Temple Beth Israel, Houston, Texas
historic place
Temple Beth Israel in Houston, Texas, is the oldest Jewish congregation in Texas. Early Jewish families formed the Hebrew Benevolent Society in 1844, led by Lewis Levy. By 1854, seventeen adults organized into the Hebrew Congregation Beth Israel, receiving a state charter in 1859. The congregation first met on Austin Street, then a frame building on Labranch Street. Their first permanent synagogue was dedicated on Crawford Street in 1874. A larger synagogue followed in 1908. In 1925, a new synagogue was dedicated at Holman and Austin Streets. Congregation member Joseph Finger designed this building. The Houston Chronicle called it "the finest house of worship of its kind in the entire south." Its architecture blended classical and Near Eastern elements in an Art Moderne style. The congregation moved to a new site in southwest Houston in 1969. The 1925 building then became the first home for Houston's High School for the Visual and Performing Arts. It later transferred to Houston Community College. This site reflects a significant part of Houston's religious and architectural development.