Harlem Bespoke: An article in the New York Post announced that the corner townhouse at 123rd Street and Mount Morris Park West is up for sale for $8.5 million and we remembered that it was formerly one of the oldest African American synagogues in the country. The above photos are from past articles from 2010 but now the home has been largely restored. Below is the original story from over a decade ago.
When we were taking photos of the boarded up synagogue on 1 West 123rd Street last year, a former member happened to be walking by and filled us in on some the details on why it was in its current state. The African-American gentleman was in his mid forties and remembered having his Bar Mitzvah in the exact temple many years ago. Apparently, against the congregations wishes, the property was placed on the market and as of February 24th, 2010, is in contract. There was some sort of court case against the selling of the synagogue and in the meantime, the police barricaded the entrances so that past members could not get in. The 25 feet wide, 10,370 square foot corner property was John Dwight's (the creator of Arm & Hammer) summer home over a century ago before it became a synagogue in the 20th century.
No comments:
Post a Comment