Open Day – 10th November 2024

On Sunday 10th November from 2pm - 4pm, to mark Armistice Day, we will be holding a special Open Day at the Archives Centre in Garnethill Synagogue as part of the B'nai Brith UK European Days of Culture and Heritage Programme. We will be showing material relating to the impact of the First and Second World Wars on Scottish Jewish Families with a short illustrated presentation. 

There were a number of Scottish Jewish families with several family members who served at the same time, such as the Nathan family in Edinburgh in 1915 (3 brothers, an uncle and 12 cousins).  Examples from the First World War exemption tribunal files show how some families feared the conscription of their main breadwinners. There was also the danger of bombing on the home front - in 1941 a bomb falling on a Glasgow street caused the deaths of a number of Jewish families.

We will also look at letters sent home from serving Scottish Jewish soldiers, including Second World War prisoners of the Japanese, and through the deaths announcements of the Jewish Echo newspaper we’ll see evidence of family casualties during the Second World War.  

Admission is free; however, donations are very welcome to support the work of the Archives Centre.