Letter from the Chief Rabbinate Council to the Newport Hebrew Congregation regarding elections for representatives of the Council, 12 August 1963

Description

The letter is from the Chief Rabbinate Council reminding the Newport Hebrew Congregation of the upcoming elections for representatives of the Council. It also mentions that the current representative for the area has been sent a letter requesting that he arrange a meeting with all the synagogues in the area for an election to take place and that the synagogue should co-operate with their representative.

The Chief Rabbi is the spiritual leader of the United Synagogue. Founded in 1870 the United Synagogue is the union of Orthodox Jewish synagogues in the United Kingdom. In 1963 the Chief Rabbi of Great Britain and the Commonwealth was Sir Israel Brodie who held the position from 1948 - 1965.

Newport Monmouthshire Hebrew Congregation was founded in 1859 by orthodox Jews meeting at a temporary synagogue in Llanarth Street. A synagogue at Francis Street was opened in 1869 and consecrated by the Chief Rabbi Dr Herman Adler in 1871. In 1934 the congregation moved to their Nathan Harris Memorial Hall in Queen's Hill which was converted to a synagogue. In 1997 this synagogue was closed, and the congregation moved to their Prayer House by the Jewish Burial Ground on Risca Road. Within 20 years the congregation had dwindled to a few members able to attend and this too had ceased to hold services.

Sources:
https://chiefrabbi.org/history-chief-rabbinate/;
https://www.theus.org.uk/aboutus;
https://www.jewishgen.org/jcr-uk/Community/newp/index.htm;
"History of our Shul. The First Hundred Years", published by Newport Congregation in 1959;
Oral history interviews with members of the Newport Mon Hebrew Congregation, recorded in 2018 by JHASW.

Depository: Gwent Archives.