Rediscovering Jewish Infrastructure: 2022 Update on United States Eighteenth and Nineteenth-Century Synagogues

This article – the third in a series – will document buildings which were originally erected as synagogues in the United States in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and are still standing today.  Calling attention to these structures focuses on the importance of maintaining and preserving them, either as houses of worship or alternative uses.

The first article in this series appeared in American Jewish History in March 1986 (Vol. 75, No. 3). It identified for the first time fifty-two (52) extant eighteenth- and nineteenth-century synagogue buildings in the United States. I located many of these structures by searching downtown districts throughout the country. Touring former Jewish neighborhoods sometimes led to the sudden and exciting discovery of a former synagogue. Architectural styles, along with remnants of Judaic ornamentation (Stars of David, tablets, Hebrew cornerstones, etc.), assisted in identifying and dating the building.

Through additional urban exploring, research and input from American Jewish History readers around the country, the second article in this series, published in the March 1996 American Jewish History (Vol. 84, No. 1) enumerated ninety-six (96) extant purpose-built US eighteenth- and nineteenth-century synagogue structures including the fifty-two (52) noted above.

Architects, historians, urban planners and community members have used this information for a variety of purposes.  For example, many Jewish congregations are proud to worship in the oldest extant synagogues in the country.  By 2018, at least thirty separate Wikipedia entries footnote the March 1996 American Jewish History article, including individual entries for such well-known structures as Touro Synagogue (Newport – fig. 1), Plum Street Synagogue (Cincinnati) and Central Synagogue (NYC).

As of today, the total number of all known pre-1900 synagogue buildings is ninety-seven (97).  This includes thirteen additional synagogues discovered since 1996, offset by twelve subtractions from demolitions and other factors described below.  Each entry in Table 1 includes the address of the structure, its architectural style, the name of the original congregation, whether the original congregation still uses its building, and if not, the current use.  You may access Table 1 below.

