Jewish Historical Society of Fairfield County

JHSFC News

Announcements, etc.

Joan Lapin, of New Canaan, visits the JHSFC Archives to donate photos, newspaper clippings, historical documents, a Master's thesis about the history of the Jews of New Canaan, and many other items from her files and scrapbooks. She is showing Elissa Kaplan, President of JHSFC, pictures of her father's grocery store, Rosen Brother's Market.

Want a program about Jewish history in Fairfield County 1654 - 2016?

Do you know that the first Jew came to Fairfield County in 1654 to buy a slave? Do you know about some of the earliest Fairfield County Jews?

The first Jewish resident of Stamford was Nehemiah Marks. The earliest Jewish resident of Greenwich, was Abraham Hays, who settled there in 1728. The first Jew in Norwalk was Ralph Isaacs, who lived there with his family in 1724.

According to historian Irwin Miller, "There are many stories, such as the tale of Louis Drucker, the first Jew to settle in New Canaan in 1869. He was a tailor, volunteer fireman and town constable. He was murdered attempting to thwart a robbery, and his killer is thought to be the last man hanged in Connecticut." And, there's so much more! Join us to discover what we know, how we know it, and how you can be part of the continuing Jewish story of Fairfield County.

For information contact JHSFC:
Phone: (203) 321-1373 x150
Email: info@jhsfc-ct.org

The 2017 National History Day Contest

Attention, all students in grades six-12 in public schools, Jewish day schools, and Jewish congregational schools: The Jewish Historical Society of Fairfield County in conjunction with Connecticut History Day, announces that it will again sponsor two monetary awards for the 2017 National History Day Contest.

Entries must fit the theme of the National contest, which is "Taking a Stand". In addition, to receive a JHSFC award, students must incorporate Jewish history or heritage and/or a Jewish personality into the 2017 National History Day theme.

National History Day is a program for students in grade six-12 that encourages exploration of local, state, national and world history.

For more information visit: www.historydayct.org
***Press Release***

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow,
Will You Be Part of the Story?

The Jewish Historical Society of Fairfield County is one of the largest secular Jewish organizations in Fairfield County, Connecticut.

As we enter our 30+ years, we invite you to join us. We need your help in telling your community's story so that we can together explore it further, preserve it and share it. Who were the first Jews in your community? Why did they come, what did they accomplish? How did the community change and grow? Who were and are the Jewish movers and shakers in the Jewish and overall community? What Jewish institutions were established? Through our archives in Fairfield County and our programs, library, traveling exhibit and oral/video history projects we discover and maintain our communities' collective memory dating back to the first recorded Jewish presence in our area in the late 1600's.

Help us capture your special story, so your community will be included in the greater story that is the Jewish story of Fairfield County, Connecticut.

Diaries, emigration documents, household objects, legal documents, letters, obituaries, postcards, posters recipes, scrapbooks vintage clothing, photographs and film clips of family and community events . . .

For information contact JHSFC:
Phone: (203) 359-2196
Email: archives@jhsfc-ct.org

Upcoming Events

JHSFC Book Talks

Wednesday, October 26, 2016


INTO THE ARMS OF STRANGERS
by Mark Jonathan Harris and
Deborah Oppenheimer
Presenter: Penny Wolff

Between December 1938 and the outbreak of war in August 1939, some 10,000 children, the vast majority of them Jews, from Germany, Austria, Poland, and Czechoslovakia were evacuated to Great Britain. The stories of 18 witnesses to this Kindertransport--children, parents, and rescuers--are recounted in Into the Arms of Strangers.

Wednesday, October 26, 2016
@10:00 AM
Stamford JCC
1035 Newfield Avenue
Stamford, CT 06905

FREE and Open to the Public
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Wednesday, November 16, 2016


50 JEWISH ARTISTS YOU SHOULD KNOW
by Edward van Voolen
Presenter: Elissa Kaplan, Ed.D

This introduction to the icons of Jewish art celebrates the religion and its culture while addressing fundamental issues about creative expression and the Judaic tradition. The range of artists includes those from across Europe, North America, and Israel: icons of nineteenth-century art such as David Oppenheim, Solomon Hart, and Maricy Gottlieb; renowned modernists such as Pissarro, Modigliani, and Chagall; and photographers from Man Ray to Nan Goldin.

Wednesday, November 16, 2016
@10:00 AM
Stamford JCC
1035 Newfield Avenue
Stamford, CT 06905

FREE and Open to the Public
***************

Wednesday, December 21, 2016


THE UNAMERICANS
by Molly Antopol
Presenter: Bob Abrams

Antopol explores the everyday anxieties and complex past lives of immigrant characters in New York boroughs and Old World homelands, including Kiev, Tel Aviv and Brooklyn.

Wednesday, December 21, 2016
@10:00 AM
Stamford JCC
1035 Newfield Avenue
Stamford, CT 06905

FREE and Open to the Public
***************

Wednesday, January 18, 2017


CITY OF THIEVES
by David Benioff
Presenter: Ruth Golub

The novel is a spellbinding, movielike World War II adventure set in Leningrad. This coming of age story - from boys to men - has a surprisingly contemporary feel.

Wednesday, January 18, 2017
@10:00 AM
Stamford JCC
1035 Newfield Avenue
Stamford, CT 06905

FREE and Open to the Public
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Programs and Exhibits

JHSFC Monthly Program

Thursday, October 13, 2016

JHSFC President, Elissa Kaplan
** Elissa's bio **

Elissa Kaplan, President of The Jewish Historical Society of Fairfield County, along with members of the Society, will present "You Can Be Part of the Story", a program about the Jewish History of Fairfield County. Come experience Jewish history right in our own back yard.

Thursday, October 13, 2016
@ 7:00 PM
Congregation Beth El
1200 Fairfield Woods Road
Fairfield, CT 06825

FREE and Open to the Public.
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Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Meet Susan J. Gordon
Author of BECAUSE OF EVA
A Jewish Genealogical Journey


BECAUSE OF EVA
by Susan J. Gordon

Mysteries in her family's past spur the author to delve into World War II and Holocaust history.

Wednesday, October 19, 2016
@ 7:00 PM
Ferguson Library
Harry Bennett Branch
115 Vine Road
Stamford, CT 06905

FREE and Open to the Public.
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JHSFC 2016
National History Day Winners

Established in 2013, this year’s contest focused on the theme "Exploration, Encounter and Exchange". Connecticut students in grades 6-12 were invited to submit work related to the theme of Jewish history or heritage, or that highlighted a notable Jewish personality.

**Jewish Historical Society Honors National History Day Winners.**

Publications