In January 1926 a group of Jewish religious leaders of the Reform movement founded a small congregation in New Castle, Pennsylvania. March 1927 they were officially chartered as the “Temple Israel of New Castle” and decided to build a synagogue of their own. The impressive-looking Temple Israel synagogue was opened on Highland Avenue in about September 1927. Soon after this a section of Oak Park Cemetery was purchased for burial of members of the congregation. A dedicated burial ground, the Temple Israel Memorial Park, was established on Sunrise Drive (Fording Road) in Neshannock Township in late 1955. In 1998 the Temple Israel merged with that of the Tifereth Israel to form the new congregation of Temple Hadar. The congregations each had their own cemeteries and both retained their original names after the merger. Among the notable burials at Temple Israel Memorial Park is Jack Gerson (1892-1987), the Lithuanian-born jeweler and civic leader who was very involved in the local Jewish community.
The entrance gates to the Temple Israel Memorial Park along Sunrise Drive in Neshannock Township. (Mar 2013) Full Size |
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(Mar 2013) | The gravesite of Jack Gerson, the well-known jeweler, and his wife Rebecca. (Mar 2013) |
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(Mar 2013) | The gravesite of William Blau, who operated the Simon Blau clothing store for many years. He was the son of Simon Blau, who founded the business in 1898. (Mar 2013) |
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Comments
Rob Caplan #
Jeff — Thanks for the great pictures and history regarding the Temple Israel Memorial Park.
The bench you photographed happens to be in memory of my mother, Marilyn, and was custom-made locally to spec by the Ranier Devido Stone Company.
Congratulations on a great website with tons of useful history, pictures, and information.
Jeff Bales Jr #
(EDITOR’S NOTE) Rob, Thanks for the post. I love hearing from the family members associated with the cemetery stones and other items I photograph. It puts a bit of a story with the photo. Thanks for the support! Jeff
Ina G. Sable #
Your pictures and comments about the cemetery and some of the individual memorials brought back happy memories of the people that I had known growing up in New Castle. The kind words about my parents Rebecca and Jack Gerson brought tears to my eyes. Thank you so much.
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