Zionist Political History Collection in the Hadassah Archives

Zionism, broadly defined as a nationalist and political movement to reestablish a Jewish homeland in Palestine, was the central force behind the creation of Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America. Hadassah was founded by Henrietta Szold (1860-1945), a Zionist organizer, educator, scholar, journalist, and editor. Szold, born and raised in Baltimore, organized the first Zionist society in Baltimore in 1893. After the death of her father, Rabbi Benjamin Szold, in 1902, Szold and her mother moved to New York City. There she was elected secretary of the Federation of American Zionists (later the Zionist Organization of America) in 1910.

At the suggestion of Theodor Herzl (1860-1904), generally considered the founder of Political Zionism, Jewish women were encouraged to form study groups. The national organization in the United States was named the Daughters of Zion in America. In 1912, Henrietta Szold organized a Daughters of Zion study group in New York City; this chapter was called Hadassah. Under Szold's influence—she adhered to Practical Zionism which emphasized immigration (aliyah) to Palestine, rural settlement, and the establishment of infrastructure to support the settlements such as educational and health care facilities—Hadassah sent two American-trained nurses (funded by Nathan and Lina Straus) to Palestine to establish district nursing in 1913.

The first annual convention of the Daughters of Zion in America was held in Rochester, New York on June 29-30, 1914. There it was decided that the organization would change its name to Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America. Szold served two terms as the organization's national president. In 1918, in the aftermath of World War I, Hadassah organized the American Zionist Medical Unit (AZMU). Consisting of forty-five physicians, environmental engineers (sanitarians), dentists, and nurses, the AZMU was sent to Palestine to establish healthcare facilities and improve health conditions. The AZMU grew into what is now the Hadassah Medical Organization.

As early as 1918, Hadassah was governed by a Central Committee, which met until 1921. Hadassah's first constitution was adopted at the 8th National Convention in Pittsburgh in November 1921. On December 5, 1921, the first meeting of the National Executive Board of Hadassah was held at the home of Rose G. Jacobs with many founding members of Hadassah in attendance including Henrietta Szold, Alice Seligsberg, Ruth B. Fromenson, Gertrude Rosenblatt, and Lotta Levensohn.

As Hadassah grew in membership and in political savvy, its relationship to American, European, and Palestinian/Israeli Zionist organizations changed and evolved. The response of Hadassah and other Zionist organizations to world events that greatly affected Jews, such as World Wars One and Two, also influenced Hadassah's relationships with other Zionist organizations as well as directed Hadassah's activities in the United States and in Palestine. Prior to the founding of the state of Israel in 1948, Hadassah focused its efforts on establishing a Jewish homeland in Palestine; chiefly lobbying for the immigration of Jews to Palestine, helping Jewish refugees displaced by the World Wars, and fundraising for the establishment of infrastructure to support Jewish settlement in Palestine. Post-1948, Hadassah turned its attention to the development of the state of Israel such as constructing two medical centers, facilitating the growth of both a medical school and a nursing school, establishing educational facilities, and supporting Youth Aliyah.