The Jewish Special Interest Group (J-SIG) of St. Louis Genealogical Society began in June 2005 as a revival of the Jewish Genealogical Society of St. Louis, formerly associated with United Hebrew Congregation. It took a hiatus for 2016 through 2018 but returned as an active SIG in 2019, assisted by the Center for Jewish Learning/Jewish Federation of St. Louis. The St. Louis Genealogical Society’s Jewish SIG continues to be a member of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies.

 

Click here for the 2020 J-SIG meeting flyer.

Meetings for the Jewish-SIG in 2020

Meetings are co-sponsored by the St. Louis County Library and the Center for Jewish Learning, Saul Brodsky Library, and are held four times a year, two at each location.

Sunday, 2 February 2020 Creating an Oral History
1:00 p.m., Jewish Federation Building, 12 Millstone Campus Dr. 63146
(Pre-registration is requested. Call Kathy Schmeltz at 314-442-3761 or at kschmeltz@jfedstl.org.)

This is the perfect time to record your memories, either as a formal oral history or simply some memories to share with others. Learn how to use your phone and/or participate in a project such as StoryCorps or the Veterans Oral History Project, how to prepare, and how to ensure sound quality.

Featured Speaker: Diane Everman, archivist, St. Louis Jewish Community Archives

Wednesday, 27 May 2020 Techniques to Determine Ancestral Origins
7:00 p.m , St. Louis County Library Headquarters, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd., 63131

Finding the shtetl or village from where your ancestor came is often challenging. The clues can sometimes be found in American records, and we will explore some options that can help in your quest.

Featured Speaker: Ilene Murray, publications director, St. Louis Genealogical Society

Wednesday, 26 August 2020 How to Read Polish and Cyrillic Birth, Marriage, and Death Records
7:00 p.m., St. Louis County Library Headquarters, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd., 63131

It is hard enough to read handwriting from decades ago, but adding another language or alphabet can make it seem impossible. However, you can learn the “formula” of life documents written in Polish and Cyrillic and decode their meaning.

Featured Speaker: Felicia Wertz, native Polish and Russian speaker, teacher, and translator

Sunday, 13 December 2020 Finding Your Ancestors at the Missouri Historical Society Library and Research Center
10:00 a.m., Jewish Federation Building, 12 Millstone Campus Dr. 63146
(Pre-registration is requested. Call Kathy Schmeltz at 314-442-3761 or at kschmeltz@jfedstl.org.)

The MHSLRC holds a wealth of resources that tell the stories of our St. Louis-area ancestors. Join us for an entertaining and informative look at the genealogical treasures stored at the Library and Research Center.

Featured Speaker: Dennis Northcott, associate archivist, MHSLRC

Jewish Newsletter

During its existence, the JGS of St. Louis had a monthly newsletter called Generations. Its first editors were founders, Art and Sylvia Jaffe. Then, for a brief time, it was edited by Gene Schneider, followed by Jerry Goldberg. In late 2000, Ilene Murray began her tenure as editor and remained in that position until the last issue, July 2005.

A complete set of all of the issues is available at St. Louis County Library Headquarters in the History and Genealogy Department and at the Missouri History Museum’s Library and Research Center.

Electronic copies of issues from November 2000 until July 2005 can be found on this site. They are in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format and can be downloaded, saved, and/or printed. To do so, click here for Jewish Genealogical Society Newsletters

Jewish Community

Click here for more information on the Jewish community in St. Louis.

Click here to go to the Jewish congregations page on this website, where you will find information about specific congregations and a growing set of marriage and death records.

Research Queries

Please address questions about Jewish research in St. Louis to J-SIG co-leader, Phyllis Faintich. You can reach her at .

 

Last modified: 16-Dec-2019 14:29