ORT Archive documents relating to World ORT
World ORT Union (now World ORT) was founded in 1921 to coordinate fundraising efforts and to oversee ORT’s growing activities in Europe and elsewhere. The ORT online archive currently holds a variety of correspondence, reports, minutes, publicity material and publications from a wide period of activities. Highlights include: ORT Yediot (aka ORT Yedies) [ORT News], a Yiddish publication (1929-1931); Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, where the ORT Executive operated from during WWII (1942-1946); the Weekly Summary and Bi-Weekly Summary (1947-1949), a series of ORT press releases; ORT Chronicle (1947-1955); speeches and writings by Dr Syngalowski; country activity reports submitted to ORT’s governing bodies (1935-1997); and the ORT Yearbook (later World ORT Report) 1957-2018. Our photo galleries include more from World ORT and a brief history of World ORT activities is available here.
World ORT Governance Documents
- 75th Anniversary World ORT Congress, Geneva, 26-29 June 1955.
- 85th anniversary of ORT Congress, Rome, 27-30 June 1965.
- 85th anniversary of ORT Congress, Rome, 27-30 June 1965.
- 90th Anniversary Congress of ORT in Geneva, 14-18 November 1970.
- Budget Presentation to the Executive Committee Meeting Nice, 3 February 1986.
- Central Board Plenary Minutes and partial transcript, 6-8 January 1934.
- Central Executive of the World ORT Union, 22-23 November 1947.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: notarised power of attorney to Mr. E. Lewin Epstein, 1964.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund Board of Directors: minutes book, 1924-1926.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund Ltd: Certificate of the Incorporation of a Company, 1958.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund Ltd: Memorandum and Articles of Association, 9 May 1924.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 10 May 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 10 November 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 15 June 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 19 January 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 21 September 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 26 April 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 27 October 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 28 February 1948.
- Meeting of the Administrative Committee in Geneva, 31 May 1948.
- Meeting of the Central Board of the World ORT Union, Paris, 6-7 July 1947.
- Meeting of the Central Board of the World ORT Union, Paris, 11-15 July 1948.
- Meeting of the Central Board of the World ORT Union, Paris, 20 August 1946.
- Meeting of the Central Executive of World ORT Union, Paris, 6-7 March 1948.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Geneva, 10-11 November 1954.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Geneva, 16 November 1952.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 7 July 1947.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 13-14 November 1951.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 14-15 November 1953.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 14-15 October 1950.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 23-24 October 1949.
- Meeting of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 24-25 November 1955.
- Meetings of the Executive Committee of World ORT Union, Paris, 9 & 16 July 1948.
- Minutes of conference of ORT and "Joint", Berlin, 30 August 1923.
- Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 6 February 1978.
- Minutes of ORT Union's Executive Committee meeting, 10 - 11 November 1954.
- Minutes of the Administrative Committee meeting, Vichy, 1 January 1940.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 2 April 1946.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 5 July 1944.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 15 March 1944.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 15 March 1945.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 19 May 1942.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 21 May 1943.
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 22 December 1944
- Minutes of the Emergency Committee for World ORT Affairs in New York, 24 April 1944.
- Minutes of the ORT Board meeting, Berlin, 13 August 1921.
- Minutes of the plenary session of the [WOU] Central Board, 8 January 1934.
- Minutes of the United ORT-OSE Committee meeting, 13 February 1940.
- Minutes of the United ORT-OSE Committee meeting, 15 February 1940.
- Minutes of the United ORT-OSE Committee meeting, 19 February 1940.
- Minutes of the World ORT Activities and Finance Committees, NY, 14 September 1942.
- Minutes of World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva 9 February, 1976.
- Minutes of World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Paris, 2 February 1981.
- Minutes of World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Paris, 2 February 1981.
- Minutes of World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Paris, 20 June 1976.
- Minutes of World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Rome, July 1979.
- Notarised signed agreement to form ORT Tool Supply Corporation (Palestine) Ltd, 1947.
- ORT Committee Meeting Minutes, 9 January 1923.
- Proceedings of the World ORT Congress, Jerusalem, 21-25 September 1986.
- Protokoll der Sitzung der Zentralverwaltung ORT, 19 February 1927.
- Report on the First Post-War Conference of World ORT Union, Paris, 17-20 August 1946.
- Report on the World ORT Union Central Board Conference, Montreal, 26-29 October 1968.
