Processed by
Monica Casanova
July 26, 2007
Manuscript and Visual Collections Department
William Henry Smith Memorial Library
Indiana Historical Society
450 West Ohio Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202-3269
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VOLUME OF |
4 document cases |
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COLLECTION |
1976–1996 |
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PROVENANCE: |
Dr. Raphael Ostrovsky, Hammond, Indiana, October 2003 |
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RESTRICTIONS: |
None |
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COPYRIGHT: |
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REPRODUCTION |
Permission to reproduce or publish material in this collection must be obtained from the Indiana Historical Society. |
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ALTERNATE |
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RELATED |
Indiana Jewish Historical Society Collection, 1845–2002. Manuscript Collection: M0743. |
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ACCESSION |
2004.0021 |
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NOTES: |
This forms part of the Indiana Jewish History Collection. |
Kneseth Israel Synagogue which later became Beth Israel (1975?) was established in Hammond, Indiana in 1908. The Orthodox congregation actually formed earlier in 1902 by Sam Abelman and 14 other men. Before the organization of Kneseth Israel Congregation another congregation had formed in 1899 but had dissolved by 1902. Jews in Hammond worshipped in private homes for decades before the establishment of a synagogue.
Jews were said to have arrived in Hammond in 1881 with the arrival of Nathan Levi, Morris Wise, Julius Tassig, Joseph Handle, William Elsner, and Jonas Lautman. By then Hammond was well on its way in establishing itself as a great manufacturing city. G.H. Hammond Packing Company a slaughterhouse and meat packing company called Hammond home since 1869. Steel moved in after G.H. Hammond Packing Company burned to the ground in 1901. In 1905 the Chicago Steel Manufacturing Company opened and the Macking Steel Tube Company had been in operation since 1898. Other industries included a lumber yard, Hammond Lumber Company, a distillery (before Prohibition) Hammond Distilling Company, and railway industries such as United States Locomotive Company and Simplex Railway Appliance Company.
These industries required heavy labor and Jewish immigrants readily supplied it. Others opened businesses in retail or became peddlers. By 1920, Hammond had reached a population of 64,000. Jews numbered close to a 1,000. Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe began trickling in and divisions within the Jewish community between older and more established German Jews and these new arrivals surfaced. Intermarriage between the two was discouraged.
In 1918 a new synagogue was built and shared with a Reform congregation until 1923 when the Reform congregation decided to build their own temple. By 1937 the Jewish population in Hammond reached 1,930 with 190 Jewish owned businesses.
In 1958 the Congregation moved again to a new synagogue on Hohman Avenue where it existed until 2004. In 2006 a new temple was dedicated this time in Munster south of Hammond.
Sources:
Email interview with Rabbi Eliezer Zalmanov, Chabad of Northwest Indiana. 27 July 2007.
Kneseth Israel Synagogue. “Dedication.” 1958.
Materials in Collection M 0743 The Indiana Jewish History Collection.
Pendley, Trent D. “The Jewish History of the Indiana Dunes Country 1830–1950.”Indiana Jewish History 36 (Oct. 2004). Fort Wayne: The Indiana Jewish Historical Society.
http://www.hammondindiana.com/history/industry.htm. “Hammond Historical Flashback: A Look At Some Of Hammond's Early Industries . . ..” Last accessed 27 July 2007.
The entire collection is comprised of the Hammond, Indiana Congregation Beth Israel bulletins beginning in 1976 and ending in 1997. The bulletins are complete. Older bulletins and records from Beth Israel Congregation are contained in the Indiana Jewish History Collection M 0743.
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CONTENTS |
CONTAINER |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1976–Sept. 1977 |
Box 1, Folder 1 |
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Bulletin, Aug. 1977–Aug. 1978 |
Box 1, Folder 2 |
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Bulletin, Aug. 1978–Aug. 1979 |
Box 1, Folder 3 |
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Bulletin, Aug. 1979–Aug. 1980 |
Box 1, Folder 4 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1980–Aug. 1981 |
Box 1, Folder 5 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1981–Aug. 1982 |
Box 1, Folder 6 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1982–Aug. 1983 |
Box 2, Folder 1 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1983–Sept. 1984 |
Box 2, Folder 2 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1984–Aug. 1985 |
Box 2, Folder 3 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1985–Sept. 1986 |
Box 2, Folder 4 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1986–Sept. 1987 |
Box 2, Folder 5 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1987–Sept. 1988 |
Box 3, Folder 1 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1989–Sept. 1990 |
Box 3, Folder 2 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1990–Sept. 1991 |
Box 3, Folder 3 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1991–Sept. 1992 |
Box 3, Folder 4 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1992–Sept. 1993 |
Box 3, Folder 5 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1994–Sept. 1995 |
Box 3, Folder 6 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1995–Sept. 1996 |
Box 4, Folder 1 |
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Bulletin, Sept. 1996–Sept. 1997 |
Box 4, Folder 2 |
For additional information on this collection, including a list of subject headings that may lead you to related materials:
1. Go to the Indiana Historical Society's online catalog: http://opac.indianahistory.org/
2. Click on the "Basic Search" icon.
3. Select "Call Number" from the "Search In:" box.
4. Search for the collection by its basic call number (in this case, M 0923).
5. When you find the collection, go to the "Full Record" screen for a list of headings that can be searched for related materials.