Oregon Jewish Museum facts for kids
The museum's entrance, 2018
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| Location | 724 NW Davis St, Portland, Oregon |
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The Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education is a special museum in Oregon, United States. It's the biggest museum that tells the story of Jewish people in Oregon. The museum collects and shows art, old documents, and items that teach about Jewish history and culture in the state.
The museum also keeps records of its many exhibits, cultural events, and educational programs. These programs help people learn about Jewish identity, culture, and how Jewish people have become part of the wider community.
Contents
History of the Museum
How It All Started
The idea for the museum began in 1989. A rabbi (a Jewish religious leader) named Joshua Stampfer invited people from Portland's Jewish community to a meeting. He wanted to create the first Jewish museum in the Pacific Northwest region.
In its early years, the museum put on many interesting exhibits. Some of these included "The Jews of Greece" and "In the Footsteps of Columbus." These early shows were held in different places. They were displayed in the Central Library, art galleries, other libraries, and synagogues (Jewish places of worship).
Growing Bigger
In 1996, the museum joined with the Jewish History Society of Oregon. This was a big step! The museum gained many important historical items. These included records from organizations, family papers, photos, and other materials. These items dated all the way back to 1850. This collection became the largest group of documented history about Jewish people in Oregon. The Oregon Historical Society even gave the museum a small office to store and organize these papers. Today, these items are a main part of the museum's archives.
In 1998, the museum hired its first director. It also moved into a new office space in Montgomery Park in Northwest Portland. In 2000, the museum moved again to a storefront location in Northwest Portland.
New Locations and Important Exhibits
In 2001, the museum moved to a storefront in the Pearl District. Here, it opened a major exhibit called "A Call to Serve: Oregon Jews in the Armed Services." This exhibit looked at the experiences of Jewish people from Oregon who served in the United States Military.
In 2009, the museum found its current building in Northwest Portland. In just five months, people raised enough money to change the old commercial film building into a museum. It opened to the public on December 20, 2009.
A big change happened in 2014. The Oregon Jewish Museum joined together with the Center for Holocaust Education. This made the museum even more important for teaching about history.
In June 2017, the museum moved to its current address at 724 NW Davis Street. It moved into a much larger building, about 15,000 square feet.
What You Can See: Core Exhibitions
Core exhibitions are the main, permanent displays at the museum. They are always there for visitors to learn from.
- Discrimination and Resistance, An Oregon Primer: This exhibit teaches about Oregon's history of discrimination. Discrimination means treating people unfairly because of who they are. The exhibit shows how people faced unfair treatment from the early days of Oregon. But it also shows how people fought against discrimination and overcame it.
- Oregon Jewish Stories: This exhibit tells the story of Oregon's Jewish community. It starts from the 1840s, during the Gold Rush, and continues to today. It explores what it means to be Jewish in Oregon. It also looks at the experiences of Jewish people across the whole state.
- The Holocaust, An Oregon Perspective: This important exhibit teaches about the Holocaust. The Holocaust was a terrible time in history when millions of Jewish people were killed. This exhibit shares the stories of people who survived the Holocaust. These survivors later came to live in Oregon and Southwest Washington. The exhibit helps visitors understand this difficult history. It also asks questions like, "What brings you here today?" to help visitors connect with the past.
Past Rotating Exhibitions
Rotating exhibitions are temporary shows that change over time. The museum brings in new exhibits to keep things fresh and interesting. Here are a few examples of past shows:
- Hans Coper - Less Means More (2019)
- Betty LaDuke - Early Work (2019)
- Mel Bochner - Enough Said (2019)
- The Last Journey of the Jews of Lodz (2018-2019)
- Vedem: The Underground Magazine of the Terezin Ghetto (2018)
- Munich to Portland: A Painting Saves A Family (2017-2018)
- Pictures of Resistance: The Wartime Photographs of Faye Schulman (2013)
