EFAF: Indexing of refugee files (VSJF) in the research database

Aim of the project

Entry of 12-13 linear meters of refugee dossiers in the research database.
Improved access (especially for users from abroad), facilitation of scientific research.

Description of the project

The archive of the Association of Swiss Jewish Welfare/Refugee Aid (VSJF) has been housed in the Archives of Contemporary History since the 1990s. It is one of the most frequently used collections, as the association looked after around 23,000 people between 1933 and 1945 alone - including many survivors of concentration camps towards and after the end of the war. Since its foundation, the VSJF has supported refugees from various countries. The AfZ and the VSJF are currently carrying out a cooperation project to secure the estates of Holocaust survivors in Switzerland.

The AfZ has created its own research database for the VSJF holdings, which enables searches within the refugee dossiers according to a variety of parameters (age, gender, geographical origin, date of entry, place of residence, onward journey, health, etc.). This means that specific inquiries can also be answered, for example if researchers want to write a paper on female refugees who came to Switzerland in the post-war years and needed psychiatric help.

Collection A of the VJSF (duration 1938-1990) has been fully digitized. Consignment B (duration 1920-2016) comprises approx. 40 linear meters of documents, including 12-13 linear meters of refugee dossiers. These are partly continuations of dossiers on persons who were looked after for several decades and partly new dossiers. The files of the entire consignment B were indexed by the AfZ in 2020 and the 12-13 linear meters of refugee dossiers were digitized by the ETH DigiCenter in the first half of 2023. However, they are not yet recorded in the research database. This gap will now be closed by recording the refugee dossiers from consignment B and from the IB VSJF archive in Lucerne (LUDI project).

Synergies and context

Mit der Erfassung der Flüchtlingsdossiers in der AfZ-internen Forschungsdatenbank wird wertvolles Kulturgut zugänglich gemacht und die Arbeit mit den Dossiers für Forschende und Medienschaffende vereinfacht. Bei genealogischen Anfragen können Archivmitarbeitende schnellere und genauere Auskünfte geben.

Time frame

2024