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Guide to the Papers of Leo Levine (1907-1980), undated, 1920-2010
 
*P-646 and *P-646A

Processed by Margaret Whiteside

American Jewish Historical Society

Center for Jewish History

15 West 16th Street

New York, N.Y. 10011

Phone: (212) 294-6160

Fax: (212) 294-6161

Email: reference@ajhs.org

URL: http://www.ajhs.org

© 2013, American Jewish Historical Society, Boston, MA and New York, NY. All Rights Reserved.
Machine-readable finding aid created by Margaret Whiteside as MS Word document, November 8, 2010. Finding aid was encoded by Marvin Rusinek on November 8, 2010. Description is in English.

Descriptive Summary

Creator: Levine, Leo
Title: Leo Levine (1907-1980), papers
Dates: undated, 1929-1950
Dates for Addendum: undated, 1920s-2010 (with gaps)
Abstract: Leo Levine was born Leizers Levins in Riga, Latvia, on September 30, 1907. He worked as a European war correspondent until the outbreak of World War II. After immigrating to Dorchester circa 1941, Levine wrote freelance newspaper columns about the war, including several that were published in St. John’s, Newfoundland’s The Telegram. Levine was also an artist. Leo Levine died in November 1980.
Abstract for Addendum: The addendum contains materials about Leo Levine's wife, Sylvia Shlifer Levine, and their daughter, Helena Levine Ryan. Sylvia immigrated from Russia in 1913 with her family to escape the pogroms. A graduate of Radcliffe College, she wrote short stories and poems, many of which are included in this collection. Their daughter, Helena Levine Ryan, is a poet and piano teacher. Her work, as well as photographs of the Levine family and various published and unpublished memoirs, are included in this collection.
Languages: The collection is in English, French, Portuguese, and Latvian.
Quantity: .75 linear feet (1 manuscript box, 1 half manuscript box) + 1 OS folder
Identification: P-646, P-646A
Repository: American Jewish Historical Society
Location: Located at AJHS, Boston, MA.
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Biographical Note

Leo Levine (1907-1980)

Leo Levine was born Leizers Levins in Riga, Latvia, on September 30, 1907. He worked as a European war correspondent until the outbreak of World War II. After immigrating to Dorchester circa 1941, Levine wrote freelance newspaper columns about the war, including several that were published in St. John’s, Newfoundland’s The Telegram. Levine was also an artist. Leo Levine died in November 1980.

Chronology
1907 Leo Levine born in Riga on September 30
1938 Levine travels to Berlin
1938 Levine employed as journalist in Brazil
1939 Levine travels to United Kingdom
1940 Levine immigrates to United States
1980 Leo Levine dies
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Scope and Content Note

Scope and Content Note for P-646

This collection contains photographs of Leo Levine’s artwork, vaccination records, visa applications, passports, correspondence with the United States War Department, newspaper clippings and typescripts. The collection is arranged alphabetically into four series.

Scope and Content Note for P-646A

This addendum contains additional materials from the family of Leo Levine, particularly pertaining to his wife, Sylvia Shlifer Levine, and their daughter, Helena Levine Ryan.

Sylvia's family immigrated to Ellis Island from Berditchev, Russia in 1913 after a series of pograms threatened the family's safety. The family moved to Boston, Massachusetts and Sylvia later attended Radcliffe College. She met Leo Levine in Canada shortly after his escape from Nazi-occupied Riga, Latvia, and the two married around 1942/1943. Their daughter, Helena, was born in 1944.

Helena Levine Ryan is a poet and piano teacher who studied briefly under concert pianist Alfred Mirovitch. A graduate of Emerson College, she earned her degree in Early Childhood Education and Music Education. She later married Earl Ryan, a clairvoyant, and they had one child, Joel.

This collection contains published books and poems by Helena Levine Ryan, including her memoir and a draft of A Prophet in the House, and unpublished memoirs she wrote about her mother, Sylvia, and her grandmother, Deborah Smoller Shlifer. A collection of Sylvia's short stories and poems is also included in the collection. There are also photographs of the Levine family, news clippings about Sylvia and Helena, correspondence about Helena's poetry, and materials relating to Alfred Mirovitch in the collection. Although the materials in this collection primarily focus on Sylvia and Helena Levine, there is additional information about Helena's father Leo and his escape from Latvia, followed by his attempts to assist the United States government during World War II.

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Arrangement

Part I of the collection is arranged into four series as follows:

Part II of the collection is arranged into three series as follows:

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The collection is open to all researchers by permission of the Director of Library and Archives of the American Jewish Historical Society, except items that are restricted due to their fragility.

