Beth Hamedrash Hagodol

Coordinates: 40°43′01″N 73°59′16″W / 40.71706°N 73.98774°W / 40.71706; -73.98774
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Beth Hamedrash Hagadol Anshe Ungarn, "Great House of Study of the People of Hungary", a Lower East Side congregation founded in 1883 by Hungarian Jews[1]. For similarly named synagogues, see Beth Hamedrash Hagodol (disambiguation).

Beth Hamedrash Hagodol
(Norfolk Street Baptist Church)
Hebrew: בֵּית הַמִּדְרָש הַגָּדוֹל
The front and part of the side of a three-story building is visible. The side is mostly hidden by the photographic angle and by a leafless tree. The front shows two rectangular towers, one on each side of a recessed bay. All are clad in tan stucco, which is stained in places. The towers have pointed arched windows on the bottom and square ones on top. The bay has four wooden doors at the bottom and a sign with Hebrew writing on top of them, surmounted by large arched, multi-paned window. Atop the roof of the bay is a small metal Star of David. To the right of the building is a much taller brown rectangular apartment building.
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol façade in 2008,
before the 2017 fire and subsequent demolition
Religion
AffiliationOrthodox Judaism (former)
Ecclesiastical or organizational status
StatusClosed and demolished
Location
Location60–64 Norfolk Street, Lower East Side, Manhattan, New York City, New York
CountryUnited States
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol is located in Lower Manhattan
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol
Location in Lower Manhattan
Geographic coordinates40°43′01″N 73°59′16″W / 40.71706°N 73.98774°W / 40.71706; -73.98774
Architecture
Architect(s)
  • Unknown
  • Schneider & Herter
TypeChurch
StyleGothic Revival
FounderRabbi Abraham Joseph Ash
Date established1852 (as Beth Hamedrash congregation)
Groundbreaking1848
Completed1850; 174 years ago (1850)
DemolishedMay 14, 2017
Specifications
Direction of façadeWest
Capacity1,200
Materials
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol
NRHP reference No.99001438
Added to NRHPNovember 30, 1999
[2][3][4][5][6][7][8]

Beth Hamedrash Hagodol

first Eastern European congregation founded in New York City and the oldest Russian Jewish Orthodox congregation in the United States.[4]

Founded in 1852 by Rabbi Abraham Joseph Ash as Beth Hamedrash, the congregation split in 1859, with the rabbi and most of the members renaming their congregation Beth Hamedrash Hagodol. The congregation's president and a small number of the members eventually formed the nucleus of Kahal Adath Jeshurun, also known as the Eldridge Street Synagogue.[13][14] Rabbi Jacob Joseph, the first and only Chief Rabbi of New York City, led the congregation from 1888 to 1902.[15] Rabbi Ephraim Oshry, one of the few European Jewish legal decisors to survive the Holocaust, led the congregation from 1952 to 2003.[16]

The congregation's building, a

Gothic Revival structure built in 1850 as the Norfolk Street Baptist Church and purchased in 1885, was one of the largest synagogues on the Lower East Side.[14][17] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.[8] In the late 20th century the congregation dwindled and was unable to maintain the building, which had been damaged by storms. Despite their obtaining funding and grants, the structure was critically endangered.[2][18]

The synagogue was closed in 2007. The congregation, reduced to around 20 regularly attending members, was sharing facilities with a congregation on

Landmarks Preservation Commission seeking permission to demolish the building to make way for a new residential development.[20] This application was withdrawn in March 2013, but the group Friends of the Lower East Side described Beth Hamedrash Hagodol's status as "demolition by neglect".[21] The abandoned synagogue was "largely destroyed" by a "suspicious" three-alarm fire on May 14, 2017.[5][6]

Early history

Beth Hamedrash Hagodol was founded by

Germans, and an Englishman."[13] For the first six years of the congregation's existence, Ash was not paid for his work as rabbi and instead earned a living as a peddler.[26]

The congregation moved frequently in its early years: in 1852 it was located at 83 Bayard Street, then at Elm and

Allen Street.[29] The synagogue, which had "a good Hebrew library",[13] was a place both of prayer and study,[33] included a rabbinic family court,[23] and, according to historian and long-time member Judah David Eisenstein, "rapidly became the most important center for Orthodox Jewish guidance in the country."[29]

Synagogue dues were collected by the shamash (the equivalent of a sexton or beadle), who augmented his salary by working as a glazier and running a small food concession stand in the vestibule. There mourners who came to recite kaddish could purchase a piece of sponge cake and small glass of brandy for ten cents (today $3.40).[34]

Beth Hamedrash was the prototypical American synagogue for early immigrant Eastern European Jews, who began entering the United States in large numbers only in the 1870s. They found the synagogues of the German Jewish immigrants who preceded them to be unfamiliar, both religiously and culturally. Russian Jews in particular had been more excluded from Russian society than were German Jews from German society, for both linguistic and social reasons. Unlike German Jews, the Jews who founded Beth Hamedrash viewed both religion and the synagogue as central to their lives. They attempted to re-create in Beth Hamedrash the kind of synagogue they had belonged to in Europe.[35][36]

