South Africa

Resources For Genealogical Research In South Africa

July 2013

Roy Ogus (r_ogus@hotmail.com) and Saul Issroff (saul65@gmail.com)

JewishGen Southern Africa SIG (SA-SIG): http://www.jewishgen.org/SAfrica

Article on Southern African genealogical research:

http://www.jewishgen.org/safrica/index-a&c-source/SA-Research-Shemot-Aug-2012s.pdf

INTERNET RESOURCES

The Poor Jews' Temporary Shelter Database: National Archives Web site:
SA Jewish Rootsbank database
Ancestry24

FamilySearch
Cape Town Jewish Cemeteries Maintenance Board Genealogical Society of South Africa
Map Studio (Street maps of most SA towns):
South African White Pages

http://chrysalis.its.uct.ac.za/shelter/shelter.htm http://www.national.archives.gov.za

http://tinyurl.com/Rootsbank http://ancestry24.com http://www.familysearch.org

http://www.jewishcemetery.co.za http://www.eggsa.org

http://www.mapstudio.co.za http://phonebook.yellowpages.co.za

NATIONAL AND PROVINCIAL ARCHIVES SERVICES

National Archives Repository (Contact: The Head)
Postal address: Private Bag X236, Pretoria 0001
Street address: 24 Hamilton Street, Arcadia, Pretoria Phone: +27 (0)12 323 5300 Fax: +27 (0)12 323 5287 Email: arg02@dacts.pwv.gov.za

[Houses both the Archives of the Central Government and of Gauteng, formerly Transvaal province]

Cape Town Archives Repository (Contact: The Head) Postal address: Private Bag X9025, Cape Town 8000 Street address: 72 Roeland Street, Cape Town
Phone: +27 (0)21 462 4050 fax: +27 (0)21 45 2960

Free State Archives Department (Contact: The Head)
Postal address: Private Bag X20504, Bloemfontein 9300 Phone: +27 (0)51 522 6762 Fax: +27 (0)51 522 6765

Pietermaritzburg Archives Repository (Contact: The Head) Postal address: Private Bag X9012, Pietermaritzburg 3200

Phone: +27 (0)33 342 4712 Fax: +27 (0)33 394 4353

Durban Archives Repository (Contact: The Head)
Postal address: Private Bag X22, Greyville 4023
Phone: +27 (0)31 309 5682 Fax: +27 (0)31 309 5685

Port Elizabeth Archives Repository (Contact: The Head) Postal address: Private Bag X3932, Port Elizabeth 6056

Phone: +27 (0)41 484 6451 Fax: +27 (0)41 484 6451

Central Statistical Services, Demographics
Postal address: Private Bag X44, Pretoria 0001
Phone: +27 (0)12 310 8911 Fax: +27 (0)12 322 3374 Web: http://www.statssa.gov.za

[Information about specific individuals, relationships, religion, year of arrival and place of birth.]

GENERAL GOVERNMENT RESOURCES

P.O. Box 59227, Kengray, 2100

Southern Africa Jewish Genealogy Special Interest Group (SA-SIG)

Department of Home Affairs, Births, Marriages, and Deaths (Contact: The Registrar) Postal address: Private Bag X114, Pretoria 0001
Phone: +27 (0)12 314 8911 Fax: +27 (0)12 314 8911

Department of Home Affairs, Naturalizations

Postal address: Private Bag X114, Pretoria 0001
Phone: +27 (0)12 314 8570 Fax: +27 (0)12 323 5955

Masters of The Supreme Court (wills and probate documents)

The Master of the Supreme Court, Private Bag X60, Pretoria 0001
The Master of the Supreme Court, Private Bag X20584, Bloemfontein, 9300 The Master of the Supreme Court, Private Bag X9018, Cape Town, 8000
The Master of the Supreme Court, Private Bag X1010, Grahamstown, 6140 The Master of the Supreme Court, Private Bag X9010, Pietermaritzburg, 3200

South African National Defence Force Archives, Department of Defence Documentation Service Directorate, Private Bag X289, Pretoria 0001

Phone: +27 (0)21 322 6350 ext. 227 Fax: +27 (0)21 323 5613

South African Defence Force Archives, Private Bag X615, Pretoria 0001

South African National Museum of Military History (Contact: Chief Archivist) – no personal records P.O. Box 52090, Saxonwold, 2132, Transvaal

+27 (0)11 646 5256 Phone: +27 (0)11 648 2087 Fax: +27 (0)11 648 2085

Phone: +27 (0)11 646 5513 Fax:

South African Military History Society

Web: http://rapidttp.com/milhist/
South African War Graves Board, 153 Blackwood Street, Pretoria, 0001 Commonwealth War Graves Commission http://www.cwgc.org/

Union Of Orthodox Synagogues and Office of the Chief Rabbi

Postal address: P.O. Box 46559, Orange Grove, 2119

Phone: +27 (0)11 485 4865 Fax: E-Mail: jhb@uos.co.za Web:

Beth Din (United Hebrew Congregation)

+27 (0)11 640 7528

http://www.uos.co.za

Phone:

+27 (0)11 648 9136

+27 (0)11 484 3003

South African Union for Progressive Judaism (SAUPJ)

Postal address: P.O. Box 1190, Houghton 2041, Johannesburg Phone: + 27 (0)11 646 7903 Fax: +27 (0)11 646 7904 Email: saupj@worldonline.co.za
Web: http://saupj.org.za/

