K.K. Bene Israel
Founded January 18, 1824. Rabbi David Philipson (source: AJC 1899 Directory)
In the year 1841 Cincinnati, with its forty-seven thousand inhabitants, was already known as the Queen
City of the West. Though it was without railroads, and had but a small business area, viz., that space
between the river, Fifth, Vine and Main Streets, Cincinnati was already a prominent center of trade,
industry, wealth and culture. Among its religious organizations there was a congregation of
Israelites, K. K.Bene Israel. This had been established by some English families, among whom were the
Johnson, Jonas, Moses, Harris, Abraham and other families. This pioneer band was afterward reinforced
by some Dutch families, the Workums; some French, the Mayers, and later by some Poles and Germans, the
Moehrings, Alexanders, Makers, Heidelbachs. Seasongoods, Miliuses, Sessels, Assurs, Blooms and others.
This congregation owned a burial ground, and worshiped first in a frame building on Broadway and Sixth
Streets, then in 1852 it erected a substantial structure known as the " Broadway Shuhl," and in 1868
it dedicated its present handsome temple on Eighth and Mound Streets. Under its auspices there had
been established a benevolent society and a ladies' society, which took care of the poor. This
English congregation was strictly orthodox, used the Polish Minhag, had a sexton and a reader (Chazan)
, a Rev. Hart Judah, who attending to his ecclesiastical duties, supervised the supplying of kosher
meats, matzos, etc. Toward the end of the thirties, there were in and about Cincinnati a number of
young, energetic Germans, who, although religiously inclined, were not in sympathy with the English
congregation. -- "The history of the K. K. Bene Yeshurun, of Cincinnati, Ohio, from the date of its
organization" 1892
The second building was located at 6th and Broadway. It was described in the book "Cincinnati, the Queen City, 1788-1912" by Charles Frederic Goss as being next to the shul's lot on Broadway between 5th and 6th.
In 1840, some members who spoke German broke away from the synagogue to form B'nai Yeshurun
In 1870, the location at 538 Broadway was sold to the Allen Temple, A.M.E. Church. They moved in 1979 and the property was torn down for Proctor and Gamble's twin towers. An 1891 directory gives the location as the Southeast corner of the intersection.
This is the SE corner today:
The shul moved to Eighth and Mound Streets. This was the first home of Hebrew Union College, which was founded in 1875 by Rabbi Isaac M. Wise
K.K. Bene Israel 1869 - 1906. The building was then sold to congregation Beth Tefila
Today, the streets no longer intersect, but would be near the grassy area below
In 1906 the congregation moved to the Rockdale Temple