The Museum Collection of the American Jewish Historical Society holds many unique treasures including paintings, daguerreotypes, silhouettes, textiles, silver objects, medals and ribbons, domestic and religious objects, sports and family memorabilia, military uniforms, political and theater posters, rabbinical regalia, correspondence, newspapers, and photographs. Together, the collection reflects the variety of American Jewish culture as expressed in the synagogue, in ritual practice, in the home, in entertainment, and even in sports.
Our objects, papers, and artifacts have been displayed at the legendary American Revolution site, Fraunces Tavern (New York, NY), the Museum of the City of New York, the Library of Congress, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (Winnipeg, Manitoba), the Jewish Museum Munich, the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History (Philadelphia, PA), Yeshiva University Museum (New York), and the Jewish Museum (New York), among other venues.
Our past traveling exhibits include:
- American Jewish Tercentenary Exhibition (1954-1955)
- Jewish Life in America: Fulfilling the American Dream (1983-1987)
- Jewish Community in Early America, 1654-1800 (1985-1986)
- Levy-Franks Family Colonial Portraits (1990-1993)
Here at the Center for Jewish History, our exhibits have included:
- Greetings from Home: 350 Years of American Jewish Life, a retrospective of Jewish history in the United States]
- Passages Through the Fire: Jews and the Civil War, in collaboration with Yeshiva University Museum (the show also exhibited at the Jewish Museum of Maryland)
- Heroes from Abroad: The Machal and /Aliya Bet Legacy, a look at the men and women from America and other countries who fought in Israel’s War of Independence from 1946-1947
From the exhibit Greetings from Home: 350 Years of American Jewish Life, a retrospective of Jewish History in the United States.