Table 1: Pre-1900 Buildings Erected as Synagogues and Still Standing

DATE	CITY & ADDRESS	STATE	ORIGINAL CONGREGATION	CURRENT USE	ARCHITECTURE
1759-63	NEWPORT 85 Touro St.	RI	Jeshuat Israel (O) (Touro Synagogue)	Same	Georgian
1840-41	CHARLESTON 86-90 Hasell St.	SC	K.K. Beth Elohim (R)	Same	Greek Revival
1845	BALTIMORE 11 Lloyd St.	MD	Baltimore Hebrew Cong. (R) (Lloyd Street Synagogue)	Museum	Greek Revival
1849-50	NEW YORK CITY 172 Norfolk St.	NY	Anshe Chesed (R) (Angel Orensanz Center)	Event venue, holiday services	Gothic
1853	NEW YORK CITY 8 Clinton St.	NY	Rodeph Sholom (R)	Chasam Sopher (O)	Romanesque
1856	HONESDALE 7th & Court Sts.	PA	Beth Israel (R)	Same	Greek Revival
1860	CINCINNATI Ruth Lyons Lane	OH	Sherith Israel (O)	Condos	Vernacular
1860-65	NEW ORLEANS 709 Jackson Ave.	LA	Shaarei Tefiloh (R)	Condos	Eclectic
1863	MADISON Gorham & Butler Sts.*	WI	Shaarai Shomayim (R)	Community center	Romanesque
1865-66	CINCINNATI 8th & Plum Sts.	OH	K.K. B’nai Yeshurun (R) (Isaac M. Wise Temple) (Plum Street Synagogue)	Same	Moorish Gothic
1865-67	CUMBERLAND 107 Union St.	MD	B’er Chayim (R)	Same	Greek Revival
1867	LAFAYETTE 17 S. 7th St.	IN	Temple Israel (R)	Church, social services	Romanesque
c. 1868	HUDSON 530 Columbia St.	NY	Ohav Sholem (disbanded)	House	Eclectic
1869	AUGUSTA 525 Telfair St.	GA	B’nai Israel (R)	Museum	Greek Revival
1869-70	QUINCY 427 N. 9th St.	IL	B’nai Sholom (R)	Closed in 2019	Moorish
1870	GALVESTON 816 22nd St.	TX	B’nai Israel (R) Re-built c.1890	Masonic temple	Moorish Gothic
1870	TROY 167 3rd St.	NY	Temple Berith Sholom (R)	Same	Romanesque
1870-72	NEW YORK CITY 123 E. 55th St.	NY	Ahavath Chesed (R) (Central Synagogue)	Same	Moorish
1872	DONALDSONVILLE 301 Railroad Ave.	LA	Bikur Cholim (disbanded)	Hardware store	Vernacular
1875-76	HARTFORD 21 Charter Oak Ave.	CT	Temple Beth Israel (R) (Charter Oak Cultural Ctr.)	Cultural center	Eclectic
1875-76	WILMINGTON 1 S. 4th St.	NC	Temple of Israel (R)	Same	Moorish
1876	BALTIMORE 27-35 Lloyd St.	MD	Chizuk Amuno (C)	B’nai Israel (O); museum	Victorian Gothic/ eclectic
1876	BROOKLYN 274 Keap St.	NY	Beth Elohim (R)	Hebrew school	Victorian Gothic
1876	WASHINGTON 3rd and F	DC	Adas Israel (C)	Completed second move	Romanesque
1876-78	SAVANNAH 20 Gordon St.	GA	Mickve Israel (R)	Same	Gothic
1877	OWENSBORO 429 Daviess St.	KY	Temple Adath Israel (R)	Same	Moorish Gothic
1881	GRAND RAPIDS 72 Ransom Ave. NE	MI	Temple Emanuel (R)	Anti-abortion organization	Vernacular as modified
1882	BROWNSVILLE 171 N. Washington Ave.	TN	Adas Israel (R)	Occasional use	Gothic
1882	CHARLOTTESVILLE 301 E. Jefferson St.*	VA	Beth Israel (R)	Same	Victorian Gothic
1882	DENVER 24th & Curtis Sts.	CO	Temple Emanuel (R)	Incubator offices	Victorian
1883	HOBOKEN 637 Garden St.	NJ	Adas Emuno (R)	Church	Gothic/Romanesque
1883	JEFFERSON CITY 318 Monroe St.	MO	Temple Beth El (R)	Same	Gothic
1883-84	APPLETON 320 N. Durkee St.	WI	Temple Zion (disbanded)	Organ shop	Victorian Gothic
1884	NEWARK 32 Prince St.	NJ	Oheb Shalom (C) (Prince Street Synagogue)	Environmental center	Moorish
1884	LEADVILLE 201 W. 4th St.	CO	Temple Israel (disbanded)	Museum	Victorian Gothic
1884-85	BOSTON Columbus & Northampton	MA	Temple Israel (R)	Church	Victorian Romanesque
1885	BURLINGTON 168 Archibald St.	VT	Ohavi Zedek (C)	Ahavath Gerim (O)	Gothic
1885-86	TRAVERSE CITY 311 Beth El Way	MI	Beth El (R)	Beth Shalom	Vernacular
1886	GOLDSBORO 314 N. James St.	NC	Oheb Sholom (R)	Closed; food pantry in rear	Romanesque
1886	PHILADELPHIA 7th St. & C.B. Moore Ave.	PA	Adath Jeshurun (C)	Church	Moorish
1886	ROCHESTER 30 Leopold St.	NY	Beth Israel (C) (Leopold Street Shul)	Black Hebrew cong.	Romanesque/eclectic
1886-87	NEW YORK CITY 12 Eldridge St.	NY	Khal Adas Jeshurun (O) (Eldridge St. Synagogue)	Same, museum	Moorish
1887-89	ALBANY Lancaster & S. Swan Sts.	NY	Temple Beth Emeth (R)	Church	Richardsonian Romanesque
1888	OCALA 729 NE 2nd St.	FL	United Hebrews of Ocala (R)	Church	Eclectic
1888	SAN LEANDRO 642 Dolores Ave.*	CA	Temple Beth Sholom (C)	Same	Vernacular
1888-89	TRINIDAD 407 S. Maple St.	CO	Congregation Aaron (R)	Occasional Use	Moorish/eclectic
1889	LAFAYETTE 603 Lee Ave.	LA	Rodeph Shalom (R)	Same	Vernacular as modified
1889	ALLIANCE Gershel & Schiff Aves.	NJ	Tifereth Israel (disbanded) (Sharis Israel)	Occasional use	Vernacular
