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Take A Tour - Ambassador John L. Loeb Jr. Visitors Center
The Ambassador John L. Loeb Jr. Visitors Center at the Touro
Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island is the gateway to the Touro
campus, which includes the Center, Patriot’s Park, the Touro
Synagogue National Historic Site, and the historic Colonial
Jewish Burying Ground. The Visitors Center exhibitions are a
celebration of America’s first amendment rights and help us
learn how religious freedom and the clear separation of church
and state came to be part of American law and culture. Visitors
may also find inspiration in the personal histories of colonial
American Jews and their influence at the nation’s beginning.
Main Exhibit Hall
The first floor of the main Visitors Center building houses the
information desk, introductory exhibits and visitor facilities.
On the second floor, guests may view permanent and changing
exhibitions relating to the four-fold mission of the center:
1. To explain how Newport and the Rhode Island colony became the
center of and originating focal points for the concepts of
religious liberty, tolerance, and the separation of church and
state in colonial America;
2. To educate the public on the role of the Founding Fathers
(i.e.: Washington and Jefferson) as key figures in the
dissemination of these concepts by telling the story of
Washington’s Letter to the Jews of Newport;
3. To examine the history of Jews in Colonial and Revolutionary
War America;
4. To explore the history of the Touro Synagogue, the oldest
extant synagogue building in the United States, its congregation
and its architect Peter Harrison.
Through the second floor arched windows and from the outdoor
balcony, visitors will have a panoramic view of the newly
renovated Patriot’s Park, the synagogue and other Newport
landmarks.
Barney House
Adjacent to the main exhibition hall is the Barney House. The
history of this property can be traced back to 1702, when
Jonathan Barney purchased the land and built a small two-story
home. By the 1750s the house had been expanded to fourteen rooms
with a gambrel-styled roof. The house is being restored to its
1757 configuration and will become part of the Loeb Visitors
Center.
Patriot’s Park
Patriot’s Park, located between the Visitors Center and Touro
Synagogue commemorates the significant roles played by Jews in
the development of the United States of America. It was created
in the 1970s on the land directly beside the synagogue, but
outside of the Touro wall. Jewish individuals, one from each of
the original thirteen colonies, whose actions and influence
played a significant role in American history, are honored.
During the park’s construction, each of the patriot states was
invited to nominate the honoree who now represents them.
The park was dedicated in 1980. At its center was a flag pole
surrounded by a plaque naming the thirteen patriots. The pole
was the mast from one of the America’s Cup contenders, donated
by Dr. Chartier of Newport. Other major benefactors included Dr.
Martin Greenfield, Dr. Addleson, and Senator Clairborne Pell.
As part of the construction of the new Loeb Visitors Center,
Patriots Park is being renovated. A new formal gateway to the
Touro Synagogue enclosure is to be added through the existing
wall, inviting access to the synagogue grounds from the directly
from the park and the Visitors Center.
Touro Synagogue
Touro Synagogue, built beginning in 1759 and dedicated in 1763
during Chanukah festivities, is the oldest synagogue building in
the United States and continues to serve Congregation Jeshuat
Israel, first organized in 1658. In 1946 the Synagogue was
designated a National Historic Site by the National Park Service
and was renovated in 2005 by the National Historic Trust and the
Park Service. Colonial Jewish Burying Ground Two blocks from the
Visitors center on Touro Street is the old burial ground for the
congregation of the Touro Synagogue, immortalized in Henry
Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “The Jewish Cemetery at Newport.”
For further information, please visit
Ambassador John L. Loeb Jr. Visitors Center
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