Information booklet "Jewish Emigration - Correspondence Sheet for Emigration and Settlement Issues

In 1901 the "Hilfsverein der deutschen Juden" was founded in Berlin as a religiously neutral organization. Initially, it supported mainly Eastern European Jewish emigrants, especially from Russia and Galicia, and accompanied their transit through the German Reich. In addition to its headquarters in Berlin, the association had branches in Hamburg and Bremen. After the National Socialists came to power in 1933, the Hilfsverein took special care of Jews who were expelled from Germany and forced to emigrate. They fled in three major waves: 1933 after the first organized anti-Semitic attacks, 1935 after the enactment of the "Nuremberg Laws" and 1938 after the November pogroms. The emigration often went through several stations, first within Europe and then usually to Palestine, the USA or South America. The association, which was renamed "Hilfsverein der Juden in Deutschland" on the instructions of the Nazi authorities, offered information brochures on living conditions in the various countries, help with official matters, passport matters, vocational retraining and also financial support.