Restoring the Eldridge Street Synagogue: Interview Amy Stein-Milford
Amy Stein-Milford is the former Deputy Director of the Museum at Eldridge Street. During her 18-year tenure, she oversaw the building’s re-opening following its restoration, the commission of a new stained glass window, and the creation of a new visitor center and permanent exhibition. In an interview with intern Julia Echikson, she talks about the […]
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Making a House a Home: Immigrant Acclimation to American Society
Read about how the Eldridge Street Synagogue contributed to immigrant acclimation to American society through the lens of a fictitious museum exhibition as imagined by Museum at Eldridge Street intern Jennifer Hernandez. As someone who lives in a community of immigrants, I was compelled to apply for an internship at the Museum at Eldridge Street. […]
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The Forward Newspaper Building: A Landmark of Change
The longtime home of the Jewish Daily Forward sits on East Broadway between Rutgers and Jefferson Streets. Since its construction in 1912, the Forward Newspaper building has been a staple of the Lower East Side. Today, it is a testament to the neighborhood’s changing landscape. The Forward Newspaper Under the leadership of its founding editor […]
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A Year in the Life of a Museum Educator – Interview with Rachel Serkin
The Museum at Eldridge Street annually welcomes more than 7,000 K-12 students for programs on Jewish culture and holidays, immigration history and architecture and historic preservation. As the school years draws to a close, Senior Museum Educator Rachel Serkin shares her experience on museum education and what makes for a great Museum tour. Interview by Julia […]
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Tracing Jewish History – Five Historic Synagogues of America
Visitors to the Museum at Eldridge Street often ask if our landmark site – the 1887 Eldridge Street Synagogue – is the oldest synagogue in America. The answer is no. I was surprised to learn that the oldest synagogue is not in New York City, but in Newport, Rhode Island. Discovering this fact ignited an urge to […]
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Egg Rolls, Egg Creams and Empanadas Festival – A Day of Community and Culture
Envisioning a Community Collaboration When I first imagined a Chinese-Jewish Festival over fifteen years ago, I knew that it would be an undoubtedly fantastic event for the neighborhood. Plus, I knew it would be wonderfully relevant to our museum’s celebration of the immigrants who make our neighborhood special. I imagined Chinese and Jewish artists and musicians sitting side […]
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Celebrating the Torah – Shavuot Artifacts from Our Collection
Beginning this evening, Jews around the world will celebrate Shavuot, a holiday which centers around the Torah. From the Star of David to Sabbath candlesticks to a beautiful Passover Seder plate, Jewish tradition is marked by a variety of symbolic and ritual items. Many such pieces of Judaica and Shavuot artifacts are on display at the Museum at Eldridge Street. But […]
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Beth Hamedrash Hagadol – Reflections Following the Fire
The report of a three-alarm fire at Beth Hamedrash Hagadol Synagogue is shocking and saddening. Chilling photographs, including this one here from the Lodownny.com, show the building’s burned interior. Its former Gothic-Revival interior is unrecognizable in the charred remains. Though the synagogue was padlocked shut and in a state of severe deterioration for several years, the […]
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Jailbreaking 22 Eldridge Street
Although I’m quite familiar with the history of the Eldridge Street Synagogue, I’ve always been curious about another address just up the block–22 Eldridge. To satisfy my curiosity, I researched the lot. I learned that in the mid-19th century it once held a county jail! The Eldridge Street jail was housed in a three-story structure […]
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A 200-Year-Old Wimpel is a Mother’s Legacy of Love
With Mother’s Day approaching, I find myself thinking about a mother I’ve never met. I don’t even know her name, but her handiwork tells me that her son David was born on the 19th day of Cheshvan in the year 5563. In other words, November 15th, 1803. Eight days after his bris (religious circumcision), David’s mother […]
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