Oheb Zedek (Taylor Road Synagogue) was founded in 1904 and incorporated five other small to medium-sized Orthodox congregations by the early 1950s. Hungarian Jews who had left Congregation B'nai Jeshurun in a dispute over mixed seating formed Oheb Zedek. In 1905 the congregation purchased property at East 38th and Scovill and began building a synagogue, which was completed in September of that year. Henry A. Liebowitz served as the first rabbi (1906-22). By 1915 the congregation operated a branch in Glenville near 107th and Superior for those members who had moved. A new synagogue was dedicated at Parkwood and Morison streets in Glenville in August of 1922, replacing the branch at 107th and Superior. Samuel Benjamin, who had previously served at Anshe Emeth, was the rabbi at the time of the dedication (1922-1925). He was followed by Rabbi Israel Porath (1925-1939). Rabbi Porath was succeeded by Rabbi Louis Engelberg. By 1950, since approximately half the membership of Oheb Zedek lived in Cleveland Heights near Taylor Road, a branch was established there. In 1952 Oheb Zedek merged with Chibas Jerusalem to form the 500-member Taylor Road Synagogue. In 1953 the Parkwood property was sold and in 1955 the synagogue on Taylor Road was dedicated. During that two-year period from 1953 to 1955, Taylor Road Synagogue completed mergers with Agudath B'nai Israel Anshe Sfard (1953), Agudath Achim (1953), Shaaray Torah (1955), and Knesseth Israel (1955).
Chibas Jerusalem was established in 1904 by thirty-five Jews who rented Crystal Hall at Woodland and East 39th Street for services. In 1910 the congregation purchased a building at East 39th and Scovill. However, as Jews in the lower Woodland area moved eastward, the congregation built synagogues at East 84th and Cedar Road (1917) and on Parkwood Drive in Glenville (1926). It was the largest of the five congregations to merge with Oheb Zedek.
Agudath B'nai Israel Anshe Sfard was established in 1914 and held services in a rented hall on East 51st near Woodland. It was one of the last congregations to leave the Woodland neighborhood, dedicating a synagogue at 105th and Massie Avenue in 1934 or 1935.
Agudath Achim was established in 1891, with Elias Rothschild serving as the spiritual leader. Services were held in a series of rented halls downtown until 1904, when the congregation purchased a building at East 30th and Scovill. The congregation moved to Glenville in 1927, and in 1932 it remodeled a church at 104th and Adams Street, where it held services until merging with Taylor Road Synagogue.
Shaaray Torah was established in 1897 by Lithuanian Jews who met for services at the home of Isaac Crystal near East 23rd and Orange. From 1912-1929 the congregation worshipped in a small brick synagogue on East 55th Street. Later the congregation purchased and remodeled a building adjacent to the Cleveland Jewish Center in Glenville.
Knesseth Israel was established in 1887 by twelve men who had left Congregation B'nai Jeshurun. The congregation held services in several locations until 1907, when it dedicated a synagogue on East 46th between Woodland and Scovill. In the early 1920s, the congregation operated three branches, in Woodland, Glenville, and Buckeye. In 1922 a synagogue was dedicated at 105th and Columbia, which served as its home until the merger with Taylor Road Synagogue.
The Taylor Road Synagogue Records and Photographs, Series II, 1945-2011 and undated, consist of bulletins, 77 black and white photographs, records, and scrapbooks from the Taylor Road Synagogue and its numerous committees.
This collection is of interest to anyone researching the history of Judaism in Cleveland, especially the history of smaller Orthodox congregations founded by Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, and Taylor Road Synagogue itself. Those with an interest in the merger and consolidation of congregations in the mid twentieth century in the United States in general, and in the Cleveland, Ohio, area more specifically, may find the collection of value. Of particular interest are the news release about the construction of the synagogue, the twenty-fifth, fiftieth, and hundredth year anniversary history journals, the Sunday school yearbooks, and the minutes of the Mount Sinai Cemetery Association.
The collection is arranged in two series. Series I: Administrative Records is arranged alphabetically by document type and then alphabetically by subject. Series II: Mount Sinai Cemetery Association is arranged alphabetically by document type.
The researcher should also consult MS 3765 Taylor Road Synagogue Records and PG 591 Taylor Road Synagogue Girl Scout Troops Photographs.
Processed by John Veres and Jackie Wilson in 2017.
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[Container __, Folder __ ] MS 5407 Taylor Road Synagogue Records and Photographs, Series II, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of Leland S. Freedman, 2016.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.