History of Touro Synagogue
First Jews in Newport
The first Jewish immigrants in the small but growing colony of Newport, Rhode Island, arrived from Barbados in the mid to late 17th century, possibly as early as 1658. They were primarily of Spanish and Portuguese origin; their families had migrated from Amsterdam and London to Brazil and then to islands in the Caribbean. They were not given full rights as citizens — they could not vote or hold office — but Rhode Island’s religious toleration meant they were safe and free from persecution. In Newport, they formed Congregation Nephuse Israel (Scattered of Israel), the second oldest Jewish congregation in the United States. By 1677, the community realized the need to acquire land for a Jewish burial ground. Two of the original immigrants, Mordechai Campanal and Moses Pacheco, purchased the lot at the corner of what is now Kay and Touro Streets for this purpose.
In the 1680s, Mordechai Campanal, Moses Pacheco, and fellow Jewish “resident aliens,” Abraham Burgos and Simon and Rachel Mendes tested British Navigation laws that prohibited aliens from engaging in mercantile trades. In 1684 the General Assembly of Rhode Island agreed that the group should be allowed to conduct business and that they were entitled to the full protection of the law as “resident strangers.”
Building the Synagogue
Through the early and middle 1700s, Newport rose in prominence and importance, taking a leading role in the shipping and mercantile trades of the American Colonies. By 1758, the Jewish population had grown enough to warrant the construction of a synagogue. The Congregation, now known as Congregation Jeshuat Israel (Salvation of Israel), hired Newport resident Peter Harrison to design the building. Harrison, a British-American merchant, sea captain, was also fascinated with architecture. He studied and acquired many books on the subject and had already completed the design of Newport’s Redwood Library and King’s Chapel in Boston. Construction began on the “Jews Synagogue” in 1759. At the same time, Harrison was also building Christ Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and the Brick Market in Newport.
Several theories have arisen as to how Harrison, having no direct experience of the needs and requirements of a Jewish house of worship, could execute the elegant design of the first synagogue in New England. He had a limited choice of earlier models to draw on in the Western Hemisphere. He may have seen the 1732 Mikvé Israel Synagogue on the island of Curaçao or the 1701 London synagogue, Bevis Marks. For the building’s exterior, Harrison drew on his knowledge of and enthusiasm for Palladian architecture. He is known as one of the first designers to bring this popular European architectural style to the American colonies. More than likely, his best references for the interior came directly from members of the Newport Jewish congregation, notably, the Hazzan [prayer leader], Isaac Touro, who had only recently arrived from Amsterdam, and the 1675 Portuguese Synagogue known as the Esnoga.
To help fund the new synagogue, the Jewish community in Newport turned to Jewish communities throughout America’s mid-Atlantic region and in the Caribbean, where there were close ties through family and business interests. Generous financial support came from the older New York congregation, Congregation Shearith Israel, and the Jewish communities in Curaçao, Jamaica, and Surinam. Additional support came from London and Amsterdam.
The Newport Synagogue, dedicated on the first night of Hanukkah, December 2, 1763, is now thought to be one of the ten most architecturally significant buildings of 18th century America. The dedication ceremony was a community celebration, attended not only by the Jewish community but also by clergy and other dignitaries from around the colony, including Congregationalist Minister Ezra Stiles. Stiles, future president of Yale University, kept detailed accounts of life in town. His diaries and drawings provide a treasure trove of information on Newport, the Rhode Island colony, and the Jewish community of the mid-eighteenth century.
Click for a Virtual Tour of Touro Synagogue.
From the Revolution to the First Amendment
At the onset of the American Revolution, the British occupied Newport and many of the Jewish residents of the city fled, removing their families and businesses to Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York. Remaining behind was Isaac Touro, who kept watch over the synagogue as it became a hospital for the British military and a public assembly hall. During the occupation, the British troops, desperate for wood during the long, cold winters tore down and burned a number of local residences and buildings. The synagogue’s usefulness as a hospital ward and meetinghouse kept it from the same fate. In October 1779 the King’s troops evacuated Newport and within a year or two many of the Jewish families returned to town and took up their businesses again.
In August 1790, three months after Rhode Island had joined the United States by ratifying the Constitution, George Washington chose to visit Newport for a public appearance to rally support for the new Bill of Rights. As part of the welcoming ceremonies for the President of the United States, Moses Mendes Seixas, then president of Congregation Yeshuat Israel, was one of the community leaders given the honor of addressing Washington. In his letter of welcome, Seixas chose to raise the issues of religious liberties and the separation of church and state. Washington’s response, quoting Seixas’ thoughts, has come down to us as a key policy statement of the new government in support of First Amendment rights.
The Quiet Years
Newport never regained its stature as a leading seaport following the Revolutionary War. The Jewish community, long active in commerce, dispersed because of the lasting downturn in the economy. With few to no Jewish people in Newport by the early 19th century, the Synagogue closed for regular services but opened as needed for funerals, high holidays services, and special occasions. Congregation Shearith Israel in New York became trustees of the Synagogue, and Stephen Gould, a member of a local Quaker family and good friends to many of the former Jewish residents of Newport, was engaged as a caretaker.
Naming the Synagogue
Through the first half of the 19th century, even as the Jews of Newport dispersed, they did not relinquish their sense of responsibility to their synagogue or to their burial ground. As members died, their bodies were returned to Yeshuat Israel for interment. Newport natives Abraham and Judah Touro, sons of Isaac Touro, both provided bequests to see to the perpetual care and maintenance of the Congregation’s properties.
In 1820, Abraham Touro had a brick wall built around the cemetery, and when he died in 1822 he bequeathed $10,000 to the State of Rhode Island for the support and maintenance of the “Old Jewish Synagogue” in Newport. He made an additional bequest of $5,000 for the maintenance of the street which runs from the cemetery down the hill to the synagogue building. As a result of his generosity, the street was named “Touro Street”. When the state legislature accepted Abraham’s gift, they were the first to publicly refer to the synagogue as “Touro (or Touro’s) Synagogue”.
Abraham’s brother, Judah Touro died in 1854. Prior to his death he had seen to the replacement of the wall his brother Abraham had built thirty years prior, which was in disrepair. The brick wall was replaced with a granite and wrought iron enclosure. When Judah died, his will, which was published in several languages around the world, left bequests to both Jewish and non-Jewish charitable organizations in the United States and abroad. To Newport he gave $10,000 towards the ministry and maintenance of the synagogue, $3,000 towards building repairs and book purchases for the Redwood Library, and $10,000 for the Old Stone Mill, with the property to become a public park. Both brothers, Abraham and Judah Touro, are hailed as amongst the first great American philanthropists.
New Beginnings
The end of the 19th century ushered in new life for Touro Synagogue with the arrival of eastern European Jews to the United States. In 1881 the “new” Jewish community of Newport petitioned Congregation Shearith Israel to reopen the town’s synagogue for services and appoint a permanent rabbi. Abraham Pereira Mendes of London was called to Newport, arriving in 1883, and served as the Rabbi to Congregation Yeshuat Israel for ten years. During and following this period, Congregation Shearith Israel in New York retained rights to the building, but an independent Congregation Jeshuat Israel was re-established.
Then, in 1946, Touro Synagogue, as it is now known, was designated a National Historic Site. For the past 75 years, Touro Synagogue has held a public reading of the George Washington letter as a celebration and pronouncement of religious freedom. This tradition continues today. The synagogue remains an active house of worship and is toured by thousands of visitors every year.
