Guide to the Florence Mendheim Collection of Anti-Semitic Propaganda,
1917-1994
(bulk 1922-1948)

AR 25441

Series I: Anti-Semitic Publications and Ephemera, undated, 1922-1941.

Arrangement:

Arranged in four subseries: 1: American White Supremacists, 2: German-American pro-Nazi Groups, 3: Germany, and 4: International.

Scope and Content:

Items have been included in this series for a number of reasons. Some are blunt expressions of straightforward anti-Semitism, while others simply pledge support for Germany’s National Socialist government. The vilification of “communism” or “Bolshevism” was a common tactic for camouflaging anti-Semitism and intolerance. Nationalism, patriotism, and national pride are other seemingly harmless terms that appear with frequency. In contrast, many of the ephemeral items in this series have almost no informational content but have been included because they were produced by an anti-Semitic organization. When in doubt, the archivist referred to outside sources and other archival collections to establish that a specific organization was considered a hate group.

While some of the printed matter was widely available and internationally distributed, other material is quite rare, and probably could not have been collected by Ms. Mendheim without her undercover persona.

Subseries 1: American White Supremacists, undated, 1922-1939.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical by publication title, organization, or subject.

Scope and Content:

This subseries contains periodicals, books, mailings, and other propaganda printed in the United States. In some cases, the influence of Nazism is clear (the widespread use of the swastika is one example), but early anti-Semitic texts like The Protocols of the Elders of Zion and The Secret World Government predate Hitler’s regime.

Among the most prolific of the American publishers was William Dudley Pelley, founder of the Silver Legion, Pelley Publishers, and the periodicals Liberation, Pelley’s Weekly, and The Silver Legion Ranger. Another was Robert Edward Edmondson, who printed broadsides and pamphlets at a nearly daily rate as Edmondson Economic Service. Both men were defendants in the Great Sedition Trial of 1944.

A number of smaller local organizations may have been related to each other or to the German-American groups in Subseries 2. The National American newspaper looks like a continuation of the National American Bulletin and shares a mailing address with some fliers from the Nationalist Press Association, but other fliers from the American National Labor Party also claim to be associated with the publication. At the same time, there was an American Nationalist Party, an American Nationalist Press, and an American National-Socialist Movement.

The presence of The Christian Defender (two issues in Box 1, Folder 16), published by George Pagnanelli, is also noteworthy. Pagnanelli was an assumed identity used by John Roy Carlson to gather material for his book Under Cover.

Subseries 2: German American Pro-Nazi Groups, undated, 1932-1941.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

Material in this subseries was also printed in the United States but is distinct from the previous subseries in several ways. The language used is predominantly German or a German-English combination, and the few items entirely in English are clearly addressed to German immigrants, about German-American relations, or about Germany in general.

In some cases, it may be misleading to describe this material as “American” in origin. Facts in Review, for example, was published in New York by an office of the German Consulate (Box 3, Folder 4). Whether or not this situation was true for other German-American groups became an important question and contributed to the passage of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938. Officially, Germany denounced the German-American Bund, but it is unclear if they had been connected to the Nazi government at some point, or to what extent. Relationships between the various German newspapers and their publishing organizations were complex as well, with a number of changes to titles and mastheads evident in this subseries. With the exception of a single newspaper from Philadelphia, everything was printed in New York City.

While there are expressions of anti-Semitism here, the pro-German, nationalist sentiment is more dominant. It is entirely possible that some of the ephemeral items in folders 14 and 15 (Box 3) have no affiliation with Nazism at all, but they have been included for their generally pro-German content.

Subseries 3: Germany, undated, 1924-1941.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

Contents of this subseries were produced in Germany, mostly under the Nazi regime. The efficacy of the Third Reich’s propaganda campaign is well documented, but this collection includes some early and less well-known examples, like tourist guides and travel brochures to Germany. Materials are in German unless indicated otherwise by the folder title. Box 4, Folder 15 is the only exception, containing two English issues of the eugenics journal RAK with the translated title Racio-Political Foreign Correspondence.

Leaflets from the Deutscher Fichte-Bund (Box 3, Folder 25) are undated, but were likely printed between 1920 and 1940. This collection contains various leaflets numbered from 53 to 572.

Ludendorff Publications (Box 4, Folder 3) includes the writings of General Erich Ludendorff, his wife Mathilde, and other titles from their press.

Subseries 4: International, undated, 1932-1939.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

This subseries contains materials from countries other than Germany or the United States. A number of the British publications are the work of L. Fry, who was actively publishing in the U.S. as well (see also Christian Free Press, Box 1, Folder 5). Other items include an Austrian-published book by Franz Haiser and a Russian-language book published in Shanghai by anti-Bolshevist ex-patriots.

