Ask A Jew: Finding out more about your heritage

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By Neal Schindler

As someone who found out he has many Jewish ancestors, where would you start your quest to find out more about your heritage?

I’d try JewishGen, which is affiliated with the Museum of Jewish Heritage. Also worth looking into are some of the resources listed in a 2017 RootsTech article on the subject. (Note that RootsTech is associated with the LDS church; that doesn’t mean the genealogy resources it lists aren’t valid.)

You could also start asking relatives you haven’t spoken to about your Jewish heritage to see if they know anything that could inform or guide your search. It’s also worth going to your public library — in Spokane, I’d try the downtown location — and enlisting the help of a research librarian. Whatever paths you try, I wish you the best of luck!