United Progressive Reform Congregation Phone:

or http://rapidttp.co.za/milhist/

Johannesburg Jewish Helping Hand and Burial Society (Chevra Kadisha)

Postal address: Private bag X7, Sandringham 2131
Phone: +27 (0)11 640 9100 Fax : +27 (0)11 640-9155
Email: chevrahgroup@jhbchev.co.za Web: www.jhbchev.co.za

Union of Orthodox Synagogues of SA and Beth Din

Postal address: 191 Buitenkant Street, Cape Town
Phone: +27 (0)21 461 6310 Fax: +27 (0)21 461 8320

United Chevra Kadisha in Cape Town

Postal address: P.O. Box 543, Cape Town, 8000 Phone: +27 (0)21 531 8705

Durban Jewish Centre

Postal address: P.O.Box 10797 Marine Parade, Durban Phone: +27(0) 31 368 2653

Durban United Hebrew Congregation Great Synagogue

Phone: +27 (0)12 323 2404

MILITARY RECORDS

JEWISH RESOURCES

JEWISH MUSEUMS AND LIBRARIES

Southern Africa Jewish Genealogy Special Interest Group (SA-SIG)

Postal address: 75 Silverton Road, Durban Phone: +27 (0)31 201 5177

Chevra Kadisha (Burial Society) in Durban

Selbourne Road, Durban Phone: +27(0)31 205 5194 Email: Stan Hart <stanhart@mweb.co.za>

Red Hill Cemetery (Durban) Phone: +27(0)31 564 5771 or 201 5177 United Hebrew Institutions of Bloemfontein

Postal address: P.O. Box 1152, Bloemfontein 9301, Orange Free State Fax: +27 (0)51 536 6447.

Griqualand West Jewish Burial Society

P.O. Box 68, Kimberley 8300 Fax: +27 (0)531 81 1281

Chevra Kadisha (Jewish Burial Society)

Postal address: P.O. Box 2089, Port Elizabeth, 6000, Eastern Cape

Jewish Helping Hand and Burial Society

PO Box 887, East London, 5200 Phone:

+27 (0)431 2 4452

South African Jewish Board of Deputies (Contact: The Librarian, Prof. Ruben Musiker) Postal address: P.O. Box 8755, Houghton 2041
Street address: Beyachad Centre, 2 Elray Street, Raedene, Johannesburg 2192 Phone: +27 (0)11 6452500 Fax: +27 (0)111 645 2559

Email: sajbod@beyachad.co.za Web: http://www.jewishsa.co.za Kaplan Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Cape Town

Postal address: Private Bag Rondebosch 7701, Cape Town

Kaplan Centre Jewish Studies Library

Phone: +27 (0)21 650 3779 Fax: +27 (0)21 650 3062
Email: veronica@uctlib.uct.ac.za Web: http://www.lib.uct.ac.za/jewish/

[Note: This is an academic research institute and does not do genealogy research]

The Gitlin Library, Albow Centre

Postal address: PO Box 4176, Cape Town, 8000 Phone: +27 (0)21-462 5088 Email: gitlib@netactive.co.za

The Jewish Museum

Postal address: Old Synagogue, 88 Hatfield Street, Gardens, Cape Town 8001 Phone: +27(0)21 465 1546 Fax: +27 (0)21 465 0284
Web: www.sajewishmuseum.co.za

The Jewish Pioneers Memorial Museum (old Raleigh Street Synagogue)
Postal Address: P.O. Box 3048, Port Elizabeth 6056
Phone: +27 (0)41 373 5197 or +27 (0)41 583 3671 Web: http://raleighstshul.blogspot.com/

C.P. Nel Museum (The Synagogue) Postal address: Box 453, Oudtshoorn, 6620

SA Friends of Beit Hatefusoth (SA Country Communities Research Project)

Postal address: P.O. Box 87557, Houghton 2041 Fax: +27 (0) 11 880 6273 Email: museum@beyachad.co.za

The Genealogical Society of South Africa (online branch)

Web address: http://www.eggsa.org Jewish Genealogical Society of South Africa

GENEALOGICAL SOCIETIES IN SOUTH AFRICA

Location: Contact: Telephone: E-mail:

Johannesburg
Mo Skikne, Chairman
+1 27 82 4235560
moski@global.co.za or genealogysa@gmail.com

Southern Africa Jewish Genealogy Special Interest Group (SA-SIG)

MORMON FHL RESOURCES FOR SOUTH AFRICAN JEWISH GENEALOGY RESEARCH

The Mormon Family History Library (FHL) microfilms contain an extensive amount of documents that are useful for genealogical research in South Africa, including Estate/Probate documentation, applications for naturalization (Cape Colony only), death certificates, as well as other miscellaneous synagogue and cemetery records. A full description of the resources available in the FHL films can be found at:

http://www.jewishgen.org/safrica/mormon-fhc/index.htm

The National Archives of England, Wales and the United Kingdom contains some records of particular interest to genealogical research in South Africa. One set of documents contains shipping records, found in collections BT 26, BT 27, and BT 32. Another set contains details of the casualties of the Special Reserve during the South African War, found in collections in WO 129/8, WO 129/9, WO 129/10, WO 129/11, and WO 108/338.

The National Archives of England, Wales and the United Kingdom

UK RESOURCES USEFUL FOR SOUTH AFRICAN JEWISH GENEALOGY RESEARCH

Postal address: Phone:
Web:

Kew, Richmond, Surrey TW9 4DU
+44 (0)20 8876 3444
http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk (home page) http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue (catalogue)