Congregation Emanu-El for kids
The Synagogue in a Tent. The true story of Congregation Emanu-El, near San Francisco, CA, told for kids.
Read along
Can you picture a place of worship made of cloth? Long ago, in the Gold Rush, a small group of traders and merchants gathered in San Francisco. In 1849, they held the first Jewish High Holy Days services on the West Coast. And it was inside a tent!
No tall tower. No big doors. Just canvas walls flapping in the wind. Flap, flap, flap!
Soon the group started a congregation, and in April 1851 it received an official charter as Congregation Emanu-El. It is one of the three oldest Jewish congregations in California. So the tent was like a tiny seed, and the congregation grew like a big sunflower! Now, pretend you are inside a tent and wiggle your fingers like a flapping canvas wall!
Quiz the back seat
Where was the first Jewish service on the West Coast held?
Show the answer
In a tent. In a tent! Flap, flap! A small canvas start for a congregation that grew very big.
3 fun facts
- In 1849, the first Jewish High Holy Days services on the West Coast were held in a tent in San Francisco.
- Congregation Emanu-El received an official charter in 1851.
- It is one of the three oldest Jewish congregations in California.
For grown-ups
Every Tumbly story is checked claim by claim against the sources below before it's published; stories that don't pass stay off the app and this site. Narration is pre-recorded, and nothing you do on this page is tied to your kids.
Sources
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