Jewish Historical Society of Delaware

What Jewish Historical Society of Delaware does

The Jewish Historical Society of Delaware (JHSD) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1974 and incorporated in 1975, headquartered at the Delaware Center for Jewish History at the Coxe House on the Delaware Historical Society campus in Wilmington, Delaware. Its mission is to acquire, preserve, and publish materials pertaining to the history of Jewish settlement and Jewish life in the State of Delaware. The organization maintains archival holdings spanning from 1879 to the present — organizational records, family papers, memoirs, photographs, oral histories, WWII correspondence (notably the 'Dear Mollye' collection of letters from approximately 350 Jewish Delaware service members), motion picture film, audio and video recordings, and artifacts — across all three Delaware counties, processed by a single professional archivist (Gail Pietrzyk) and stored in climate-controlled conditions. Its core product surface consists of on-site research access by appointment, freely accessible digitized collections on the website, oral history programming, rotating exhibits, seasonal newsletters, and a small catalog of self-published books documenting Delaware Jewish history and community leaders. All operations are volunteer-led at the board level; paid headcount sits between 1 and 10.

JHSD's business model is a community-driven nonprofit mix with four revenue streams: tiered annual membership dues (from $36 senior households to $1,000+ 'Pillar of Society' tiers), tax-deductible donations and GivingTuesday fundraising, recurring and episodic grants from institutional funders (Delaware Humanities, NEH-redistributed funds, the Milton and Hattie Kutz Foundation, the National WWII Museum WWII Heritage Cities Program), and modest publication sales at $9.95–$10 per title via PayPal and at book signing events. Customer segments are diffuse and include Delaware Jewish families donating materials, genealogists and academic researchers (national and international), Delaware public-school educators seeking Holocaust and Jewish-history curricula, and Jewish veterans and their families. Distribution is hybrid: physical access at the Coxe House by appointment plus free self-serve digital collections online, with earned-media amplification through the Jewish Voice newspaper, social channels, and partner institutions (Delaware Historical Society, Jewish Federation of Delaware, Hagley Museum and Library, USC Shoah Foundation, ADL, Yad Vashem).

Name

Jewish Historical Society of Delaware

Legal name

Jewish Historical Society of Delaware

Website

https://jhsdelaware.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Jewish Historical Society of Delaware is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1974 that acquires, preserves, and publishes materials documenting Jewish life in Delaware, serving genealogists, researchers, Delaware public schools, and community members through archival collections, oral histories, exhibits, and publications at the Delaware Center for Jewish History at the Coxe House in Wilmington.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Archival Services

NAICS

Museums (712110), Libraries and Archives (51921), Museums (71211)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYBPAGAHAA

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty)

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

SECONDARYBPAGAHAF

Libraries, Archives & Special Collections

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

SECONDARYEDAEAGAJ

Archives, Special Collections & Preservation Operations (Rare Materials, Conservation)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

Keywords

• Archival preservation services
• Historical society operations
• Jewish heritage preservation
• Oral history programs
• Historical publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Wilmington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees from individual and household members, with tiered contribution levels (Regular Household $50, Senior Household $36, and higher patron/sponsor/benefactor tiers up to $1,000+). Membership confers one vote at the annual meeting.
2. Grants and Government Funding: JHSD receives grants from institutional funders including Delaware Humanities CARES Act Recover Grants (2020), Delaware Humanities American Rescue Plan Grants (2021-2022), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) redistributed funds, and the Milton and Hattie Kutz Foundation. These grants support operating costs, archival digitization, Coxe House renovation, and pandemic recovery.
3. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Tax-deductible donations from individuals, families, and organizations. The organization participates in GivingTuesday campaigns and accepts online donations via PayPal. Jewish organizations and businesses are encouraged to become institutional sponsors.
4. Publication Sales: Sale of JHSD-published books and pamphlets, including titles such as 'Justice, Justice Shalt Thou Pursue: Delaware's Jewish Judges' ($10 trade paperback), 'A Tribute to my Teacher Rabbi Simon Krinsky: His Poetry until 1936' ($9.95 paperback + shipping), and other historical publications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Jewish Historical Society of Delaware acquires, preserves, and publishes materials relating to the history of Jewish settlement and Jewish life in the State of Delaware. It maintains manuscript and archival collections, digitized online holdings, an oral history program, rotating exhibits, educational workshops, and books and newsletters documenting Delaware Jewish heritage for genealogists, researchers, educators, veterans' families, and the Delaware Jewish community.

