The Holocaust: Rescue and Relief Documentation in the National Archives

Abstract

The National Archives is a major center for the study of the Holocaust. Records on the subject are scattered throughout its vast holdings in several locations and no gen eral finding aid exists. Researchers have explored the records of the killing and the destruction of nearly six million Jews in some detail, but have neglected records dealing with rescue and relief attempts. Hence this article focuses on the latter topic by delineating where in the National Archives one may find such documentation. Foremost are the records of the War Refugee Board, which was created in early 1944 to pro vide avenues of rescue and relief to the Jews in Nazi-con trolled Europe. Other records concern the emigration of Jews from Nazi Germany, the Evian Conference and the subse quent Schacht-Rublee negotiations, the Haavara agreements on emigration to Palestine, and the trip to Havana and return of the S.S. St. Louis. There are many other records, including those on the deals the SS was willing to make by trading Jewish lives for needed commodities. More articles that present overviews of significant segments of Holocaust records in the National Archives are needed for a compre hensive introduction of these holdings to researchers.