- Report on the World ORT Union Central Board Meeting, London, 10-13 July 1977.
- Report on the World ORT Union Central Board Meeting, London, 21-24 August 1983.
- Report on World ORT Union Central Board Conference, Divonne, 30 June - 2 July 1963.
- Resolutions adopted by ORT's Central Administration meeting, Paris, 6-8 January 1934.
- Resolutions carried by the Central Board of World ORT Union, Paris, 5-7 July 1952.
- Resolutions of plenary meeting of ORT Union Central Board, Paris, 6-8 January 1934.
- Session de la Direction Centrale Union Mondiale ORT, Paris, 30 June-2 July 1957.
- Summary minutes of the Congress of World ORT Union, Paris, 10-15 July 1949.
- Summary of Minutes of Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 7 February 1977.
- Summary of the Deliberations of the Executive Committee, Geneva, 18th November, 1970.
- Summary of the Deliberations of the Executive Committee, Geneva, 18th November, 1970.
- The 1957 Sessions of the Central Board World ORT Union, Paris, 30 June-2 July 1957.
- United ORT-OSE Presidium Meeting Agenda, 26 January 1940.
- World ORT Union Centenary Congress, Jerusalem, 31 May - 5 June 1980.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 1-2 July, 1962.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 2-3 July, 1967.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 9-10 July, 1961.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 28-29 January, 1962.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 29-30 January, 1961.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, Geneva, 29-30 January, 1967.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting, London, 7 July 1975.
- World ORT Union Executive Committee Meeting,Paris, 31 January - 1 February, 1965.
- [Translation] Minutes of the meeting of the ORT Central Board, 19 February 1927.
Country Activity Reports
- "Activities of the ORT World Union, 1937-1939.
- Annual Report of the World ORT Union 1987.
- Annual Report of the World ORT Union 1988.
- Facts and Data: One Year of ORT Activities, Geneva 1955 - World ORT Union in 1954.
- One Year of ORT: Report on Activities July 1949 - June 1950.
- One Year ORT Activities Report for 1950.
- ORT-Union en 1953 [ORT Union in 1953].
- ORT Annual Report 1980.
- ORT Union - Extent of its Constructive Work in Europe - Report, January 1937.
- ORT Union 1935/36 - Report of the Executive of the Central Board, Paris, 1936.
- ORT Union Activities In 1951.
- ORT Union in 1953.
- ORT Union in 1954.
- ORT Union in 1954.
- ORT Union in 1955.
- ORT Union in 1955.
- ORT Union Report June 1950 - June 1952.
- ORT Union Semi-Annual Report - January-June 1953.
- ORT Union Semi-Annual Report - January-June 1953.
- ORT Union Semi-Annual Report - January-June 1954.
- ORT Union Semi-Annual Report - January-June 1956.
- ORT Union Semi-Annual Report - January-June 1956.
- ORT Work at the beginning of the school year 1952-1953.
- ORT Work at the beginning of the school year 1953-1954.
- ORT Work at the beginning of the school year 1956-1957.
- ORT Work at the beginning of the school year 1956-1957.
- Report of the ORT Union for the years 1949-1955.
- Report of the World ORT Union 1980/86.
- Report on Activities 1960-1965.
- Report on ORT activities at the start of the new school year 1951-1952.
- Report on ORT activities in 1932-1933.
- Report on ORT educational institutions supported by the World Aid Conference, c. 1922.
- Report on the Activities of the ORT Union in 1952.
- Report on the Activities of the ORT Union in 1952.
- Report on the Activities of World ORT Union, 1 November 1948 - 31 March 1949.
- Report on the ORT Activities, 1 July - 31 October 1948.
- Report on the ORT Activities, 1 March - 30 June 1948.
- Report on the ORT Activities, August 1946-July 1947.
- Report on the ORT Activities, December 1947-March 1948.
- Report on the ORT Activities, July-November 1947.
- Report on the ORT Activities October 1949 - February 1950.
- The activities of ORT at the start of the school year 1954-1955.
- The activities of ORT at the start of the school year 1955-1956.
- The Activities of ORT January-June 1951.
- The Activities of ORT Union in 1951.
- The start of the new school year 1949-1950.
- The start of the new school year 1950-1951.
- The Work of the O.R.T. in Europe - January-May 31, 1946.
- Three Years of ORT Activities - Report for the period August 1946 - June 1949.
