Who We Are

Welcome to the Jewish Genealogical and Archival Society of Greater Philadelphia (JGASGP), formerly the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Philadelphia (JGSGP)

The JGASGP is a non-profit organization which functions through the voluntary efforts of its members; all of whom are encouraged to participate. The Society is governed by a Board of Directors, in accordance with the By-Laws of JGASGP.

The objectives of the Society are:

  • To collect, preserve and disseminate knowledge and information about Jewish genealogy.
  • To promote interest and encourage interested persons to engage in genealogical research.
  • To stimulate and provide instruction in research methodology, the utilization of resources and adherence to standards of accuracy and thoroughness.
  • To foster careful documentation and to promote scholarly genealogical writing and publication.
  • To promote the preservation of genealogical records and resources.
  • To hold meetings for the instruction and education of its members and the general public.
  •  To provide continuous assistance and follow up to prospective members and current members.
  • To increase awareness of all the genealogical sources that are available for research.
  • To continue the mission of the former Philadelphia Jewish Archives Center (PJAC)

Background

The former JGSGP was founded in 1979 by a small group of individuals interested in researching their Jewish heritage. Since then, the membership of the society has grown to approximately 250 people. While most of the membership resides in the greater Philadelphia area, we also have members from across the USA, Canada and Israel.

Meetings

General meetings are held monthly, except for July and August.  Please refer to the homepage for start times, topics and meeting locations.   Our well-attended meetings feature outstanding speakers and recognized experts from all areas of Jewish genealogy.  In addition to monthly general meetings, the JGASGP sponsors ancillary group meetings and activities targeted to the specific interests of its members. Our South Jersey Affiliate and the Russian Interest Group meet periodically.  Meeting announcements can be found on the society’s homepage.

Projects

In collaboration with the Philadelphia Jewish Archives Center, JGASGP members have indexed thousands of Passage Order Book records from the Blitzstein, Lipschutz, and Rosenbaum ethnic/immigrant banks.  In 2006, this project was awarded the Outstanding Programming/Project at the 26th IAJGS conference on Jewish Genealogy in New York City.  The indexes are available at JewishGen.org.

Another project, the indexing of the Jewish Exponent Obituaries, can be viewed at JewishGen.org.  These indexes include thousands of records beginning with the year, 1887.

In 2009, the Philadelphia Area Jewish Genealogical Resource Directory was published.  Our members compiled lists of synagogues, cemeteries, funeral directors, heritage landmarks, historical societies, private sector and governmental sites.  At the 2010 IAJGS conference in Los Angeles, CA, we were recognized with the Outstanding Project Award.

Publications

Chronicles is the quarterly journal of the JGASGP and has received worldwide acclaim. In 2005,and most recently again in 2020, Chronicles was honored with The Outstanding Publication Award of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies [IAJGS] in recognition of an outstanding journal, newsletter, or other publication by a member organization that furthers Jewish genealogical research.

Library

The JGSGP’s (JGASGP) excellent library contains many of the more important reference and descriptive works in the field of Jewish Genealogy.  The library also contains a large selection of pamphlets, newsletters from other Jewish Genealogical Societies, and a large and varied selection of audio tapes of various lectures about specific aspects of Jewish Genealogy. The JGASGP library collection is housed at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1300 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107.

Speakers  Bureau 

Are you interested in having someone speak on “Jewish Genealogy” for your organization?  For more information or to volunteer as a speaker, click here.

Membership

Membership is open to anyone interested in their Jewish roots. To join, please complete the Membership Application Form and mail it along with your dues, or pay online with PayPal. For more information, contact us:

 

JGASGP

1657 The Fairway, #145

Jenkintown, PA 19046

membership@jgasgp.org

 

Facebook

We have a Facebook page (Jewish Genealogical and Archival Society of Greater Philadelphia) where information, postings and comments are shared.

You must be a Facebook member to join our Facebook group.

IAJGS Affiliation

The JGASGP is a member society of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS). The IAJGS is an independent non-profit umbrella organization coordinating the activities and annual conference of more than 75 national and local Jewish genealogical societies around the world. It was formed in the late 1980’s to provide a common voice for issues of significance to its members, to advance our genealogical avocation, and to coordinate items such as the annual Jewish Genealogy Conference.

In 2021, JGASGP will once again co-host the 41st International Conference on Jewish Genealogy in Philadelphia, PA, as we did in 1989 and 2009.