It’s Jewish American Heritage Month Celebrate

by tracing your Jewish roots

Itwas a small group of Jewish refugees who first arrived in New Amsterdam (now Lower Manhattan) in 1654 in search of better opportunities and a place to practice their faith without fear. They are the oldest group with their identity and cultural heritage intact and, as of 2022, New York State is home to more than 2.2 million Jews, approximately eleven percent of our state’s population.

a searchable database of indexes to more than four million vital records including 500 Polish towns and more than 13,000 images. This site is free; donations are accepted. (jri-poland. org)

Jewish surname in the US is Miller. Clearly Miller is both Jewish and non-Jewish. This is a free database. (avotaynu.com)

From contributing important scientific discoveries to standing up for the abused and neglected, the Jewish community has played a significant role in our country. Did you know Emma Lazarus, daughter of Sephardic Jews, wrote the famous poem inscribed on the Statue of Liberty, “give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses…”?

The first steps to finding Jewish roots are the same as with any other ethnic group or faith: start with your relatives and work backwards. Meet with extended family and gather information and family stories. With Jewish research, the key difference is setting your expectations. Researchers of European Jewish ancestors face extra roadblocks due to the Holocaust, and the relatively late adoption of surnames in Jewish communities.

Several Jewish genealogy databases online will aid your research. I’ve included free resources, although a few have some paid databases also.

Jewish Records Indexing – Poland: Run by volunteers, JRI-Poland is

Jewish Gen- Family Tree of the Jewish People: Search millions of records from family trees submitted by Jewish genealogists worldwide. Included are more than four million records related to the Holocaust and more than 4.2 million burial records. This site is free resource; donations are accepted. (jewishgen.org)

Consolidated Jewish Surname Index (CJSI): Avotaynu, the Journal of Jewish Genealogy, hosts this free index. With more than forty-two databases containing more than seven million records, you will find almost 700,000 surnames. Note: finding a surname in this index does not necessarily mean that a given surname is Jewish. For example, the third most common

Jewish Family History Collection at Ancestry.com: While the majority of ancestry.com’s databases are only available to paid subscribers, many of the Jewish Family History Collections are free on the site. Free and subscription records are mixed in these collections so be aware. To access, you will need to sign up for a free account, then open ‘Search’ at top of page > All Collections

> Special Collections (bottom of page)

> Jewish family history. (ancestry.com)

National Library of Israel: Historical Jewish Press: The newspaper collection of the National Library of Israel contains millions of pages and hundreds of Jewish newspapers available to search online. These newspapers, published in various countries, languages, and time periods, include editions dating back to the early 1800s through present day. Newspapers are outstanding for their references to important and famous people, but if you’re seeking information on average citizens, concentrate on local papers. (nli.org.il/ en/discover/newspapers)

Finding others working on similar research can be a game changer. The Jewish Genealogical Society in New York City (jgsny.org) has an online presence with membership that includes monthly programs geared toward Jewish research. Also, check out the Jewish Buffalo History Center (jewishbuffalohistory.org) for more online and local resources. FY

Carol DiPirro-Stipkovits is a National Genealogical Society member and Association of Professional Genealogists member. Carol is also Vice-President and Board Chairman of the Niagara County Genealogical Society. Contact her at noellasdaughter@gmail.com.