Wilshire Boulevard Temple
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Congregation B'nai B'rith | |
|---|---|
| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
| (L.A. Historic-Cultural Monument #116) | |
 Wilshire Boulevard Temple
|
|
  |
|
| Location: | 3663 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, California |
| Coordinates: | |
| Built/Founded: | 1928 |
| Architect: | Edelman,A.M.; Norten,S.Tilden |
| Architectural style(s): | Other |
| Added to NRHP: | 21 Dec 1981[1] |
| Designated as LAHCM: | March 21, 1973[2] |
| NRHP Reference#: | 81000154 |
| LAHCM #: | 116 |
| Governing body: | Private |
Wilshire Boulevard Temple, also known as Congregation B'nai B'rith, is the oldest Jewish synagogue in the Los Angeles, California area.[3][4] One of the country’s most respected Reform congregations, Wilshire Boulevard Temple was formed by the Los Angeles Jewish community in 1862. The building is a City of Los Angeles Historic Cultural Monument and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1][3][5][6][7] Its immense Byzantine dome has been a Los Angeles landmark since 1929.
[edit] History
Founded in 1862 as Congregation B’nai B’rith, the temple was originally located at Temple and Broadway in Downtown Los Angeles. The congregation's first building, built in 1873, was described by the Los Angeles Star as “the most superior church edifice in Southern California.”[3] In 1895, the temple moved to a larger Victorian structure at 9th and Hope.
The current Wilshire Boulevard Temple opened in 1929, built among other significant places of worship in the Wilshire Center area. The artistic highlights of the temple include Biblically-themed murals painted by Hugo Ballin, and commissioned by the Warner Brothers, Jack, Harry, and Albert.[5][3][8][9] Ballin’s murals consist of 320-foot long, seven-foot tall murals depicting key moments in Jewish history.[5][3] The Temple’s immense Byzantine dome, 100 feet in diameter, immediately became a landmark in Wilshire Center and throughout Los Angeles.
The construction of the temple cost $2.5 million in 1929 dollars. It was dedicated in a three-day celebration in June 1929 presided over by Rabbi Edgar F. Magnin, the congregation’s spiritual leader since 1915. Magnin went on to lead Wilshire Boulevard Temple until his death 1984. The block of Wilshire Boulevard where the temple sits was named Edgar F. Magnin Square in 1980.
The temple also has a campus in West Los Angeles opened in 1998.
In July 2000, the J. Paul Getty Trust awarded a "Preserve L.A." grant to the temple as part of its effort to preseve the city's cultural heritage.[10]
In 2004, the congregation celebrated the 75th anniversary of the historic structure on Wilshire Boulevard. Over the years the temple has hosted many notable speakers, dignitaries and singers including the Dalai Lama, who received the Bodhi Award and addressed the American Buddhist Congress at the Wilshire Boulevard Temple in 1999.[11]
[edit] Rabbis
- Edgar F. Magnin, 1919 – 1984
- Alfred Wolf, 1984 – 1985
- Harvey J. Fields, 1985 – 2003
- Steven Z. Leder, 2003 –
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23).
- ^ Los Angeles Department of City Planning (2007-09-07), Historic - Cultural Monuments (HCM) Listing: City Declared Monuments, City of Los Angeles, <http://www.cityprojectca.org/ourwork/documents/HCMDatabase090707.pdf>. Retrieved on 28 May 2008
- ^ a b c d e Our History. Wilshire Boulevard Temple.
- ^ "Wilshire Boulevard Temple", Larchmont Chronicle.
- ^ a b c No. 116: Wilshire Boulevard Temple. Big Orange Landmarks (2008-02-22).
- ^ Wilshire Boulevard Temple. Levin & Associates Architects.
- ^ Betsy Sheldonurl (1999). The Jewish Travel Guide, p. 92. Hunter Publishing. ISBN 556508794.
- ^ Warner Memorial Murals. grconnect.com.
- ^ Wilshire Boulevard Temple - structure record. ArchitectDB.
- ^ Getty Announces $1.4 Million in Grants for Architectural Preservation of Historic Buildings and Sites in Los Angeles County: 21 Preserve L.A. Grantees Exemplify Diversity of Los Angeles' Cultural Heritage. J. Paul Getty Trust (2000-07-20).
- ^ An Address by His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama on the occasion of the presentation of the Bodhi Award by the American Buddhist Congress at the Wilshire Boulevard Temple in Los Angeles on 12 October 1999. American Buddhist Congress.
[edit] External links
- Synagogue Looks Back on 125 Years, Los Angeles Times, Dec. 17, 1987
- Los Angeles; Retiring Rabbi Issues Warning; While praising the state of interfaith relations, Harvey Fields of Wilshire Boulevard Temple sees challenges to Jewish identity, Los Angeles Times, June 2, 2003
- DEDICATION SET FOR SYNAGOGUE: Magnificent Temple to Be Opened Tomorrow Organ Recital and Paintings Presentation Scheduled Elaborate Sunday Service Will Be Public, Los Angeles Times, June 6, 1929
|
||||||||||