Schism

In 1859,[37] disagreement broke out between Ash and the synagogue's parnas (president) Joshua Rothstein[14] over who had been responsible for procuring the Allen Street location,[38] and escalated into a conflict "over the question of official authority and 'honor'".[39] Members took sides in the dispute,[29] which led to synagogue disturbances, a contested election,[39] and eventually to Ash's taking Rothstein to a United States court to try to oust him as president of the congregation. After the court rejected Ash's arguments,[38] a large majority of members left with Ash to form Beth Hamedrash Hagodol ("Great House of Study"), adding the word "Hagodol" ("Great") to the original name.[14][29]

The followers of Rothstein stayed at the Allen Street location and retained the name "Beth Hamedrash" until the mid-1880s. With membership and financial resources both severely reduced, they were forced to merge with Congregation Holche Josher Wizaner; the combined congregation adopted the name "

Kahal Adath Jeshurun", and built the Eldridge Street Synagogue.[14][40]

According to Eisenstein, Beth Hamedrash Hagodol provided an atmosphere that was "socially religious", in which Jews "combine[d] piety with pleasure; they call[ed] their shule a shtibl or prayer-club room; they desire[d] to be on familiar terms with the Almighty and abhor[red] decorum; they want[ed] everyone present to join and chant the prayers; above all they scorn[ed] a regularly ordained cantor." In contrast to the informality of the services, members scrupulously observed the Jewish dietary laws, and every member personally oversaw the baking of his matzos for use on Passover.[41]

The congregation initially moved to the top floor of a building at the corner of

Mishna study groups,[29] founded in the 1870s, were held both mornings and evenings.[41]

Ash had only served as Beth Hamedrash Hagodol's rabbi intermittently during this time;[44] during the American Civil War he had briefly been a successful manufacturer of hoopskirts, before losing his money, and returning to the rabbinate.[27] Congregants had a number of issues with him, including his outside business ventures and an alleged inclination towards Hasidism. The more learned members of the congregation contested his scholarship.[44] Ash resigned as rabbi in 1877,[45] and in 1879, directors of Beth Hamedrash Hagodol proposed that a Chief Rabbi be hired for New York.[46] A number of New York City synagogues[47] formed the "United Hebrew Orthodox Congregations",[15] and agreed to select the Malbim (Meïr Leibush ben Jehiel Michel Weiser) for the role.[15][44][48] The appointment was announced in Philadelphia's Jewish Record,[49] but the Malbim never filled the position.[50] Beth Hamedrash Hagodol re-hired Ash to fill the vacant role of congregational rabbi[44] at a salary of $25 per month[27] (or $300—today $10,000—per year). The following year the congregation hired a new cantor, Simhe Samuelson, for $1,000 (today $33,000) a year, over three times Ash's salary.[42]

Norfolk Street building

The congregation's building at 60-64 Norfolk Street, between

Baptist Church. Founded in 1841 when the Stanton Street Baptist Church congregation split, the members had first worshiped in an existing church building at Norfolk and Broome. In 1848 they officially incorporated and began construction of a new building, which was dedicated in January 1850.[51]

A black and white picture shows the front a three-story building. Two rectangular towers are visible, one on each side of a recessed bay. The towers have pointed arched windows on the bottom and square ones on top. The bay has s dark entrance at the bottom and a sign with Hebrew writing on top of it, surmounted by large arched rose window. Atop the roof of the bay is a four-sided cupola supported by upright beams. Stairs lead from the sidewalk to the entrance, and people are visible standing on the sidewalk and stairs.
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol at the beginning of the 20th century

Largely unchanged, the structure was designed in the

crenellations in tracery, instead of the present plain tops. The square windows below are original, but the former quatrefoil wooden tracery is gone in many cases. The bandcourse of quatrefoil originally extended across the center section of the facade.[51]

Even as the building was under construction, the ethnic makeup of the church's neighborhood was rapidly changing; native-born Baptists were displaced by

Park Avenue Church, and finally built the Riverside Church.[52]

Biggs converted the church to one for

Methodists,[53][54] and in 1862, transferred ownership to the Alanson Methodist Episcopal Church.[55] The Methodist congregation was successful for a time, with membership peaking at 572 members in 1873. It declined after that, and the church ran into financial difficulties. In 1878 the congregation transferred ownership to the New York City Church Extension and Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church.[55]

Founded in 1866, the Church Extension and Missionary Society's mission was "... to promote Churches, Missions, and Sunday-schools in the City of New York."