- World ORT Union 1956.
- World ORT Union 1956.
- World ORT Union 1957.
- World ORT Union 1957.
- World ORT Union 1958.
- World ORT Union 1959.
- World ORT Union 1960.
- World ORT Union 1961.
- World ORT Union 1962.
- World ORT Union 1963.
- World ORT Union 1965.
- World ORT Union 1966.
- World ORT Union 1967.
- World ORT Union 1968.
- World ORT Union 1969.
- World ORT Union 1970.
- World ORT Union 1971.
- World ORT Union 1972.
- World ORT Union 1974.
- World ORT Union 1975.
- World ORT Union 1976.
- World ORT Union 1977.
- World ORT Union 1978.
- World ORT Union Annual Report 1984.
- World ORT Union Annual Reports 1981.
- World ORT Union Central Board Meeting, London: Country Background Reports, July 1977.
- World ORT Union Congress to Congress Report 1986-1993.
- World ORT Union Country Activity Report 1993-1997.
- World ORT Union Report of Activities from ORT Women's Organisations - 1974-1977.
- World ORT Union report on national activities and finances, 1974-1977.
- World ORT Union Three Year Report 1980-1983.
- World ORT Union Three Year Report 1987-1990.
Other Reports
- "Constructive help for relatives for the years 1930-1931".
- Attachment to Report on the operation of the Department of Family Support, 1933.
- Attachment to Report on the operation of the Department of Family Support, 1933.
- Cooperative Supply Department's 1935 Report.
- Document No. 3: Le Travail de Reconstruction Economique Juive en Europe, November 1948
- Facts and Data - ORT Training Operations 1 January 1955 - 1 January 1957.
- Report on ORT agricultural activities in between 1926 and 1928.
- Report on the operation of the Department of Family Support, 1933.
- Statistical Report ORT Vocational Training Activities 1 January 1946 - 31 March 1949.
- Table containing data about families, collective farms and machinery in 1929-1930.
- Tasks in North Africa: Report by Dr. A. Syngalowski, Geneva, 21 November 1955.
- The Problem of Vocational Adaptation of the Refugees, July 1938.
- The World ORT Union and The American ORT Federation, July 1943.
- What We Must Do In 1955 In North Africa, In Belgium and In Holland, c. October 1954.
World ORT Correspondence
- Copy of letter from Lord Marley to WOU Paris, 16 February 1937.
- Draft letter from ORT Union to the Liquidation Commission of KOMZET, 1 August 1938.
- First page of letter from ORT Reconstruction Fund, New York, to David Brown, 1925
- Letter from Bramson to JDC concerning assistance to Jewish colonists, 12 June 1922.
- Letter from D. Rozmarin, Kaunas to ORT Paris asking about equipment, 3 November 1938.
- Letter from Dr Bramson to American ORT and ORT Reconstruction Fund, 17 February 1926.
- Letter from Dr Bramson to American ORT and ORT Reconstruction Fund, 22 February 1926.
- Letter from Dr Maurice Laserson to ORT-OSE Committee re fundraising, 5 February 1940.
- Letter from Dr Syngalowski to Philip Black, 2 February 1933.
- Letter from Goldman, Bramson and Syngalowski, NY, to James Rosenberg, 3 January 1924.
- Letter from H. Kaminsky to ORT Paris asking to help get a sewing machine, 1 April 1938
- Letter from Henry Moskowitz, American ORT to Dr Lvovitch, WOU, 29 December 1927.
- Letter from Henry Moskowitz, New York, to Dr Bramson, 26 October 1926.
- Letter from Marcy Berger to Dr Bramson re fundraising efforts, 1 February 1926.
- Letter from Murray Levine, New York, to Dr Bramson, 15 August 1930.
- Letter from Murray Levine to WOU Central Board, New York, 19 November 1930.
- Letter from ORT Berlin to American ORT-Landsmanshaft Department, 10 October 1929.
- Letter from ORT Central Administration to Mr Rading in Lot et Garonne, 13 June 1935.
- Letter from ORT Central Administration to Pinkus Kreindler in Berlin, 2 March 1939.
- Letter from ORT Paris to ORT Berlin regarding fundraising, 27 June 1930.
- Letter from ORT Union re farmers held in a French internment camp, 14 December 1939.
- Letter from the Central Board to J. S. Tsegelnitski concerning Birobidzhan, May 1935.
