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Holocaust Museum & Learning Center

 

DESCRIPTION: The St. Louis Holocaust Museum and Learning Center, one of only a few such facilities in the Midwest, preserves the story of the Holocaust and its impact on the lives of St. Louis Jews. It focuses on the Holocaust through the eyes of survivors-many of whom lived in the Lodz Ghetto of Poland and later came to St. Louis. The purpose of the center is not only to remember the Holocaust and examine its lessons but also to provide a learning center which teaches how to use the lessons of the Holocaust to fight against hate, intolerance and racism. The center also includes a curriculum resource library and oral history archives. The Museum, a department of the Jewish Federation of St. Louis, is located on the grounds of the Jewish Community Center.

SLOGAN: To Remember and To Learn

ADDRESS: 12 Millstone Campus Drive (on the Jewish Community Center campus), St. Louis, MO 63146

LOCATION: West St. Louis County, 15 minutes from Downtown St. Louis

PHONE NUMBER: 314-432-0020 ext. 3711

WEB SITE: www.hmlc.org

GETTING THERE: From Downtown St. Louis, take I-64 (Highway 40) west to Lindbergh Boulevard North. Take Lindbergh north to Schuetz Road, turn left. Go about one block to Millstone Campus Drive. Turn right onto Millstone Campus Drive. The Museum is located in the Jewish Federation Building on the right.

HOURS: 9:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday-Thursday; 9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m., Friday and 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. on Sunday. During the winter when the sun sets earlier, the museum may close earlier on Friday for Shabbat. The Museum is open on Tuesday evening for special group tours. Tours are also offered during the day. The tours are open to groups of 10-60 and last about an hour to an hour and a half. Reservations for tours must be made at least two weeks in advance. If it is desired, a Holocaust survivor will speak to the group at the end of the tour. The museum is closed on Saturday.

SPECIAL NOTE ON AGE: Since some of the exhibits include graphic and disturbing photographs, it is suggested that school groups be in at least sixth grade if they plan to visit. Parents are advised that the museum is not recommended for young children.

ADMISSION: Free

ANNUAL ATTENDANCE: 40,000

WHAT'S NEW: The St. Louis Holocaust Museum and Learning Center hosts a number of traveling exhibits throughout the year. Call the Museum for information on current displays.

HIGHLIGHTS:

  • The Museum's nine rooms focus on pre-Holocaust life, the Holocaust itself and the post-Holocaust period.
  • Cases of pre-World War II artifacts and photographs of folkloric and cultural interest detail Jewish life in Europe before the Holocaust.
  • A timeline highlights 1,000 years of Jewish history in Europe before World War II and a map shows world Jewish population centers in 1933. An audio presentation features St. Louisans speaking about their lives in Europe prior to World War II.
  • Exhibits, including photographs and artifacts of the period illustrate the rise of Nazism in Germany from 1933 to 1939. A timeline charts the progressive development of anti-Jewish legislation over a six-year period. Other displays focus on Nazi propaganda and racism, anti-Jewish legislation, the persecution of non-Jewish groups deemed "inferior," the difficulties of Jewish emigration, Kristallnacht and anti-Semitism in the U. S.
  • An exhibit on Jewish life in the ghettos of Europe after World War I contains rare film footage of ghetto life at the time.
  • Audio and visual presentations illustrate censorship, the burning of books, racism in Nazi schools and the 1933 fact-finding mission to Germany of Rabbi Ferdinand Isserman of St. Louis' Temple Israel.
  • The events of the years 1939-41 are depicted by photographs and artifacts on ghettos, slave labor camps, Jewish resistance and Nazi medical experiments. A three-dimensional floor model of the Lodz ghetto gives visitors a view of the daily lives of Polish Jews during that time period.
  • Holocaust survivors in audio presentations tell of their experiences in the Lodz ghetto and in slave labor camps.
  • Deportation, selection, death marches and the "Final Solution" are portrayed in the exhibit area documenting the years 1941-45. Holocaust survivors describe death marches in an audio presentation.
  • Another display area features artifacts and photographs on the rescue and protection of concentration camp survivors, the Nuremberg Trials, liberation and 1942 newspaper reports on the Holocaust as well as an audio presentation by survivors on the liberation.
  • The liberation of concentration camps at the end of World War II is also depicted.
  • On display are 140 pieces of memorabilia from local Holocaust survivors.
  • More than 250 photographs taken before and after the Holocaust are also displayed.
  • A final area documents life in the displaced persons camps, the birth of Israel and the emigration of Holocaust survivors to St. Louis.
  • An audio presentation by survivors and other eyewitnesses focuses on the displaced persons camps and the Nuremberg Trials.

ANNUAL SPECIAL EVENTS: Each April the Holocaust Museum holds an event in observance of Yom Hashoa, a day of remembrance of those who perished during the Holocaust.

SPECIAL EVENTS: The Museum hosts a film series on the last Sunday of each month. The series is free and features films that relate to the Holocaust or pre-war history and culture. The Museum also sponsors guest lecturers from time to time which are open to the public.

HISTORY: The St. Louis Holocaust Museum and Learning Center opened on May 1, 1995 to help people "to remember and learn about the Holocaust." The center also helps visitors examine the consequences of animosity, racism and fanaticism and challenges them to turn their collective memory into action by taking personal responsibility to fight against hate, prejudice and intolerance. The center is designed to educate Jews and non-Jews alike about the need to be vigilant against hate, bigotry and prejudice and the need for tolerance of different races and religions.

HANDICAPPED ACCESS: The St. Louis Holocaust Museum and Learning Center is accessible to the handicapped.

GIFT SHOP: The Museum has for sale a number of books on the Holocaust.

WHERE TO GET LUNCH: Northwest Plaza Shopping Center is about four miles north on Lindbergh Boulevard and there are several restaurants along Lindbergh and Olive boulevards.

WHAT'S NEARBY: Lambert St. Louis International Airport and the Northwest Plaza shopping mall are nearby.

PUBLIC RELATIONS CONTACT: Dan Reich, curator and director of education, 314-432-0020, dreich@jfedstl.org or Brian Bray, director of administration and development, 432-5700, bbray@jfedstl.org

 

Readers should call 1-800-916-0040 to request a free copy of the Official St. Louis Visitor Guide or point, click and explore St. Louis at www.explorestlouis.com