KAM Isaiah Israel is a

Reform Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement ...

synagogue located at 1100 E. Hyde Park Boulevard in the historic Kenwood neighborhood in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

. It is the oldest Jewish congregation in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, with its oldest core founded in 1847 as Kehilath Anshe Ma'arav ("Congregation of the Men of the West";

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

: קהלת אנשי מערב).

History

The congregation Kehilath Anshe Ma'arav ("Congregation of the Men of the West") was founded on November 3, 1847, at the wholesale dry-goods store of Levi Rosenfeld and Jacob Rosenberg located at 155 East Lake Street by twenty men, many of whom hailed from

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

. At the time, this section of the

Chicago Loop The Loop, one of Chicago's 77 designated community areas, is the central business district of the city and is the main section of Downtown Chicago. Home to Chicago's commercial core, it is the second largest commercial business district in Nort ...

was the center of the small

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Jewish community. The newly founded congregation was first housed above Rosenfeld and Rosenberg's store at

Lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

and Wells street. After increasing membership and lack of space, the congregation was soon forced to find a more suitable space to accommodate their growing community. A lot was leased at

Clark Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin with historical links to England, Scotland, and Ireland ''clericus'' meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educate ...

and Quincy streets (now the site of the Kluczynski Federal Building), and construction of a small frame synagogue began. After an investment of $12,000, the one and a half story building, with a capacity of 450 people, was dedicated on June 13, 1851. After only two years, their land lease had expired, forcing the congregation to move the new building to Adams and Wells in 1853. Unscathed by the

Great Chicago Fire of 1871 The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

, KAM's synagogue building was burned down in the Chicago Fire of 1874. In 1890, KAM moved into its

Louis Sullivan Louis Henry Sullivan (September 3, 1856 – April 14, 1924) was an American architect, and has been called a "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism". He was an influential architect of the Chicago School, a mentor to Frank Lloy ...

and

Dankmar Adler Dankmar Adler (July 3, 1844 – April 16, 1900) was a German-born American architect and civil engineer. He is best known for his fifteen-year partnership with Louis Sullivan, during which they designed influential skyscrapers that boldly addr ...

designed temple in Bronzeville, and in 1924 moved again to a private residence in Hyde Park. The former synagogue became the

Pilgrim Baptist Church Pilgrim Baptist Church is a historic church located on the south side of Chicago, Illinois, USA. The landmarked building was originally constructed for a synagogue, Kehilath Anshe Ma'arav. The church is notable both as an architectural landmar ...

, the birthplace of Gospel music. It was placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1973, designated a Chicago Landmark in 1981, and partially destroyed by fire in 2006. In 1971, KAM merged with another

congregation, Isaiah Israel (builders of the present synagogue), to become KAM Isaiah Israel. The synagogue is situated in the Kenwood neighborhood of Chicago, an area known for its large homes and well-to-do residents, such as

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

(who lives across from the synagogue on Greenwood Avenue) and Muhammad Ali. The temple's architecture was inspired by those constructed during the

Byzantine Period The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

of Judaism. The minaret is not on top of the dome as it appears in this photo, but rather it is atop a tower that functions as a chimney, behind the building. Built for the Isaiah Israel congregation in 1924, the structure was designed by Alfred S. Alschuler, who drew his influence from photographs of the second-century

Severus synagogue Hammath Tiberias or Hammat Tiberias is an ancient archaeological site and an Israeli national park known as Hamat Tverya National Park, which is located on the adjacent to Tiberias on the road to Zemach that runs along the shore of the Sea of ...

unearthed at

Tiberias Tiberias ( ; he, טְבֶרְיָה, ; ar, طبريا, Ṭabariyyā) is an Israeli city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's F ...

, in Galilee. The extensions were designed by architects John Alschuler (the son of Alfred) and Ron Dirsmith. The building was designated an official Chicago Landmark on June 9, 1977.

Notable clergy

Solomon Freehof Solomon Bennett Freehof (August 8, 1892 – 1990) was a prominent Reform rabbi, posek, and scholar. Rabbi Freehof served as president of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and the World Union for Progressive Judaism. Beginning in 1955, ...

, rabbi from 1924–1934 *

Arnold Jacob Wolf Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf (March 19, 1924 – December 23, 2008) was an American Reform Rabbi, and a longtime champion of peace and progressive politics. Biography Wolf received an associate degree from the University of Chicago, a BA in philos ...

, rabbi from 1980–2000

Notable members

References

External links

Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kam Isaiah Israel German-American culture in Chicago German-Jewish culture in the United States Synagogues in Chicago Chicago Landmarks Religious organizations established in 1847 Byzantine Revival synagogues Synagogues completed in 1924 Synagogue buildings with domes Reform synagogues in Illinois 1847 establishments in Illinois Synagogues on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Hyde Park, Chicago

History

Notable clergy

Notable members

See also

References

External links