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Seattle Hebrew Academy photograph collection, 1916-1969

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Seattle Hebrew Academy
Title
Seattle Hebrew Academy photograph collection
Dates
1916-1969 (inclusive)
1950s-1960s (bulk)
Quantity
296 photographic prints, 1 drawing (2 boxes) ; sizes vary
Collection Number
PH1132
Summary
Students, faculty, activities and buildings of the Seattle Hebrew Academy.
Repository
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions

Entire collection can be viewed on the Libraries’ Digital Collections website. Permission of Visual Materials Curator is required to view originals. Contact Special Collections for more information.

Request at UW

Additional Reference Guides

Languages
English
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Historical Background

Congregation Bikur Cholim, the oldest continuous synagogue in Seattle (established 1889), inaugurated the first Cheder (Jewish elementary school) in Seattle. In 1894, the Hebrew Free School was established as an after-school center for Jewish learning. From 1895-1898, Hebrew and Bible classes were held at the Seattle Central Building on 5th Avenue and Washington Street. By 1898 education advocates at the Bikur Cholim decided to form a separate corporation. The Hebrew Free School became the Seattle Talmud Torah.

The concept of the Talmud Torah stemmed from a national movement. The idea was that students would meet after school to attend classes two or three times a week. From 1914 until 1948, the Talmud Torah convened in many different locales, but always with the mission of fostering a supplemental Jewish education program. By 1920 the school, founded under the auspices of an orthodox religious institution, was renamed the Seattle Talmud Torah and became an "an institution for all Seattle Jews" ("The Jewish Experience in Washington State," p. 6).

The end of the 1940s ushered in a new era of Jewish education. Post-World War II optimism, the lessons of the Holocaust, the stirrings of the new state of Israel, and the emergence of Boeing as the major economic force in Seattle forced the Jewish community to re-examine existing institutions.

The promise of the baby-boomer era became the catalyst to try new things. The Seattle Hebrew Day School formed in 1947 to provide an integrated program of Jewish and secular studies during regular school hours. By 1948, the Seattle Talmud Torah and Seattle Hebrew Day school had consolidated. In 1969, with the initiation of an early childhood center, the name of the school changed to the Seattle Hebrew Academy.

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Content Description

The collection includes photographs documenting students, faculty, activities and buildings of the Seattle Hebrew Academy.

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Use of the Collection

Alternative Forms Available

View selections from the collection in digital format

Restrictions on Use

Restrictions may exist on reproduction, quotation, or publication. Contact Special Collections, University of Washington Libraries for details.

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Administrative Information

Custodial History

Collected by the Washington State Jewish Historical Society.

Processing Note

Processed by Don Romero; processing completed in 2017.

Photographs were relocated from the Seattle Hebrew Academy records, accession no. 1892. Collection was originally titled: Seattle Talmud Torah Hebrew School photograph collection.

Related Materials

See also the Seattle Hebrew Academy records, accession no. 3713.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

 

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Subject Terms

  • Visual Materials Collections (University of Washington)

Corporate Names

  • Seattle Hebrew Academy rchives
  • Seattle Talmud Torah Hebrew School--Photographs


2014 (Last modified: 12/22/2022)

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