The National Desertion Bureau Collection

Thank you for your interest in the National Desertion Bureau Collection.

The YIVO Archives houses approximately 17,000 National Desertion Bureau case files that were generated between 1905 and the 1950s.

Please note that the case files are not comprehensive. Therefore, even though you may have located your relative in the National Desertion Bureau database created by the Jewish Board, there is a chance that YIVO does not house a corresponding case file.

If you would like YIVO to do a case file search and retrieval, please fill out this form. There is currently no charge for case file searches and retrievals.

If you are interested in retrieving more than six files, please contact YIVO’s reference team at reference@yivo.org to discuss your request. Similarly, if you would like help determining the case file ranges represented in each box or you are unable to visit YIVO in person, please contact YIVO reference.

For all questions regarding the collection, please contact reference@yivo.org.