11 Jun 2012

Lost Capitol Hill: The Southeast Hebrew Congregation

A friend of mine recently pointed out that there were so few Jewish families on the Hill that they held Jewish School –where their children could learn about Jewish history and religion– in a church. It wasn’t always thus: Capitol Hill had, for a time, a thriving Jewish community, including a synagogue. Today’s post examines the history of this building.

Jewish history in the District of Columbia had a late start. Without the manufacturing that made other cities attractive to them, there was no great migration into this city. As late as 1847, there were all of 25 Jews in the entire city.

This began to change shortly thereafter, as many German Jews fled their country due to political upheaval as well as a failed revolution. Even more arrived in the city during the Civil War – and stayed put. The biggest migration came toward the end of the 19th Century, the main source was Eastern Europe, with Orthodox Jews fleeing persecution there. It was at this time that a large enough number settled on Capitol Hill to make the opening of a Synagogue a possibility.

In 1909, a group of Orthodox Jews opened Southeast Hebrew Congregation. They met daily in various members’ houses, then rented space along 8th Street – usually above a shop – for the High Holy Days. The main source of members were the owners of small businesses around the Navy Yard.

Over the next 30 years, the congregation grew to the point where they needed their own building. They found a location at 417 9th Street SE, in an old frame building. Eventually, the congregation raised enough money to build their own structure, and in 1949, the members approved a $250,000 building, that would have two synagogues as well as a basement auditorium.

In 1951, the Washington Post celebrated the newly opened building. While the article goes into detail about the arrangement of the rooms, and particularly the number of seats each of the halls can hold, little is written of the architecture. Which isn’t too surprising, as the building from the outside could be pretty much anything. Other than a pair of octagonal windows, only a set of the ten commandments inscribed in Hebrew on stone above the main entrance give any indication of its purpose.

The Tried Stone Church of Christ today. (RSP)

Sadly, this turned out to be the high-water mark of Jews on Capitol Hill. Even before World War II, members of them had been leaving Capitol Hill. The Southeast Hebrew Congregation stayed in their building until 1971, when they moved to White Oak in Silver Spring, where they continue to operate under their old name.

Meanwhile, back on the Hill, the Tried Stone Church of Christ had outgrown their property on Q Street NW, and were looking for a new home. The old synagogue fitted their needs admirably, and they have remained there for the past 40 years. They have kept the tablets above the main door to remind passersby of the building’s original purpose.


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