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Building a digital archive of Curaçao’s Jewish life—one era, one story at a time.
The Jewish Museum Curaçao is developing a long-term digital archive to record the people, families, and experiences that span nearly four centuries of Jewish life on the island.
This project, called Curaçao Jews: A Database of Memory, stems from the museum’s storytelling program, Curaçao Jews: One Story at a Time (OSAAT) While OSAAT presents short, individual stories, the database functions as a research and remembrance resource—collecting names, photographs, and documents to create a thorough record of Curaçao’s Jewish history.
Curaçao Jews:
The first phase of this ambitious project will soon be live as Collecting WWII Stories: A Database of Memory. It focuses on Jewish individuals connected to Curaçao during the years 1933–1945, whether they lived on the island, sought refuge here, or found themselves abroad during the war.
This period also marks the early growth of Curaçao’s Ashkenazi Jewish community, whose first families arrived in the 1920s and 1930s. Many came seeking safety or opportunity, joining the island’s centuries-old Sephardic population. Their arrival opened a new chapter in Curaçao’s Jewish life—one we aim to document thoroughly as we mark the centennial of that community in 2026.
Together with the museum’s exhibition of the same name, Collecting WWII Stories brings to life experiences of resilience, displacement, and hope during one of history’s darkest chapters. The database includes names, migration routes, personal stories, and photographs that together reveal Curaçao’s unique role in global Jewish and wartime history.
Future phases will broaden the database to include earlier and later generations, tracing the evolving story of Curaçao’s Jewish community from its 17th-century origins to the present.
Through this growing digital resource, we aim to preserve memory, support research, and make the island’s Jewish history accessible to all.
Contribute to the Project
Do you have photographs, letters, or family stories related to Curaçao’s Jewish past? We’d love to hear from you.
CuracaoJews.org is an initiative of the Jewish Cultural Historical Museum, functioning as the Jewish Museum Curaçao, as we celebrate 375 years of Jewish life documented on the island of Curaçao.