Baltimore Jewish History

2257 Madison Avenue, between North Avenue and Whitelock Street. This building still stands.

Organized approximately 1910.

The congregation was first located at 2119 Madison Avenue until 1913 when it moved to 2022 McCulloh Street, moving again in 1916 to 2310 Madison Avenue and then at 2124-26 Madison avenue for the year it was building the new building at 2245-2257 Madison Avenue.

By 1964, 2257 Madison Avenue was an African-American Odd Fellows Hall.

On December 26, 1920, an event was held by the Ladies’ Auxiliary to raise money to build a Talmud Torah on Madison Avenue.

Only the lower floor of the building was completed, and was used for the first time for the High Holidays on October 2, 1921.

Between 1923-1960, Mishkan Israel Congregation was led by Rabbi Joseph Jacob Marcus and then, following the death of Rabbi Marcus, by his son-in-law, Rabbi Yechiel Dov Ber Shoham.

The congregation planned its new building at 2257 Madison Avenue in the Reservoir Hill Historic District, hiring Stanislaus Russell, the same architect of the Shaarei Tfiloh Synagogue, “to design a synagogue building to rival the Eutaw Place Temple, but only the first floor was built.”

Rabbi Marcus died on July 28, 1932. He was rabbi of Mishkan Israel Congregation between 1923-1932. At this time, and until its closing around 1960, Mishkan Israel was at 2245-2257 Madison Avenue. The building (mostly just the uncompleted facade) still stands.

Rabbi Shoham, who learned at the famous yeshiva of Slabodka (as did his father and father-in-law, who learned at Slabodka and Volozhin), succeeded his father in law as the rabbi of Mishkan Israel following R’ Marcus’ death in 1932. Notably, Rabbi Marcus and his wife Alta Sara Rivka are buried in one of the ohelim prominent to Baltimore cemeteries. R’ Marcus died while laying tefillin as he was visiting relatives in N.J.

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Additional Notes:

Rabbi Yitzchak Isaac Scherr, rosh yeshiva of Slabodka, visited Baltimore to raise funds for his yeshiva. He sayed at the home of Rabbi Marcus and spoke at Mishkan Israel in August, 1931. He would also speak at the shloshim (30th day memorial service) for Rabbi Marcus, on August 28, 1932.

The great gaon, Rabbi Yehuda Leib Gordin, visited Rabbi Abraham Nachman Schwartz in Baltimore in March 1922. He would speak at Congregation Mishkan Israel of Madison Ave. R’ Gordin was was born in Rezhitsa near Drozkenik in 1853. He lived in Chicago during the last few years of his life, and died at an evening prayer service on 10 Iyyar, 5685, April 11, 1925. He was briefly the “Chief Rabbi of Chicago.”

“The Madison Avenue Shul,” a jazz album by Baltimorean Mitch Mirkin.

Thank you and credit to Fred Shoken for some of the history and photos.