Erna Magnus Collection 1933-1938

This collection comprises the research of the social worker Erna Magnus into the professional, cultural and civic activities of members of the Hamburg Jewish Community from the eighteenth through the twentieth centuries. It is composed entirely of index cards that record biographical and professional data on these individuals.The index cards enumerate the professional, civic and cultural accomplishments of numerous members of the Hamburg Jewish Community. Whether organized by profession or alphabetically the cards include basic biographical data on members of the community as well as their occupation, significant achievements and the source material from which the information was gathered.digitizedThe John Hopkins University Libraries also include a small collection of Erna Magnus's papers, as part of their Special Collections at Milton S. Eisenhower Library, call number Ms. 42.A printed copy of 'Stammbaum der Samsonschen Familie', Hannover, 1912 (family tree of the Samson family covering the years 1733 to 1911) has been removed to the LBI LibraryProcessedErna Magnus was born in Hamburg in 1896, received her Ph.D. from Heidelberg University and worked in social work in Berlin.From 1928-1933 she was a faculty member of the School of Social Work of the Arbeiter Wohlfahrt in Berlin and its chief instructor. From 1933-1938 Erna Magnus conducted social work and research with the Jewish community of Hamburg. At that time she undertook a study of the contribution of the Jews of Hamburg to the cultural, economic and social life of their city. This study was undertaken at the suggestion and with the support of Fritz Warburg. Material for this study was secured by numerous personal interviews of prominent members of the Jewish community, and was often supported by written documentation. This material was recorded on 5.5 x 8 inch filing cards; these biographical cards were never published.Erna Magnus came to the United States in 1938 where she conducted research on the work history of household workers for the Social Security Administration. She was also a professor of social welfare and research at the Graduate School of Social Work of Howard University in Washington, D.C. from 1947 to 1966