Looking Back

From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History

accessible at www.djnfoundation.org

46 | APRIL 23 • 2020 

MIKE SMITH

A Fun Activity
O

K. In the midst of the COVID-19 
virus, you’
ve been sheltering at home, 
unless you are an essential worker. 
Even then, after work, you likely spend most 
of your time at home.
And, by now, you are tired of playing cards 
and board games, you have binge-watched 
television shows and movies, the linen closet 
is now in perfect order and all the tools on the 
work bench are in their proper places.
Everything that doesn’
t move has been 
cleaned, and even if they do move around — 
like your kids — they’
ve been 
scrubbed as well. But you are 
still a bit bored. What do you do 
now?
I have a solution for you, actu-
ally, a good activity — virus or 
not. Spend some time immersed 
in the wonders of the William 
Davidson Digital Archive of 
Jewish Detroit History.
The Archive is online, free and very easy to 
use. Most of all, it is very personal, about you, 
your family and your community. It is a his-
tory of Jews at-large in Detroit and Michigan, 
but it is very likely that you will find stories of 
yourself and your family among the pages of 
the Archive. Finally, it is guaranteed to be easy 
and, most of all, lots of fun!
So, let’
s begin. Go to the Jewish News 
Foundation website at djnfoundation.org. 
Once there, click on the ”Archive” button. You 
will be asked to register, just basic information 
that we do not share with anyone. 
After submitting your registration, click 
on “Enter the Archive.” You will see a search 
box. From there, it’
s a very simple operation. 
Type your search term into the search box. Be 
sure to place the search term within quotation 
marks. Hit the “Enter” button and you are on 
your way.
What to search for, you ask? Start with your 
family or yourself. Was there an announce-
ment in JN for your bar/bat mitzvah or your 
graduation? Maybe Mom and Dad’
s wedding? 
A story about your grandfather or grand-
mother? Is there a family business? Or are 

you interested in stories of a particular syna-
gogue? Did your grandfather serve in World 
War II? Was your mom or grandmother 
active in Hadassah? How about that sum-
mer camp you went to? The options are 
endless.
So, try entering your name or that of 
a family member in the search box. Be 
sure to use both formal and nicknames. 
For example, if you were searching for 
“Bill” Berman, you would also find entries 
under Mandell Berman. If searching for a 
family business, try all variables. I recently 
wrote about Joe Cornell for the JN. While 
searching, I first entered “Joe Cornell.” I 
soon discovered that there was “Joe Cornell 
Entertainment” and “Joe Cornell School of 
Dance.” Names also change over the years.
Not everyone or everything will be found 
in the Archive, of course, but I’
ll bet you will 
find something of interest. The Jewish News
and the Jewish Chronicle covered 
a lot of stories over the past 100 
years. 
WARNING: Use of the 
William Davidson Digital 
Archive of Jewish Detroit can 
be addictive. Be prepared to 
spend more time with it than 
you ever imagined (especially 
in our current stay-at-home 
mode.) Happy hunting! 

MIKE SMITH

syna-

World
r 
m-

ies
r a
ntly

Mike Smith
Alene and 
Graham Landau 
Archivist Chair

covered

past 100

e 
al
it can 
d to
than
cially 
ome 

