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The Hebrew Cemetery in Richmond.

(313) 827-9920
1.800 729-9820
FAX (313) 355-1701

Richmond Is Site
Of Jewish History

RUTH ROVNER

Special to The Jewish News

FABULOUS 4 11 ,- SHOE SALIM
Andre Agassi

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3 beautiful color
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Original Price $9800

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Maple and Lahser 646-4475

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Men's furnishings ana accessories

19011 West Ten- Mile Road
Southfield, Michigan 48075

(between Southfield and Eve/groan)

352-1080

Hours:

A Skilled Nursing Care and Supportive Residence
6950 Farmington Rd. • West Bloomfield, M148322 • 661-1700

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State Board of Education

Paid for by many people who want to keep Rollie Hopgood on the State Board of Education
10200 Beech Daly, Taylor, Michigan 48180

66

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 1990

Mon Sat.
Thursday

9:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
9:30 a.m.-7 p.m.

PARKING AND ENTRANCE IN REAR

CLASSIFIED
GET RESULTS!

Call The Jewish New s

354.5959

T

he display case shows
a copy of the Virginia
Ordinance of Seces-
sion, its letters boldly and
elegantly printed.
This document, by which
the state of Virginia
withdrew from the Union,
was approved on April 17,
1861, by representatives to
the Virginia Convention; and,
naturally, the legislators
wanted their historic decree
inscribed in handsome
letters.
So they called on William
Flegenheimer, a calligrapher,
to inscribe their ordinance.
Over 125 years later,
Flegenheimer's penmanship
is on dispay for the Jewish
traveler to Richmond.
Flegenheimer was a member
of Congregation Beth
Ahabah, and the Ordinance
of Secession which he penned
is one of many items in an ex-
hibit at Beth Ahabah that
covers 200 years of Jewish
history in Richmond.
This exhibit is just one of
the attractions available to
the Jewish traveler to Rich-
mond. The capital of Virginia
is a city graced by a blend of
Old South ambiance and
glass skyscraper modernity,
and that same combination
extends to its Jewish high-
lights. Home to 8,000 Jews
who worship in seven dif-
ferent synagogues, Richmond
has Jewish sites which in-
clude a modern community
center and the oldest Jewish
burial ground in Virginia.
But the best place to begin
a tour of Jewish Richmond is
Beth Ahabah Synagogue at
1117 West Franklin Street
and the museum next door.

The edifice, built in 1904,
stands out on a tree-lined
residential street. Inside, the
sanctuary is striking, with
sweeping arches, vaults and a
central dome. But the sanc-
tuary is best known for its ten
richly colored stained glass
windows, one of them signed
by Louis C. Tiffany.
Next door, in a Southern
townhouse, is the Beth
Ahabah Museum and Ar-
chives Trust. Its exhibits
detail the history of this con-
gregation, sixth oldest in the
nation. When it was founded
by Sephardic Jews in 1789 as
Beth Shalome, it was the first
congregation in Virginia and
the westernmost in the
United States, located in
what was then a primitive
river town.
Later, when newly arrived
German immigrants prefer-
red Ashkenazi rites, the
newcomers withdrew to form
Beth Ahabah in 1841.
The activities of its
members mirror events in the
city itself. Early members
were active in the civic affairs
of Richmond, starting with
Isaiah Isaacs, first known
Jew in Richmond, who was
elected to the governing body
called Common Hall, and
later donated the land for the
first Jewish cemetery, the
Franklin Street Burying
Ground, which is now a
historic landmark.
Richmond Jews were also
active in military service. On
display are the black and
white uniforms and helmets
of the Richmond Light Infan-
try Blues of 1790. Many of its
members were Jews, in-
cluding Mayor Solomon
Jacobs and Isaac Seixas,
reader of Beth Shalome, who
later became leader of