1889	BLOOMINGTON 315 N. Prairie St.	IL	Moses Montefiore Temple (R)	Residence	Moorish
1889	LIGONIER 503 S. Main St.	IN	Ahavas Sholom (disbanded)	Residence	Victorian Gothic
1889	SAN DIEGO Juan & Harney Sts.*	CA	Temple Beth Israel (R)	Community center; museum	Romanesque/eclectic
1889-90	NEW YORK CITY 163 E. 67th St.	NY	Zichron Ephraim (O) (Park East Synagogue)	Same	Moorish
1889-90	BRUNSWICK 1326 Egmont St.	GA	Beth Tefilloh (R)	Same	Moorish
1890-91	NEWBURGH 119 South St.	NY	Temple Beth Jacob (R)	Church	Eclectic
1890-91	BALTIMORE 1914 Madison Ave.	MD	Baltimore Hebrew Cong. (R)	Church	Eclectic
1890-91	CHICAGO 3301 S. Indiana Ave.	IL	Kehilath Anshe Ma’ariv (R) only exterior walls remain	Future gospel music museum	Chicago School
1890-91	SALT LAKE CITY 249 S. Fourth East	UT	B’nai Israel (C/R)	Interior design office	Romanesque
1890-91	HELENA 515 N. Ewing St.	MT	Temple Emanu-El (disbanded)	Diocese office	Moorish/eclectic
1891	STATEN ISLAND 199 Victory Blvd.	NY	B’nai Jeshurun (C)	Church	Eclectic
1891-92	HENDERSON Center & N. Alves Sts.	KY	Adas Israel (disbanded)	Church	Victorian
1891-92	PORT GIBSON 706 Church St.	MS	Temple Gemiluth Chassed (R)	Museum	Moorish/eclectic
1891-92	STATESVILLE 206 N. Kelly St.	NC	Emanuel (C)	Same	Romanesque
1891-92	SCHENECTADY 18 N. College St.	NY	Shaarai Shamayim (R)	Church	Romanesque/eclectic
1892	KINGSTON 50 Abeel St.	NY	Temple Emanu-El (R)	Apartments	Romanesque/eclectic
1892-93	BALTIMORE 1307 Eutaw Pl.	MD	Oheb Shalom (R)	Masonic temple	Byzantine/eclectic
1893	ANNISTON 1301 Quintard Ave.	AL	Temple Beth-El (R)	Same	Eclectic
1893	BRENHAM Austin JCC campus *	TX	B’nai Abraham (O) moved to Austin in 2014-15	Tiferet Israel (O)	Gothic/vernacular
1893-94	CLEVELAND E. 55th & Central Sts.	OH	Tifereth Israel (R)	Church	Richardsonian Romanesque
1894	CENTERVILLE E. Terry & S. 15th Sts.	IA	B’nai Israel (disbanded)	Church	Gothic/vernacular
1894	NEW YORK CITY 160 W. 82nd St.	NY	Shaaray Tefila (R)	Church	Moorish/eclectic
1894	ALLENTOWN 625 N. 2nd St.	PA	Agudas Achim (O)	Vacant	Gothic/vernacular
1895	BALTIMORE 1501 McCulloh St.	MD	Chizuk Amuno (C)	Church	Classical/Romanesque
1895	SAN FRANCISCO 1881 Bush St.	CA	Ohabai Shalome (disbanded) (Bush Street Temple)	Assisted Living	Eclectic
1895	BROOKLYN 98 Scholes St.	NY	Ahavath Scholom	Church	Romanesque
1895-96	BOISE 11 N. Latah St.*	ID	Ahavath Beth Israel (R) moved in 2003	Same	Romanesque/Moorish
1895-96	LANCASTER 508 N. Duke St.	PA	Shaarai Shomayim (R)	Same	Classical/eclectic
1896	BROOKHAVEN Chickasaw & S. Church	MS	B’nai Shalom	Museum	Eclectic
1896	WOODBINE 614 Washington Ave.	NJ	Woodbine Brotherhood (disbanded)	Museum	Vernacular
1896	ALTOONA 1433 13th Ave.	PA	Mountain City Hebrew Reform Cong. (R)	Church	Moorish
1896-97	NEW HAVEN Orange & Audubon Sts.	CT	Mishkan Israel (R)	Arts center	Eclectic
1896-97	NEW YORK CITY 8 W. 70th St.	NY	Shearith Israel (O) (Spanish & Portuguese)	Same	Classical
1897	PEEKSKILL 813 Main St.	NY	First Hebrew Cong. (C, O)	Mosque	Gothic
1897-98	WASHINGTON 8th & I Sts., N.W.	DC	Washington Hebrew Cong. (R)	Church	Romanesque/eclectic
1898	CHICAGO 44th St. & St. Lawrence	IL	Temple Israel (R)	Church	Classical
1898	PEORIA 521 N.E. Monroe St.	IL	Anshai Emeth (R)	Church	Gothic/eclectic
c. 1898	ROSENHAYN 600 Garton Road	NJ	Or Yisrael Cong. (disbanded)	Unused	Vernacular
1898-99	CHICAGO 45th St. & Vincennes Ave.	IL	Temple Isaiah (R)	Church	Classical
1898-99	HUNTSVILLE 103 Lincoln St., S.E.	AL	B’nai Sholom (R)	Same	Eclectic
1898-99	DENVER 1595 Pearl St.	CO	Temple Emanuel (R)	Church	Moorish/eclectic
1898-1900	SAG HARBOR Elizabeth St. & Atlantic Ave.	NY	Temple Mishcan Israel (C)	Temple Adas Israel (R)	Vernacular
1899	BAY CITY 200 N. Van Buren St.	MI	Shaarey Zedek (C)	Church	Classical
1899-1900	DANVILLE 127 Sutherlin Ave.	VA	Temple Beth Sholom (R)	Same	Eclectic
1899-1900	SELMA 503 Broad St.	AL	Mishkan Israel (R)	Occasional use; future museum	Romanesque/eclectic
1899-1900	CORSICANA 208 S. 15th St.	TX	Temple Beth-El (C)	Community center, minyanim	Moorish
1900	NEW YORK CITY 23 W. 118th St.	NY	Shaare Zedek (C)	Church	Moorish
1900	PUEBLO 1325 No. Grand Ave.	CO	Temple Emanuel (R)	Same	Queen Anne
c. 1900	NORMA Almond Rd. & Wallace St.	NJ	Ahavas Achim (O) (Norma Brotherhood)	Occasional use	Vernacular

