People

The Buffalo region has been home to a wide range of individuals associated with local Jewish communities and Jewish networks from the 1820s through to the contemporary period as immigrants, citizens, residents and locals.

Institutions

Buffalo Jews have a rich history of forming both formal and informal institutions for religious, educational, political and social needs. From synagogues to organizations, and from coordinating agencies to groups and clubs, Jewish Buffalonians have seen a changing range of institutions supported by group endeavors and community philanthropy.

Neighborhoods

In living memory, the East Side and North Buffalo stand out as physically connected and interwoven religious and commercial centers of Jewish living. In contrast to these specific areas are the mini hubs identified with Jewish living and connected to a more dispersed idea of neighborhood. Separately, suburbia with its significant geographic spread, has redefined how a series of Jewish spaces come together with a mix of hubs, focal points and networks.

Themes

Some nice intro blah blah

Exhibitions

Special exhibitions, through a focus on particular individuals and subjects, delves into the personal stories that have animated Jewish lives. Each digital exploration reflects on the interplay between place, identities and changing times and the way in which American, Jewish and Buffalo historical experiences are deeply interwoven.

Resources

Materials that document Jewish Buffalo in all its diversity are found in books, articles, archives and museums, many of which are available locally or online. This section highlights some of these sources and will be updated regularly.

Gallery

Aaron, Rabbi Israel

Men of Buffalo: a collection of portraits of men who deserve to rank as typical representatives of the best citizenship, Chicago, A. N. Marquis & company, 1902, Clergy Men, Rev Israel Aaron, DD, Rabbi, Temple Beth Zion, Buffalo, NY. p.406. Hathi Trust Digital Library, Open Source, 1902. 

Aaron, Rabbi Israel

People A-Z  /  Rabbi Israel Aaron1859–1912OverviewBorn on November 20, 1859, in Lancaster, Philadelphia to Moses Aaron, a German Jewish immigrant from Hesse-Darmstadt, Israel Aaron’s birth was recorded in Congregation Rodeph Shalom, Philadelphia mohel records. Israel...

Read More →
Goldberg, Rabbi Dr. Martin L.

Dr. Martin L. Goldberg, Photographer unknown, 1970. Courtesy of The Benjamin and Dr. Edgar R. Cofeld Judaic Museum, Rabbi Martin L. Goldberg Collection, Temple Beth Zion, NY.

Goldberg, Rabbi Dr. Martin L.

Dr. Martin L. Goldberg blended attentive pastoral care and religious leadership in his rabbinic career of more than 40 years as Rabbi, Senior Rabbi and Rabbi Emeritus at Temple Beth Zion. Over many decades, Dr. Goldberg built a reputation as a devoted pulpit rabbi, chaplain and inter-faith leader in Buffalo, Niagara Falls and Western New York.

Read More →

Adler, Selig

People A-Z  /  Selig AdlerHistorian and Author. Distinguished Professor. 1909–1984OverviewDistinguished Professor Selig Adler (1909-1984) chronicled the history of the Jewish community in Buffalo from the nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth century,...

Read More →
Altman, Sadie

Sadie Altman, Courtesy of the Buffalo History Museum, C92-02, IV G, Box 1, Folder 2.

Altman, Sadie

Born in Baltimore in 1860 to Henry and Wilhelmina Strauss, Sadie had a privileged upbringing including bilingual education in Germany. As a child and teen she also experienced extensive periods of travel in Italy and France where she learned each spoken language. Reared in music, art, literature and music, she contributed articles to the Baltimore American and defined herself as a journalist in an era when women were beginning to expand their roles beyond the private domestic sphere.

Read More →