A variety of publications
were issued to help Americanize new immigrants.
Bilingual Yiddish-English versions of the
Constitution and the Declaration of Independence
were published for the new Americans, as
were phrase books in Yiddish,
English, and Ladino (Judeo-Spanish)
— all intended to help the immigrants
function in their new environment. Alexander
Harkavy's English-Yiddish letter writing
guides were especially popular, selling thousands
of copies in multiple editions. Shown here
is Harkavy's
American Letter Writer, opened to a
sample letter “From
a Lady to a Gentleman, Complaining of Faithlossness
(sic).”
Konstitushon
fun di Fereynigte Shtaten
und Deklereyshon of Indipendens
[Constitution of the United States
and the Declaration of Independence].
New York: Sarasohn and Son, Pub., 1892.
Hebraic
Section
Moise S. Gadol (1874-1941).
Libro de
Embezar, The Book to Learn How to Speak,
Read and Write from Spanish-Jewish Language
in English and Yiddish.
New York: 1937.
Hebraic
Section
Hirsh Vand (b.1847).
Der Englisher
Tolmatsh.
Warsaw: Gebruder Shuldberg, 1891.
Hebraic
Section
Alexander Harkavy (1863-1939).
Harkavy's Amerikanisher Briefenshteler
[Harkavy's American Letter Writer].
New York: Hebrew Publishing Co., 1902.
Hebraic
Section
Pictured on the sheet music cover below
are two scenes: a father and son parting
in the Old World, and the same pair meeting
at Ellis Island. Solomon Smulewitz's lyrics
recount a familiar tale of woe: “Mother
has died in loneliness and poverty. Write
a letter to father and send money for him
to come to America. Alas, father is too ill
to be admitted here. He is permitted to see
his son at the gate of Ellis Island, and
then will be sent back to Europe.”
Solomon
Smulewitz (1868-1943)
and J.M. Rumshisky (1879-1956).
A Brievele dem Taten
[A little letter to my father].
New York: Hebrew Publishing Co., 1911.
Sheet music cover.
Hebraic
Section
The Immigration Assistance
Section of the National Council of Jewish
Women issued the citizenship guide below
for women in both English and Yiddish. Founded
in 1893, the Council focused on helping unmarried
women immigrants learn English, secure citizenship,
and find employment.
Cecilia Razovsky (1891-1968).
Vos Yede
Froy Darf Visen Vegen Birgershaft, What Every
Woman Should Know about Citizenship.
New York: Department of Immigrant Aid,
National Council of Jewish Women, 1926.
Hebraic
Section
Written in Yiddish, the
language understood by the majority of newly
arriving Jewish immigrants, the cookbook
below served as an introduction to American
as well as traditional Jewish cuisine. The recipes, which are based on Hinde Amchanitzki's
forty-five years of experience in European
and American kitchens, include traditional
Jewish dishes as well as American fare. In
her introduction, the author promises that
using her recipes will prevent stomach aches
and other food-related maladies in children.
This first American Yiddish cookbook pictures
the author on the cover. Displayed on the
accompanying page are recipes in Yiddish
for two desserts, “Snowballs” and
“Rhubarb Pie.”
