International Survey of Jewish Monuments
Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American Community
WASHINGTON,
D.C. — The National Building Museum and the Jewish Historical Society
of Greater Washington are partnering to present the first exhibition to explore
the rich and unique history of the Washington-area Jewish community from its
beginnings in 1795 to the present. Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American
Community will be on view in second-floor galleries at the National Building
Museum from June 24, 2005 through January 8, 2006. The exhibition was created
and curated by the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington and is
presented in partnership with the National Building Museum.
Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American Community showcases treasures from the collections of the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington — many of which have never been exhibited before. It examines the people, places, and events that have shaped the history of Washington’s Jewish community, which has its origins downtown in what is now the National Building Museum’s neighborhood. Scrapbooks, historic photographs, business ephemera, architectural artifacts, and other items convey the story of the local Jewish community as it grew along 7th Street, into neighborhoods across the city, and then uptown and into the Maryland and Virginia suburbs. As in the National Building Museum’s long-term exhibition Washington: Symbol and City, the Society’s exhibition also examines the interplay of hometown Washington and the federal city.
Organized chronologically, the exhibition begins in 1795 with
Washington’s first Jewish resident, Isaac Polock, and follows the community’s
growth from a population of 200 at the time of the Civil War, to more than
200,000 in the greater Washington area today. Scrapbooks; oral histories;
ritual artifacts including a circumcision gown, a silver wedding cup, and
a ketubah (marriage contract); medals, pins and banners from social and political
movements; and more offer personal glimpses into the lives of individuals
and families. A District Grocery Store sign, artifacts from Washington Hebrew
Congregation and other synagogues, and photographs of neighborhoods provide
a sense of the physical environment surrounding (and sometimes built by) Jews
in greater Washington. Individual stories illustrate how people build communities
— physically, culturally, and spiritually — and give a personal
face to larger themes of immigration, urban life, suburban development, discrimination,
and social action.
Jewish Washington is scheduled to coordinate with the celebration of the 350th anniversary of Jewish life in America, and is the most visible local contribution to the commemoration of this anniversary. The exhibition is curated by Wendy Turman, Laura Cohen Apelbaum, and Laura B. Schiavo, Ph.D., all of the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington. Sharon L. Barry served as writer and editor. The exhibition is designed by Gallagher & Associates and Jeanne Krohn of Krohn Design. At the National Building Museum, the exhibition is coordinated by Catherine Crane Frankel, director of exhibitions. After the exhibition’s stay at the National Building Museum, Jewish Washington is expected to travel to various venues in suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia.
The exhibition was originally scheduled to open at the City Museum of Washington, D.C., in December of 2004. When the City Museum closed in November of 2004 and Jewish Washington was left without a home, the Society’s Executive Director Laura Apelbaum began the search for a new venue, with an urgency to find a place that reflected the Jewish community’s early history in downtown Washington. The National Building Museum, whose home is the former Pension Building and a central site in the old downtown neighborhood where the Jewish community began, became a natural option. Solidifying the connection, the Society’s exhibition expands on issues explored in the Museum’s long-term exhibition Washington: Symbol and City, about the growth and development of Washington, D.C., and its vibrant neighborhoods. Jewish Washington zeroes in on one of Washington’s communities and offers a focused example of Washington as both symbol and city.
Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American Community is made possible, in part, by major support from Albert and Lillian Small Foundation, Small-Alper Family Foundation, The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, Barbara & Bert Rein, Dr. Jonathan Grossman, The Marjorie Kovler Fund, Brenda & Paul Pascal, Abramson Family Foundation, Marshall B. Coyne Foundation, Paula Pascal Levine & Family, Humanities Council of Washington, D.C., the United Jewish Endowment Fund, and many other supporters (as of March 24, 2005).
Throughout the duration of Jewish Washington: Scrapbook of an American Community, the Museum and the Society will offer educational programs for youth and adults relating to the exhibition themes. Educational programs will also link Jewish Washington to the Museum’s long-term exhibition Washington: Symbol and City.
