Park Synagogue, one of the largest Conservative Jewish synagogues in the world, was founded in 1869 in Cleveland, Ohio, as Anshe Emeth Congregation by twelve Jewish immigrant families from Poland. In 1904, the congregation engaged its first English speaking rabbi, Samuel Margolies. Anshe Emeth merged with Congregation Beth Tefilo ca. 1916, and a large synagogue was built for the combined congregation on East 105th Street in 1922. That same year, Rabbi Solomon Goldman, a well-known scholar, teacher, and activist, was hired. He led the congregation into the ranks of Conservative Judaism. In 1934, the congregation engaged one of its own confirmands, Armond E. Cohen, as rabbi. The synagogue, popularly called the Cleveland Jewish Center, became a focus of Jewish life in the Glenville area, serving the social, intellectual, and recreational needs, as well as the religious, of its members; one of the first synagogues in the United States combining all of these facilities in one structure. Following the eastward movement of Cleveland's Jewish population, property on Mayfield Road in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was purchased in 1942 from the private Park School. In 1950, Park Synagogue (as the congregation came to be known) dedicated a new building, designed by Eric Mendelsohn. In 1986 Park Synagogue purchased the Brith Emeth Congregation building in Pepper Pike. In 1988, after a two year transition period, Brith Emeth Congregation had been fully assimilated into the Park Synagogue Congregation. Some former members of B'rith Emeth affiliated with Park Synagogue. The former is now known as Park Main, while the latter as Park Synagogue East.
The Park Synagogue Photographs, Series II, 1942-1986 and undated, consist of one hundred black and white and twenty color photographs from the Brith Emeth Congregation and Park Synagogue.
Researchers interested in the history of Brith Emeth and the history of Park Synagogue, including its construction, will find the collection to be helpful. Those interested in post-World War II Jewish history in Cleveland, Ohio, including the development of Hebrew language education and the act of consecration in Conservative Judaism (marking the beginning of a formal period of study), will find visual representations of some congregational activities. Genealogists with knowledge of relatives' participation in the life of these congregations may also find the collection to be especially useful.
The collection is arranged in two series. Each series is arranged alphabetically by subject and then chronologically.
The researcher should also consult PG 488 Park Synagogue Photographs; MS 4763 Park Synagogue (Anshe Emeth-Beth Tefilo) Records; MS 4747 Brith Emeth Congregation Records; and MS 5017 Brith Emeth Congregation Records, Series II.
Processed by John Clement, Sean Martin, and Margaret Burzynski-Bays in 2014-2015.
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[Container ___, Folder ___ ] PG 611 Park Synagogue Photographs, Series II, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of Park Synagogue in 2014.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.