KAM Isaiah Israel
| KAM Isaiah Israel | |
|---|---|
KAM Isaiah Israel, September 2008
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| Basic information | |
| Location | 1100 E Hyde Park Blvd, Chicago, Illinois,  United States
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| Geographic coordinates | 41°48′9.5″N 87°35′55″W / 41.802639°N 87.59861°W |
| Affiliation | Reform Judaism |
| Country | United States of America |
| Status | Active |
| Leadership | Rabbi Frederick Reeves Cantor David Berger Amy Gelman, President of the Board |
| Website | kamii.org |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) |
Alfred S. Alschuler, John Alschuler, Ron Dirsmith |
| Architectural type | Synagogue |
| Architectural style | Neo-Byzantine |
| Completed | 1924 |
| Specifications | |
| Direction of façade | West |
| Capacity | 1,300 in the sanctuary, 400 in the chapel |
| Dome(s) | 3 (1 large and 2 small) |
| Spire(s) | 1 (reminiscent of a minaret) |
| Designated | June 9, 1977 |
KAM Isaiah Israel is a synagogue located in the historic Kenwood neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois. It is the oldest Jewish congregation in Chicago, with its oldest core founded in 1847 as Kehilath Anshe Ma'arav ("Congregation of the Men of the West").
The congregation Kehilath Anshe Maarav (Congregation of the Men of the West) was founded on November 3, 1847 at the wholesale dry-goods store of Levi Rosenfeld and Jacob Rosenberg located at 155 Lake Street by twenty men, many of whom hailed from Bavaria. At the time, this section of the Chicago Loop was the center of the small Chicago Jewish community. The newly founded congregation was first housed above Rosenfeld and Rosenberg's store at Lake and Wells street. After increasing membership and lack of space, the congregation was soon forced to find a more suitable space to accommodate their growing community. A lot was leased at Clark and Quincy streets (now the site of the Kluczynski Federal Building), and construction of a small frame synagogue began. After an investment of $12,000, the one and a half story building, with a capacity of 450 people, was dedicated on June 13, 1851. After only two years, their land lease had expired, forcing the congregation to move the new building to Adams and Wells in 1853. Unscathed by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, KAM's synagogue building was burned down in the Chicago Fire of 1874..
In 1890, KAM moved into its Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler designed temple in Bronzeville, and in 1924 moved again to a private residence in Hyde Park. The former synagogue became the Pilgrim Baptist Church, the birthplace of Gospel music. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, designated a Chicago Landmark in 1981, and partially destroyed by fire in 2006. In 1971, KAM merged with another Reform congregation, Isaiah Israel (builders of the present synagogue), to become KAM Isaiah Israel.
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