Akron Jewish Center
Akron Jewish Center | |
---|---|
Art Deco | |
Date established | 1924 (as a Jewish congregation) |
Completed | 1929 | ; 1951
Akron Jewish Center | |
NRHP reference No. | 86001919 |
Added to NRHP | July 24, 1986 |
[1] |
The Akron Jewish Center is a historic building in Akron, Ohio, in the United States. It was built in 1929 and expanded in 1951 as a synagogue, Jewish community center, and headquarters for the organization with the same name for over 45 years. The building was subsequently used as a church and, since 1985, as a community center operated by the local city authorities.
The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
Description
The address of the center is 220 S. Balch Street. Designed by architectural firm Fichter & Brooker in a free
On the long side of this basically rectangular structure the grandly ornamented main entrance is set off center. An archway featuring multiple archivolts resting on a boss that is a stylized old testament [sic] (see Torah) figure in turn resting on biblical [sic] lions (see Lion of Judah).[2] The entire arch is supported by multiple engaged columns in groups set at 90 degrees from each other. Four multiple light doors with the center two paired are topped by wide cross beam bearing the words, "Akron Jewish Center" supporting a fully glazed tympanum. A smaller doorway on the left leading directly to the athletic facilities has a deep transom and ornamented lintel.[2]
Further to the left is a large addition constructed in 1951. This addition was designed by Michael M. Konarski in a congruent
Jewish community center
The Akron Jewish Center is also the name of the organization for whom this building was headquarters for over forty-five years. The charter to establish the Akron Jewish Center was secured by a group of prominent local
A synagogue and all associated functions were just the beginning of the activities of the center. The health of the community was advanced physically, socially, intellectually, spiritually and in civic discourse. The organization was very active in the community at large as well as within the Jewish community of Akron. In addition to the full complement of religious and Jewish cultural programming, concerts, theatrical performances and a civic speaker series aimed at the wider community were put on by the center.[2]
The theatrical performances and concerts were popular and the speaker series Akron Civic Forum had developed into a television and radio program in 1986. Notable guests of the speaker series included
The property is composed of several lots including one that had been a meeting place for a local Jewish congregation. The cornerstone was laid on November 4, 1928 and the building was dedicated and opened on September 22, 1929. The building's architects were J. Adam Fitcher and Harry A. Brooker namesakes of a firm that left a notable imprint on Akron across two decades.[2]
Modern times
The Akron Jewish Center organization moved out of the building in 1973, selling it to Shadyside Baptist Church which occupied it until 1985. Today the building is owned by the City of Akron, which uses it as a community center.[3]
The property was listed in the United States National Register of Historic Places on July 24, 1986.[2]
See also
References
- ^ "National Register Information System – Akron Jewish Center (#86001919)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Pahlau, James A. (July 24, 1986). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Akron Jewish Center". National Register of Historic Places. Washington, D.C., USA: National Park Service. Retrieved February 25, 2020 – via National Archives and Records Administration.
- ^ "Balch Street : City of Akron". www.akronohio.gov. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
External links
- * Media related to Akron Jewish Center at Wikimedia Commons
- "Ohio History Connection".