Collections
The Collections are composed of historic artifacts, personal and family papers, as well as archival documents & photographs that trace the Jewish community in Washington DC, suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia from the 1850s to the present day. The Collections reflect a history that is at once local, national, and international.
Featured: Jewish Federal Workers
Identification badge for Wendy Schumacher while she worked in the Land and Natural Resources Division of the United States Department of Justice, 1988-89. Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
A retirement ceremony held in honor of Steven Schleien, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Arctic and Global Resilience and Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Defense Continuity and Mission Assurance, at the Pentagon Hall of Heroes, Arlington, Va., July 28, 2025. The event was hosted by Jennifer Walsh, former Performance Improvement Officer and Director of Administration and Management. (U.S. Army photo by Leonard Fitzgerald Jr.)
Steven L. Schleien Collection
Naomi Biron and co-workers in offices of legal section of Federal Register, 1947. Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Naomi Biron Cohen.
Doing the Work of the Nation: Jewish Federal Workers in the Collection
The Museum’s initiative to collect items telling the stories of local Jewish federal workers is supported by Sue Ducat in memory of Stanley Cohen z”l.
Collection Highlights
Menorah, ca. 1970s, created by Erwin Thieberger (1908-87), a Holocaust survivor and coppersmith. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Tzvi and Esther Porath.
Menorah, ca. 1970s, created by Erwin Thieberger (1908-87), a Holocaust survivor and coppersmith. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Tzvi and Esther Porath.
Doll portraying Golda Meir, created as one of the “Dolls for Democracy” series by B’nai B’rith Women. / Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Jewish Women International.
Doll portraying Golda Meir, created as one of the “Dolls for Democracy” series by B’nai B’rith Women. Lillian and Albert Smal Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Jewish Women International.
Freedom Seder Haggadah, 1969.Written by Arthur Waskow, illustrated by Lloyd McNeill. Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Michael Tabor.
Flier advertising a congregational Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Bet Mishpachah, the LGBTQ+ synagogue of Washington DC. Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Bet Mishpachah Collection
Flier advertising a congregational Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Bet Mishpachah, the LGBTQ+ synagogue of Washington DC. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Bet Mishpachah Collection
Hand-knit lace collar worn on the bench of the Supreme Court by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Hand-knit lace collar worn on the bench of the Supreme Court by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Decoupage bottle made by Sol Ereza of Magen David Sephardic Congregation. Gift of Gwen Zuares, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
Decoupage bottle made by Sol Ereza of Magen David Sephardic Congregation. Gift of Gwen Zuares, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
A group protests outside the Kennedy Center during the Soviet Jewry movement.
A group protests outside the Kennedy Center, protesting the treatment of Soviet Jews while the Bolshoi Ballet was in town, August 1987. Capital Jewish Museum Collection, Soviet Jewry Collection, Gift of Joan and Oscar Dodek.
Highback armchair used on bimah of Talmud Torah synagogue located in Southwest Washington from 1893-1951. Gift of Ohev Sholom- The National Synagogue, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
Highback armchair used on bimah of Talmud Torah synagogue located in Southwest Washington from 1893-1951. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Ohev Sholom-The National Synagogue.
Scale Model of the Historic 1876 Synagogue, ca. 1968. Capital Jewish Museum Collection
Scale Model of the Historic 1876 Synagogue, ca. 1968. Capital Jewish Museum Collection
Scrapbook from teen sorority activity in Washington DC, 1950s. Gift of Margot Heckman, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
Scrapbook from teen sorority activity in Washington DC, 1950s. Gift of Margot Heckman, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
"Jewish Creative Cooking: 200 years of Jewish Cooking in American" compiled by the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington, 1975. Capital Jewish Museum collection. Gift of Lenore and Sol Gnatt
“Jewish Creative Cooking: 200 years of Jewish Cooking in American” compiled by the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington, 1975. Capital Jewish Museum collection. Gift of Lenore and Sol Gnatt.
Rose Bernard (Sherman) standing in front of bank of file cabinets in their family office, mid-1940s. Gift of Douglas Sherman, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
Rose Bernard (Sherman) standing in front of bank of file cabinets in their family office, mid-1940s. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Douglas Sherman.
Baseball cap worn by Andy Korobkin as a camper at Kaufmann Camp, ca. 1960s. Gift of Gail Shirazi, Capital Jewish Museum Collection.
Baseball cap worn by Andy Korobkin as a camper at Kaufmann Camp, ca. 1960s. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Gail Shirazi.
Matching blue and white mask and tallis worn throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of James Sullivan
Prayer shawl and mask worn by James Sullivan during the COVID-19 pandemic. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of James Sullivan.
Poster advertising the Jewish Tribute to Farm Workers, May 11, 1975, at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, MD, 1975. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Bert Silver Collection. Gift of Bert Silver.
Poster advertising the Jewish Tribute to Farm Workers, May 11, 1975, at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, MD. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Bert Silver Collection. Gift of Bert Silver.
Portrait of Judith Heumann, created by artist and activist Wendy Elisheva Somerson, ca. 2020, to honor the work of Heumann. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Judith Heumann.
Portrait of Judith Heumann, created by artist and activist Wendy Elisheva Somerson, ca. 2020, to honor the work of Heumann. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Judith Heumann.
Recent Acquisitions
Avrum Ashery, Let My People Go, 1990. Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Avrum Ashery.
Avrum Ashery Collection
Avrum Ashery, Let My People Go, 1990. Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Avrum Ashery.
Elliot Sivowitch playing the violin in his apartment on Mass. Ave., NW, 1968.
The Sivowitch Collection
Elliot Sivowitch playing the violin in his apartment on Mass. Ave., NW, 1968. Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum Collection. Gift of Harold Wallace
