Temple Israel Emanuel (Union City, N.J.) Records

Temple Israel Emanuel of Union City, N.J., is an orthodox congregation created from the merger of two other synagogues. These are Congregation Temple Emanuel of Hudson County, N.J., and Temple Israel of West Hoboken, both located in Union City.

The records of Temple Israel Emanuel date from 1909-1976. No records prior to 1909 are known to exist. A press release from 1983 was acquired and filed in the collection. Other than this, records more recent than 1976 were not acquired.

The collection is divided into five main sections. The first section contains the records of Congregation Temple Emanuel prior to the merger. These records consist of MINUTES, MEMBERSHIP DOCUMENTS, FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS, and CEMETERY DOCUMENTS. As only a few of these records were acquired, all of these areas are limited in scope.

The next group in the collection is the records of Temple Israel prior to the merger. These records consist of MEMBERSHIP DOCUMENTS, FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS and CEMETERY DOCUMENTS . These, as with the records of Congregation Temple Emanuel, are limited in scope.

The third section of the collection is the records of Temple Israel Emanuel during and after the merger. These documents include the MERGER DOCUMENTS, MINUTES, FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS, CORRESPONDENCE' CEMETERY DOCUMENTS' SAMUEL HARBER Is FILES and PHOTOGRAPHS AND MOVIE FILMS.

The MERGER DOCUMENTS all date from 1938. they are the legal and synagogue documents directly relating to the merger of the two synagogues.

The MINUTES are very limited in scope covering only 1954-1955. No other minutes were acquired for Temple Israel Emanuel.

The FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS consist of a ledger and contracts. The contracts are mostly Building Alteration/Maintenance related and vary in date.

The CORRESPONDENCE is very limited in scope. Personal papers, letters and other miscellaneous records can be found here.

SAMUEL HARBER'S FILES consist mostly of legal documents, with some personal papers. Samuel Harber served as legal counsel for Temple Israel Emanuel for many years. At one time he also served as the President. With the exception of the MERGER DOCUMENTS, which were kept together, all of the legal work in the collection done by Samuel Harber is here.

The PHOTOGRAPHS AND MOVIE FILMS take up a very small portion of the collection. Most of the photographs are unmarked so dating and recognition of persons in the photo is difficult. Some of the movie labels were separate prior to acquisition, so identification of the contents of the individual movies is impossible.

The fourth section of the collection is the records of Talmud Torah Religious School. These records consist of the CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION, STUDENT RECORDS, and ATTENDANCE BOOKS.

The STUDENT RECORDS are in the form of student registration cards. These cover the years between the 1930's and 1975. However, most of these lack ordering.

The fifth section of the collection is the Brotherly Benevolent Association Linas Hazedek. These records consist of a CONSTITUTION AND BY- LAWS, MEMBERSHIP DOCUMENTS, FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS, LEGAL DOCUMENTS, and CORRESPONDENCE.

The MEMBERSHIP DOCUMENTS consist of applications and some resignations. They vary in date.

The FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS consist of six ledger books and some file folders. The contents, mostly dues, vary in date from the 1930's to the 1970's, with gaps in the 1940's.

The MINUTES consist of three bound volumes. Two of these were written entirely in Yiddish, and the third has some entries in Yiddish. They range in date from the 1909 to 1962 with gaps.

The LEGAL DOCUMENTS consist mainly of legal releases from financial responsibility. They date from 1923-1969 inclusive.

The CORRESPONDENCE is very limited in scope, consisting of only a few letters from various dates. One letter from 1923 is in Yiddish. 5