Melbourne is home to the largest per capita number of Holocaust survivors outside the state of Israel, and the Library actively collects material covering the history and experiences of Jews and other victims of the Holocaust.
The collection includes many books, several hundred images and some manuscript and realia material (such as a yellow Star of David cloth patch). A particular strength is the range of personal accounts written by survivors and their children, particularly those living in Victoria.
It includes a range of publications that explore the background, origins and formation of Holocaust policy; historical, political, philosophical and religious perspectives; and works on the art, literature and music that was influenced by the events of the Holocaust.
In 1994 the collection was named in honour of Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who saved over 100,000 Jews and many Christian partisans from Hitler’s concentration camps before he was arrested by Russian troops in 1945 (and was never seen again). The naming of this collection resulted from the interest of the Raoul Wallenberg Unit of B’nai Brith, who wished to contribute to the availability of material on this subject.
