Genealogy Gems in the Library Archive

On February 21, the Jewish
Genealogical Society of Michigan
(JGSMI) met at the HMCZFC
Library Archive to learn about new
resources available. A recent researcher
said, "I come to the Center often and
every time I think that I know what
happened to the family, it hits me that
there is more to find out!" On that
particular day, the researcher found
relatives who were on a ghetto list and
discovered the names of a survivor's
siblings, their birth dates, mother's
maiden name and deportation destina-
tion...AUSCHWITZ. The purpose of
the February meeting was to aquaint
the JGSMI members with recent ad-
ditions as well as to advise new mem-
bers about collection highlights. It is
not unusual to hear gasps of delight
and wonder, as family members and
researchers find the names of relatives.
It is also not unusual to see tears of
anguish and sorrow.
Important resources are appearing
all the time at an amazing rate. The
Library Archive strives to acquire and
make them available to our com-
munity, on-site and via our website.
One may access our cataloged book
collection via our website. Also on
our website is the listing of cities for
which we have Memorial Books and
the "Tracing Holocaust Survivors/
Victims: A Brief Guide." The Guide
is a reference sheet that is also available
in the Library Archive at no charge.
It is updated as information becomes
available.

Some of our key resources include:
• Bedzin Ghetto Internees with
photo ID, address and date of
birth
• Bereznitz Landsmanschaft letters

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Scanned, organized by date, and
being translated
Brzesc (Brest-Litovsk, Brisk)
Ghetto Internees List (also avail-
able on Jewish Gen), described in
previous HMC Newsletter.
German Communities
Klaus-Dieter, Alicke. Lexikon der

juedischen Gemeinden im deut-
schen Sprachraum. 3 volumes.
Encyclopedia of German and
German-speaking communities
arranged alphabetically.
• German and German - speaking
locations:
Volunteer Max Kahn prepared an
extensive in-house guide to the
LBI Institute Yearbook's bibliog-
raphies arranged by city, area, and
region in 3 looseleafs.
• Ghettos
Yad Vashem Encyclopedia of the
Ghettos during the Holocaust.
Jerusalem, Yad Vashem, 2009.
• Grunberg — Neusaltz
Death March to Volary and
Bergen Belsen. Includes lists of
women who were on the death
march and what happened to
them.
• Hungarian Microfilm collection
donated by Randolph Braham.
Documents filmed for use in his
monumental work, Politics of
Genocide, 168 reels.
• Hungarian Jewish Communities
Encyclopedia
Braham, Randolph. A
Magyarorszagi Holokauszt
Foldrajzi Enciklopediaja. 3 vol-
umes. Comprehensive treatment
of communities and regions in
Hungarian-speaking areas.
• Hungary/Transylvania/Romania
Volunteer Mrs. Freda Fleisch in-

Visitor Survey Seeks Feedback

On February 15, an official visitor
survey went online. This question-
naire will help us better understand
the effectiveness of our facility and
help us make decisions regarding our
future growth.
The idea for the survey came from
two realizations. First, as time goes
on, Holocaust museums will take on
a more and more important role in
keeping the lessons of the Holocaust
alive. Second, most museums
have not studied their effective-
ness. Getting feedback from visitors
so that each museum can best meet its
mission statements seems critical.
While the survey is by no means
complete, some early results indicate
that teachers consider the HMC an

effective tool in teaching the history,
lessons, and legacy of the Holocaust.
The survey will be available until
April 30. You can access the survey
online at www.holocaustcenter.org
by clicking on "Visitor Survey." We
encourage your participation!

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dexed an expanded edition of Sefer
Marmarosh and Toldot ha-Kehillot
be-Translylvania. Both have
Hungarian/Yiddish /Romanian
names for towns listed.
Poland
Central Committee of Polish
Jews' Department of Statistics.
300,000 Polish Holocaust Survivors
on microfilm, 1946. Typed
alphabetical list of names, birth-
date, parents' names and previous
address
Rovne (Vohlyn) Ghetto List
5,000 Hebrew names, arranged
by family name, given name,
father's name, date of birth, place
of birth, occupation, marital status
and address compiled by Aharon
Weisberg, Yad Vashem volunteer
Simleu Silvanei (Szilagy-
Somlyo), Zalau (Zilch), Ileanda
(Nagyilonda)
Birth, Death, Marriage Records
on DVD purchased by Deanna
Tachna in January, 2010
Satu Mare (Satmar) Cemetery
Register, 1858-2000(!)
Courtesy of Deanna Tachna who
had it copied with permission of
the Town Record Keeper.
Alphabetical list of surnames
written in Roman script and given
names in Hebrew with father's
name and date of death, gave loca-
tion and occasionally occupation
and place of origin.
Shanghai Refugees:
Exil Shanghai: on CD

Local Survivor Files:
• Jewish Family Service: Inactive
Files
• Edward Glazek Files: Displaced
Persons who applied for admission

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to the US in Upper Austria with
Detroit connections
Dr. Hans Bamberger Client File

No genealogy discussion would be
complete without a discussion of
Concentration Camp Records.
We have:
• On Microfilm: Auschwitz,
Bergen Belsen, Buchenwald,
Constanz (Feldkirch), Dachau
(also online), Flossenberg, Gross-
Rosen, Lieberose (Sachsenhausen
subcamp), Mauthausen, Mittelbau
Sangerhausen, Natzweiler,
Sanbostel (Bremerford), Stutthof
(also online), Theresienstadt,
Zwiegerge,
• Book form: Auschwitz, Bergen
Belsen, Dachau, Gross Rosen,
Klooga, Stutthof, Theresienstadt

Although we specialize in
Holocaust and European Jewish his-
tory, we have an abundance of other
materials which has helped many
a visitor trace his/her roots. The
HMCZFC collection and the JGSMI
collection housed here make genealogy
research convenient and unparalleled
in our area.

We've Gone Social!

You may have noticed that the
Holocaust Center has begun using
social media as a means to reach out
beyond our traditional constitu-
ency. With more and more people
getting their news and connecting
with friends online, this seems like a
natural next step.
Our Facebook page has been up
for 9 months, and has more than
1,500 fans as of this printing. We
also recently took the plunge and are
tweeting on Twitter. If we have your
e-mail address, you have probably
seen our e-newsletter. And if you
regularly post or read reviews on Yelp,
you may have stumbled across us as
well.
Please become a fan, follow us,

post a review of your experience, and
help us spread the word. This is your
Holocaust museum. Be a part of it!

www.facebook.com/hmczfc
www.twitter.com/HolocaustMI

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Spring 2010 I

HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL CENTER
ZEICE1MAN FAMILY CAMPUS

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