Founded in 1897, the Forverts was a leading Yiddish language newspaper in the United States. Most of this newspaper is available to browse digitally for free through the online Historical Jewish Press database. This lecture will examine hidden genealogical gems within this newspaper, some of which can be found with minimal Yiddish skills. Among these gems are personal inquiries submitted by readers seeking information on their relatives, letters to the editor, and the “Gallery of Missing Husbands.” This lecture will also cover the historical and cultural context of the newspaper, which will help in evaluating its relevance to a researcher’s individual family history.

Michael Morgenstern
Michael Morgenstern is a native of Los Angeles. He has been an avid genealogy researcher since high school.  Since 2014, he has worked as an educator at the Holocaust Museum LA. He frequently carries out volunteer genealogical research for Holocaust survivors, focusing on those who do not have any prewar family documents or photographs. Michael has presented at IAJGS conferences and on Uniworld’s Jewish-heritage-themed European river cruises. His latest project has been researching the Forverts and translating segments for JewishGen.