Product overview

The Jewish Historical Society of Delaware operates as a resource center for Delaware's Jewish community, offering archival collections, digital access to historical materials, oral history programs, rotating exhibits, and published works. The organization maintains physical collections at the Delaware Center for Jewish History at the Coxe House and provides research access through appointments and online digital collections. Their offerings include publications such as books and newsletters documenting Delaware Jewish history, educational programs including Holocaust education workshops, and community engagement through oral history interviews and exhibits.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Archives and Research Collections Climate-controlled archival storage and access to organizational records, family papers, memoirs, photographs, correspondence, minute books, motion picture film, video and audio recordings, and artifacts documenting Jewish life in Delaware, processed and cataloged by a professional archivist.
• Digital Collections Digitized holdings including photographs, documents, and oral history recordings freely accessible on the JHSD website for remote research from anywhere in the world.
• Oral History Program Volunteer-driven program where interview subjects and interviewers document stories of Delaware's Jewish community for archival preservation and research.
• Exhibits and Displays Physical and online exhibitions including the Dear Mollye WWII correspondence collection, Half a Chance Jewish Delawareans stories, and rotating displays at partner museums.
• Publications Seasonal newsletters and JHSD-published books documenting Delaware Jewish history, including titles on Jewish businesses, judges, and community leaders (e.g., 'Justice, Justice Shalt Thou Pursue: Delaware's Jewish Judges' and 'A Tribute to my Teacher Rabbi Simon Krinsky').
• Educational Programs Presentations, lectures, and teacher workshops including the Echoes and Reflections Holocaust education program and annual meeting programs on topics related to Delaware Jewish history.
• JHSD Annual Membership Annual membership with tiered contribution levels (Regular Household $50, Senior Household $36, Member Sponsor $100, Member Patron $250, Member Benefactor $500, Member Pillar of Society $1,000+; free for students) that confers one vote at the annual meeting and supports the Society's archival and educational mission.