First Roumanian-American congregation.[56] Soon after its purchase of the Norfolk Street building, the Church Extension and Missionary Society discovered that the neighborhood had become mostly Jewish and German. By 1884, it realized "the church was too big and costly to maintain", and put it up for sale.[55]

In 1885 Beth Hamedrash Hagodol purchased the building for $45,000 (today $1.5 million), and made alterations and repairs at a cost of $10,000 (today $340,000), but made no external modifications by the re-opening. Alterations to the interior were generally made to adapt it to synagogue use. These included the additions of an

Ark to hold the Torah scrolls (replacing the original pulpit), an "eternal light" in front of the ark, and a bimah (a central elevated platform where the Torah scrolls are read). At some time a women's gallery was added round three sides of the nave.[4][57][58] Interior redecorations included sanctuary ceilings that were "painted a bright blue, studded with stars".[17]

In addition to attracting new and wealthy members, the congregation intended the substantial building to garner prestige and respectability for the relatively new immigrant Jews from Eastern Europe, and to show that Jews on the Lower East Side could be just as "civilized" as the reform-minded Jews of uptown Manhattan.[59] For this reason, a number of other Lower East Side congregations also purchased or built new buildings around this time.[42] They also hired increasingly expensive cantors until, in 1886, Kahal Adath Jeshurun hired P. Minkowsy for the "then-staggering sum of five thousand dollars per annum" (today $170,000).[60] Beth Hamedrash Hagodol responded by recruiting from Europe the famous and highly paid cantor Israel Michaelowsky[59][61] (or Michalovsky).[43] By 1888 Beth Hamedrash Hagodol's members included "several bankers, lawyers, importers and wholesale merchants, besides a fair sprinkling of the American element."[62]

Though the building had undergone previous alterations—for example, the Church Extension and Missionary Society had "removed deteriorated parapets from the towers" in 1880—it did not undergo significant renovations until the early 1890s. That year the rose window on the front of the building was removed, "possibly because it had Christian motifs", and replaced with a large arched window, still in keeping with the Gothic style. The work was undertaken by the architectural firm of (Ernest) Schneider & (Henry) Herter, German immigrants who had worked on a number of other synagogues, including the Park East Synagogue. In 1893 they fixed "serious structural problems", the consequence of neglected maintenance. The work included "stabiliz[ing] the front steps, add[ing] brick buttresses to the sides of the church for lateral support, again in a Gothic style, and replac[ing] the original basement columns with six-inch cast iron columns." A later renovation replaced the wooden stairs from the main floor to the basement with iron ones.[63]

Two Stars of David were added to the center of the facade. One is seen in the old photograph (above left), over a palmette ornament at the top of the window arch. The other, mounted above the top of the gable, remains visible in the modern photograph (top). The unusual cupola-like structure on legs seen above the gable in the old photograph, now gone, was also added by the synagogue, as was the square structure on which it sat.[64] The panel with a large Hebrew inscription over the main doors was added in this period, before the older photograph. The decorations to the upper parts of the central section of the facade survived until at least 1974, as did the tracery to the square windows on the towers; this Gothic ornamentation was removed after it deteriorated.[63]

Jacob Joseph era

Ash died in 1887,[26] and the United Hebrew Orthodox Congregations (now called The Association of American Orthodox Hebrew Congregations) began a search for a successor, to serve as rabbi of Beth Hamedrash Hagodol and as Chief Rabbi of New York City.[15][65] This search was opposed by Rabbi Henry Pereira Mendes, of Congregation Shearith Israel. Mendes felt that the money and energy would be better spent on supporting the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTSA), which he had co-founded with Sabato Morais in 1886. In his view, training American-born rabbis at the Seminary would be a much more effective means of fighting the growing strength of American Reform Judaism: these native English-speaking rabbis would appeal to the younger generation far more than imported, Yiddish-speaking ones.[66]

The Association of American Orthodox Hebrew Congregations rejected Morais's position, and offered the role to a number of "leading East European Orthodox rabbis", all of whom turned it down. They eventually narrowed the field to two candidates, Zvi Rabinovitch and Jacob Joseph.[15] Although Rabinovitch received "massive support" from "leading east European rabbis", the congregation hired Jacob Joseph as the first—and what would turn out to be only—Chief Rabbi of New York City.[67]

Born in

Yisroel Salanter, and in 1883 had been appointed the maggid (preacher) of Vilna.[44] Beth Hamedrash Hagodol, the Eldridge Street Synagogue, and 13 other Lower East Side synagogues had raised $2,500 (today $85,000) towards the creation of a European style kehilla to oversee New York's Orthodox community, and had imported Joseph in an attempt to achieve that (ultimately unfulfilled) goal.[65] Joseph's salary was to be the then-substantial $2,500 per year, "with an additional $1000 for rent, furnishings, and utilities". Though Joseph's appointment was, in part, intended to bring prestige to the downtown Orthodox congregations, his primary task as Chief Rabbi was to bring order and regulation to New York's chaotic kosher slaughtering industry.[69]

