From Document to History: Uncovering Traces at the Long Night of Research

At the “Long Night of Research” this Friday, 24 April 2026, the National Fund of the Republic of Austria for Victims of National Socialism and the Vienna Wiesenthal Institute (VWI) will provide insights into the work with historical sources: What can be found in the National Fund’s files, and how do you use the Fund's online finding aid, the Findbuch? What documents are held in the VWI's archive? Discover the EHRI portal and find out how you can put digital resources and archive collections to use.

After the "Anschluss" of Austria in 1938, nothing was the same as before. While some people welcomed the new rulers and joined in with the bureaucratically-organised deprivation of rights, the plundering and expulsions, countless others were persecuted, dispossessed and murdered. There were Austrians among the perpetrators and among the victims, and they continually encountered each other in these roles: in the streets of Vienna, in the extermination camps at Auschwitz or in Minsk, and later in court as defendants or witnesses.

All these events have left their mark in documents that are now strewn across Europe in government offices and archives. As we transition from the generation that lived through these events to the generation that remembers them, the task of preserving and archiving these sources for the long term must be treated with the utmost urgency. EHRI (European Holocaust Research Infrastructure) is now bringing together these disparate collections within the framework of a shared research infrastructure.

Join us on Friday 24 April 2026: The National Fund of the Republic of Austria and the Vienna Wiesenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies (VWI) will provide insights into their work with historical sources:

• The National Fund: What information can be found in the Fund's files, and what opportunities are offered by the finding aid and other online tools?
• The VWI Archive: What documents are preserved here for posterity?
• The EHRI Portal: Discover digital resources for academic research or for tracing your own family history.

You can find the programme schedule here (only available in German).

Learn how we preserve fragments from the past to keep memory alive.

• When? Friday 24 April 2026, 17:00–22:00
• Where? Vienna Wiesenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies (VWI), Rabensteig 3, 1010 Vienna
• Free admission! Photo ID required!