Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society - HIAS
If your Jewish ancestors or relatives arrived in the United States after 1881, it is possible they received assistance from HIAS. The roots of HIAS were planted in a storefront on the Lower East Side of New York City in the form of the Hebrew Emigrant Aid Society. In 1909 the current Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society was formed. After more than 130 years HIAS, as it is now known, aids persecuted refugees of multiple religions and ethnicities all over the world.
According to HIAS they only have records from 1909 forward. With basic information from you, they will perform a search for an individual. There are fees associated with this work. The golden ticket you will hope to find is an arrival card or even an individual case file.
Helpful Links
Where to Find HIAS Records Online
Where to Find HIAS Records Onsite
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research - HIAS Archive
The YIVO Institute appears to have the most extensive and inclusive set of HIAS records at 415' and 851 microfilm reels. The archives are open to researchers with an advance appointment.
Further Reading
Sources _
According to HIAS they only have records from 1909 forward. With basic information from you, they will perform a search for an individual. There are fees associated with this work. The golden ticket you will hope to find is an arrival card or even an individual case file.
Helpful Links
- Locate Family and Friends, HIAS
- Immigrant Records and Location Services, HIAS
- Records Request Form, HIAS
- Boston Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society Registration Card, Museum of Family History
Where to Find HIAS Records Online
- Philadelphia Bank Immigrant Passage Records, 1890-1949; Ancestry.com - Index
- HIAS entries in catalog; Center for Jewish History - Digital Collections
- The Boston HIAS Database, 1882-1929; jewishgen.org - Index
Where to Find HIAS Records Onsite
- Hebrew Immigrant Society (HIAS) Collection, 1917-1993; American Jewish Historical Society - society papers
- Guide to the Boston Immigrant Aid Society Collection, 1886-1977 (Bulk 1938-1954); American Jewish Historical Society, Boston; Microfilm copy available at AJHS, New York - individual case files - list of passengers who received assitance through the Boston office 1886-1977 - passenger lists 1904-1958 - individual arrival records 1886-1977
- Jewish immigrant aid societies' records of Jewish arrivals, 1913-1947; Family History Library, Salt lake City - microfilm - records from Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Baltimore
- Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society records, 1882-1929; Worcester Historical Museum, Massachusetts - included in "World Within a World" - arrival records for 358 individuals who emigrated to Worcester
- Jewish Family Service Association of Cleveland records, 1895-1974; Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland - case files[
- Immigrant records, 1884-1952, Philadelphia; Family History Library, Salt Lake City - microfilm
- Card file of detainee immigrants, 1914-1921, Philadelphia; Family History Library, Salt Lake City - microfilm
- Sheltering activities of the Hebrew sheltering and immigrant aid society of New York city, 1909-1935, with special reference to 800 men known to the shelter in 1934, by William I. Boxerman; Schwarzman Bldg - Dorot Jewish Div Rm 111, New York Public Library - photocopy of typewritten pages
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research - HIAS Archive
The YIVO Institute appears to have the most extensive and inclusive set of HIAS records at 415' and 851 microfilm reels. The archives are open to researchers with an advance appointment.
- HIAS and HICEM Main Office, New York; individual cases, immigrant lists, arrival records 1907-c1954
- HIAS Records of Arrival; index cards for all immigrants helped by HIAS 1909-c1978
- HIAS Ellis Island Bureau; case files, detention/deportation files 1905-1923
- Family Searches and Package Transmittals; to/from Europe 1915-1949
Further Reading
- Mark Wischnitzer. Visas to freedom : the history of HIAS. Cleveland. World Pub. Co., 1956.
Sources _
- "History." Article. HIAS. HIAS. http://www.hias.org : accessed 15 September 2014
- "Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society." Article. American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. The Jewish Virtual Library. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/index.html : accessed 15 September 2014
- "The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society." Exhibit. The Museum of Family History. The Museum of Family History.www.museumoffamilyhistory.com : accessed 16 September 2014
- "Hebraic Collections, In the New World." Image. The Library of Congress. Library of Congress. www.loc.gov : accessed 17 September 2014
- Museum of Family History.
- Ancestry.com
- Center for Jewish History
- JewishGen.org
- American Jewish Historical Society, Boston and New York
- Family History Library, Salt Lake City
- Worcester Historical Museum
- Western Reserve Historical Society
- "HIAS Archive." Collection. YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. Guide to the YIVO Archives.www.yivoarchives.org : accessed 17 September 2014
- Boxerman, William I. Sheltering activities of the Hebrew sheltering and immigrant aid society of New York city, 1909-1935, with special reference to 800 men known to the shelter in 1934. New York: Graduate School, 1938. Photocopy of typewritten pages.