Joseph arrived in New York on July 7, 1888, and later that month preached his inaugural Sabbath sermon at Beth Hamedrash Hagodol.[70] The speech attracted a huge crowd, with over 1,500 men crowded into the sanctuary, and thousands more outside.[70][71] The police had to call extra reinforcements to control the throng, and to escort Joseph into the synagogue.[71] Though he had been chosen, in part, for his "fabulous skills as an orator", his speaking style and sermons, which had been so beloved in Europe, did not impress New York audiences. According to Abraham Cahan, "[S]ome of the very people who drank in his words thirstily in Vilna left the synagogue in the middle of his sermon here."[72]

In October 1888, Joseph made his first significant statement as Chief Rabbi. He issued new regulations for New York's Jewish poultry business, in an attempt to bring it into accordance with Jewish law. The funds for supporting the agency supervising adherence to these regulations were to be raised through an increase in the price of meat and chicken. The affected vendors and consumers, however, refused to pay this levy.[15] They likened it to the korobka, a tax on meat in Russia they despised,[69] and "organized a mass meeting in January 1889 against 'the imported rabbi'". Joseph never succeeded in organizing the kosher meat business.[15]

Joseph was also unable to stop those who came to hear him speak from

desecrating the Sabbath, and his Yiddish sermons had no impact on the younger generation.[73] In addition, he had to contend with a number of obstacles: he had no administrative experience or training, local Orthodox rabbis (particularly Joshua Seigel) and Jews outside his congregation did not accept his authority, and non-Orthodox Jews and groups criticized him.[74] These problems were exacerbated by a stroke suffered in 1895, which partially incapacitated him, followed by a relapse in 1900 which left him bedridden.[75]

In the late 19th century, other synagogues in New York City often served a particular constituency, typically Jews from a single town in Russia, Poland, or Romania. Beth Hamedrash Hagodol prided itself in welcoming and assisting all Jews, regardless of origins.[76] The synagogue's Passover Relief Committee—dedicated to providing funds and food to poor Jews so that they could properly celebrate the holiday of Passover—stated "In dispensing money and matzos to the poor, all are recognized as the children of one Father, and no lines are drawn between natives of different countries."[77] By the turn of the 20th century, Beth Hamedrash Hagodol was distributing approximately $800 (today $29,000) a year to the poor for Passover supplies, compared to a total synagogue income of around $5,000 (today $183,000). This was on top of its average $15 (today $500) weekly contributions to the poor, and those of individual congregational members of around $2,000 (today $73,000) per annum.[78] By 1901, annual revenues were around $6,000 (today $220,000), and the congregation had 150 members.[79]

During Joseph's tenure, Beth Hamedrash Hagodol helped found the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America (the "Orthodox Union"). In the spring of 1898, 50 lay officials from a number of Orthodox New York synagogues—including Congregation Ohab Zedek, the Eldridge Street Synagogue, Congregation Shearith Israel and Beth Hamedrash Hagodol—convened to create the organization.[80] By the 1980s the Orthodox Union had over 1,000 member congregations.[81]

Joseph served as the synagogue's rabbi from his arrival in the United States in 1888 until his death in 1902 at age 62.[82] During this time, his family slipped into poverty, as he did not receive his salary, which had been based on the anticipated taxes on kosher meats and vendors, and on matzos.[83] After his death, Beth Hamedrash Hagodol secured the right to bury him in its cemetery by promising his widow $1,500 (today $53,000) and a monthly $15 stipend; in turn, individuals offered the congregation large sums—$5,000 (today $176,000) in one case—for the right to be buried near him.[84] His funeral was attended by up to 100,000 mourners, "clouded by the guilt-driven attempt of New York's Orthodox Jews to honor him for the last time, as partial compensation for the way they treated him during his life."[15][63]

Post-Joseph era

The front of a three-story building is visible. It shows two rectangular towers, one on each side of a recessed bay, all clad in tan stucco. The towers have pointed arched windows on the bottom and square ones on top. The bay has four wooden doors at the bottom and a sign with Hebrew writing on top of them, surmounted by large arched multi-paned window. Atop the roof of the bay is a small metal Star of David.
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol in 2013

Joseph was succeeded by Rabbi Shalom Elchanan Jaffe, a founder of the

Herzl died".[87]

Bar Mitzvah of his future son-in-law, Herbert S. Goldstein.[88] Goldstein, who was ordained by Jaffe at the JTSA,[89] founded the Institutional Synagogue in Harlem. He is the only person to have been president of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, the Rabbinical Council of America (first presidium), and the Synagogue Council of America.[90] It was in response to an April 1929 telegram from Goldstein, asking if Albert Einstein believed in God, that Einstein stated, "I believe in Spinoza's God, who reveals himself in the lawful harmony of the world, not in a God who concerns himself with the fate and actions of human beings."[91]

Beth Hamedrash Hagodol had 175 member families by 1908, and the synagogue's annual revenues were $10,000 (today $330,000).[92] In 1909, the synagogue was the site of a mass meeting to protest the 20th Central Conference of American Rabbis, described as "the malicious misrepresentation of Judaism by the so-called reformed rabbis in conference in this city",[93] and in 1913 the synagogue was the site of a "historic mass meeting" to raise funds for the first Young Israel synagogue, at which Jacob Schiff was the guest speaker.[94] Membership had fallen to 110 families by 1919.[95]

