Esthyr Slesnick Papers on the Oil City Jewish Community, 1951-1992
- Repository
- Heinz History Center
- Title
- Esthyr Slesnick Papers on the Oil City Jewish Community
- Creator
- Slesnick, Esthyr.
- Collection Number
- MSS 1233
- Extent
- .50 linear feet 1 box
- Date
- 1951-1992
- Abstract
- Esthyr (Greenberg) Slesnick (d.1991) was raised in Montreal, Canada. She relocated to Oil City, Pa. in 1951 after marrying Samuel "Shefty" Slesnick (b. 1917). She became active in the local Jewish community through Tree of Life Congregation and two affiliated Jewish organizations, the Tree of Life Sisterhood and the local chapter of Hadassah. The Esthyr Slesnick Papers on the Oil City Jewish Community collection documents the workings of the local Jewish community through yearbooks, programs, and bulletins collected by Esthyr Slesnick between 1951 and 1991.
- Language
- English , Hebrew .
- Publisher
- Heinz History Center
- Address
- 1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org
Biographical / Historical
Esthyr (Greenberg) Slesnick (1921-1991) was raised in Montreal, Canada. She relocated to Oil City, Pa. in 1951 after marrying Samuel "Shefty" Slesnick (b. 1917). She became active in the Jewish community of Oil City through the local Tree of Life Congregation and two affiliated Jewish organizations, the Tree of Life Sisterhood and the local chapter of Hadassah. For 40 years, until her death, she preserved yearbooks, programs, and bulletins from these three organizations.
Samuel Slesnick was a native of Oil City. He owned a gas station and later an Oldsmobile dealership in the city. He was also active in the local Jewish community, serving as president of Tree of Life Congregation for some 20 years.
The Jewish community of Oil City initially emerged during the oil boom of northwestern Pennsylvania in the 1860s but diminished during the subsequent bust. Tree of Life Congregation was founded in 1892, according to a survey from the Works Progress Administration Church Archives. The local Jewish population increased through the 1920s, peaking at 500 people. The congregation dedicated a synagogue at 17 Plummer Street on the north side of Oil City in 1903. As the local Jewish population moved into the south side of the city, the congregation built a new synagogue and community center on West First Street in 1957. With the overall decline in the Jewish population in the area, Tree of Life became the center of Jewish activity throughout a wider region including the nearby towns of Titusville, Clarion, Franklin, and Warren. By the start of the 21st century, Tree of Life had shrunk to a handful of members. It closed in 2020.
Content Description
The Esthyr Slesnick Papers on the Oil City Jewish Community documents the workings of the local Jewish community through yearbooks, programs, and bulletins collected by Esthyr Slesnick between 1951 and 1991. The collection includes a run of Hadassah yearbooks from 1951-1990 (excluding 1981-1982 edition) as well as two issues of the Oil City Hadassah Report, a run of Tree of Life (Oil City) Sisterhood yearbooks from 1961 through 1991 (excluding the 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1981, 1985 and 1990 editions), and a somewhat continuous run of Tree of Life bulletins from 1964 through 1991. Community directories included in the yearbooks provide a comprehensive record of the affiliated Jewish population of Oil City and some surrounding towns following World War II. The congregational bulletins record communal events and changing religious practices. Of note is a Jewish Community Book from 1981, including information about Tree of Life Congregation and its Sisterhood, and the local chapters of Hadassah, Israel Bonds, the Jewish War Veterans, B'nai B'rith, and the United Jewish Appeal, as well as Jewish families in Oil City, Franklin, Titusville, Clarion, and New Bethlehem.
Conditions Governing Use
Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of David Slesnick in 2020. Archives accession 2020.0067
Preferred Citation
Esthyr Slesnick Papers on the Oil City Jewish Community, 1951-1992, MSS 1233, Rauh Jewish Archives, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center
Processing Information
Processing by Catelyn Cocuzzi on 02/22/2021.
Related Materials
Tree of Life Congregation Sisterhood records, 2009.0280
Tree of Life Congregation (Oil City, Pa.) Records, MSS 1234
Subjects
- Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America
- Hadassah, Oil City Chapter.
- Tree of Life Congregation (Oil City, Pa.)
- Tree of Life Sisterhood (Oil City, Pa.)
- Slesnick, Esthyr.
- Slesnick, Samuel.
- Oil City (Pa.)
- Jews -- Pennsylvania -- Venango County.
- Jews -- Pennsylvania -- Oil City.
- Jews -- Religious life
- Synagogues
- Synagogues -- Pennsylvania -- Venango County.
- Synagogues -- Pennsylvania -- Oil City.
- Sisterhoods -- Pennsylvania -- Venango County.
- Sisterhoods -- Pennsylvania -- Oil City.