Series II: Related Subject Files and Periodicals, undated, 1928-1953.

Arrangement:

Arranged in seven subseries: 1: Anti-Nazi Campaigns and Refugee Aid Organizations, 2: Civil Rights, Equality, and Tolerance Movements, 3: Jewish Life, 4: Periodicals and General Subject Files, 5: Politics, 6: Religion, and 7: Zionism.

Scope and Content:

While the significance of this portion of Ms. Mendheim’s collection is not always obvious, the remaining material has been retained and divided into smaller subject-based subseries, as described below. Document types consist of periodicals and clippings, propaganda, community news bulletins, books, solicitation mailings from charity associations and societies, and a variety of miscellaneous print formats. Most items were published locally, and international publications are noted in folder titles.

Subseries 1: Anti-Nazi Campaigns and Refugee Aid Organizations, undated, 1932-1939.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

Material in this subseries was produced by a number of organizations, small and large, Jewish and non-Jewish, in response to the actions of the Nazi regime in Germany. Among the items of interest are German-language periodicals printed in Berlin, Prague, and Vienna (Box 5, Folder 7), and materials from the German-American group Deutschamerikanischer Kulturverband (Box 5, Folders 1 and 6). Ephemera include cartoons satirizing Hitler and a pin promoting the Charlie Chaplin film The Great Dictator (Box 4, Folder 29). Folders on European war relief (Box 5, Folders 12-13) differ from the rest in that they do not necessarily represent organized opposition efforts. These are instead subject files compiled of various documents types concerning events in Czechoslovakia, Finland, Greece, and Yugoslavia.

Subseries 2: Civil Rights, Equality, and Tolerance Movements, undated, 1931-1945.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

This subseries is closely related to the previous one except the materials do not directly address Nazi ideology or actions. Organizations represented here likely shared common ground with those above (or were, in some cases, the same groups), but this material engages a broader range of concerns. Although efforts to combat anti-Semitism were galvanized by the conflict in Europe, Jewish groups were already conscious of the issue. An increasingly diverse American population was the topic of the radio series “Americans All – Immigrants All,” produced by President Roosevelt’s Office of Education (see Box 5, Folder 23) to describe the cultural contributions of ethnic minorities in the United States. These cultural encounters were not without conflict, however, as documented by early stages of the American Civil Rights movement (Box 5, Folders 25 and 28).

Subseries 3: Jewish Life, undated, 1932-1953.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

Ms. Mendheim was active in the Jewish community and it is likely that much of the material collected in this subseries was of personal interest to her. A large portion comes from the American Jewish Congress, as well as community newspapers and local synagogues. Reactions to the pro-Nazi sentiment at home and the disquiet abroad are evident throughout.

Subseries 4: Periodicals and General Subject Files, undated, 1926-1950.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

This subseries contains nationally distributed periodicals and those smaller publications excluded by other series. In most cases these are related to the broader topics of war, anti-Semitism, international events, and economic policy. Even library staff publications (Box 6, Folder 24; Box 7, Folders 12, 17-19), which would seem to be most closely related to Ms. Mendheim’s professional life, engage in debates about organized labor, “fascist” management practices, patriotism, and freedom of expression versus hate speech.

Local African-American newspapers (Box 6, Folder 19) may have interested Ms. Mendheim for other reasons, but articles on anti-Semite Sufi Abdul Hamid (otherwise known as the “Black Hitler of Harlem”) are clearly relevant.

Issues of New Masses magazine include a ten-part series on American anti-Semitism that covers some of the hate groups represented in Ms. Mendheim’s collection (Box 7, Folders 15-16). Bulletins from the Institute for Propaganda Analysis (Box 7, Folder 22) likewise identify and discuss publications in Series I of this collection.

The National Association of Manufacturers’ You and Industry booklet series (Box, Folder 22) meanwhile explain subjects like the superiority of “The American Standard of Living” and “The American Way,” perhaps following the advice of reports issued by General Motors claiming that public relations is “Industry’s No. 1 Job” (Box 7, Folder 5).

Print ephemera in this subseries are predominantly commercial in nature, connected to advertising and entertainment. Among these are tourism-related materials (separate from Series I, Subseries 3) promoting travel to Austria, Bermuda, Cuba, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, South America, Switzerland, the U.K., and within the U.S. One tourist’s guide, dated 1950, invites visitors to the newly minted State of Israel.