Dr. Benjamin Fleischer, a noted orator, was elected rabbi of Beth Hamedrash Hagodol in September 1924.[96] While serving as Beth Hamedrash Hagodol's rabbi he published his 1938 philosophical work Revaluation. Miscellaneous essays, lectures and discourses on Jewish religious philosophy, ethics and history[97] and his 1941 military history From Dan To Megiddo.[98] In May 1939, he and two other rabbis (and a fourth rabbi as secretary) formed the first permanent beth din (court of Jewish law) in the U.S.[99]

In the early-to-mid-20th century the congregation's financial footing was still not sound; though the Norfolk Street building had been purchased in 1885 for $45,000 (and $10,000 in alterations and repairs),

Biblical scenes".[4][57][101] At the end of December 1946, then-president Abraham Greenwald stated that unless $35,000 (today $550,000) were immediately raised for the repair of the building, it would have to be demolished.[102]

high school aged boys.[2]

The congregation's building was again threatened with demolition in 1967, but Oshry, possibly the first Lower East Side rabbi to recognize the value of landmark designation, was successful in having it designated a

New York City landmark, thus saving it.[1][104][105] At that time the congregation claimed 1,400 members.[53]

In 1974, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission applied to have the building added to the National Register of Historic Places, and considered significant at the state level; on the application the building's condition was described as "excellent".[64] The case was reviewed on June 19, 1974, and the site was deemed ineligible.[106] The building was repainted and repaired in 1977,[107] but in subsequent years deteriorated and suffered damage.

Late 1990s to present

A wide, panoramic view of a synagogue sanctuary can be seen. Three rows of wooden pews lead to the front of the room; the middle row is interrupted by a raised square wooden platform, surrounded by a heavy wooden railing with lights on each corner. At the front of the room is a large wooden ark, surrounded on three sides by painted scenes of buildings and trees. At the sides of the room are balconies with heavy wooden railings, interrupted by large columns.
Beth Hamedrash Hagodol sanctuary in 2005

In the summer of 1997, a storm blew out the main two-story

High Holidays.[109] The New York Landmarks Conservancy's Endangered Buildings fund gave $2,500 for a temporary metal window, and assisted in getting approval from the Landmarks Preservation Commission for the work required to repair the damage,[101] but the congregation did not have the $10,000 required to pay for it.[110] Beth Hamedrash Hagodol received an additional $2,000 from the New York Landmarks Conservancy's Sacred Sites program in 1998 for a conditions survey.[111] In 1999 a second application for National Historical designation was made, this time successful; the building was deemed significant at the local level,[112] and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 30.[8]

The congregation raised $40,000 in 2000 for emergency repairs, and was awarded a $230,000 grant by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation for restoration work, including roof repair, but had not been able to raise the matching funds required to receive the grant. On December 6, 2001, a fire and subsequent fire-fighting efforts severely damaged the roof, ceiling, mural paintings and decorative plasterwork.[113]

The National Trust for Historic Preservation designated the building an endangered historic site in 2003,[114] the only synagogue on the list.[104] It still retained a number of significant architectural features, including "the ornate ark and pulpit, central bimah (reader's platform) with etched glass lamps, cantilevered balconies, Gothic vaulted ceiling, and colorful wall paintings"; the lighting included "converted gas fixtures".[115] Features retained from the original construction included Gothic Revival style woodwork and cast-iron railing that follows the lot line,[7][116] and the original wooden pews.[58] That same year Oshry died. His successor—designated by Oshry himself—was his son-in-law, Rabbi Mendl Greenbaum.[16]

By 2006, $1 million of an estimated required $3.5 million had been raised for repairs to the structure.[105] In 2007, Greenbaum made the decision to shut the synagogue down, as its membership had dwindled to around 15. The building was mostly closed to the public as its damaged interior was considered a hazard for visitors.[18] The synagogue, "the home of the oldest Orthodox congregation continuously housed in a single location in New York" sat "padlocked and empty" with holes in the roof and plaster falling from the ceiling.[2][107] In 2011, the Buildings Department issued a vacate order.[20]

Reportedly, the

Borough President's office, but had yet to receive most of the city funds. The group was also trying to raise $400,000 from private donors for the first phase of the renovation, which would secure the structure and roof.[2] Led by Greenbaum, Beth Hamedrash Hagodol was down to around 20 regularly attending members, and was sharing facilities with a congregation on Henry Street.[19]

By the end of 2012 at least a million dollars in grants for repairs to the building had gone unused and were rescinded.

