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Steven M. Lowenstein Collection

 Collection
Identifier: AR 25335

Scope and Content Note

The Steven Lowenstein Collections documents professional activities of Steven Lowenstein, writer, researcher, historian, and teacher.

Documents comprising the collection reflect Dr. Lowenstein’s interests in a wide spectrum of topics related to Jews and Judaism, such as modernity and tradition and their influence on the religion and common folks, Berlin Jews of the upper strata, similarities and differences between agrarian/rural and urban Jews, Eastern and Western Jewry, popular and official Judaism, and secular and religious Jews, to name but a few topics.

The larger portion of the collection includes materials relevant to Steven Lowenstein’s book, Frankfurt on the Hudson: The German Jewish Community of Washington Heights, 1933-1983. Its Structure and Culture, and consists of a wide array of materials, such as manuscripts, statistical data, printed materials, and more.

Doctor Lowenstein, who himself grew up in Washington Heights, wrote about Jewish immigrants who fled Nazi persecution in Germany and settled in Washington Heights, a neighborhood in Manhattan in New York City.

Materials collected in this series provide a very good understanding about the mechanics and developments of Dr. Lowenstein’s work during the project.

Other substantial portions of the collection consist of manuscripts by Dr. Lowenstein and a few manuscripts by other authors.

Manuscripts collected here range from large scale works to short essays, reviews, and entries to an encyclopedia.

Most of the manuscripts are supplemented by notes, research files, and correspondence.

Other materials in the collections include research files collected by Stephen Lowenstein to aid him in his academic writings.

There are no personal materials pertaining to Steven Lowenstein, nor any other materials related to Dr. Lowestein’s professional activities other than writing.

Dates

  • Creation: 1938, 1968-2002
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1977-2002

Creator

Language of Materials

The collection is in English and German, with some Hebrew and Yiddish.

Access Restrictions

Open to researchers.

Access Information

Collection is digitized. Follow the links in the Container List to access the digitized materials.

Use Restrictions

There may be some restrictions on the use of the collection. For more information, contact:

Leo Baeck Institute, Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011

email: lbaeck@lbi.cjh.org

Biographical Note

Steven Lowenstein, scholar, teacher, and a writer was born in New York in 1945 into a family of German –Jewish refugees.

He received his master’s degree from the Princeton University in 1969 and went on earning doctorate degree from the Princeton University in 1972.

He taught at a number of universities, including Columbia University and Monmouth College, and worked as a researcher at YIVO and Leo Baeck Institute.

In the late 1970s Dr. Lowenstein moved to California where he is teaching Jewish history at the American Jewish University.

Beginning in the late 1970s Steven Lowenstein served as Isadore Levine Professor of Jewish History at the, American Jewish University.

He is the author of a large number of scholarly works, including The Jewish Cultural Tapestry: International Jewish Folk Traditions; The Berlin Jewish Community: Enlightenment, Family and Crisis, 1770-1830; and Frankfurt on the Hudson: The German-Jewish Community of Washington Heights, 1933-1983, Its structure and Culture.

Extent

9 Linear Feet

Abstract

The Steven M. Lowenstein Collection documents professional activities of Steven Lowenstein, writer, researcher, historian, and teacher and consists of manuscripts, printed materials, statistical data, and correspondence. Documents comprising the collection reflect Dr. Lowenstein’s interests in a wide spectrum of topics related to Jews and Judaism, such as modernity and tradition and their influence on the religion and common folks, Berlin Jews of the upper strata, similarities and differences between agrarian/rural and urban Jews, Eastern and Western Jewry, popular and official Judaism, and secular and religious Jews, to name but a few topics.

Microfilm

The collection is on twenty-two reels of microfilm (MF 1054):

  1. Reel 1: 1/1 - 1/3
  2. Reel 2: 1/4 - 1/7
  3. Reel 3: 1/8 - 1/22
  4. Reel 4: 2/3 - 2/6
  5. Reel 5: 2/7 - 3/6
  6. Reel 6: 3/7 - 3/8
  7. Reel 7: 3/9 - 3/11
  8. Reel 8: 4/1 - 4/3
  9. Reel 9: 4/4 - 4/5
  10. Reel 10: 4/6 - 5/1
  11. Reel 11: 5/2 - 5/13
  12. Reel 12: 5/14 - 5/17
  13. Reel 13: 6/1 - 6/10
  14. Reel 14: 6/11 - 6/13
  15. Reel 15: 6/14 - 7/7
  16. Reel 16: 7/8 - 7/15
  17. Reel 17: 7/16 - 7/18
  18. Reel 18: 8/1 - 8/10
  19. Reel 19: 8/11 - 8/14
  20. Reel 20: 8/15 - 9/3
  21. Reel 21: 9/4 - 9/7
  22. Reel 22: 9/8 - 9/10
Title
Guide to the Papers of Steven M. Lowenstein (1945-) 1938, 1968-2002 bulk 1977-2002 AR 25335 / MF 1054
Status
Completed
Author
Processed by Yakov Illich Sklar
Date
© 2009
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Description is in English.
Sponsor
as part of the Leon Levy Archival Processing Initiative, made possible by the Leon Levy Foundation

Revision Statements

  • October 2010.: Microfilm inventory added.
  • April 22, 2013 : Links to digital objects added in Container List.

Repository Details

Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository

Contact:
15 West 16th Street
New York NY 10011 United States