Subject files compiled on other countries or regions (India, Poland, Russia, and the Near East) contain a variety of material types, from advertisements and concert programs to newsletters, articles, clippings, magazines, government reports, and books, such as Gandhi’s My Appeal to the British.

Subseries 5: Politics, undated, 1934-1941.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

This subseries consists primarily of political propaganda, much of it concerning the 1940 presidential contest between Franklin D. Roosevelt (running for his unprecedented third-term) and Republican Wendell Willkie. Related patriotic memorabilia includes miniature American flags and pins with campaign slogans for and against both candidates.

Many of the “anti-communist” groups, including America First and American Patriots, were accused of anti-Semitism or included accused anti-Semites in their membership (such as Charles Lindbergh). Debate on immigration policy (Box 7, Folder 37) was similarly affected by anti-immigration arguments based on the perceived threat of communist influence.

Subseries 6: Religion, undated, 1926-1941.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

This subseries includes religious tracts of an evangelical nature as well as periodicals and other religious readings with less conspicuous intentions. It is not clear if Ms. Mendheim was personally interested in exploring different faiths or if she saw something troubling in the publications aimed specifically at a Jewish audience. The Seventh-day Adventists, for example, printed their leaflet series This Generation in both English and Yiddish editions, and the American Board of Missions to the Jews published tracts with Yiddish text as well. Also included is a Yiddish translation of the Gospel of John, distributed by the British and Foreign Bible Society (Box 8, Folder 14).

The Piedmont Announcements, published by a small Congregationalist college in rural Georgia, don’t appear overtly anti-Semitic, but the college itself came under fire at a later date for accepting funding from an Aryan-supremacist organization.

Subseries 7: Zionism, undated, 1933-1948.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

A large quantity of material in Series II is related to the topic Zionism, and the bulk of this solicits support and donations for various Zionist organizations. The language of these solicitations often positions Jewish emigration to Palestine as the only rebuttal to the persecutions of the Jews during World War II.

Among the earlier Zionist publications was the German newspaper Jüdische Rundschau (several issues, Box 8, Folder 23) which ceased publication after the Kristallnacht pogroms. Aside from this and a few publications from England or Palestine, the majority of these Zionist materials were created in New York.

On the other hand, anti-Zionist literature was also produced in both New York and London, by the Arab National League and The Arab Centre (Box 8, Folders 18-19). Additional, miscellaneous Arabic-language material (Folder 20) includes a New York newspaper called Al-Bayan and unidentified correspondence on stationery with a Cairo address.

Series III: Personal and Professional Files, undated, 1917-1947.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

This series contains manuscripts and documents related to Florence Mendheim, her family, and her work. This includes personal and professional correspondence, drafts of her own creative writing, educational records, and first-hand narrative accounts of meetings of the Friends of the New Germany.

These last items (Box 9, Folders 21-22) are presumably copies or drafts of the reports she submitted to Rabbi J.X. Cohen, but this is a matter of some mystery, as are many of the details of their correspondence (Box 9, Folder 14). Among these curiosities is a set of photographs taken in Berlin in 1936 of roads, street signs, and an empty park. The accompanying inventory, from Cohen, indicates three photos are missing.

Additionally, a number of aliases appear in this series. In their correspondence, Ms. Mendheim and Rabbi Cohen used the code names KQX and JXC respectively (although not consistently). When attending Nazi meetings or rallies, Mendheim assumed the name Gertrude Mueller (or Müller) and used a different mailing address (see Box 9, Folder 17). She adopted a third pseudonym, Anna Hitler, in order to contact potential family members of Adolf Hitler living in the United States.

The miscellaneous contents of Box 9, Folder 18 include numerous business cards and contact lists the archivist could not identify as personal, professional, or related to undercover work. Other print items in this folder are placed here because they are heavily annotated by Ms. Mendheim and seem to have been used for note-taking.

Library staff publications and the New York State employee materials located in Box 7, Folder 19 are closely related to Ms. Mendheim’s professional correspondence. Professional awards include bronze and silver NYPL service medals.

Series IV: Stephen Wise Free Synagogue Exhibit, 1992-1994.

Arrangement:

Alphabetical.

Scope and Content:

The last series postdates the bulk of the collection and contains documents that describe the collection’s accession by the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue and its subsequent use in a public exhibit, as well as some materials created for the exhibit. These include photographs, guest book comments, and local newspaper reviews of the show, entitled The New York Nazis and the Synagogue Spy, or: What’s a Nice Jewish Girl Doing in a Place Like This? Background and biographical information on Ms. Mendheim was supplied by her brother Arthur, who donated the collection and sat for an oral history interview. Notes from the interview are included, but not the audio tape.