Dear friends,
It was wonderful to see so many of you in the museum for the opening of Oregon Jews, A to Z earlier this month. This important exhibition is a celebratory mosaic offering a vibrant portrait of the history and culture of Oregon Jews. At OJMCHE, we are proud to provide a home for a bountiful collection of archival materials and artifacts. Our collection includes thousands of photographs, documents, films, oral histories, three-dimensional objects, and artworks — the physical objects that represent the Jews of Oregon.
One item in particular has caught my eye. L is for Ledger– One thing the average person would not really ever see is a ledger book from a cemetery. I know now we have all kinds of websites that can help us find our own relatives or search individual names, but this kind of ledger is a different way to think about a community. The growth and change of a Jewish community. As immigrants and migrants, many Jewish families formed burial societies and bought land for cemeteries before or in conjunction with building synagogues in America. For many congregations, these ledgers were their first records created in America. It’s not just an object in a case but a reference tool, memory book, history of a community…1858! Gift from Congregation Beth Israel.
In reflecting on the whole exhibition, the word that comes to mind is joyful. Looking at the online photos from the opening gives a sense of our robust community, since the early 19th century, and through the present. Our guest services staff has shared stories of visitors excitedly finding artifacts donated by family and friends in the over 100 objects on view. In the coming weeks, we will be adding some very interesting gallery guides, including a photography credits map, and sharing a series of events focused on growing our archives and collections by gathering primary resources from you—our community.
I hope to see you in the museum soon and hear what objects speak to you.
Warmly,
Rebekah Sobel
Executive Director