Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
General material designation
- Textual record
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
- Source of title proper: Title based on the content of the collection and the name of its collector.
- Variations in title: The collection was identified by Frank Thorold Booksellers as the Rochlin collection relating to left wing political movements in S. Africa.
Level of description
Reference code
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
-
1912-1960, predominant 1920-1950 (Creation)
- Creator
- Rochlin, Samuel Abraham
Physical description area
Physical description
0.73 m of textual records
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Samuel Abraham Rochlin was born in Cape Town July 9, 1904 to Isaac Gershon Rochlin and Dora Rochlin (nee Daniller). His parents moved from Rostov on Don in South Russia to Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1896. They later moved to Cape Town where Samuel and his brothers Harry and Israel were born.
Rochlin, a historian, archivist, and researcher, witnessed the development of socialist and labour movements and the formation of the Communist Party of South Africa. Rochlin was a member of the Young Communist League in South Africa in the 1920s. Later he was involved in the Zionist movement, working for the Zionist Federation in Johannesburg and on the Zionist Record in the 1930s. He was also the first archivist of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD), where he worked from 1947 to 1961. Rochlin is renowned for his research into South Africa’s Jewish settlers and was the chief research specialist of the South African Jewish Historical Society. Rochlin died November 14, 1961. In 1986 the SAJBD archives was renamed the S.A. Rochlin Archives in his honour.
Custodial history
The material was moved to the private home of an unnamed individual affiliated with the South African Jewish Board of Deputies after Rochlin’s death in 1961. It is likely that some of this material was then offered to Frank Thorold Booksellers in Johannesburg. The collection was purchased at a cost of £250 from Frank Thorold Booksellers by Donald Savage in 1965 for the Vanier Library at Loyola College, which merged with Concordia University in 1974.
Scope and content
This collection contains documents collected by S.A. Rochlin in the course of his activities as a historian, archivist, and researcher. The documents in this collection were mainly created in South Africa between 1912 and 1960. This collection contains the documents of communist and labor organizations active in South Africa during the 1920s through the 1940s, including the Communist Party of South Africa, United Communist Party, South African Labour Party, Industrial Socialist League, South African Trades Union Congress, and South African Association of Employees Organizations. This collection also contains the papers of Cecil Frank Glass, a member of the Industrial Socialist League in Cape Town and the Communist Party of South Africa. C.F. Glass’s documents were given to Rochlin around 1939 by Glass’ first wife Fanny Klenerman.
Collection consists of 607 documents, including 90 pamphlets, 46 newspaper or periodical titles, and folders containing 471 miscellaneous documents, including minutes, accounts, flyers, news clippings, correspondence, and handbills. Many of the documents in this collection are unique. As a result of their ephemeral nature it is unlikely that they are to be found elsewhere.
This collection is organized according to the following series:
C009/A Pamphlets
C009/B Periodicals and newspapers
C009/C Folders
C009/D Microfilm reels
Notes area
Physical condition
Documents are extremely fragile. Many records are yellowed and faded. Other records are torn, discolored, and foxing. Brittle documents are cracked and flaking.
Immediate source of acquisition
Purchased for the Vanier Library by Donald Savage in 1965.
Arrangement
Original order of the material has been maintained.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Reproduction for scholarly purposes is permitted.
Use of material in a publication is only possible with the authorization of the copyright owner.
Finding aids
Box and item listings are available.
Generated finding aid
Associated materials
Accruals
No further accruals expected.
Conservation
Documents were placed in acid-free file folders, envelopes, and archival quality boxes.
Rights
Copyright held by the creator(s).