|
|
|
|
Date |
Event |
|
1919
|
South Bergen Hebrew Institute of East Rutherford is established by founding members Mr. Friedman (Treasurer), Mrs. Benowitz
of Carlstadt and Mrs. Korn; members first meet at Kugelmeister Hall for High Holidays and for regular services at Klar's Drug
Store in Carlstadt.
|
|
1921
|
First building is built (on Park Avenue in East Rutherford); first full-time Rabbi is hired.
|
|
1939-1940
|
A plot of land for a cemetery, named Mt. Hebron, is purchased in Lyndhurst by Ira Benowitz, Mr. Zimmerman and one other and
then resold to the Synagogue without profit; money from sale of plots pays off East Rutherford (Park Avenue) mortgage.
|
|
1942
|
Mrs. Ludwig joins congregation and teaches in the Hebrew School.
|
|
1946
|
Peak size of congregation, at 700 members, prompts decision to build a new synagogue.
|
|
1950
|
Additional cemetery land purchased from Charles Koenig of Carlstadt.
|
|
1951
|
Name "Temple Beth El, the Jewish Center of South Bergen" is adopted.
|
|
1953
|
Rabbi Lawrence Gernsein is hired; ground-breaking ceremony is held on site of present (1987) building on Montross Avenue in
Rutherford.
|
|
1955
|
On February 27, dedication ceremony of newly completed building is held; also in February, the newsletter changes its title
from The Center Review to Shofar.
|
The records of Temple Beth El of Rutherford, New Jersey (MC 735), span the years 1920 to 1985, with the bulk of the documents
falling between 1950 and 1978.
Materials covering the period from the Temple's inception in 1919 until the early 1950s when the congregation
moved from East Rutherford to Rutherford is extremely sparse except for FINANCIAL RECORDS, 1920-1965, which show a contrary
emphasis on the early years with very little material from the period following the move.
The most substantial record series in volume and completeness are Board of Trustees' MINUTES, 1948-1950 and
1958-1975, and the congregation's NEWSLETTERS, 1950-1962 and 1972-1985. The FINANCIAL RECORDS, also of considerable volume,
are a good source of information about early members, there being no membership lists of the full congregation present in
the collection. The congregation's ADMINISTRATIVE FILES, 1934-1981 with gaps, are a fairly miscellaneous gathering of materials
found together, but lacking a common theme. Other congregation records include a 1927 CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS, PRINTED MISCELLANY,
1954 and undated, and UNITED JEWISH APPEAL DRIVE MINUTES, 1941-1943.
The records of the Sisterhood are not extensive, but provide a good glimpse of its vigorous character and
its zeal in recruiting new members. Mention is made within the Sisterhood's MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE GENERAL FILES, 1959-1972,
of various meetings, but no minutes of such meetings are present in the collection. Also missing from Sisterhood files is
a complete set of CONGREGATION CALENDARS, which the Sisterhood prepared for many years prior to the examples for 1974/75-1975/76
and 1977/78 which are in the collection. Additional series present in the Sisterhood's records are MEMBERSHIP LISTS, 1970/71-1971/72,
ACCOUNT BOOKS, 1955-1957 and 1961-1962, and an undated PHOTOGRAPH. A cookbook compiled by members of the Sisterhood was removed
from the collection and cataloged individually; it is available in the Sinclair New Jersey collection (call number: SNCLNJ
TX724 .N673 1971).
Records of the Religious School are sparse in all aspects, with BOARD OF EDUCATION MINUTES covering only 1961
to 1973. The lack of earlier minutes may be accounted for by Board of Education topics being addressed at meetings of the
Temple's Board of Trustees (see MINUTES of that body); later Board of Education minutes are not available. Related series
for the Religious School include GENERAL FILES, 1959-1970, ROLL BOOKS, 1953-1954, and an ACCOUNT BOOK, 1928-1934.
No Restrictions.
Temple Beth El (Rutherford, N.J.) Records. MC 735. Special Collections and University Archives, Rutgers
University Libraries.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Congregation |
|
CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS, 1927. (1 folder) |
|
|
Summary: A single pamphlet containing the constitution and by-laws of the South Bergen Hebrew Institute (the Temple's earlier name).