Landmarks Preservation Commission seeking permission to demolish the building to make way for a new residential development. In place of the synagogue, Greenbaum envisioned a 45,000 square foot condo building with room for a small synagogue on the ground floor, and possibly a kollel.[20][117] This application was withdrawn—at least temporarily—in March 2013, but the group Friends of the Lower East Side described Beth Hamedrash Hagodol's status as "demolition by neglect".[21]

2017 fire

On May 14, 2017, shortly after 7 p.m., a

three-alarm fire broke out in the unused synagogue after what an eyewitness called a "big explosion". The fire was brought under control at around midnight by approximately 150 firefighters[118][5][119][6]—who, during the fire, allowed Rabbi Yehuda Oshry, the son of Ephraim Oshry, to rescue the Torah scrolls[120]—but not before it "largely destroyed" the structure. Although still under investigation as of Monday May 15, the fire was said to seem "suspicious" due to surveillance video that showed three young people running from the area just before the fire broke out. The fire brought down the ceiling and walls of the synagogue, creating a 15-foot (4.6 m) pile of rubble.[6] On May 17, three days after the fire, a 14-year-old boy was arrested and charged with setting the fire; the boy's two companions were questioned and released, although they are considered to be witnesses. The Fire Department's investigation into how the fire was started was being held up by the need to install supports in order to safely enter the building.[121][120] By mid-June, the city's Legal Department was still investigating, and prosecutors had not charged the boy who had been arrested.[122]

In the aftermath of the fire, the synagogue took steps for the possible demolition of the building. The city's

New York City Landmark Preservation Commission (LPC) for a general demolition permit, which did not specify how much of the structure was planned to be razed; that would depend on a determination of "structural findings". The synagogue also provided materials to Manhattan Community Board 3, with a request that their application be heard by an advisory panel. Prior to the fire, Rabbi Mendel Greenbaum had been in discussion with groups such as the Chinese-American Planning Council and the Gotham Organization about selling the building's air rights in connection with the potential development of a neighboring parcel, to help pay for the possible renovation and preservation of the synagogue.[122] The LPC responded on July 11 with a permit for removal of unsafe parts of the building, but required that other parts be evaluated for possible preservation. The LPC's engineers would monitor the demolition.[123] Parts of the damaged synagogue were being demolished by early 2018.[124]

After the fire, the Chinese-American Planning Council and the Gotham Organization originally planned to incorporate the remnants of the synagogue building into their 30-story residential development.[125] However, in June 2019, the LPC's engineers announced that the remnants of the south tower would have to be destroyed due to its structural instability.[126] A worker died in October 2019 after part of the burned building collapsed.[127][128] An investigation found that an engineer and a demolition firm, both hired by Beth Hamedrash Hagodol, had recommended the demolition of the whole building but that the DOB had refused to overrule the orders of LPC commissioners.[128] A housing lottery for the residential development at 60 Norfolk Street, which replaced the synagogue building, was launched in 2022.[129]

