The oldest synagogue in Washington state, Chevra Bikur Cholim (Hebrew for Society for visiting the sick), now Bikur Cholim Machzikay Hadath, incorporated in Seattle in 1891 with the purpose of caring for the sick and providing proper burial. Within a decade it evolved into a religious congregation and services were held in Red Man's Hall on Second Avenue and Seneca Street. Bikur Cholim's first synagogue was a former private residence remodeled in 1898, at 14th Avenue and Washington Street, which became the center of Jewish Orthodox religious and social activity in Seattle.
This image of the exterior of the congregation's first synagogue was taken between 1898 and 1915, when the congregation moved to the newly-constructed synagogue at 17th Avenue and Yesler Way.
Caption information source: "Bikur Cholim-Machzikay Hadath (Seattle)," by Lee Micklin, HistoryLink.org Essay 299 Caption information source: The Seattle Daily Times, August 27, 1898, page 19
ID Number: SHS10991
Date: Circa 1900
Physical Description: 1 photographic print mounted on cardboard: b&w ; 7.5 x 9.5 in.
Additional Information: Digital copy of this item available thanks to funding from a 2016 Institute for Museum and Library Services grant. Metadata updated as part of a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services administered by the Library Services and Technology Act, through the Washington State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.
