Cataloging, preserving and digitizing at-risk broadsides, ephemera and prints: depicting three centuries of the jewish experience from persecution and migration to settlement in the united states [the…

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) awarded the Jewish Theological Seminary of America $349,999 under the Promotion of the Humanities Division of Preservation and Access program (CFDA 45.149) on October 1, 2025, with a completion deadline of March 31, 2028. This project grant supports the cataloging, preservation, and digitization of approximately 7,000 at-risk broadsides, ephemera, and prints held by the Seminary's library. These materials, created between the 17th century and mid-20th century, document three centuries of the Jewish experience in the United States, including themes of persecution, migration, antisemitism, and Jewish settlement and internal migration patterns. The digitization effort will render these rare and often unique documents accessible for research and educational use while preventing further deterioration.

The deliverables from this award align with NEH's priorities for enhanced public access to significant humanities resources. By cataloging and digitizing this substantial collection of historical materials, the project will establish intellectual access to important documentary evidence of American Jewish history and life, contributing to the preservation infrastructure of academic and cultural institutions while providing materials suitable for online public dissemination.

Cataloging, preserving and digitizing at-risk broadsides, ephemera and prints: depicting three centuries of the jewish experience from persecution and migration to settlement in the united states [the library of the jewish theological seminary holds a significant collection of ephemeral flat materials that are rare, often unique, and at risk of deterioration, and are therefore inaccessible for research or educational use. The 7,000 documents prioritized for this grant, created in a span between the 17TH century and mid-20TH century, represent a rich trove of material for research and education about american jewish history and life, the experience and persistence of antisemitism, and stories of migration of jews to the united states from around the world and their movement within the united states.]