Lvov Ghetto Database

The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) presented this material on the Jews of Lvov to Gesher Galicia for inclusion as a JewishGen database.  We extend heartfelt appreciation to Vadim Altskan, who is Director, Register of Holocaust Survivors, at the USHMM.  Questions or inquiries should be sent to Survivors Registry, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, 100 Raoul Wallenberg Place S.W., Washington D.C. 20024, or email to Registry@USHMM.org.

Note that the city of Lvov has also been known as "Lemberg, Austria" (before 1918); it was called "Lwów, Poland" (1918-1939); known as "L'vov, U.S.S.R." (1945-1991); and is now called "Lviv, Ukraine" (1991 to present).

Source and Content of the Material

This database is an index of the Jews in the Lvov ghetto during the years of 1942-1945.  The names have been taken from documents related to Jews in Lvov, Poland and the surrounding areas for this period.  These documents may be viewed on microfilm at the Archives of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM).

Many of these documents consist of correspondence between the German authorities and companies in the Lvov area regarding the status of Jews who had been assigned to them for slave labor.  Other data were drawn from lists and individual forms used by the Germans who controlled the ghetto.

Although these documents do not reveal the fate of any of the individuals mentioned, they may be used in conjunction with other information to establish a person's wartime history.  In most cases the information on individuals relates to travel to their places of work located in the ghetto or nearby.  However, in some cases more detailed information on these persons and their families was included in the form of Personalbogen (registration forms).  In no case is information on the ultimate fate of these persons included.

Where the Source Material Resides

The USHMM microfilmed the original material in the Lviv Archives in Ukraine.  Similar material is also available at Yad Vashem in Israel.  The material was indexed by volunteers at the USHMM.  The material is available on microfilm in the Archives of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) as file RG31.003M, and may be viewed at the Museum, or you may write to request copies of specific pages once you have determined the existence of data on an individual.

Nature of the Database

These records have been collected from assorted documents on a single reel of microfilm.  The structure and purpose of each document varies widely.

If a name appears on more than one document it will appear more than once in the database.  Following each name in the database is the line and frame number from which the information was taken.  For example, the entry "5/0501" appearing next to a particular name indicates that the preceding name can be found on line number 5 of frame number 0501, on microfilm reel RG-31.003M.  This system is intended to help users quickly find the names on the source microfilm by line and corresponding frame number.

Nature of the Original Records

A total of 10,512 names are listed, including repetitions where a name has been listed more than once.  Multiple listing exist when a the name of a person appears on a list of persons and on another page the person's name appears in a register sheet Personalbogen.  It is essential, however, to have both references rather than combine them.  In theory, one could combine them and have two references but in some cases one does not know whether the persons are the same: e.g., 'Levy, Abraham' in a list of workers at a particular factory with no other personal identification and 'Levy, Abraham' with a Personalbogen.  Combining names would certainly add to the confusion.  This explains why the "double" listing has been retained and why the duplicate names have neither been combined nor deleted.  Further investigation by the researcher may yield whether the listing is of the same person or a different individual.

Although there are many fields for each record in the database, in many cases only limited information was provided in the original source, and thus the many fields may be empty for an individual listing.

ID - Unique Identification Number created during data entry Frame number - Frame on the microfilm Line Number - Line on a page Surname Forename (given name) Birth date - Birth date, as it appears on the document Birth place Profession ID Number - if given on document Address

Work Place Residence Nationality Father's surname Father's forename Mother's surname Place of incarceration Spouse's surname Spouse's forename Document date - Document Date, as it appears on the document Document type - if known

Reference Guide to Missing, Unclear Data, and Corrections

Many of the original document contain unclear or illegible information.  The system for identifying such information in the database is described in the reference guide below and is indicated in the index itself by an asterisk (*) at the end of the entry.

Missing Data Indicators:

• Crossed Out Information:   Double round brackets: (( ))
• Unclear Information:   Question mark at the end of the line ________?
• Illegible Information:   Series of three dots indicating the illegible information: . . .
• If the information is partially legible, the legible characters are shown and a series of three dots ... is shown for the illegible characters: Sol...on
• Unclear or Illegible Informatioin:   Asterisk: *

Contact information: Vadim Altskan, Peter Lande.
November, 1999.

Searching the Database:

The Lvov Ghetto Database can be searched via any of the JewishGen Poland Database, the JewishGen Ukraine Database, or JewishGen's Holocaust Database interfaces.