Hadassah. 1965 - 1967.
        5               Publications. Hadassah. 1968 - 1969.
        6               Publications. Hadassah. 1970 - 1974.
        7               Publications. Hadassah Headlines.1962 - 1969.

20      1               Publications. Hadassah Headlines.  1970 - 1984.
        2               Proclamations.
        3               Scrapbook. 1933 - 1945.
        4               Scrapbook. 1948 - 1951.
        5               Scrapbook. 1957 - 1960.
        6               Scrapbook. 1960 -1962.

21      1               Scrapbook. 1962 - 1963.
        2               Scrapbook. 1963 - 1964.
        3               Scrapbook. 1964 - 1965.
        4               Scrapbook. 1965 - 1966.
        5               Memorial Scrapbook. 1966.
        
22      1               Scrapbook. 1966 - 1967.
        2               Scrapbook. 1968 - 1969.
        3               Scrapbook. 1969 - 1970.
        4               Scrapbook. 1970 - 1972.
        5               Scrapbook. 1972 - 1974.

23      1               Scrapbook. 1973 - 1975.
        2               Scrapbook. Part. 1. 1975 - 1976.
        3               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1975 - 1976.
        4               Scrapbook. Part 1. 1976 - 1977.
        5               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1976 - 1977.
        
24      1               Scrapbook. Part 1. 1977 - 1978.
        2               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1977 - 1978.
        3               Scrapbook. Part 1. 1978 - 1979.
        4               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1978 - 1979.

25      1               Scrapbook. Part.1. 1982 - 1983.
        2               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1982 - 1983.
        3               Scrapbook. Part 1. 1983 - 1984.
        4               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1983 - 1984.
        5               Scrapbook.  1984 - 1985.

26      1               Scrapbook. Part 1. 1985 - 1986. 
        2               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1985 - 1986.
        3               Scrapbook. Part 1. 1986 - 1987.
        4               Scrapbook. Part 2. 1986 - 1987.

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