The dates for each entry generally signify the date of cornerstone and the date of dedication of the original synagogue. Asterisks (*) indicate buildings which have been physically moved to their current location. (O), (C), and (R) stand for Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform; they illustrate the present-day affiliation of the original congregation or its successor through merger. “Same” indicates that the original congregation still uses the building for worship services. With the exception of “Greek Revival”, architectural styles such as Romanesque Revival and Moorish Revival are abbreviated above by omitting the word “Revival”. Buildings which have been totally rebuilt and are no longer recognizable as former places of worship are not included.

The ninety-seven (97) extant synagogues are located in thirty-one states and the District of Columbia.  Twenty are in New York State, with eleven of these in New York City.  Three states (IL, MD and NJ) have six each, with five in Colorado and Pennsylvania and four or less in the other states.

What Has Changed Since 1996

Additions:  Since 1996, the author has discovered thirteen additional extant pre-1900 synagogue buildings.  These include structures in Cincinnati (Sherith Israel); New Orleans; Hudson, NY; Lafayette, Augusta, GA; LA; Ocala, FL; Brunswick, GA; Schenectady, NY; Allentown, PA; Centerville, IA; Brooklyn (Ahavath Scholom); Altoona, PA; and Peekskill, NY.

Subtractions:  Unfortunately, the additions were offset by twelve subtractions.  These include discovery of seven demolitions:  Easton, PA (demolished in 2003 after fire damage); Cincinnati (K.K. Bene Israel); Placerville, CA; New York City (Or Zarua demolished by its Jewish congregation in 1999); Atlantic City (demolished by the city in 2013); Chicago (Anshe Emeth on Sedgwick St.); and Charleston, WV.  Some of the demolitions were verified by Google Street View aerial maps, a welcome update in technology.

Other reasons for subtractions include the discoveries that:  1) The Las Vegas, NM synagogue and New York City’s Forsyth St. Synagogue were originally purpose built as churches; 2) Ahavath Sholom in Buffalo was actually constructed in 1901-03 (after the 1900 cut-off); 3) The synagogue in Demopolis, AL was newly built in the 1950s inside a much larger 1893 synagogue which was subsequently demolished; and 4) The synagogue in Alpena, Michigan started out as a residence that was moved to the site and remodeled into a synagogue.

Other Updates:  Temple Israel in Leadville, CO (fig. 2) was restored in 2008 to its original appearance by replacing decorative elements previously removed while used as apartments.  Kehilath Anshe Ma’ariv on Chicago’s South Side suffered significant damage from a building fire in 2006.  Only the exterior walls remain of this Chicago School synagogue designed by prominent architects Dankmar Adler and Louis Sullivan.

Additionally, information on synagogue dates of construction, names and addresses was revised in 2018 and is updated annually as appropriate.

Physical Relocation of Synagogue Buildings

Over the years, synagogues in Madison, WI; Washington, DC; Charlottesville, VA (fig. 3); San Leandro, CA; and San Diego, CA, have been physically moved in order to save them from the wrecking ball.  More recently, Temple Beth Israel in Boise, ID was moved in 2003 adjacent to the congregation’s newer building, and B’nai Abraham in Brenham, TX was moved across several counties to the Austin JCC campus in 2014-15.¹

Worship and Adaptive Reuse

While many of the buildings originally constructed as synagogues are now used for other purposes, some remain as Jewish houses of worship. In over twenty different states, one or more nineteenth-century buildings are still utilized for Jewish services, as Table 1 indicates. 

