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Descriptive Summary
Creator:	National Refugee Service
Title:	National Refugee Service, records
Dates:	undated, 1935-1947, 1953
Abstract:	Contains the correspondence and published materials of the NRS for the years 1935-1947. The manuscript material contains correspondence pertaining to various aspects of the immigration problem and quota correspondence with primarily Jewish institutions in cities throughout many of the states, as well as correspondence of several of the Divisions of the NRS. Of special interest is the correspondence dealing with the Shomre Hadath (employment service for religious immigrants), correspondence with President Truman, Secy. of State Dean Acheson, and Attorney General Francis B. Biddle. This latter correspondence deals with Ellis Island, the plan to resettle immigrants in Oswego, New York, and concerning the refugee ship, the St. Louis.
Languages:	The collection is in English.
Quantity:	3 linear feet (6 manuscript boxes)
Identification:	I-92
Repository:	American Jewish Historical Society

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Scope and Content Note

Contains the correspondence and published materials of the NRS for the years 1935-1947. The manuscript material contains correspondence pertaining to various aspects of the immigration problem and quota correspondence with primarily Jewish institutions in cities throughout many of the states, as well as correspondence of several of the Divisions of the NRS. Of special interest is the correspondence dealing with the Shomre Hadath (employment service for religious immigrants), correspondence with President Truman, Secy. of State Dean Acheson, and Attorney General Francis B. Biddle. This latter correspondence deals with Ellis Island, the plan to resettle immigrants in Oswego, New York, and concerning the refugee ship, the St. Louis.

The collection also contains the following published material: Annual Reports (1939- ... ), Report of the Executive Director (1939-1941), various periodical publications issued by the NRS; as well as other printed material and promotional literature.

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Arrangement

The collection is arranged into a single series as follows:

• Records of the National Refugee Service, undated, 1935-1947, 1953

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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 16^th 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); National Refugee Service, records; I-92; box number; folder number; American Jewish Historical Society, Boston, MA and New York, NY.

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Access Points

• Subject Names:

  • Acheson, Dean Gooderham, 1893-1971
  • Biddle, Francis B., 1886-1968
  • Truman, Harry S. President, U.S., 1884-1972

• Subject Organizations:

  • Shomre Hadath

• Subject Topics:

  • Emmigration and immigration -- United States

• Subject Places:

  • Ellis Island
  • Oswego (N.Y.)

