For Researchers

About our collections

The materials we care for are vast, comprising objects, photographs, manuscript collections, oral histories, and more. We welcome scholars, students, artists, genealogists, and anyone else interested in Maryland Jewish history to explore our collections.

Accessing Materials

Our Museum building is currently closed to the public for capital renovations and will reopen in February 2025. During this time, the Goodwin Library and Robert L. Weinberg Family History Center have limited availability to in-person researchers. Reference services provided by email and phone remain available, and in-person appointments will be scheduled as construction work allows.

For reference inquiries, please email our team at research@jewishmuseummd.org. We’ll do our best to respond within three weeks.

Remote Research

Our collections team is available to help with research questions via email or phone (email is preferred). To assist us in responding efficiently, please include as much detail as possible about your request and research goals. Depending on the complexity of your inquiry, responses may take up to three weeks.

Referrals

If we can’t assist you directly, we’ll gladly point you toward other Maryland repositories and resources that might help in your research.

Collections Catalog

In advance of reaching out to our team, we encourage you to learn more about our resources on this page and by exploring our collections catalog

explore our catalog >

Collections Overview

Manuscript Materials

The archival collection at the Jewish Museum of Maryland includes over 250 major manuscript collections and thousands of other documents and rare books relating to the lives of Maryland’s Jews. A browsable list of the major manuscript collections is available; please email research@jewishmuseummd.org to obtain full finding aids for any manuscript collection on this list. Individual archival records can be searched through our online collections catalog.

Photographs

JMM holds over 100,000 photographs of Jewish life in Maryland. Our photographic collection can be searched through our collections catalog. Photographic reproduction services are available; fees and terms apply.

Oral Histories

The JMM's Oral History Collection consists of over 700 interviews, which contain a wealth of family reminiscences, memories of life in Baltimore, and recollections of people, places, and events from throughout the state.

Objects

JMM has over 12,500 objects ranging from Jewish ceremonial objects to artifacts that speak to everyday Jewish life in Maryland (e.g., textiles, household objects, furniture, costumes, ephemera, tools and utensils, and personal items).

Reference Materials

The Anne Adalman Goodwin Library at the JMM, a non-lending, non-circulating library, holds over 3,000 volumes on Jewish and Maryland history, as well as reference files organized by subject, family, and congregation, and a nearly complete set of the Jewish Times (1919-present). All materials are available to researchers only in the reading room at the JMM. Books can be searched in the ‘library’ section of our collections catalog.

Family History Resources

The family history collection at the Robert L. Weinberg Family History Center contains many primary source materials, including:

Additional resources include archival collections from several Baltimore-area synagogues; records of local Jewish agencies, institutions and businesses; personal papers of prominent individuals; profiles of individuals and families in A History of the Jews of Baltimore (Blum, 1910) and other locally-published books; biographical, institutional and subject files related to Baltimore and Maryland Jewry; and oral histories of Maryland Jews. Periodicals that offer information on Maryland Jewry include the Baltimore Jewish Times (1919 to present), Jewish Comment (1895-1918), Jewish Chronicle (1875), Jewish Exponent (1887-1888), Sinai (1856-1860), Generations (1978 to present) and American Jewish Year Book (1899-1985). We also maintain a photograph collection related to immigration, Jewish life in Maryland, and the many institutions of Baltimore Jewry.

Baltimore Jewish Cemetery Research

The Baltimore Jewish cemetery research undertaken by JMM volunteers in the 1990s can be searched via the JewishGen JOWBR database.

We no longer post the original spreadsheets on our website, as the JOWBR database is a comprehensive collection of those files and is easy to search. Inventories of area Jewish cemeteries can also be found on Find A Grave, which is continually updated by community volunteers. We recommend using both resources in your research.

Reproductions + Publications

Digital reproductions of most images, documents, and recordings – as well as object photographs – are available. Fees vary and terms apply.

Please review our Reproduction + Publication Contract and reach out to our collections team at research@jewishmuseummd.org.

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Donate to our collections

The Jewish Museum of Maryland is not currently accepting donations for our collections. Visit our Donate to Our Collections page to learn more.
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