Adaptive reuse of a historic building is defined as implementing a new and/or additional use for a building originally designed for another purpose. Structures such as fire houses, train stations, courthouses, and religious edifices often find new uses. Nineteenth-century synagogues are no exception. For these buildings, the most popular reuse is as a house of worship for another religion. Other successful adaptive reuses of synagogue buildings include offices, museums, community/cultural centers, performing arts centers, and schools. Unusual uses in 2018 include offices for the Catholic Diocese of Helena, MT and those for an anti-abortion group in Grand Rapids, MI. As a building’s use is changed, the new owner can renovate it in such a way to preserve the structure’s major architectural features. Reuse of a historic synagogue no longer needed by its original congregation is much preferable to demolition.

Some congregations may look to the Talmud for guidance when vacating a synagogue.  Mishnah Megillah 3:1 directs that congregations which sell a synagogue use the proceeds for an equivalent or holier purpose.  Based on interpretations of this text, an Orthodox congregation may place restrictions on a buyer’s future use of its house of worship.  For example, when the Jewish Historical Society of Maryland purchased Baltimore’s Lloyd Street Synagogue in 1963, it accepted a deed restriction that the building would not be used on Shabbat or Jewish festivals.²

Preservation Movement

An exciting development intensifying during the past twenty-five years has been various grassroots efforts to save synagogues threatened with demolition. Synagogues that have been saved from pending demolition include those in Baltimore, Corsicana, TX; Denver (fig. 4); Hartford; Newark, NJ (fig. 5); New York City; and Port Gibson, MS.

Awareness of these successful grassroots efforts to save nineteenth-century synagogues will hopefully spur other communities to mount similar efforts when historic Jewish infrastructure is threatened. Many of the buildings reflect architectural beauty and craftsmanship that would never be created today. Some of them provide a special historical element to a municipality’s original core downtown.

Architectural Styles

Table 1 includes the architectural styles for each synagogue entry.  Often following trends in secular and ecclesiastical architecture, the look of US synagogues evolved over the decades of the nineteenth century.

The Touro Synagogue, the only extant eighteenth century entry, was designed in the Georgian style by noted colonial architect Peter Harrison. Both Beth Elohim (Charleston, SC) and the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation were constructed in the Greek Revival style, popular for houses of worship in the 1840s and early 1850s. Beth Israel in Honesdale, PA (fig. 6) is an example of this style.  Romanesque Revival synagogues with round-arched windows became evident for several decades beginning in the 1850s as seen in Goldsboro, NC (fig. 7) and Salt Lake City (fig. 8),  Gothic Revival and Victorian styles, like those illustrated in Leadville, CO (fig. 2) and Charlottesville, VA (fig. 3), became more common beginning in the 1870s and 1880s. (A sub-style of Romanesque Revival architecture is Rundbogenstil originating in Germany. Nineteenth-century synagogues in Boise, ID; Lafayette, IN; and Madison, WI are examples of this sub-style.)

The Moorish Revival style was used heavily for synagogues but not in secular architecture from the 1860s to 1890s. Moorish synagogues often contained onion-shaped domes or minarets, horseshoe arches, and polychromatic decoration. One theory for their popularity is the nineteenth century revival of Jewish scholarly interest in the history of the Sephardic Diaspora, including its Golden Age in Spain and Northern Africa.³ Additionally, congregations built Moorish buildings in part to differentiate them from Victorian-style churches.⁴   Examples of Moorish synagogues are those in Denver (fig. 4) and Newark (fig. 5).

At the turn of the century, synagogue architecture returned to the American architectural mainstream with a heavy emphasis on the Classical Revival style. The change is attributable to the interest in classical design at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago and also to archaeological discoveries of Galilean synagogues built during Roman times.⁵  This style was adopted by New York City’s Shearith Israel (fig. 9).

The small number of remaining eighteenth- and nineteenth-century structures underscores the transitions that have taken place in Jewish life over the past 150 years.  As Jews migrated out of small towns to large cities, and out of cities to suburbs, the religious spaces that they built have been purchased by new owners and used for new purposes.  Historical preservationists, however, have built community support both within and outside the Jewish community in order to preserve these synagogues as emblems of the Jewish past.

Those interested in learning more about eighteenth- and nineteenth-century synagogues may review this list of sources. Please also see the below gallery for more in-depth information on the synagogue buildings featured here.