Shaarai Torah Synagogue () is an historic former Modern Orthodox Jewish synagogue building located at 32 Providence Street, Worcester, Massachusetts, in the United States. Worcester's first Modern Orthodox "shul" (and 6th overall), Shaarai Torah was considered the city's "Mother Synagogue" for many years.
History The congregation, which was incorporated on January 1, 1904, held daily worship services for two years in a cottage they had purchased at 32 Providence Street in the heart of Worcester's east side Union Hill neighborhood, where most Jewish immigrants to Worcester lived. High Holiday services in 1904 and 1905 were held at Ancient Order of Hibernians (A.O.H.) Hall at 26 Trumbull Street while the present structure was built. At a final cost of $30,000 ($ in current dollar terms), the new building, designed by Edwin T. Chapin in a Classical Revival style, and modeled after Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun in New York City, opened on September 14, 1906.Feingold, Norma. Shaarai Torah: Life Cycle of a Synagogue. Published by Worcester Historical Museum, 30 Elm Street, Worcester, Mass. 1991.
Merger Most of the charter members of Shaarai Torah had left Congregation Sons of Abraham, Worcester's second-oldest synagogue, because they felt it did not meet the needs of the younger generation. One of the major issues was the use of English in the synagogue.Albert B. Southwick. "Shaarai Torah's 1906 birth is remembered." Telegram & Gazette 3 Oct. 1999. As early as 1907, Sons of Abraham leaders discussed implementing changes to make merging with Shaarai Torah possible. The merger finally took place in 1948. From then on, the synagogue was officially known as Congregation Shaarai Torah Sons of Abraham.
West Side branch By 1957, roughly 74% of Worcester's 9,333 Jews lived on the tonier west side of the city, leaving less than 1,600 living on the east side. Additionally, most west side Jews, who were generally younger and more assimilated than those who remained on the east side, attended Reform Temple Emanuel or Conservative Congregation Beth Israel as Orthodoxy fell out of favor with most upwardly mobile American Jews. On September 10, 1959, Shaarai Torah purchased the former home of Beth Israel at 835 Pleasant Street as a west side branch, naming it Shaarai Torah West. The original building became known as Shaarai Torah East. Shaarai Torah West, affiliated with the Orthodox Union, became an independent congregation on November 9, 1964 and continues to operate to this day.
Final days The Providence Street building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. The synagogue stopped functioning in 1996 and finally closed shortly after a devastating arson fire in 1999.James Dempsey. "Synagogue last working on East Side Temple has haggard look of place whose time gone. " Telegram & Gazette 22 Sep. 1999. Once one of at least 12 neighborhood Orthodox synagogues, when it closed Shaarai Torah was the last remaining functioning synagogue on the east side of Worcester. The building was sold in 1997 to Al Tapper, a Worcester native and philanthropist who had plans to turn it into a Jewish museum or multi-ethnic community center, but those plans were scrapped after the fire. Tapper was able to get the developer to agree to keep the Hebrew inscriptions on the facade of the building intact.
Redevelopment Abandoned and in disrepair, the synagogue was added to the Worcester Preservation Society's list of endangered properties. In 2003, the building was finally sold to Selim LaHoud, a property developer, who hired Kopec Contracting to convert it into 11 apartments known as Red Oak Condominiums.
Rabbinical leadership
Ordinal Name Years Notes Isaac Werne (orig. Wiernikowski) 1906–1911 Who's who in American Jewry. Jewish Biographical Bureau (New York, NY), 1926. Solomon Golubowski The Worcester Directory Containing a General Directory of the Citizens, a Business Directory and the City and County Register. R.L. Polk & Company, 1916 (Worcester, MA). Gershon Appel 1943–1947 Meyer Greenberg 1947–1954 Joseph Gold 1954–1989 Rabbi Joseph Gold dies in Worcester. Jewish Post, Indianapolis, Marion County, 9 August 1989.
East Side Synagogue history
Hebrew NameTransliterationEnglish TranslationAddress(es)Years OpenNotesבני ישראלB'nai YisraelSons of Israel79 Green Street, 24 Providence Street1875-1957also known as the Balbirishocker Shul, Torn down for construction of I-290 in 1957בני אברהםB'nai AvrahamSons of Abraham10 Plymouth Street (1888-1913), 23 Coral StreetNEW SYNAGAGUE OPENED. Boston Globe, 21 Jul 1913.1886-1948Former synagogue is now history :[ALL Edition]. Telegram & Gazette, 30 Dec 1993.Merged with Shaarai Torah in 1948שערי צדקShaarei TzedekGates of Righteousness8 Beach Street, 16 Gold Street, 3 Summit Street1892-?also known as Tower of Truthאגודת אחיםAgudas AchimUnion of Brothers19 Brown Street, 9 Pond Street1897-?Adler, Cyrus & Szold, Henrietta. American Jewish Year Book, Volume 9. American Jewish Committee, 1907.also known as Good Brothers(צמח צדק (אנשי סמוליאן Tzemach Tzedek (Anshe Smolian)Plant of Justice (People of Smolyan)10 Plymouth Street1900-1923Changed name to Sons of Jacob in 1923שערי תורהShaarai TorahGates of Learning32 Providence Street1904-1999(אגודת ישראל (אנשי ספרד Agudas Israel (Anshe Safard)Union of Israel (Sephardic)66 Harrison Street1913-1972Demolished 3/24/72בני יעקבB'nai YaakovSons of Jacob104 Harrison StreetSecretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Corporations Division: Business Entity Summary. Summary for: AGUDAS SONS OF JACOB SYNAGOGUE, ID Number: 000083446.1923-1965Merged with Tifereth Israel (West Side) in 1965תפארת ישראלTifereth IsraelPride of Israel42 Harrison Street19??-1957Torn down for construction of I-290 in 1957בני ציוןB'nai TzionSons of Zion50 Granite Street1938-1986Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Corporations Division: Business Entity Summary. Summary for: SONS OF ZION, OF WORCESTER, ID Number: 000004478.קדימהKadimahForwardאנשי ראקישוקAnshe RakishokPeople of Rokiškis
Notable alumni and members S. N. Behrman, playwright and screenwriterBehrman, S.N. "The Worcester Account." Random House, 1954. Charles Tobias, lyricist and inductee of the Songwriters Hall of FameWilliamson, Chet. "J23: The Tin Pan Alley Tobias Brothers" JazzSphere, November 11, 2007. Harry Tobias, songwriter and inductee of the Songwriters Hall of Fame
See also Temple Emanuel Sinai (Worcester, Massachusetts) Congregation Beth Israel (Worcester, Massachusetts) National Register of Historic Places listings in eastern Worcester, Massachusetts
References
External links Shaarai Torah West The Last Minyan Kopec Contracting - Red Oak Condominiums