What to do — and how to do it — with large and/or historic synagogues closed because of dwindling congregations remain key issues, which we have written about several times in the past. Conversion into housing is one solution — we have noted cases in England, and there are also such cases in the U.S. and elsewhere.
One example in England is the former Jesmond synagogue in Newcastle upon Tyne. It was built in 1915 but closed for workshop in 1986. After that it was used as a girls’ school but recently it was converted into a luxury apartments complex, called Byzantine House.
The conversion maintained the original facade and Moorish-style arched entryway, with Hebrew inscriptions and an ornate central stained glass window with a Star of David, as well as the original mosaic floor in the entryway, but otherwise converted the interior into 10 one and two-bedroom flats.
In June, Newcastle’s Lord Mayor David Cook joined members of the local Jewish community, as well as city officials and the property development firm, to unveil a plaque on the exterior of the building, designating it as a former synagogue and recalling its history.
The plaque reads: “Jesmond Synagogue – Synagogue designed by local architect Marcus K Glass, opened in 1915. Served the Jewish Hebrew Congregation and, from 1973, the United Hebrew Congregation of Newcastle upon Tyne, until closure of the building in 1986.”
In the video below, Cook explains the importance of this recognition and the importance of the building. He states:
This is a building of huge historic significance. That’s not just to the Jewish community of Newcastle but also to the Jewish architectural history of the whole country.
There’s an enormous danger when historic buildings change their use that their heritage is lost but this fantastic building has been retained and I’m delighted we still have it here in Jesmond.
The conversion of the synagogue into apartments was carried by a new Newcastle property development firm, Provenance Developments, founded by two women. In the video below, one of them, Melanie Brown, describes the conversion:
See details of the synagogue’s history
3 comments on “UK: A former synagogue in Newcastle has been converted into apartments — but its history is remembered”
This relates to a previous JHE post about Syracuse, New York. While there is still hope the plan of the student housing developer for the Temple Concord (in Syracuse) will spare not only the exterior of the 1911 sanctuary building, but also its interior, there is also a good chance that they may propose a project that reconfigures or redecorates the space so that is historic and aesthetic importance is lost. There is a public hearing on February 6th, and there will be a lot more discussion about this.
After Emancipation in the late 19th century the synagogues in Western Europe (and America) developed along two lines. First there were more impressive exterior located or more publicly visible and accessible sites. This was the face Jews put forward – on their own or coerced by local authorities to conform to local tastes and expectation. Then there was the interior. And though increasingly in the 19th and 20th centuries synagogue interiors conformed to trending or dominant majority culture art and architectural tastes, the interior also always reflected the image and identity communities wanted to present to themselves of their interpretation of contemporary Jewish practice and – by extension – Judaism itself. It is good and important to preserve synagogue exterior as part of the historical record and as important elements in local civic architectural city/landscapes. But to remember Judaism, it is even more important to preserve (and use) historic synagogue interiors, too. Short of that complete documentation of every aspect of the interior MUST be made prior to alteration and or demotion. We have lots of detailed photos of synagogue exteriors – but relatively few of interiors.
Thankfully, whatever happens at Syracuse’s Temple Concord, the congregation has commissioned complete HABS (Historic American Building Survey) documentation for ALL components of the Temple complex, including the 1911 sanctuary, the 1929 social hall expansion and education building, and the 1960 educational and office wing. I urge all congregations – no matter what the present and future status – to undertake similar documentation
Interesting to see the Ma Tovu prayer on the facade here. I know of several synagogues with the Ma Tovu inscribed inside, but can’t recall an exterior presentation before. If viewers know of other examples I’d like to hear about them for comparative purposes.
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