The pamphlet is in English and either Hebrew or Yiddish.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 4 |
2 |
|
Constitution and by-laws,
1927
|
|
NEWSLETTERS, 1950-1962 and 1972-1985. (.45 cubic ft.) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Monthly newsletters of the congregation containing news ranging from local events to the plight of world Jewry, plus calendars,
memoria and regular columns by the rabbi and various officers.
|
|
|
The 1950-1955 newsletters are titled The Center Review and those thereafter are called The Shofar.
|
|
|
Also included in this series is "Business Correspondence" (1977-1978) consisting of a letter to
the newsletter's printer, Sunday Publications, Inc., of Florida, from Congregation President Jack Craminer regarding monies
owed. Also included are invoices, as well as copies of the newsletters to which the invoices refer.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 4 |
3-16 |
|
September 1950-June 1962 and November 1972-January 1979
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 5 |
1-4 |
|
February 1979-January 1985
|
|
5 |
|
Business correspondence,
1977-1978
|
|
PRINTED MISCELLANY, 1954 and undated. (1 folder) |
|
|
Summary: A dinner-dance ad journal (1954) containing a Temple Beth El officer list and advertisements of local businesses. The undated
item is a promotional brochure which provides an overview of the Temple and its various organizations.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 5 |
6 |
|
Printed Miscellany,
1954 and undated
|
|
FINANCIAL RECORDS, 1920-1965. (1.45 cubic ft.) |
|
|
Arrangement: Grouped by document type and thereunder arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Membership Ledgers, 1920-1956, provide financial information in bound volumes broken down by individual or family and report
pledges, dues, donations and purchases of tickets for High Holiday services. Name indexes are in the front of most volumes.
|
|
|
Cash Books, 1924-1948, contain monthly and bi-weekly records of receipts and disbursements in
bound volumes. The receipts are of dues, donations, Hebrew School tuition, cemetery fees and other income. The disbursements
are of great variety, but include the rabbi's and cantor's salaries plus allotments for social activities of the Temple's
various organizations, as well as utility fees, general supplies and payments to individuals for unspecified purposes. There
is an apparent overlap between the 1944-1946 and 1944-1948 volumes possibly having to do with a new treasurer having been
elected during this period. Later cash books do not provide a breakdown of the sources of monies received, for which information
the following subseries are available.
|
|
|
Monies Received, 1928-1933 and 1947-1962, are bi-weekly accounts of dues and tuition receipts
which also indicate in which Membership Ledger the sum is recorded.
|
|
|
Monthly Balance Sheets, 1952-1958 and 1960-1965, are typewritten financial reports similar to
Cash Books in which a given month's income and expenditures are recorded. The Monthly Balance Sheets may, in fact, be a later
form of Cash Book.
|
|
|
Cemetery Ledger, 1950-1954, is arranged alphabetically and records payments for cemetery upkeep,
presumably under the name of the person who made the payments.
