Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim congregation records
Item
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Country
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US
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Language of name of institution
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eng
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Contact information: postal address
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66 George Street, Charleston, South Carolina 29424
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Contact information: phone number
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001 (843) 953 8016
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Reference number
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Mss 1047
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Type of reference number
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Call number
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Title (official language of the state)
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Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim congregation records
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Language of title
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eng
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Date(s)
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1798/2002
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Date note
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Bulk: 20th century
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Language(s)
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deu
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eng
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heb
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yid
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Extent
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15.24 linear metres
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Scope and content
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This fonds comprises records from the Congregation Beth Elohim of Charleston, South Carolina. It is arranged into 13 series, according to subjects and document types:
Board of Trustee Minutes (1838-1995): includes documents concerning all aspects of congregational life, such as the Congregation's staff, fundraising, building, etc. It also contains data on its members, their transgressions, marriages, and deaths, among other topics.
Financial records (1800-1999): includes records on fines, income, salaries, pew assignments, various projects, estates, religious school finances, etc.
Trustee and Rabbi Records and Correspondence (1855-1991, bulk 1930s-1970s) includes a few photocopies of 18th-century documents detailing all aspects of synagogue administration.
Employee, Member and Congregant records (1901-1999): contains some vital statistics, member lists, payroll, and some sermons.
Special Events and Anniversaries (1887-1999): includes details on events at the Beth Elohim and landmarks in its history, along with many photographs.
Cemeteries (1798-1999, bulk 1887-1991): includes data on numerous Beth Elohim cemeteries, plats, finances, and images.
Buildings (1915-2002): contains data on Beth Elohim synagogues (1794 and 1841); tabernacles (1838 and 1949), and office building at 86 Hasell St. with photos and reports on damage and repairs; and also photocopies of early documents.
Archives (1931-1991): includes records on the early history of the Congregation and the creation and running of a museum and archives.
Religious School and Youth Program (1884-1998): contains records on the management of the religious school and various youth organisations.
Sisterhood and Brotherhood Papers (1869-1995): contains papers detailing the activities of the Congregation's men and women.
Music (ca. 1866-1967): includes mostly printed but some holograph manuscript fragments of music and related materials used in services.
Audio Visual materials (1950-1980): contains audiotapes of programs at synagogue, videotapes, and educational phonograph discs.
Miscellaneous: includes a register of visitors (1956-1994), artefacts (1904-1976) and 19th-century bound volumes.
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(source: College of Charleston online catalogue)
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Administrative / Biographical history
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The Jewish presence in Charleston, South Carolina, dates back to the late 17th century. However, it was only in 1749 that the community was numerous enough to organise a congregation, the Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim. Its first hazzan was Isaac da Costa, and most of its early leading members were Sephardim. Fifteen years after the congregation's establishment, the Coming Street Cemetery was established, the oldest surviving Jewish burial ground in the American South.
At first, prayers were recited in private quarters and, from 1775, in an improvised synagogue. The construction of the Charleston synagogue began in 1792 and was dedicated two years later. However, the great Charleston fire of 1838 destroyed the building. In 1841, it was replaced by the synagogue in use today. The Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim is the second oldest synagogue building in the United States and the oldest in continuous use. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1980.
Charleston is also acknowledged as the birthplace of Reform Judaism in the United States. Forty-seven congregants petitioned the synagogue's Adjunta (the trustees) to change the Sephardic Orthodox liturgy in 1824.
The petition was denied and led to the resignation of those congregants. They then formed The Reformed Society of Israelites, led by Isaac Harby, Abraham Moise II, and David Nunes Carvalho. Nine years later, The Reformed Society rejoined the old congregation. The first service in the new synagogue built after the great fire introduced a liberalised ritual. The Beth Elohim became one of the earliest synagogues of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations in 1873 (now Union for Reform Judaism, URJ), and it remains committed to Reform Judaism.
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(source: Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim website)
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System of arrangement
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The fonds is organised into 13 series. In each series, records are generally arranged in chronological order.
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Author of the description
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Carla Vieira, 2022