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Container List

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

Records of the National Refugee Service, undated, 1935-1947, 1953.
English.
Boxes 1-6.
Box	Folder	Title	Date
1	1	German Department of the Jewish Social Service Association	1935-1938
1	2	Ellis Island, General	1938-1939
1	3	National Coordinating Committee for Aid to Refugees and Emigrants coming from Germany, Proceedings of Conference	September 17, 1938
1	4	Deportation	1938-1940, 1943, 1945-1946
1	5	National Coordinating Committee and cooperating agencies throughout the U.S.	February 1938
1	6	Jewish Social Service Agency Agreement	March 21, 1938
1	7	Shomre Hadath, Employment service for religious immigrants	1939
1	8	Ethical Culture Society	1938-1939
1	9	Affidavit Policy	1938-1941
1	10	National Coordinating Committee Fund	December 2, 1938
1	11	Ellis Island	1939
1	12	Ellis Island, U.S. Dept. of Labor, Dept. of Immigration and Natural Service	1938-1939
1	13	NRS 1939 office and staff responsibilities	1939
1	14	NRS National Coordinating Committee Fund	1939
1	15	Report of the Division for Social and Cultural Adjustment	1939, 1942-1943
1	16	Deportation Immigration, Psychopathic Inferiors	1939, 1944
1	17	NRS 1939, correspondence NCCF	1939
1	18	National Refugee Consultative Council	1939
1	19	Budget Committee re: The Good Neighbor League	1939
1	20	William Rosenwald, Cecilia Razovsky, Affidavit policy	June 27, 1939
1	21	Refugee Consultative Council, minutes of meetings	October 17 and November 14, 1939
1	22	German Jewish Children’s Aid	1934, 1939, 1941-1943
1	23	Consultative Council Minutes	1939-1941
1	24	NRS Affidavit Policy	1939-1940, 1942
1	25	NRS Telegrams and cables	1940
1	26	NRS Interoffice memos re: Cases of SS St. Louis	March 7, 1940
1	27	Affiant study – Board participation	October 14, 1940
1	28	American Friends Service Committee	1940
1	29	Boston Committee on Medical Emigres	1940
1	30	Placement Committee for German and Austrian musicians	1940
1	31	The American Hebrew, “The Refugee Farmer”	September 30, 1940
1	32	Trends in local community Refugee programs	1940
1	33	Meeting of NRS Representative with Émigré Group	October-November 1940
1	34	History of National Refugee Service	January 10, 1940
1	35	“The New Homeland,” by Frederica Rubin	1940
1	36	National Council of Jewish Women	1940
1	37	National Conference of Jewish Social Work: memo on transportation problems	1940
1	38	Work Relief Project	1940-1941
1	39	Memphis, Tennessee: Abe Waldauer	1940
1	40	Affidavit Policy	1940
1	41	Pittsburgh Meeting Tri State Coordinating Bureau	1940
1	42	Pittsburgh Conference	1940
Box	Folder	Title	Date
2	1	SS St. Louis cases, NRS	1940
2	2	Annual Report Migration Department	1940
2	3	Federation for the Support of Jewish Philanthropic Societies of NYC	1940-1942
2	4	Case Work Service to Refugee Children in Reception Care	1940-1941
2	5	Report of the Field Work of the National Committee for Resettlement of Foreign Physicians	1939-1941
2	6	Pittsburgh Dental School	1941
2	7	Dr. Maurice Taylor, Pittsburgh	1941
2	8	Rhode Island	1940-1941
2	9	Problems in the distribution of the Jewish refugee population in the U.S.	1941
2	10	Department Head’s Meeting	1941-1942, 1944-1946
2	11	Migration cases	1941
2	12	Transportation cases	1941
2	13	National Refugee Service: Affidavits	1941
2	14	NRS Migration Department	1941-1944
2	15	Emergency Committee in Aid of Displaced Foreign Scholars and Medical Scientists	January 6, 1941
2	16	Selfhelp	1941, 1944-1945
2	17	German Jewish Children’s Aid	1941
2	18	NRS Job Analysis in the Housing Department	1941-1942
2	19	NRS Social Adjustment Division	1941-1942, 1944
2	20	U.S. Committee for the Care of European Children	1941
2	21	Jewish Population Statistics	1941-1943
2	22	NRS Furniture Plan	1941
2	23	Historical Report of the German Jewish Children’s Aid, Inc.	1941
2	24	NRS	May 1, 1941
2	25	Resettlement meetings	1938, 1940-1942
2	26	NRS Visa Division	1941-1942
2	27	Dept. of Economic Adjustment	1942
2	28	NRS Retraining Committee	1942
2	29	“A Day in Migration,” stories by Clara Friedman	1942
2	30	NRS Technical Advisory Committee	1942
2	31	Physicians’ problems in Ohio	September-October 1942
2	32	National Committee for Resettlement of Foreign Physicians	August 28, 1942
2	33	Aid of Displaced Foreign Scholars and Medical Scientists	1942
2	34	Meeting of Refugee Physicians called by the Federation of Jews from Central Europe	July 6, 1942
2	35	Selective Service	1942
2	36	Field Report on Dallas, Texas	1942
2	37	Letter of Internee Fred Kappel to Hon. Francis K. Biddle, U.S. Attorney General	1942
2	38	Internees: Illinois	1942
