JEWISH COMMUNITY

JEWISH COMMUNITY. Religious group. Jewish settlers to Dubuque generally immigrated to this area from Poland, Germany, and Russia. Many settled between 14th and 17th STREETS along Elm, Pine and Maple. In 1840 an estimated fifteen Jewish families lived in Dubuque. An informal worship community was established. According to the faith, a community is best served by a spiritual leader who is learned in the Torah, ritual and liturgy. Services do not need to be conducted by a priest. Instead a quorum of ten adults is required to fulfill the obligation of prayer, and any member can conduct lifecycle events and services.

Meeting first in private homes with services provided by visiting rabbis, the Jewish residents of Dubuque led by Alexander LEVI waited until 1856 to organize into a congregation known as B'nei Jeshrun (Children of God). This group of one hundred member families met at 5th and Locust streets in a rented hall.

By 1867 with new Jewish arrivals from the East, the group had become a bonafide congregation with twenty member families, a paid Rabbi and Chazzan, or singer of the liturgy; a paid schochet, the person who slaughtered meat in a ritually proper or "kosher" way; and a religious school where twenty-five children received instruction in Hebrew and German.

In October 1884, Jewish residents of the Fifth Ward founded the Hebrew Benevolent Society. Like similar BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES of its day, the organization was established to aid needy members. In 1897, according the news articles of the day, a "Hebraic organization" was formed in the city. The population of Jewish residents increased to an estimated one hundred by 1900, but declined to fifty by 1950.

In 1890 B'nei Jesrun had changed its name to B'nei Abraham (Children of Abraham} and a second congregation, Knesses Israel (Gathering or Assembly of Israel) had opened on 15th and Elm. A third group Kehilla (Community) appeared for a time and may have been a fraternal organization or a separate prayer quorum or minyan.

In 1901 Knesses Israel had 125 families and was meeting on 10th and Washington. Members of this group founded the Jewish Ladies Aid Society, This group, renamed the Sisterhood of Beth El in 1947, provided funds for the congregation to buy a lot and two-story house on Maple between 17th and 18th streets. The congregation--forerunner of Temple Beth El--lasted another thirty-five years until the DUBUQUE PACKING COMPANY bought the property and demolished the building.

A Talmud Tar, Hebrew school, was opened in a building at the corner of White and Eleventh streets in October 1900. The school only gave religious instruction, and classes were held from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. The following month, the Hebrew Independent Political Club was established with 150 charter members. Officers of the organization included Louis Motulsky, president; J. Blumenthal, secretary; G. Blumenthal, treasurer; and L. Conigsky and I. Manhoff, trustees. The announcement for the club stated that the organization would take an active role in elections and encourage the members to vote as a bloc.

Articles of incorporation were filed for the Dubuque Protective Club in December 1902. The purposes of the organization were stated as social and intellectual improvement of the membership and holding religious meetings.

In February 1928. a Hadassah chapter was organized in Dubuque. Local officers included Mrs. Louis Rotman, chairman; Mrs. Myer Goodman, secretary; Mrs. Charles Pochter, assistant secretary; Mrs. Louis Belsky, cultural chairperson; and Mrs. Freda Paul, visiting chaperson. With the specific goal of health work in Palestine, Hadassah chapters in the United Staes had already accomplished the maintenance of five modern hospitals, forty rural stations, sixteen infant stations, and a tuberculosis sanatorium. At the time the Dubuque chapter was formed, the organization had broadened its involvement into providing pre-natal and post-natal care, school lunches, eye and teeth treatment, and general public education in hygiene.

The current Temple Beth El(Children of God) was funded largely by B'nai B'rith Dubuque Lodge 1029. B'nai B'rith (Children of the Covenant) is the oldest continuously operating Jewish service organization in the world. It was started in 1843 and chartered in Dubuque in 1927. The temple--serving 85 member families--was dedicated in 1939 at a time when Hitler was storming Europe and anti-Semitism was being voiced here in the United States by people like Henry Ford and Father Charles Coughlin. Dubuque and its citizens, however, encouraged the congregation and the laying of the cornerstone was an ecumenical occasion. The synagogue, an achievement of B'nai B'rith, was built in November 1939. Louis Rotman, president of the Congregation Beth El, presided at the ceremonies. Rev. Charles Carriel, pastor of WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, represented the Protestant churches of Dubuque while Herbert J. Hoffmann represented Dubuque's Catholics.

In 2008 Temple Beth El was a small but vibrant worship community whose families came from within a ninety-mile radius of the city. The members represented teachers, professionals, leaders of businesses and organizations, and students. The congregation had a strong social justice mission, and many members were active volunteers for area charities and nonprofits. Temple Beth El provided an opportunity to strengthen Jewish identity and deepen respect for Jewish ritual and tradition through the celebration of lifecycle events and the observation of Jewish holidays. The temple also provided opportunities for members to live by Jewish values as they helped to build and shape Dubuque and the region, much like their Jewish predecessors who founded the Jewish community in the mid-19th century.

Prominent Dubuque residents of the Jewish faith have included Ben SAMUELS, Abraham SLIMMER, and HERZBERGER, Magda.