Congregation Knesseth Israel, also known as the Ellington Shul, is a Modern Orthodox

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

congregation and

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

located at 236 Pinney Street in Ellington,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, in the United States. The congregation was founded in 1906 by a group of Yiddish-speaking Jewish farmers from Russia and Eastern Europe. Its building, dating to 1913, is a rare example of an early 20th-century rural synagogue in the state, and was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1995.

Architecture and history

Knesseth Israel is located in what is now a rural-residential setting south of Ellington center, on the west side of Pinney Road ( Connecticut Route 286) a short way north of its junction with Middle Road. It is a modest single-story wood-frame structure, with a hip roof and clapboarded exterior. Its main facade is three bays wide, with a center entrance sheltered by a gabled portico. The portico is supported by square posts, and has a

Star of David The Star of David (, , ) is a symbol generally recognized as representing both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the Seal of Solomon was used for decora ...

in the gable. The flanking windows consist of a lower pair of sashes, and an upper transom with paired round arches applied. The interior of the building consists of one large chamber, with a

bema A bema is an elevated platform used as an orator's podium. The term can refer to the raised area in a sanctuary. In Jewish synagogues, where it is used for Torah reading during services, the term used is bima or bimah. Ancient Greece The Anci ...

that appears slightly oversized due to the building's small size. Because it is a single-story building, the segregated worship area for women (normally located in a second-floor gallery) is on the south side of the main space, separated by a low divider. The synagogue was built in 1913, and was originally located at the corner of Middle Rd. and Abbott Rd. in Ellington. It was built in the Colonial Revival Style partly with funds from the philanthropist

Baron Maurice de Hirsch Moritz Freiherr von Hirsch auf Gereuth (; ; 9 December 1831 – 21 April 1896), commonly known as Maurice de Hirsch, was a German Jewish financier and philanthropist who set up charitable foundations to promote Jewish education and improve the l ...

's Jewish Colonization Association. In the 1954 the building was moved to its present location at 236 Pinney St. The building was designed by Leon Dobkin. and The building was one of fifteen Connecticut synagogues added to the

in 1995 and 1996 in response to an unprecedented multiple submission, nominating nineteen synagogues. In addition to the synagogue, the congregation maintains an Orthodox Jewish

cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, dead people are burial, buried or otherwise entombed. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek ...

within the larger Ellington Cemetery.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Knesseth Israel 1906 establishments in Connecticut 20th-century synagogues in the United States Ashkenazi synagogues in the United States Buildings and structures in Tolland County, Connecticut Cemeteries in Tolland County, Connecticut Colonial Revival architecture in Connecticut Colonial Revival synagogues Ellington, Connecticut Jewish cemeteries in Connecticut Jewish organizations established in 1906 Modern Orthodox synagogues in the United States National Register of Historic Places in Tolland County, Connecticut Orthodox synagogues in Connecticut Russian-Jewish culture in the United States Synagogues completed in 1913 Synagogues on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Yiddish culture in the United States

Architecture and history

See also

References

External links