The Beginnings		The Synagogue on French Street		Growth		The Center

Growth

Somehow, with the building of the new synagogue, the complete records end. The history of our congregation, from 1906 to the 1930s is very slight. We do know that in 1910 we acquired more land---the first CBS cemetery in Millcreek Township. The second cemetery, the one we still use today, was purchased in 1919.

By 1919 the congregation had progressed to the point where a second building was needed---a home for an official Hebrew School. Up to that time students had either been taught privately or in the basement of the shul. Many of our children attended Sunday School at our sister congregation, Temple Anshe Hesed. The Erie Hebrew School, which became the Erie Hebrew Institute in 1920, was formed. This building, referred to affectionately as the Talmud Torah, became a community meeting place as well as a launching ground for Hebrew scholars.

The Ladies Aid Society, an organization started in 1910, was joined by a women's group called the Ladies Auxiliary, formed to help the congregation's leaders and the new school. While the men played dominoes, checkers, and poker, the women cooked, baked, and raised money. Without electric dishwashers and automatic stoves, gourmet meals were served to members and their families. It was a different time and a different life. Although there was a depression, and the threat of destruction in Europe, in Erie the emphasis was on family life, which centered around Jewish community life, the synagogue, and the Talmud Torah. The depression of the thirties, however, nearly had their toll of the still young congregation. As usual, the members rallied, raising the necessary money to save the shul.

Two noticeable trends were taking place with Brith Sholom in the thirties and forties. We were gradually, but certainly moving toward a more conservative outlook, and we were growing numerically. More English was introduced into the services, the possibility of shortening the services was investigated, and there was talk of having the men and women sit together. However, the second factor, our physical growth, prevented that until we moved into our present building. The Talmud Torah became a meeting house for numerous groups including B'nai Brith, the Junior Civic League and their subsidiaries the Junior Club and Girl Scouts, the Hebrew Free Loan Society, the American Zionist Association and their groups the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts, the Ladies Auxiliary, and the Ladies Aid Society. The shul was so crowded the Junior Congregation services had to be held in the basement and later at the Talmud Torah altogether---and there were not enough seats for the High Holidays, especially upstairs in the women's area.