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b Dunlap (2004), p. 22
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Taylor (2008).
  3. ^ NRHP State listings: NEW YORK – New York County.
  4. ^ a b c d Mendelson (2009), pp. 115–117.
  5. ^ a b c Brito, Chris (May 14, 2017) "Fire destroys historic Lower East Side synagogue". PIX 11. Retrieved May 14, 2017.
  6. ^ a b c d Hobbs, Allegra (May 15, 2017) "'Suspicious' Footage Shows 3 Fleeing Area Near Synagogue That Burned: NYPD" Archived 2017-05-16 at the Wayback Machine DNAinfo
  7. ^ a b c Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 7, pp. 1–2.
  8. ^ a b c NRHP Weekly List: 11/29/99-12/03/99.
  9. ^ "Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Designation Report" Archived 2018-02-25 at the Wayback Machine New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (February 28, 1967)
  10. ISBN 978-0-19538-386-7
    .
  11. ISBN 0-231-12543-7
    ., p.22
  12. ^ or Beth Hamidrash Hagadol, Beth Hamedrash Hagadol, Beth Midrash Hagadol
  13. ^ a b c Marcus (1989), p. 337.
  14. ^ a b c d e f Olitzky & Raphael (1996), p. 251.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h Caplan (2008), p. 173.
  16. ^ a b c Amateau (2003).
  17. ^ a b c The New York Times, August 17, 1885, p. 8.
  18. ^ a b c Austerlitz (2007).
  19. ^ a b According to Taylor (2008). According to Mendelson (2009), p. 117, "Due to structural problems, the small congregation is no longer able to meet for daily prayers in the basement study hall [of Beth Hamedrash Hagodol]".
  20. ^ a b c Litvak (2013).
  21. ^ a b c Singer (2013).
  22. ^ a b Kaufman (1999), p. 174.
  23. ^ a b Sussman.
  24. ^ Caplan (2008), p. 171.
  25. ^ See Sherman (1996), p. 21, and Caplan (2008), p. 172.
  26. ^ a b c d e f The New York Times, May 10, 1887, p. 5.
  27. ^ a b c d Marcus (1989), p. 341.
  28. ^ Sherman (1996), p. 22.
  29. ^ a b c d e f g Kaufman (1999), p. 175.
  30. ^ Many sources describe the congregants as "Russian", while others describe them as "Polish". Most Polish Jews at the time lived in Vistula Land and were citizens of Russia. According to Rischin (1977), p. 110, "At the turn of the century all East European [Jew]s, despite their diversity, were characterized as 'Russians'".
  31. ^ Eldridge Street Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, p. 15, footnote 16.
  32. ^ Marcus (1989), pp. 337–338.
  33. ^ Maffi (1994), p. 122.
  34. ^ Marcus (1989), p. 338.
  35. ^ Olitzky & Raphael (1996), p. 8.
  36. ^ Gurock (1998), p. 47.
  37. ^ According to Kaufman (1999) p. 175 and the Eldridge Street Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, p. 16. Karp (2003) p. 14, while agreeing substantively on the details, gives the date of the split as 1858.
  38. ^ a b Eldridge Street Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, p. 16.
  39. ^ a b Karp (2003), p. 14.
  40. ^ Eldridge Street Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, p. 17, and footnote 22.
  41. ^ a b Gurock (1998), p. 48.
  42. ^ a b c d Gurock (1998), p. 49.
  43. ^ a b Sherman (1996), p. 4.
  44. ^ a b c d e f Levine (2008).
  45. ^ Caplan (2008), p. 172.
  46. ^ Sherman (1996), p. 5.
  47. ^ Levine (2008) writes that the meeting was "attended by delegates from 32 New York City congregations". Gurock (1998), p. 76, footnote 51 writes that an announcement in Philadelphia's Jewish Record "noted that twenty-four synagogues signed the call and twenty-five others were prepared to cooperate". Caplan (2008), p. 173, describes them as "several leading Orthodox congregations in New York".
  48. ^ Gurock (1998), p. 51.
  49. ^ Gurock (1998), p. 76, footnote 51.
  50. ^ Caplan (2008), p. 173, writes that the Malbim "declined". Levine (2008) writes that he instead accepted the "rabbinate of Krementchug in Russia". Gurock (1998), p. 51, writes that he accepted the New York position, but "passed away en route".
  51. ^ a b Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 8, p. 1.
  52. ^ Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 8, p. 2.
  53. ^ a b Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue, Landmarks Preservation Commission Designation Report, February 28, 1967.
  54. ^ Eldridge Street Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, p. 17.
  55. ^ a b c d e Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 8, p. 3.
  56. ^ Dolkart (1997), Section 8, p. 2.
  57. ^ a b Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 7, p. 2.
  58. ^ a b Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 7, p. 3.
  59. ^ a b Kaufman (1999), p. 176.
  60. ^ Gurock (1998), pp. 49–50.
  61. ^ Gurock (1998), p. 50.
  62. ^ Diner (2000), footnote 52, p. 204.
  63. ^ a b c d Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 8, p. 4.
  64. ^ a b Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, March 13, 1974.
  65. ^ a b Weissman Joselit (1990), p. 5.
  66. ^ Gurock (1998), p. 256, footnote 14.
  67. ^ See Caplan (2008), p. 173, and Tannenbaum (2007).
  68. ^ Lower East Side Jewish Conservancy.
  69. ^ a b Rischin (1977), p. 148.
  70. ^ a b See Caplan (2008), p. 173, and The New York Times, July 22, 1888, p. 8.
  71. ^ a b Blondheim (1998), p. 191.
  72. ^ According to Blondheim (1998), p. 192. Marcus (1989), p. 342 describes him as "a brilliant preacher", and Gurock (2003), p. 52 writes that "his East-European-style oratory packed Beth Hamidrash Hagadol". Caplan (2008), p. 173, writes that his sermons "although initially arousing nostalgic sentiments among New York's immigrants, ceased over time to appeal to them".
