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Mikveh Israel Cemetery

Mikveh Israel Cemetery is the oldest Jewish cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, giving evidence of a settled community as early as 1740. A number of outstanding patriots, pioneers, and other notables of the Jewish faith who made important contributions to the history and freedom of America during the Colonial and Revolutionary period were interred here, and for this reason, in 1959, by an act of Congress, the burial ground was designated as a unit of the Independence National Historical Park, while continuing to be maintained by the sponsoring Congregation Mikveh Israel.[3] The cemetery was certified by the Philadelphia Historical Commission, and in 1971, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[4]

The site is 60 by 80 feet (18 m × 24 m),[4] less than 0.2 acres (810 m2) in size, and is located in the Washington Square West neighborhood, in the center city section of Philadelphia, about 1⁄4 mi west and 1⁄4 mi south of Independence Hall.

History

Mikveh Israel Cemetery was originally a private burial ground for the family of Nathan Levy. In 1738, one of Levy's children died. Rather than bury the child in unsanctified ground, he applied to John Penn (chief of Pennsylvania's proprietary government at that time) for "a small piece of ground" with permission to make it a family cemetery. This property was at the corner of 9th and Walnut Streets, the present site of the Walnut Street Theatre. Two years later, Nathan Levy secured a larger plot from the Penn family at the present location of Mikveh Israel Cemetery. This was meant to be a permanent burial ground for the entire Jewish community of Philadelphia. Levy was buried there upon his death in 1753.[4]

The cemetery in 1740 was a 30' x 30' plot. In 1752, Nathan Levy received an additional grant of land north of the first plot. In 1765, John Penn granted Mathias Bush an adjacent piece of ground for burial purposes.[4] By that time, the burial place was managed by the Sephardic synagogue Congregation Mikveh Israel (official name: קהל קדוש מקוה ישראל, Kahal Kadosh Mikveh Israel, or "Holy Congregation Hope of Israel"), founded in 1740 and still active in the 21st century.

In 1791, the Congregation appointed trustees for the burial ground, and in 1793, the Levy family recognized the right of the Congregatin Mikveh Israel to the Spruce Street Cemetery. However the dissensions among the descendants of the buried still disputed the right of ownership, until April 14, 1828, when the Legislature passed an act giving the burial ground to the Jews of Philadelphia, with the names of the trustees affixed to the petition.[5]

After the purchase of the Federal Street Cemetery, the burials on Spruce Street had almost ceased, the last recorded one being Hetty Pesoa, July 3, 1886.[5] Mikveh Israel would acquire the Beth El Emeth Cemetery in 1895. In the present day, Congregation Mikveh Israel continues to steward these three cemeteries.

Burials

Mikveh Israel Cemetery sign

Many distinguished Americans are buried in Mikveh Israel Cemetery. They include:

The cemetery ceased to be a regular place of burial in 1886 except for the interment of Josephine Etting in 1913, Fanny Polano Elmaleh, wife of Reverend Leon H. Elmaleh, in 1966, and Reverend Leon H. Elmaleh in 1972.[8][9][10][11][12][13]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mikveh Israel Cemetery.

References

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. ^ "PHMC Historical Markers". Historical Marker Database. Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission. Retrieved December 10, 2013.
  3. ^ Federal Register Doc. 59-2549, Filed March 25, 1959
  4. ^ a b c d e National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form, Entry Number 71.6.42.0041 6/24/71
  5. ^ a b Elmaleh, Rev. L. H.; Samuel, J. Bunford (May 1906). "The Jewish Cemetery, Ninth and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia, List of Names on Tombstones – Also a Brief Outline of the Acquisition of the Jewish Cemetery".
  6. ^ "Philadelphia". www.jewishencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2019-05-08.
  7. ^ "Liberty Bell Timeline". The Independence Hall Association. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  8. ^ Bulletin Almanac: 1976. Philadelphia: Bulletin Co., 1976. (p. 292).
  9. ^ Elmaleh, L.H., and J. Bunford Samuel. The Jewish Cemetery: Ninth and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia. (1906, revised 1962).
  10. ^ "Gratz Family". The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia. 1941, Volume V.
  11. ^ Wolf, Edwin, II, and Maxwell Whiteman. The History of the Jews of Philadelphia from Colonial Times to the Age of Jackson. (1957).
  12. ^ Wolf, Edwin, II, and Maxwell Whiteman. Haym Salomon: The Patriotic Money Manipulator. Philadelphia Inquirer (1976).
  13. ^ Mary M. Cohen, An Old Philadelphia Cemetery: The Resting Place of Rebecca Gratz, Vol. 2, No. 4 (Philadelphia, PA: City History Soc. of Philadelphia, 1920).

External links