Temple Israel in Colorado

I was reading the Council of American Jewish Museum's (CAJM) newsletter and ran across this great synagogue museum in Colorado. I wanted to bring it to your attention and to celebrate the great work these folks out West are doing. Temple Israel, in Leadville, Colorado, was established in 1884 (just five years before our very own Ahavas Sholom). Read more about this awesome pioneer synagogue and its restoration here: http://www.jewishleadville.org/

Historical Society Volunteers Finish Cataloging Objects!

Wow! Last Saturday the team of volunteers from the Historical Society really came together to get a lot done. We started the day with a fairly messy temple/museum and ended with one that is almost ready to be opened to the public! This past Saturday Jerry, Everett, Cyndi, and Jeana finished cataloging all of the 3D objects (872 total overall) while Jed and I did the heavy lifting, organizing and moving - LOTS OF IT!

Before cataloging began.
Objects hung on the wall detracted
from the building's historic significance.

Our goal is to open the museum on Memorial Day Weekend for the summer with a new temporary exhibit. The exhibit includes 30 objects from the Society's collection which help tell the story of the Ligonier community from 1860-1980. The exhibit will be open until the fall when the museum closes its doors for the winter.

The front of the sanctuary will be interpreted to show what the space would have looked like to Jewish worshippers in 1889. We do not have many of the original artifacts from the temple, but we do have the best object of all- the temple itself!

Baum & Son pump organ,
original pew, Union Prayer Book,
and King David stained glass window

The Torah "Ark" with
Hebrew 10 Commandments,
American flag, and bimah (scroll table)

Cleaning and de-cluttering allows visitors to see the walls of the building and celebrate its stained glass windows. Visitors will now be able to feel what it was like to step inside a 19th century synagogue. There's still a lot of work left to be done but luckily, we have a team of dedicated, hard-working volunteers who just happen to love history!