2	39	Report on Service to Refugees in Local Family Agencies	December 1942
2	40	Recommendations of Technical Advisory Committee to NRS re: New York-National Responsibility	May 14, 1943
2	41	Internee Problem – Alien registration	1943
2	42	Arrangements with American Committee for Christian Refugees	1941, 1943
2	43	Sheltered Workshop Activity	1943
2	44	NRS Deportation case A27631, Schimko, Regina and Richard	April 27, 1944
2	45	Committee on Resettlement of Japanese Americans	1944
2	46	Joseph Markfeld case: Deportation proceedings	1944
2	47	NRS Fact Finding Company	1943
2	48	Central Index, notes on meeting held by Chamberlain	September 20, 1943
2	49	Search Centers: Prof. Joseph Chamberlain	1943
2	50	Community Relations Department: Report of Activities	July 1, 1943-June 30, 1944
2	51	Message of the NRS President	January 23, 1943
2	52	Family Service Committee	1943, 1947
2	53	How do refugees look at NRS? Foreign Born non-casework relationship to organizations	1943
2	54	Analysis of relationship of NRS to National Council of Jewish Women	1939-1941, 1943-1944
Box	Folder	Title	Date
3	1	Quota Correspondence: South Carolina	1940-1942
3	2	Quota Correspondence: Columbia, South Carolina	1945
3	3	Quota Correspondence: Florence, South Carolina	1945
3	4	Quota Correspondence: Greenwood, South Carolina	1945-1946
3	5	Quota Correspondence: Spartanburg, South Carolina	1945
3	6	Quota Correspondence: Sumter, South Carolina	1945
3	7	Quota Correspondence: South Dakota	1945-1946
3	8	Quota Correspondence: Tennessee	1941
3	9	The Observer Nashville, Tennessee	1941
3	10	Quota Correspondence: Tennessee	1942
3	11	Quota Correspondence: Chattanooga and other cities, Tennessee	1945
3	12	Quota Correspondence: Tennessee, General and Nashville	1943
3	13	Quota Correspondence: Memphis, Tennessee	1945-1946
3	14	Quota Correspondence: Tennessee	1945-1957
3	15	Quota Correspondence: Nashville, Tennessee	1945-1946
3	16	Quota Correspondence: Texas	undated, 1940
3	17	Quota Correspondence: Texas	1941
3	18	Quota Correspondence: Texas	1942
3	19	Quota Correspondence: Texas	1943
Box	Folder	Title	Date
4	1	United Jewish Appeal of Greater New York	1943
4	2	NRS: National-Local Responsibility	October 12, 1943
4	3	NRS Deportation Case: Merkin, Fanny #93406	August 4, 1944
4	4	War Refugee Board	1944
4	5	Community Relations Department	1944
4	6	Emergency Refugee Shelters	1944
4	7	Physicians and Medical Scientists Committees	1944
4	8	Report on Physicians Committee	May 1944
4	9	National Coordinating Committee	1938-1939, 1944
4	10	Seamen’s regulations	1944
4	11	Repayment of physicians’ maintenance accounts	1944
4	12	Deportation – Fraudulent entry cases	1944-1945
4	13	Jewish Family Welfare Society	1944
4	14	Preparations of the exceptions to the findings of fact and conclusions of law in Deportation Cases	1944
4	15	Report on the Emergency Refugee Shelter by Louise Brandeis	August 30, 1944
4	16	Visa Division	1944
4	17	Regulations for outgoing international correspondence of Internees at large	1944
4	18	Central Location Service	1943-1946
4	19	Central and South American Internees	1944-1946
4	20	NRS association with HIAS Dock Services, procedure for reception of new immigrants initial disposition	1944, 1946
4	21	The program of European Jewish Children’s Aid	1944, 1946
4	22	NRS interoffice memo	August 21, 1945
4	23	NRS Oswego, Mr. Bernard Dubin to Dr. Ruth Gruber, May 8, 1945 and other
4	24	Oswego	1945
4	25	Committee for the study of recent immigration from Europe, activity report	July 1945
4	26	Reading, Pennsylvania	1945
4	27	Central Location Index, minutes, Board of Directors	1945
4	28	Correspondence with Dean Acheson re enemy aliens	1945
4	29	Rhode Island	1944-1946
4	30	Scranton, Pennsylvania	1945
4	31	Siegfried (Fred) Pordes case, deportation proceedings	1944-1945
4	32	York, Pennsylvania UJA	1945
4	33	Tri-State Pittsburgh area	1944-1945, 1947
4	34	Migration Department	1945
4	35	HIAS merger with NRS	1945
4	36	Community Centers for Refugee Organizations	1945
4	37	National Refugee Service Social Adjustment Division	1945
4	38	The Emergency Committee in aid of displaced foreign scholars	1945
4	39	American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee	1945
4	40	Publicity Department report	December 17, 1945
4	41	American Consulate General, London, England	1945
4	42	Elfriede Klarberg deportation case	1945
4	43	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1945
4	44	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1945-1947
4	45	Rhode Island	1945-1946
4	46	South Carolina	1945-1946
Box	Folder	Title	Date
5	1	NRS Program report, Charles A. Riegelman	1946
5	2	Central Location Index	1946
5	3	Sailing of SS Marine Perch and Marine Flasher, Miriam Semel case	1946
