Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue

© Reproduced with the kind permission of Leslie Bailey
Entrance to the Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue (August 2007)
 

Latest Name:

Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue
("Sha'ar Ya'acov")

Previous Name:

Fieldgate Street Synagogue

Address:

41 Fieldgate Street, London E1 1JU

(Location: Fieldgate Street (about one-fifth of a mile), in London's East End, lies to the south of Commercial Road and forks off east from Commercial Road to New Road. The eastern half of the street was previously known as Charlotte Street.)

Incorporated Congregations:

Chevra Bikkur Cholim, Fashion Street (May 1899)
Lubner and Lomzer Synagogue (after 1947)
Vine Court Synagogue (1965)
Stepney Orthodox Synagogue (after 1966)
Alie Street Synagogue (1969)
Ezras Chaim, Ain Yacov and Poltava Synagogue (1973)

Current Status:

The last regular service was held on 22 September 2007. However, the synagogue was reopened for services on the "High Holyday" (Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) in 2008 and, for a while, other services were held from time to time. However, by 2014, the synagogue closed its doors for good.

In March 2015, the synagogue building was sold to the East London Mosque. The Congregation had agreed to transfer the building to the Federation of Synagogue, which in turn agreed to put the proceeds of sale towards other projects. In return, the members of the Congregation (who numbered approximately 180, most of whom no longer live in the East End) were made life members of a synagogue in the Hendon area, thus safeguarding their burial rights.

Date Founded:

1897-9, on the amalgamation of three small chevrot

Ritual:

Orthodox - Ashkenazi

Affiliation:

An affiliated synagogue to the Federation of Synagogues. (A section of members were, and some may still be, affiliated for burial rights to the West End Great Synagogue.)

Membership Data:

1905  -   140 members (source)

Source: Jewish Year Book 1906

1915  -   150 members (source)

Source: Jewish Year Book 1916

Local Government Districts:

Fieldgate Street is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, created on 1 April 1965, within the administrative area of Greater London.

Previously, Fieldgate Street and Charlotte Street were in the Metropolitan Borough of Stepney (established 1900) in the County of London (established 1889), both of which entities were abolished in 1965.

Both streets was also within the civil parish of Whitechapel (which was in the former County of Middlesex until 1889) and which, from 1856 to 1900, was a constituent of the Whitechapel District.

The civil parish of Whitechapel was abolished in 1927, being absorbed into Stepney Borough parish, which itself was abolished in 1965.

Registration Districts:

From 1 July 1837 - Whitechapel
From 1 January 1926 - Stepney
Since 1 January 1983 - Tower Hamlets (which now holds the registers)