  73. ^ Gurock (2003), p. 52.
  74. ^ See Rischin (1977), p. 148, Marcus (1989), p. 342, Sherman (1996), p. 194, Caplan (2008), p. 173, and Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 8, p. 4.
  75. ^ See Rischin (1977), p. 148, Sherman (1996), p. 110, and The New York Times, July 29, 1902, p. 9.
  76. ^ See East Midwood Jewish Center NRHP Registration Form, January 5, 2006, Section 8, p. 5. According to Rischin (1977), pp. 104–105, "with the onset of the great migration each town and village asserted its individuality. As early as 1892 a contemporary directory listed 136 religious societies on the Lower East Side and doubtless there were more. Ninety-three were registered as Russian-Polish; the rest, classified as Austro-Hungarian, embraced Austrian, Hungarian, Rumanian, and some German congregations. The Beth Hamedrash Hagadol on Norfolk Street alone welcomed all Jews".
  77. ^ Rischin (1977), p. 105.
  78. ^ American Jewish Year Book, Vol. 1, p. 193.
  79. ^ American Jewish Year Book, Vol. 2, p. 350.
  80. ^ Weissman Joselit (1990), p. 6.
  81. ^ Raphael (2003), p. 90.
  82. ^ See The New York Times, July 29, 1902, p. 9, and Tannenbaum (2007).
  83. ^ See Marcus (1989), p. 341, and Caplan (2008), p. 173.
  84. ^ Goren (1999), p. 233, footnote 16.
  85. ^ Sherman (1996), pp. 108–109.
  86. ^ Hoffman, Joshua (1992). The American Rabbinic Career of Rabbi Gavriel Zev Margolis. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-01-16.
  87. ^ Marcus (1989), p. 699.
  88. ^ Goldstein (1928), p. xvi.
  89. ^ Gurock (2003), p. 58. Gurock spells Jaffe "Jaffee".
  90. ^ Reichel (2005).
  91. ^ Jammer (2002), pp. 48–49.
  92. ^ American Jewish Year Book, Vol. 9, p. 287.
  93. ^ The New York Times, November 17, 1909, p. 7.
  94. ^ Kaufman (1999), p. 203.
  95. ^ American Jewish Year Book, Vol. 21, p. 459.
  96. ^ The New York Times, September 24, 1924, p. 8.
  97. ^ Fleischer (1938).
  98. ^ Fleischer (1941).
  99. ^ See The New York Times, May 10, 1939, p. 8 and TIME, May 15, 1939.
  100. ^ The New York Times, October 10, 1921, p. 2.
  101. ^ a b c Jewish Heritage Report, Winter 1997–98.
  102. ^ The New York Times, December 30, 1946, p. 13.
  103. ^ Martin (2003).
  104. ^ a b Mark (2006).
  105. ^ a b Siegel (2006).
  106. ^ Letter from Lynn A. Beebe, Division of Historic Preservation, Office of Parks and Recreation, to Assemblyman Anthony G. DiFalco, May 13, 1975.
  107. ^ a b Sanders & Gillon (1980), p. 47.
  108. ^ According to Dewan (2001). According to the Jewish Heritage Report, Winter 1997–98 and Los Angeles Times, February 14, 1998, p. B-5, the window was five stories.
  109. ^ Los Angeles Times, February 14, 1998, p. B-5.
  110. ^ According to Dewan (2001). According to the Jewish Heritage Report, Winter 1997–98, the congregation needed $6,000 to complete the repairs.
  111. ^ See Daily News (New York), June 29, 1998. and Jewish Heritage Report, Spring-Summer 1998.
  112. ^ Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue NRHP Registration Form, June 20, 1999, Section 3.
  113. ^ Dewan (2001).
  114. ^ National Trust for Historic Preservation (2003).
  115. ^ Wolfe (2003), p. 175.
  116. ^ Dolkart & Postal (2009), p. 49.
  117. ^ Ungar-Sargon (2013).
  118. ^ Staff (May 14, 2017) "Firefighters Combatting 3-Alarm Blaze in Lower East Side Synagogue" Archived 2017-05-16 at the
    NY1 News
  119. ^ Hurowitz, Noah (May 14, 2017) "Fire Tears Through Historic Beth Hamedrash Hagodol Synagogue on LES: FDNY" Archived 2017-06-02 at the Wayback Machine DNAinfo
  120. ^ a b Southall, Ashley and Dunlap, David W. (May 17, 2017) "Teenager Set Manhattan Synagogue Ablaze, Police Say" The New York Times
  121. ^ Hobbs, Allegra (May 17, 2017) "14-Year-Old Boy Charged With Setting Fire to LES Synagogue, Police Say" Archived 2017-10-22 at the Wayback Machine DNAinfo
  122. ^ a b Hobbs, Allegra (June 19, 2017) "Arson-Ravaged Historic LES Synagogue Files for Demolition Permit" Archived 2017-07-10 at the Wayback Machine DNAinfo
  123. ^ Hobbs, Allegra (July 12, 2017) "City Approves Partial Demolition of Historic Synagogue on Lower East Side" Archived 2017-08-21 at the Wayback Machine DNAinfo
  124. ^ Walker, Ameena (January 2, 2018). "Little remains of fire-ravaged Beth Hamedrash Hagodol synagogue". Curbed NY. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  125. ^ Wachs, Audrey (January 11, 2018). "Senior housing to rise around fire-ravaged Lower East Side synagogue". The Architect’s Newspaper. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  126. ^ Spivack, Caroline (2019-06-25). "Fire-gutted Beth Hamedash Hagodol Synagogue's tower will be demolished". Curbed NY. Retrieved 2019-09-05.
  127. ^ Maisel, Todd (October 21, 2019). "Construction worker dies after part of synagogue collapses in Manhattan". amNewYork. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  128. ^ a b Smith, Greg B. (July 31, 2023). "A fatal collapse at burned-out Beth Hamedrash happened after the city's preservation panel forced rebuilding, over its own expert's objections". THE CITY - NYC News. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
  129. ^ Ginsburg, Aaron; Schulz, Dana (October 3, 2022). "At former LES synagogue site, lottery opens for 86 affordable senior units, from $654/month". 6sqft. Retrieved October 19, 2023.

Bibliography

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