Jeanne E. Abrams Ph.D. - Jewish Denver: 1859-1940

The publication of Images of America: Jewish Denver affords the opportunity to showcase the rich collection of historical photographs from the Ira M. and Peryle Hayutin Beck Memorial Archives of Rocky Mountain Jewish History, part of Special Collections, Penrose Library and the Center for Judaic Studies, University of Denver. The Beck Archives was established in 1976 under the direction of Dr. Stanley M. Wagner, then director of the University of Denvers Center for Judaic Studies. Dr. Wagners vision was central to the archives development, and it was initiated with a generous grant by Peryle Beck in memory of her late husband, Ira M. Beck, a prominent Denver businessman devoted to cultural arts and Jewish communal life. Soon others were convinced of the importance of documenting the Jewish experience in the region, and before long, the Rocky Mountain Jewish Historical Society (RMJHS) was born. For more than 30 years, the Beck Archives and the RMJHS have worked in tandem to preserve and publicize the history of Colorados Jewish community. The archives contain a variety of materials, including private papers, institutional records, oral histories, memorabilia, and evocative, vintage photographs.

Over the years, volunteers and contributors too numerous to mention have supported the work of the Beck Archives and the RMJHS, but several names stand out in particular: the late Peryle Beck, Marjorie Hornbein, Dr. John Livingston, Milton and Jean Morris, and Faye Schayer made the preservation and dissemination of the history of Colorados Jewish community a central part of their lives. Belle Marcus, the energetic first director, put the institution on firm footing. It has been my privilege to serve as director for more than 25 years, and I look forward to being able to contribute to further growth.

My gratitude goes to Hannah Carney at Arcadia Publishing for her wise guidance. At the University of Denver, the staff at the CJS and Dean Nancy Allen have given their customary encouragement to the project, as have the dedicated board members of the RMJHS. I am especially grateful to my colleague Thyria Wilson and loyal volunteer Elliot Simonberg for expertly preparing the photographs for publication. Most importantly, I thank my supportive and loving family for making all my endeavors worthwhile.

Unless otherwise noted, all photographs are courtesy of the Ira M. and Peryle H. Beck Memorial Archives, Special Collections, Penrose Library and the Center for Judaic Studies, University of Denver.

Find more books like this at
www.imagesofamerica.com

Search for your hometown history, your old
stomping grounds, and even your favorite sports team.

One

DENVERS JEWISH PIONEERS

Frustrated by centuries of discrimination, many Jews thrived in the generally benign and welcoming environment of the American West. The relative absence of anti-Semitism and the fluid social structure in the newly established Colorado boomtowns enabled many of the Jewish pioneers to enter politics, society, and business with more ease than Jews had known in other areas. As an instant city, Denver welcomed Jewish men and women as a stabilizing influence who helped uphold morality and order in the new settlement, and brought a measure of culture to the rough frontier town. Several of the original Jewish 1859ers took a prominent role in early Denver. For example, Fred Zadek Salomon became the manager of the first general store in the city, while merchant Abraham Jacobs served as the secretary for the watershed meeting that merged the towns of Denver and Auraria into Denver City.

Denvers early pioneer Jews, men and women, soon founded synagogues, civic and charitable institutions, fraternal organizations, and hospitals, and became respected members of the growing community as they worked together with members of other religious and ethnic groups to put Denver on the national map. As they developed their own Jewish communal institutions, which fostered Jewish identity and activities, they also played a significant role in the development of Colorado and the Rocky Mountain West.

One of Denvers first Jewish pioneers was Fred Zadek Salomon who arrived in Auraria in June 1859. In short order, he became the manager of the first general mercantile company in Colorado. In partnership with gentile J. B. Doyle, the Prussian-born Salomon began the enterprise with $30,000 worth of goods. A popular figure in early Denver society, Fred Salomon was elected treasurer of the Denver Chamber of Commerce in 1860, was appointed territorial treasurer, and also served as an early Denver city councilman. (Courtesy of the Denver Public Library, Western History Collection.)

Pictured here is the early Salomon Brothers Grocery in Denver. Freds brother Hyman Salomon was instrumental in bringing supplies to the South Park, Colorado, mining district near Fairplay, and the two were later joined by a third brother, Adolph Salomon, who became a trustee of the early Greeley, Colorado, colony. (Courtesy of the Denver Public Library, Western History Collection.)

Abraham Jacobs, another of the 1859ers, opened a grocery store in Denver with a non-Jewish partner, Albert Buddee, and served on Denvers first city council. It was Jacobs who served as the secretary of the famous 1860 moonlight meeting when the towns of Denver and Auraria were united under the name of Denver City. Pictured here is the Denver residence of Abraham and Frances Wisebart Jacobs at Sixteenth and Welton Streets.

For a time, Abraham Jacobs moved his store to Central City, Colorado, where he went into partnership with Benjamin Wisebart, pictured here. Wisebart was elected mayor of Central City in 1876 and also became Jacobss brother-in-law when Abraham married Frances Wisebart in 1863.

Shown here is an advertisement for Benjamin Wisebarts Denver clothing store.

Frances Wisebart Jacobs came to Colorado as a young bride in 1863, and she and Abraham Jacobs made their first home in Central City. After the family relocated to Denver, she became active in the local Jewish and general community and was known nationally as Denvers Mother of Charities for her central role in philanthropy. She was an officer on several charitable organizations and helped to found both the National Jewish Hospital for Consumptives and the Denver Charity Organization Society, the forerunner of what became the national United Way.