First Roumanian-American Congregation
| First Roumanian-American Congregation | |
|---|---|
Synagogue entrance-way in 2005
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| Basic information | |
| Location | 89–93 Rivington Street, Lower East Side, Manhattan, New York City, New York,  United States
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| Geographic coordinates | 40°43′12″N 73°59′20″W / 40.72°N 73.9888°WCoordinates: 40°43′12″N 73°59′20″W / 40.72°N 73.9888°W |
| Affiliation | Orthodox Judaism |
| Status | Destroyed (2006) |
| Leadership | Rabbi: Shmuel Spiegel. Assistant Rabbi: Ari Spiegel. President: Gershon Spiegel. |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) |
J.C. Cady & Co. et al. Charles E. Reid. |
| Architectural style |
Romanesque Revival, Byzantine |
| Completed | c. 1860 |
| Specifications | |
| Direction of façade | North |
| Capacity | 1600-1800 |
| Length | 100 feet |
| Width | 70 feet |
| Materials | Foundation: Stone Walls: Brick Roof: Asphalt |
| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
| Added to NRHP | March 12, 1998 |
| NRHP Reference no. | 98000239 |
The First Roumanian-American Congregation, also known as Congregation Shaarey Shomayim (Hebrew: שַׁעֲרֵי שָׁמַיִם, "Gates of Heaven"), or the Roumanishe Shul (Yiddish for "Romanian synagogue"), was an Orthodox Jewish congregation which, for over 100 years, occupied a historic building at 89–93 Rivington Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York.
Those who organized the congregation in 1885 were part of a substantial wave of Romanian-Jewish immigrants, most of whom settled in the Lower East Side. The Rivington Street building, built around 1860, had previously been a church, then a synagogue, then a church again, and had been extensively remodeled in 1889. It was transformed into a synagogue for a second time when the First Roumanian-American congregation purchased it in 1902 and again remodeled it.
The synagogue became famous as the "Cantor's Carnegie Hall", because of its high ceiling, good acoustics, and seating for up to 1,800 people.Yossele Rosenblatt, Moshe Koussevitzky, Zavel Kwartin, Moishe Oysher, Jan Peerce and Richard Tucker were all cantors there.Red Buttons sang in the choir,George Burns was a member, and Edward G. Robinson had his Bar Mitzvah there.
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