5	4	Report on the settlement of NRS of Oswego refugees	1946
5	5	NRS Special Resettlement Project	1946
5	6	Latin American Internees	1946
5	7	Promissory Notes	1946
5	8	Coordinating Committee for Fort Ontario Oswego	1945-1946
5	9	Memos to Migration Department, Deportation	1945-1946
5	10	Oswego refugees	1945-1946
5	11	Letter to the President of the U.S. re: Oswego, October 22, 1945; correspondence with Secretary Interior and Attorney General Biddle	1945
5	12	NRS, 1938-1946; subject files classification as of June 1953
5	13	NRS Miscellaneous form letters	1939-1946
5	14	NRS Executive office memorandum no. 19	August 31, 1939
5	15	Statement of methods used by professional workers for the purpose of interpreting responsibility of affidavit makers	July 11, 1939
5	16	Survey of case worker contacts with affiants and relatives of all cases in the relief and service department	September 7, 1940
5	17	Third World Country booklets, refugee enterprises	1939-1940
5	18	Refugee enterprises	November 12, 1940
5	19	NRS Division for Social and Cultural Adjustment report of the first year’s activities	February 6, 1939-February 6, 1940
5	20	NRS Affidavits	1939, 1941, 1945
5	21	NRS New visa regulations	July 24, 1941
5	22	NRS Summary of Proceedings at Conference of Professional Workers held in conjunction with the meeting of the Board of Directors, Cleveland, OH	January 18, 1941
5	23	NRS Manual: Resettlement and Field Service Department	June 10, 1941
5	24	NRS Community Cues for Newcomers; Division for Social and Cultural Adjustment, no. 6	January 1941
5	25	Summer placement for refugee children	1940-1942
5	26	NRS Resettlement policies	June 6, 1942
5	27	NRS Outline of Social Adjustment Services	May 19, 1942
5	28	NRS Joint Distribution Committee	October 1942
5	29	NRS Family Service Meeting	October 29, 1942
5	30	Retraining program of NRS, February 17, 1942; employment of NRS clients after retraining	March 16, 1942
5	31	NRS Internees	1942-1943, 1945-1946
5	32	Retraining program of the NRS	October 22, 1942
5	33	NRS Migration	1942, 1944
5	34	Report of NRS Community Relations Program	Fall 1941-Spring 1942, October 1, 1942-June 30, 1943
5	35	NRS Work Relief Procedure	1940-1942
5	36	NRS Migration News Letter	1942
5	37	NRS Report of the Experiment in Protected Work	December 18, 1942
5	38	NRS Medical Scientists Committee	1942-1943
5	39	Draft statement on national and local responsibility for refugee service	October 18, 1943
5	40	Referrals to sheltered workshop, January 11, 1943; suspension of sheltered workshop activity	July 8, 1943
5	41	Social Adjustment Committee report of American resources available for refugees in NYC in the area of social adjustment	February 1943
5	42	Report of Joint Supervisory Group on collection of monies dispersed to clients by NRS	September 1943
5	43	Results of NRS retraining study of 410 retrainees 9-12 months after completion of school	May 27, 1943
5	44	Types of relationships between NRS and Federation Agencies	April 23, 1943
5	45	Summary of the survey of the Westchester Coordinating Committee for Emigres	December 17, 1943
5	46	NRS Social Adjustment Committee, 1942-1943; conclusions on refugee needs	April 29, 1943
5	47	Minutes of Joint Supervisor Group meeting	January 5 and 7, 1943
5	48	NRS Report of Executive Director to Executive Committee	1943-1944
5	49	NRS Annual meeting of Members and Board of Directors, New York	January 15-16, 1944
5	50	NRS Special Information Bulletin	1941-1945
Box	Folder	Title	Date
6	1	Report of the staff of National Refugee Service by Joseph Beck, Executive Director	May 26, 1944
6	2	NRS Field program, statement presented to Technical Advisory Committee by Ephraim Gomberg, Director of Community Relations	June 15, 1944
6	3	NRS Executive office memorandum no. 141	August 8, 1944
6	4	NRS Retraining Committee meeting	1942-1943
6	5	Local Organization for Resettlement	January 11, 1939
6	6	Resettling New Americans, by William Haber	August 1940
6	7	NRS Message of the President	January 23, 1943
6	8	Promotional and miscellaneous materials	undated, 1939, 1941
6	9	Information Bulletin	1939-1940
6	10	Annual Reports	1939-1941, 1945
6	11	Reports of the Executive Director	1939-1942
6	12	NCC Bulletin	1938
6	13	Community Service Release	1940
6	14	Community Bulletin	1940-1945
6	15	NRS Handbooks and Manuals	1940, 1942
6	16	Migration	1941
6	17	NRS News	1942-1943
6	18	They Can Aid America: A Survey of Alien Specialized Personnel	1943
6	19	Board of Directors meetings, officers’ report and agenda, Cleveland, OH	January 18-19, 1941
6	20	NRS Needs in 1945
6	21	Pilgrims in Our Time	1946

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