History of The Jews in Philadelphia - in The War of Independence

In The War of Independence

The Jews in Philadelphia took a prominent part in the War of Independence. David Franks was conspicuous for his loyalty to the British cause, being the English agent in charge of the prisoners; his daughter, Rebecca Franks, took part in the "Mischianza," the famous fête given in honor of General Howe during the British occupancy of Philadelphia. The majority of the Jews of the city, however, supported the American cause. Col. David Salisbury Franks was aide-de-camp to General Benedict Arnold at Philadelphia in 1779; Solomon Bush was major of the Pennsylvania militia; Col. Isaac Franks served with distinction in the war, as did Philip Moses, Russell and Benjamin Nones. Haym Solomon made loans to individuals in Congress, which were never repaid; his services as a financial agent during the war were invaluable. Another creditor of the Continental Congress was Aaron Levy, and his loans, like nearly all the others, were never fully repaid. At the close of the war the Jewish population of Philadelphia amounted to almost 500. When Washington was elected president of the United States the Congregation Mickvé Israel, together with the congregations of New York, Charleston, and Richmond, sent a congratulatory address, to which Washington replied (1790).

Although the majority of the early Jewish residents were of Portuguese or Spanish descent, some among them had emigrated from Germany and Poland. About the beginning of the 19th century, a number of Jews from the latter countries, finding the services of the Congregation Mickvé Israel unfamiliar to them, resolved to form a new congregation which would use the ritual to which they had been accustomed. On November 23, 1801, Leon van Amringe, Isaiah Nathan, Isaac Marks, Aaron Levi, Jr., Abraham Gumpert, and Abraham Moses took title to a plot of ground to be used as a place of burial for members of the newly formed congregation. On October 10, 1802, the "German Hebrews formed themselves into a society in the city and county of Philadelphia, which was denominated the 'Hebrew German Society Rodef Shalom'"; it was one of the earliest German Jewish congregations in America. The society was reorganized and chartered in 1812. Among the earlier rabbis were Wolf Benjamin, Jacob Lipman, Bernhard Illowy, Henry Vidaver, Moses Sulzbacher, and Moses Rau. In 1849 Jacob Frankel (1808–87) was elected Chazzan, and about this time the congregation grew in numbers and importance. Frankel acted as chaplain of hospitals during the Civil war. On September 8, 1847, when Naphtali Kahn was Chazzan, the congregation removed to its new building in Julianna street, where it remained until September 9, 1870, when in 1904, the structure at Broad and Mt. Vernon streets was dedicated. Marcus Jastrow, elected in 1866, served the congregation as rabbi until 1892, when he was elected rabbi emeritus (died 1903); during his ministry Rodef Shalom became one of the leading congregations in the United States. In 1892 Henry Berkowitz was elected rabbi.

Data relating to the earlier Jewish charitable organizations are very meager. It is natural to suppose that the Congregation Mickvé Israel, in the absence of any other organization for that purpose, looked after the wants of the poorer Jewish residents. In 1784, there was a society for the relief of destitute strangers, but the records of this organization have disappeared. In October 1813, a Society for the Visitation of the Sick and for Mutual Assistance was organized, with Jacob Cohen as its first president. It existed for over fifty years. In 1819, several ladies organized the still-existing Female Hebrew Benevolent Society, the first Jewish charitable organization in Philadelphia and the first one in the United States controlled exclusively by women. In 1820, it elected its first board of officers, consisting of Mrs. Rebecca J. Phillips (first directress), Mrs. Belle Cohen (second directress), Mrs. S. Bravo (treasurer), Miss Rebecca Gratz (secretary). Mrs. Abraham S. Wolf has acted as its president starting in the early 1860s. In 1822, the United Hebrew Benevolent Society was organized. The oldest Hebrew Sunday-school in America was formed in Philadelphia. On February 4, 1838, a mumber of ladies met and resolved "that a Sunday-school be established under the direction of the board" of the Female Hebrew Benevolent Society; the school was formally opened on March 4, 1838; and it was about this time that the Ladies' Hebrew Sewing Society was founded.

These facts attest the early activity of the women of Philadelphia in the cause of religion and education. Rebecca Gratz (1781–1869) was, perhaps, the best-known American Jewess of her day. Not only was she one of the organizers of the Hebrew Sunday-School Society, but she was identified with nearly all the charitable organizations in the city. Another woman prominent in the life of the city at this time was Louisa B. Hart, who was untiring in her devotion to the religious education of the young. Others prominently identified with the Hebrew Sunday-School Society were Simha C. Peixotta, Ellen Phillips, and Isabella II. Rosenbach. The attendance at the various schools of the society, of which Mrs. Ephraim Lederer was president, numbered over 3,000 in 1904.