- Letter from the United ORT-OSE Committee to I. R. Mowshowitch, 19 February 1940.
- Letter from World Jewish Congress Executive to United ORT-OSE, 6 February 1940.
- Letter from WOU Central Board to Henry Moskowitz, American ORT, 23 February 1927.
- Letter to Bramson from ORT/OSE/EMIGDIREKT re campaign, dated 16 May 1930.
- Letter to Herbert Lehman, written by Bramson upon his arrival in NY, 17 April 1922.
- List of ORT resettled German farmers interned in Catus par Cahors camp, Dec. 1939.
- Note on the farmers of the Lot et Garonne region, 15 December 1939.
Articles, Essays & Speeches
- "ORT in 1933 and its urgent tasks"--speech by A. Syngalowski, 1934.
- Aufbau und Umbau: Zum Problem des judischen Wirtschaftslebens in Osteuropa, 1927.
- Bread, Satisfaction and Human Dignity by Dr Syngalowski, 1953.
- Bread, Satisfaction and Human Dignity by Dr Syngalowski, 1954.
- Distress and Knowledge: A Dialogue on Vital Jewish Questions, 1936.
- Du Pain De La Satisfaction Et De La Dignité by Dr Syngalowski, 1954.
- Fragment from speech by Dr S [Syngalowski (?)] at the ORT Congress in Paris, 1949.
- In Memoriam Dr Syngalowski 1889-1956, by William Haber.
- In Memoriam Dr Syngalowski by Julius Hochman, 1957.
- ORT Union and the Training of Instructors by Dr Syngalowski, 1956.
- Problems of Constructive Help in Times of War by Dr Syngalowski, 26 February 1940.
- Souvenirs by C. H. Feigen - From January 1919 to December 1933.
World ORT Publicity & PR Material
- Announcement of a US visit to support ORT by philanthropist Dr William Kleiman, c. 193
- In the workshop and on one's own land' exhibition pamphlet, c. 1928.
- In Workshop and Field: Exhibition of ORT Activities, 1929.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: blank certificate receipt for share purchase, c. 1924.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: pamphlet outlining history and activities up to 1944.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: Share certificate issued to Armand Brunschwig, 27 November
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: Share certificate issued to Max Braude, 27 November 1957.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: Share certificate issued to Vladimir Halperin, 27 November
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: Share certificate issued to WOU, 27 November 1957.
- ORT's Message to the First Sephardic World Congress held in Paris, 4-7 November 1951.
- ORT-Gilden, 1927.
- Queen Marie Thanks ORT for Professional Schools', news release, 27 October 1925.
- The Jewish Reconstruction Fund: functions and activities, undated.
- Verband ORT 1880-1923, Berlin - publicity pamphlet, 1923.
World ORT Publications
The World ORT online archive holds the following titles:
World ORT Education & R&D Documents
- 'Plans D'enseignement', No. 1, 1946 - Travaux Manuel sur Bois Pour Enfants.
- 'Plans D'enseignement', No. 6 - 1946 - Chemiserie [shirt making].
- 'Plans D'enseignement', No. 7 - 1947 - Installations Electriques.
- Coupe A Plat: Manuel D'enseignement [teaching manual] No. 46, 1965.
- Draft report on the production of wooden toys by Engineer Beloguski, undated.
- List of 'Plans D'enseignement' edited by ORT Union, undated, 1946-1950s.
- Textbook/scrapbook, 1940s-1950s.
World ORT Finance & Accounts Documents
- 1933 Financial Report.
- Central Board's 1933 Financial Report.
- Central Board's 1934 Financial Report.
- Central Board's 1937 Preliminary Financial Report.
- Expenses and revenues of the ORT Union Central Board in 1933.
- Financial report of ORT and the Jewish Reconstruction Fund for 1937.
- Income and expenditure of ORT Central Administration in 1933.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund's accounts for 1934.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund 1932 Cash Flow Report.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund 1933 Cash Flow Report.
- Jewish Reconstruction Fund: Annual return 1952.
- ORT's Estimated Financial Report for 1937.
- ORT Union 1934 Financial Report.
- ORT Union 1936 Financial Statement, 1936.
- ORT Union 1937 Financial Report, 1937.
- ORT Union in 1934.
- ORT Union in 1935.
- Turnover balance of the Jewish Reconstruction Fund in 1932.