the former

Polish Synagogue, Cutler Street

City of London, London E1

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Congregation Data
Name:	Polish Synagogue
Alternative Names⁽ⁱⁱ⁾:	Cutler Street Synagogue, Carter Street Synagogue and Clothier Street Synagogue
Address:	Clothier Street (formerly Carter Street⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾), Cutler Street, Houndsditch, London E1.^(iv) The synagogue was situated at the end of the Clothier Street cul-de-sac, on an upper floor of the last building on the left-hand side, on going down Clothier street. It was next to the Harris brewery which occupied the end of the street and the last building on the right-hand side.^(v)
Date Formed:	The date generally given is 1802,^(viii) although other sources^(ix) give the date as 1790. It was stated to be one of the three minor congregations reputedly established in London in the eighteenth century. The others were the Rosemary Lane Congregation and the Gun Yard "Polish" Synagogue
Closure:	Closed in late 1930s.^(x)
Ritual:	Ashkenazi Orthodox
Affiliation:	Initially a dependency of the Great Synagogue Listed, under the name Carter Street Synagogue, the congregation was one of the 16 congregations that attended the meeting on 16 October 1887^(xii) to form the Federation of Synagogues, and it became one of the original 21 or 22 federated synagogues on 6 November 1887^(xiii). However, the congregation appears to have become unaffiliated shortly thereafter and certainly within the next few years, as it did not appear among member congregations of the Federation of Synagogues listed in the first Jewish Year Book (1896/7). When it subsequently appeared in Jewish Year Books^(xiv), it was always listed as independent.
Reader / Minister:	J. Parr - reader in and about 1873^(xvi) Rev. J. H. Cohen - minister and secretary from about 1934 until about 1936.^(xvii)
Lay Officers and Committee in 1873:^(xviii)	Wardens H. Jacobs & Lazarus Phillips Treasurer Adolphe Pulvermacher Sub-Treasurer Israel Woolfe Secretary Rev. Solomon Levy^(xix)	Committee Members Michael Aarons Noah Aarons S. de Young H.S. Friedman I. Harris Aaron Jacobs Isaac Myers Julius Shinberg
Later Lay Officers:^(xx)	President at least 1913 to 1936 - I. Danziger Wardens 1924-1928 - M. Manowitz & H. Langleben 1928-1929 - H. Langleben & A. Rodinsky 1929-1930 - H. Langleben & I. Rosenberg 1930-1936 - H. Langleben & I. Tannepolsky	Vice President 1924-1936 - B. Goodman Treasurer at least 1913-1936 - I. Rosenberg Hon. Secretaries at least 1913-1919 - J. Streletskie 1919-1934 - G. Cherns
Local Government Districts:	Cutler Street and Clothier Street are in the Portsoken Ward of the City of London, within the administrative area of Greater London. Until the abolition in 1908 of civil parishes in the City, the streets were in the parish of St. Botolph Without Aldgate.
Registration District (BMD):	Since 1 July 1837 - City of London - Link to Register Office website
Notes & Sources (↵ returns to text above) (i) Reserved. (ii) The congregation has been described variously under these names. ↵ (iii) The change of street name took place after 1887, but some time prior to 1912 - Old to New Street Names 1857 - 1929 on Bruce Hunts's maps.thehunthouse.com website. ↵ (iv) Cutler Street (some 200 feet long) runs northeast from Houndsditch, situated in the City of London, just 300 feet from its eastern boundary. Clothier Street (Carter Street) was a cul-de-sac on the southern side of Cutler Street. ↵ (v) We are grateful to Dr. John Israel for providing this description of the location of the synagogue. ↵ (vi) and (vii) Reserved. (viii) it states "Founded 1802" in all the congregation's listings in Jewish Year Books, from 1914 . ↵ (ix) Dr. Geoffrey Alderman's The Federation of Synagogues, 1887-1987 (1987), p.20 and the Jewish Directory from 1874 edited by Asher. I Myers. ↵ (x) The last full listing of the congregation was in the Jewish Year Book 1936. Its name appeared in the 1937 and 1938 editions but with no other details whatsoever, an indication that it had already closed. It was not listed at all in the 1939 edition or subsequently. ↵ (xi) Reserved. (xii) G. Alderman's The Federation of Synagogues, 1887-1987 (1987), p.20. ↵ (xiii) Listed, as "Polish", Cutler Street, by V. D. Lipman in his Social History of the Jews in England 1850-1950 (1954), pp 120-121. ↵ (xiv) Commencing with the Jewish Year Book 1914. ↵ (xv) Reserved. (xvi) Listed as reader of the congregation in The Jewish Directory for 1874 edited by Asher I. Myers. ↵ (xvii) Listed as minister and secretary of the congregation in Jewish Year Books 1934 through 1936. ↵ (xviii) Listed in The Jewish Directory for 1874, edited by Asher I. Myers. ↵ (xix) To view a short profile of Rev. Levy, hold the cursor over his name. ↵ (xx) All the data listed here has been extracted from Jewish Year Books 1914 through 1936. Where a person is first listed in a year book as holding a particular office, it has been assumed that his term of office commenced in the year of publication of the relevent year book (which was generally towards the end of the year prior to year appearing the the title of the year book) and that he continued in office until the commencement of office of his successor, unless the office was vacant (e.g. if he is listed in Jewish Year Books 1925 through 1928, it is assumed that he commenced office in 1924 and continued in office until 1928). However, it should be noted that this is only an assumption and accordingly his actual years of office may differ slightly from those shown here. ↵

List of Independent Ashkenazi Congregations in London

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Page created: 29 August 2006
Page most recently amended: 5 December 2023

Research and formatting by David Shulman

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