Jacob Brenner (April 8, 1857 – October 16, 1921) was a Jewish-American lawyer and judge from New York.

Life

Brenner was born on April 8, 1857, in

New York City, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, the son of Simon Brenner and Caroline Alexander. He attended public schools in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. His father was a German immigrant with a tailoring establishment in Brooklyn. Brenner studied law in the office of Smith & Woodward, studying under former Surrogate and Brigadier-General Jesse C. Smith. He was then admitted to the bar, and at different points served as counsel of the Brooklyn Excise Department and the Sheriff of Kings County. In 1891, he became a partner in the law firm Bearns and Brenner. In 1893, he was appointed counsel to the Brooklyn Police Department and held that position through two administrations. He was appointed city magistrate in 1897, making him the first Brooklyn Jew to hold a judicial position. He resigned as magistrate in 1902, when he became commissioner of jurors of Kings County. He served as commissioner until his death. Brenner was active in the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

, and was considered the leader of the Eighth Assembly District. He served as executive member from his ward for 34 years. Due to his length of service, he became the dean of the

New York Republican State Committee The New York Republican State Committee, established in 1855, is the New York State affiliate of the United States Republican Party (GOP). The party has headquarters in Albany, Buffalo, and New York City.

. He was a member of the Kings County Republican Committee for 24 years and chairman of its Executive Committee for four terms. He was a delegate to every Republican State Convention since 1881, and was a delegate to multiple

Republican National Conventions The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

. Brenner was a member of the

Freemasons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

, the

Royal Arch Masonry Royal Arch Masonry (also known as "Capitular Masonry") is the first part of the York Rite system of the Masonic degrees. Royal Arch Masons meet as a ''Chapter'', and the Royal Arch Chapter confers four degrees: ''Mark Master Mason, Past Master, ...

, the

, the Brooklyn Club, the Montauk Club, the Unity Club, and the Federal Republican Club of Kings County. He was president of

Congregation Beth Elohim Congregation Beth Elohim ( he, בֵּית אֱלֹהִים), also known as the Garfield Temple and the Eighth Avenue Temple, is a Reform Jewish congregation located at 274 Garfield Place and Eighth Avenue, in the Park Slope neighborhood of ...

from 1907 to 1921 and served as superintendent of its religious school for 35 years. In 1883, he married Louise Blumenau. His children were Mortimer, Arthur, Rose, Rica, Selma, and Caroline. His sons were both lawyers. His daughter Rose Brenner was president of the

National Council of Jewish Women The National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization. Founded in 1893, NCJW is self-described as the oldest Jewish women’s grassroots organization in the United States, now comprised by over 180,000 members. As of ...

. Brenner died from heart disease while presiding at a meeting of the board of trustees of Congregation Beth Elohim. Rabbi Alexander Lyons delivered the eulogy for his funeral at the Congregation. Among those who attended the funeral were New York Supreme Court Justices Stephen Callaghan, Leander B. Faber, James Van Siclen, Lewis L. Fawcett, James C. Cropsey, and Charles H. Kelby, former Justice Luke Stapleton, former Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals Edgar M. Cullen, Republican-Coalition mayoral candidate Henry H. Curran, Surrogate George A. Wingate, Senator William M. Calder, Borough President Edward J. Riegelmann, Queens Republican leader Joseph H. DeBragga, Manhattan Republican leader Samuel S. Koenig, Brooklyn's Republican district leaders, Congregation Beth Elohim trustees (including District Attorney Harry E. Lewis,

Meier Steinbrink Meier Steinbrink (February 28, 1880 – December 7, 1967) was a Jewish-American lawyer and judge from New York. Life Steinbrink was born on February 28, 1880 in New York City, New York, the son of Samuel Steinbrink and Fredricka Stern. His father ...

, and Manasseh Miller), representations from the Federal Club the 8th Assembly District (Brenner's district) and the Congregation Beth Elohim Sunday School and women's auxiliary, and delegations from the Bedford Avenue Temple, the Unity Club, the Council of Jewish Women (which his daughter Rose was the national president of), and women political leaders from the various districts. He was buried in Mount Neboh Cemetery in Cypress Hills.

References

External links

*
The Political Graveyard
' 1857 births 1921 deaths Lawyers from Brooklyn 19th-century American judges 20th-century American judges 19th-century American Jews 20th-century American Jews American Reform Jews American lawyers New York (state) state court judges New York (state) Republicans American Freemasons Burials in New York (state) {{DEFAULTSORT:Brenner, Jacob