Finding aid for the Cleveland Hebrew Schools Photographs

History of the Cleveland Hebrew Schools

The Cleveland Hebrew Schools evolved from the Montefiore Free Hebrew School (later referred to as the Talmud Torah) established in Cleveland, Ohio, ca. 1885 with an enrollment of 50 children from poor families. In 1905 another communal Hebrew school, founded by Joshua Flock and Aaron Garber, incorporated many innovations. For example, classes were taught in English and Hebrew, rather than Yiddish, and modern Hebrew literature was taught along with courses on Bible and the Hebrew language. When Flock and Garber's school combined with the Talmud Torah in 1907 and Garber became principal (serving until 1926), the method of instruction in the Talmud Torah changed from one of principally rote learning to incorporate many of these innovations. Cleveland's early Talmud Torah movement also received support from Samuel Margolies who was a leader of the Cleveland Orthodox community during his tenure (1904-1916) as Rabbi of Anshe Emeth. Under his guidance, community support was widened and enrollment increased. To aid the growing school, the Judea Ladies Auxiliary was organized in 1908. Their major activities centered on raising funds and a campaign to encourage the enrollment of girls. They were instrumental in the acquisition and maintenance of several buildings from the 1910s to the 1930s. In 1913, the Talmud Torah received an Ohio charter and changed its name to the Cleveland Hebrew School and Institute. In 1918 the Cleveland Hebrew School and Institute taught students from the first through the eighth grade. A.H. (Abraham Hayyim) Friedland (1891-1939), an internationally known educator, poet, and lecturer came to Cleveland in 1921 to head the Cleveland Hebrew School and remained in Cleveland until his death in 1939. In 1924 he also assumed the position of executive director of the newly formed Bureau of Jewish Education. Under Friedland's leadership the Cleveland Hebrew School grew to 2,300 students by 1923, a Hebrew High School and a Teacher Institute were organized in 1926, and the schools became known nationally. Throughout the 1920s, however, they were plagued with a deficit that increased yearly. In response to these critical financial needs, the Parent Council of the Cleveland Hebrew Schools, composed of women representing all PTA branches, was organized in 1930. Their fund-raising activities, an annual dinner and the sale of Passover matzoh, helped pay teacher salaries and lower the large debt. Bernard Levitin served as superintendent from 1944-1970, a period notable for the movement of Cleveland's Jewish population to the suburbs. A major reorganization of the Cleveland Hebrew Schools took place during this period with several Cleveland branches closing and new suburban schools opening. Beginning in the 1950s, as the number of Jewish day schools and congregation-sponsored afternoon Hebrew classes grew, the Cleveland Hebrew Schools enrollment dropped and branches were consolidated. In 1955 the Parent Council organized Camp Oneg, a Hebrew summer day camp and Ganon Gil Nursery, a Hebrew school for pre-school children. In 1967 Cleveland Hebrew High School merged into Akiva High School.

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Scope and Content

The Cleveland Hebrew Schools Photographs, 1912-1976 and undated, consist of individual portraits of some of the organization's leaders, such as A. H. Friedland, Bernard Levitin, and Rabbi Samuel Margolies. Group portraits and views include the Judea Ladies Auxiliary, student groups, Camp Oneg, Ganon Gil Nursery School, graduation classes, various Cleveland Hebrew School locations, and other school events and clubs. The collection includes 187 black and white photographs of varying sizes and one drawing.

This collection is of value to researchers seeking graphic materials depicting the history of Jewish education in America and in Cleveland, Ohio. It includes photographs of the Cleveland Hebrew Schools' antecedent school, the Talmud Torah, and Ha'Ivri Hatza'ir, an organization which promoted Hebrew and Zionism, and whose philosophy the Cleveland Hebrew Schools would incorporate into its curriculum. Other photographs document the Judea Ladies Auxiliary and Cleveland Hebrew School locations, which followed Jewish migration patterns to Mount Pleasant and the Kinsman neighborhoods in Cleveland and to Shaker Heights in the suburbs. The portraits depict some of the organization's nationally known leaders, such as A. H. Friedland (1891-1939), Bernard Levitin and Rabbi Samuel Margolies (1878-1917). In addition, the photographs of Ganon Gil Nursery School and Camp Oneg, both started in 1955, illustrate the development of preschool education and summer programs, national trends in Jewish education. The graduation classes (1912-1976) are of interest to genealogists, as most of the students are identified by name, either in Hebrew or in English.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

None.

The researcher should also consult MS 4620 Cleveland Hebrew School Records; MS 5359 Cleveland Hebrew School Records and Photographs, Series II; and MS 3832 Cleveland Bureau of Jewish Education Records.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] PG 495 Cleveland Hebrew Schools Photographs, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Gifts of Cleveland Hebrew Schools in 1985 and Evelyn Garber in 1995.

Processing Information

Processed by Jane A. Avner in 1998.

Detailed Description of The Collection