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Sanford A. Gradinger papers

 Collection
Identifier: D.276

Biographical / Historical note

Sanford A. Gradinger is a Rochester businessman and founder of Centra Financial Group. In 1977 he became involved in an international human rights struggle in which he joined forces with others in Rochester to help reunite the Edward Lozansky family. Lozansky came to the US from Russia in 1976 expecting that his wife, Tanya, the daughter of a three-star Russian general, and their daughter would soon follow. However, they were not granted permission to leave. Immense public efforts were made to apply pressure on the Soviets to release the Lozanskys as well as other dissidents and refuseniks.

As an active participant in these activities, Gradinger and his wife Stephanie traveled to Washington, DC where they met with White House and State Department officials. Gradinger ultimately went to the Soviet Union where he met with Andrei Sakharov and other refuseniks.

Much of this activity was carefully monitored by the KGB as confirmed by files discovered at KGB headquarters after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Scope and Contents

Sanford Gradinger's papers chronicle the efforts put forth by the Andrei Sakharov International Committee (founded at the University of Rochester in 1978) to engender human rights within the Soviet Union. The Committee's goals were to keep Sakharov alive, reunify the Lozansky family, and agitate for emigration rights for Soviet Jewry like Ida Nudel and Rimma Bravve. These efforts included a series of highly publicized concerts in the US and Europe as well as contacts with numerous public figures.

This collection includes correspondence, photographs, clippings, ephemera, posters and travel memorabilia.

Creator

Dates

  • Creation: 1977-2010

Language of Materials

English

Extent

8 box(es) (8 boxes, 3 oversized posters, and 2 photographs)

Access

The Sanford A. Gradinger Papers is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Rare Books, Special Collections & Preservation Department prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.

Use

In consultation with a curator, reproductions may be made upon request. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from a curator. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Sanford A. Gradinger donated this collection to the University on October 26, 2000. Additional material (including Box 4) was donated by Gradinger on August 10, 2010 and September 13, 2011.

Preferred Citation

[Item title, item date], Sanford A. Gradinger Papers, D.276, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester

Separated Materials

Books from Sanford Gradinger that were placed in the General Stacks:

Bailey, George (editor). Kontinet 4: Contemporary Russian Writers (Call Number: PG3213 .K6 1982)

Bukovsky, Vladimir. To Build a Castle: My Life as a Dissenter (Call Number: DK275.B84 A37)

Eddy, Sherwood. The Challenge or Russia (Call Number: DK267 .E21c)

Khrushchev, Nikita. Khrushchev Remembers (Call Number: DK275 .K38Akhr)

Kopelev, Lev. Ease My Sorrows ( Call Number: PG3482.7 .K83Au)

Levine, Irving R. Main Street, U.S.S.R. (Call Number: DK276 .L66m)

Lozansky, Edouard. Pour Tatiana (Call Number: DS135.R95 L69514 1984)

Lozansky, Edward. For Tatiana (Call Number: DS135.R95 A36 1986)

Meisel, James H. and Kozera, Edward S. The Soviet System (Call Number: JN6503 .M51m 1953)

Ratcliff, Carter. Komar and Melamid (Call Number: N6999.K57 R38 1988)

Shcharansky, Anatoly. Fear No Evil (Call Number: DS135.R95 S497 1988)

Shcharansky, Anatoly and Avital. The Journey Home (by the Jerusalem Post) (Call Number: DS135.R95 A113 1986)

Shevchenko, Arkady N. Breaking with Moscow (Call Number: UB271.U52 S437 1985)

Smith, Hedrick. The New Russians ( Call Number: DK288 .S59 1990)

Smith, Hedrick. The Russians (Call Number: DK288 .S59 1990)

Voslensky, Michael. Nomenklatura (Call Number: JN6549.E9 V6813 1984)

Wiesel, Elie. The Jews of Silence (Call Number: DS135.R92 W5313 1966)

Williams, Albert Rhys. The Russians (Call Number: DK273 .W72r)

Title
Sanford A. Gradinger papers
Author
Finding aid prepared by Rare Books and Special Collections staff
Date
undated
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Revision Statements

  • August 2017: Undetailed revision.

Library Details

Part of the Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation Library

Contact:
Rochester NY 14627-0055 USA