Quantifiable outcome

• Collections spanning 1879–present with materials from earlier decades, covering all three Delaware counties, Delaware synagogues, Jewish organizations, Jewish-owned businesses, and Jewish families
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Hagley Museum and LibraryminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 April 2017JHSD collaborated with Hagley Museum and Library for its 2017 annual meeting program 'Hagley, Business History and the Jewish Community.' Dr. Roger Horowitz, Director of Hagley's Center for the History of Business, Technology and Society, presented on Jewish business leaders including Irving Shapiro of DuPont. The event was held at Hagley's Soda House.
• Delaware Historical SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1974The Delaware Historical Society has housed JHSD's collections since 1975 and provided institutional support and campus space at Willingtown Square. On October 30, 2020, the two organizations officially signed lease and operating agreements formalizing JHSD's new home in the Delaware Center for Jewish History at the Coxe House on the DHS campus. Dale Fields, then Executive Director of the Historical Society of Delaware, expressed supportive relationship at JHSD's first meeting in December 1974.
• Jewish Federation of DelawarecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1974JHSD is a constituent agency of the Jewish Federation of Delaware. The Federation has strongly supported JHSD's efforts to preserve and promote Delaware Jewish history. JHSD is a Beneficiary Agency of the Federation. Seth J. Katzen serves as President and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Delaware and participated in the Coxe House agreement signing.
• Halina Wind Preston Holocaust Education CommitteecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Halina Wind Preston Holocaust Education Committee (HEC), a subcommittee of the Jewish Federation of Delaware, will have its records housed in the Delaware Center for Jewish History at the Coxe House alongside JHSD's collections. HEC produces Holocaust education programs and the 'No Denying: Delawareans Bear Witness to the Holocaust' DVD project.
• Jewish War Veterans of DelawarecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe records of the Jewish War Veterans of Delaware will be housed in the Delaware Center for Jewish History at the Coxe House. JHSD also assists in keeping the Jewish War Veterans Memorial at the Siegel JCC updated.
• Anti-Defamation League (ADL)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerADL is one of three co-developers (along with USC Shoah Foundation and Yad Vashem) of the 'Echoes and Reflections' Holocaust education program, a joint program with the Delaware Historical Society and JHSD hosting a free teacher workshop on teaching the Holocaust on March 18, 2017.
• USC Shoah FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSC Shoah Foundation co-developed the 'Echoes and Reflections' Holocaust education program alongside ADL and Yad Vashem, delivered as a joint teacher workshop with the Delaware Historical Society and JHSD.
• Yad VashemminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerYad Vashem co-developed the 'Echoes and Reflections' Holocaust education program alongside ADL and USC Shoah Foundation, delivered as a joint teacher workshop with the Delaware Historical Society and JHSD.
• University of DelawareminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJHSD has cooperated with the University of Delaware on oral history programs. In summer 2019, a UD Summer Scholar program student interviewed nine members of Delaware's Jewish Community. In a fall semester, another group of students conducted additional interviews under a university department program. Professor Polly Zavadivker served as guest speaker at the 2023 annual meeting on Jewish Studies at UD.
• Villanova University Lepage Center for History in the Public InterestminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJHSD worked with Allen Rosso, a graduate of Arizona State University's World War II Studies Master's Degree Program, through Villanova's Lepage Center internship program to catalog and research stories of Jewish service members during WWII and promote the collection among WWII scholars.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Center for Jewish History: Coalition of five Jewish archives and research institutions in New York providing shared research access. Direct peer in delivering archival and research services to the Jewish historical community.
• Leo Baeck Institute: New York-based nonprofit dedicated to preserving the history of German-speaking Jewry, with archival collections, exhibitions, and publications. Direct peer in mission scope and product offerings.
• American Jewish Historical Society: National nonprofit that acquires, preserves, and publishes materials on the history of Jews in America. Closest direct peer to JHSD given the overlapping mission of collecting and disseminating American Jewish historical materials.
• Delaware Historical Society: JHSD's host institution, operating the Delaware History Museum and Willingtown Square campus. Directly comparable as a state-focused historical society with archives, exhibits, and educational programs.
• American Jewish Archives: Housed at Hebrew Union College, this archive collects, preserves, and publishes materials on Jewish life in the United States. Directly comparable to JHSD's archival, publication, and educational programming mission.
• YIVO Institute for Jewish Research: Preserves and studies the history of East European Jewry through archives, oral histories, and publications. Comparable nonprofit archival and publishing mission aligned with JHSD's community history preservation work.
• Jewish Women's Archive: National nonprofit archive dedicated to documenting Jewish women's stories through digitized collections, oral histories, and educational programs. Direct peer in archival and educational programming.
• National Museum of American Jewish History: Philadelphia-based museum that collects, preserves, and exhibits the American Jewish experience. Comparable in operating a Jewish heritage facility with exhibits, education, and archival access.

Regional players

• Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington: Regional nonprofit dedicated to preserving Jewish history in the Greater Washington, D.C. area. Directly comparable to JHSD in scope and operations, but serves a different geography.

Broad incumbents

• Hagley Museum and Library: Delaware-based museum and library with collections on business and technology history. Comparable partner that also hosts Jewish community history programming and operates archival and educational services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/JHSDelaware
• Facebookfacebook.com/JHSDel
• Instagraminstagram.com/jhsdel
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/jewish-historical-society-of-delaware

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles22 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Jewish Historical Society of Delaware