|
|
|
An unidentified and undated account apparently represents an aborted volume of monies received.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 5 |
7 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1920-1921
|
|
8 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1922
|
|
9 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1929-1935
|
|
10 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1935-1937
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 6 |
1 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1940-1948
|
|
2 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1953
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 7 |
1 |
|
Membership Ledger [ex-members],
1954-1956
|
|
2 |
|
Membership Ledger,
1954-1957
|
|
3 |
|
Cash book,
1924-1935
|
|
4 |
|
Cash book,
1944-1946
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 8 |
1 |
|
Cash book,
1944-1948
|
|
2 |
|
Monies received,
1928-1933
|
|
3 |
|
Monies received,
1947-1948
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 11 |
(oversize) |
|
Monies Received,
1948-1954
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 12 |
(oversize) |
|
Monies Received,
1954-1957
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 13 |
(oversize) |
|
Monies Received,
1959-1962
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 8 |
4 |
|
Monthly Balance Sheets,
1952-1958
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 8 |
5 |
|
Monthly Balance Sheets,
1960-1965
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 8 |
6 |
|
Cemetery Ledger,
1950-1954
|
|
7 |
|
[Unidentified Account],
undated
|
|
ADMINISTRATIVE FILES, 1934, 1966, 1977, 1981 and undated. (2 folders) |
|
|
Summary: A miscellany of letters, legal documents, blueprints and notes regarding the Temple building and additions to the building,
a loan, local ordinances regarding the posting of signs and the announcement of upcoming social events. Also an undated telephone
index listing persons with "Jewish-sounding" names as gleaned by unknown Temple personnel from a local telephone directory,
presumably for purposes of membership solicitation.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
1-2 |
|
Administrative files,
1934-1981 and undated
|
|
UNITED JEWISH APPEAL DRIVE MINUTES, 1941-1943. (1 folder) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Minutes of eight meetings held at the South Bergen Hebrew Institute and officiated by members and officers of the Temple
for purposes of raising funds during a crucial moment in Jewish history.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
3 |
|
United Jewish Appeal Drive Minutes,
1941-1943
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Sisterhood |
|
MEMBERSHIP LISTS, 1970/71-1971/72. (1 folder) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Lists of both members and officers of the Sisterhood.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
4 |
|
Membership lists,
1970/71-1971/72
|
|
MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE GENERAL FILES, 1959-1972. (9 folders) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Records of activities of a Sisterhood committee involved in recruiting new members, honoring existing members and holding
social functions ("Paid-Up Membership parties").
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
5 |
|
1953-1955
|
|
6-8 |
|
1959-1963
|
|
9 |
|
[Paid-Up Membership Meeting,
November 12, 1970]
|
|
10 |
|
[Paid-Up Membership Meeting,
November 11, 1971]
|
|
11 |
|
[Thelma Waldman,
circa 1960]
|
|
12 |
|
[Eleanor Daniels,
1970-1972]
|
|
13 |
|
Outline,
undated
|
|
ACCOUNT BOOKS, 1955-1957 and 1961-1962. (1 folder; 1 oversize volume) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: One regular-size and one oversize volume detailing income from rummage sales, remembrance books ("Golden Books"), dances
and other sources of revenue. Also listed are expenditures for birthday parties, books, conferences and the like.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
14 |
|
Account books,
1961-1962
|
|
PHOTOGRAPH, undated. (1 folder) |
|
|
Summary: Studio print, with identification, of a group of women.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
15 |
|
Photograph,
undated
|
|
CONGREGATION CALENDARS, 1974/75-1975/76 and 1977/78. (1 folder) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Calendars noting holy days, secular holidays, jahrzeit dates and the birthdays and wedding anniversaries of Temple members.
Also included are advertisements from area businesses.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
16 |
|
Congregation calendars,
1974/75-1977/78
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Religious School |
|
BOARD OF EDUCATION MINUTES, 1961-1973. (4 folders) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Typewritten and holograph minutes of Board of Education meetings discussing improvements in the curriculum of the Religious
School, educational field trips, hiring of teachers and the like. Also included are reports by the Youth Commission (United
Synagogue Youth).
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 9 |
17-20 |
|
Board of Education minutes,
June 1961-June 1973
|
|
GENERAL FILES, 1959-1970. (5 folders) |
|
|
Summary: Files regarding holiday events, picnics, fire drills, field trips, admission, curriculum and the like, plus correspondence
to parents and calendars of the school year. These materials were originally bound within a single binder and their order
and arrangement have been retained.
|
|
|
A brochure explaining "Bar and Bat Mitzvah Procedures" is included in this series.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 10 |
1-4 |
|
1959-1970
|
|
5 |
|
[Bar and Bat Mitzvah Procedures],
undated
|
|
ROLL BOOKS, 1953-1954. (1 folder) |
|
|
Arrangement: Arranged chronologically.
|
|
|
Summary: Records of attendance by Religious School students.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 10 |
6 |
|
Roll book,
1953-1954 and undated
|
|
ACCOUNT BOOK, 1928-1934. (1 folder) |
|
|
Summary: A single volume containing accounts of Religious School students' tuition payments and salary disbursements to teachers.
|
| Box |
Folder |
| 10 |
7 |
|
Account book,
1928-1934
|