Historic District - South in Savannah in Chatham County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
Congregation Mickve Israel
(Founded 1733)
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 2008
1. Congregation Mickve Israel Marker
The oldest Congregation now practicing Reform Judiasm in the United States. Mickve Israel was founded by a group of Jews, mainly of Spanish-Portuguese extraction, which landed at Savannah, July 11, 1733, five months after the establishment of the Colony of Georgia.
The Congregation was incorporated in perpetuity by a special Act of Georgia Legislature on November 20, 1790. After having worshipped in various temporary quarters for almost a century, in 1820, the congregation built its own Synagogue - the first in Georgia - on the Northeast corner of Liberty and Whitaker Streets. The present Synagogue was consecrated on April 11, 1878.
In 1789, the Congregation received a letter from President George Washington, which stated in part: "May the same wonder-working Diety who long since delivering the Hebrews from their Egyptian suppressors, planted them in the promised land - whose providential agency has lately been conspicuous in establishing these United States as an independent nation - still continue to water them with the dews of Heaven and to make the inhabitants of every denomination participate in the temporal and spiritual blessings of that people whose God is Jehovah."
Erected 1961 by Georgia Historical Commission. (Marker Number 025-77.)
Topics and series.
this page online
Location. 32° 4.291′ N, 81° 5.656′ W. Marker is in Savannah, Georgia, in Chatham County. It is in the Historic District - South. Marker is at the intersection of Bull Street and East Taylor Street, on the right when traveling north on Bull Street. Marker is located in Monterey Square. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 20 East Gordon Street, Savannah GA 31401, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Casimir Pulaski (within shouting distance of this marker); Pulaski Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); Comer House (within shouting distance of this marker); Former Home of Henry R. Jackson (about 500 feet away, measured in a direct line); Wesley Monumental United Methodist Church Centennial (about 500 feet away); Wesley Monumental United Methodist Church (about 500 feet away); Savannah's Marine Corps Memorial (about 600 feet away); Savannah Volunteer Guards (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Savannah.
Also see . . .
1. Congregation Mickve Israel. Website homepage:
As
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 2008
2. Plaque at right side of door
2. Congregation Mickve Israel. New Georgia Encyclopedia website entry:
Of the forty-two who arrived (to Savannah), thirty-four were Sephardic Jews, or Jews of Spanish and Portuguese heritage. (Submitted on February 11, 2008, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.)
3. Congregation Mickve Israel. Wikipedia entry:
Congregation Mickve Israel, in Savannah, Georgia, is one of the oldest synagogues in the United States, the congregation having begun in 1733. (Submitted on February 14, 2011, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.)
4. Complete Texts of the Letter to Washington from the Congregation and Washington's Responce. From Washington and the Jews by Fritz Hirsxhfekd, University of Delaware Press, 2005. (Submitted on February 14, 2011, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.)
5. Reform Judaism. Wikipedia entry:
Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. (Submitted on February 14, 2011, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina.)
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 1, 2008
3. A NRHP marker on the left side of the door
Photographed By Brian Scott, April 21, 2005
4. Congregation Mickve Israel Marker
Photographed By Mike Stroud, February 2008
5. Gothic style synagogue, oldest in the South, 3rd oldest in U.S.
Historic American Buildings Survey
6. Congregation Mickve Israel
Historic American Engineering Record HABS GA,26-SAV,76-1
Click for more information.
Click for more information.
Photographed By Brian Scott, April 21, 2005
7. Congregation Mickve Israel -
West Entrance
West Entrance
Photographed By Brian Scott, April 21, 2005
8. Congregation Mickve Israel -
Northwest Corner
Northwest Corner
Photographed By Mike Stroud, March 6, 2011
9. Early Congregation Mickve Israel Marker at Liberty and Whitaker Streets
First Synagogue in Georgia
At this location on July 21, 1820
Congregation Mickve Israel consecrated
the first synagogue to be erected
in the State of Georgia
At this location on July 21, 1820
Congregation Mickve Israel consecrated
the first synagogue to be erected
in the State of Georgia
Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 11, 2008, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 1,917 times since then and 34 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on August 26, 2013, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 2, 3. submitted on February 11, 2008, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 4. submitted on October 6, 2012, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina. 5. submitted on February 11, 2008, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 6. submitted on June 11, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. 7, 8. submitted on February 14, 2011, by Brian Scott of Anderson, South Carolina. 9. submitted on March 31, 2011, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.