Use Restrictions

Information concerning the literary rights may be obtained from the Director of Library and Archives of the American Jewish Historical Society. Users must apply in writing for permission to quote, reproduce or otherwise publish manuscript materials found in this collection. For more information contact:
American Jewish Historical Society, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY, 10011
email: reference@ajhs.org

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Preferred Citation

Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date (if known); Leo Levine (1907-1980), papers; P-646, P-646A; box number; folder number; American Jewish Historical Society, Boston, MA and New York, NY.

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Acquisition Information

The collection P-646 was donated in 1992 by Helena Levine Ryan.

The addendum, P-646A, was donated by Helena Levine Ryan in March 2011.

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Access Points

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Container List

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.

 

Part 1, Series I: Artwork, circa 1950.
The Series is in English.
Box 1, Folder 1, 1 OS folder.
Scope and Content:

This series contains photographs of paintings by Leo Levine. Material is arranged chronologically. Please note that one folder is oversized.
Box Folder Title Date
1 1 Photographs of Completed Artwork circa 1950
Box Folder Title Date
OS OS Photographs of Completed Artwork circa 1950 
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Part 1, Series II: Correspondence, 1943-1944.
The Series is in English.
Box 1, Folder 2.
Scope and Content:

This series contains Leo Levine’s correspondence with the U.S. War Department regarding the location of factories in then-occupied Latvia. Of special interest is the letter dated July 17, 1943 from Edward L. Barlow, indicating that Levine provided the military with pertinent information for the U.S. war effort.
Box Folder Title Date
1 2 Correspondence with the War Department 1943-1944
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Part 1, Series III: Documentation, 1929-1939.
The Series is in English, French, Portuguese and Latvian.
Box 1, Folder 3.
Scope and Content:

This series contains Leo Levine’s passports, vaccination records, visa applications and health testament. The documents in this series are written in English, French, Portuguese and Latvian.
Box Folder Title Date
1 3 Passport and Documentation 1929-1939
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Part 1, Series IV: Newspaper Columns, 1941-1945.
The Series is in English.
Box 1, Folder 4-5.
Scope and Content:

This series contains newspaper clippings and typescripts of Leo Levine’s syndicated column, "Wait and See" covering editorials on WWII military events.
Box Folder Title Date
1 4 Newspaper Clippings 1941-1945
1 5 Wait and See: Typescripts
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Part 2, Series I: General, undated, 1920s-2008 (with gaps).
The Series is in English.
Box 1, Folders 1-7.
Scope and Content:

This series includes correspondence to Helena Levine Ryan about her poetry, a DVD oral history interview with Helena Levine Ryan, photographs of the Levine family, news clippings and materials pertaining to Helena's first piano teacher, Alfred Mirovitch.
Box Folder Title Date
1 1 Alfred Mirovitch Materials undated, 1959
1 2 Certificates and Awards 1971, 2001, 2008
1 3 Correspondence 1971-1972 (?), 1974
1 4 DVD and CD undated, 2006
1 5 News Clippings undated
1 6 Photographs undated, circa 1920s-1950s
1 7 Piano Guild Notes (magazine) 2001
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Part 2, Series II: Memoirs/Writing, undated.
The Series is in English.
Box 1, Folders 8-11.
Scope and Content:

This series includes a draft version of Helena Levine Ryan's memoir, A Prophet in the House, and unpublished memoirs about her mother, Sylvia Shlifer Levine and grandmother, Deborah Smoller Shlifer. Also included is a collection of Sylvia Levine's short stories, compiled by Helena.
Box Folder Title Date
1 8 “A Prophet in the House”- Draft, by Helena Levine Ryan undated
1 9 “My Mother’s Journey”- Short Stories, by Sylvia Shlifer Levine undated
1 10 “The Story of Your Grandmother and Great-Grandmother,” by Helena Levine Ryan undated
1 11 “Story of Grandmother’s Life” by Helena Levine Ryan undated
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Part 2, Series III: Published Work, 1971-1972, 1996, 2006, 2010.
The Series is in English.
Box 1, Folders 12-13.
Scope and Content:

This series includes the published books, A Prophet in the House and New Age Songs, as well as poems written by Helena Levine Ryan and published in the Massachusetts State Poetry Society, Inc. publications.
Box Folder Title Date
1 12 Books by Helena Levine Ryan 1996, 2010
1 13 Poetry by Helena Levine Ryan 1971-1972, 2006, 2010
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