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eventREF E-0011289Revised

Event record

The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town

Date
13 Sep 1905
Updated
30 Sep 2019
The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town

Cape Town has a substantial Jewish community, the majority of who are descendents of Lithuanian immigrants. By 1863, the Jewish congregation in Cape Town had grown to such an extent that a new building was needed. The original synagogue, or shul, was built in what is now the Jewish Museum complex. In 1905, the congregation had increased to the extent that a still larger building was needed, and so the Great Synagogue or Gardens Schul was built alongside the Old Schul, and opened by Cape Town's first Jewish mayor, Hyman Lieberman. Today, the Gardens Schul is the oldest active congregation in South Africa, and is designed in an 'Egyptian revival style'.

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How we know this

  1. 01Wallis, F. (2000) Nuusdagboek: feite en fratse oor 1000 jaar, Kaapstad: Human & Rousseau
  2. 02Weiner, R. (unknown) 'The Virtual Jewish History Tour: South Africa' from Jewish Virtual Library [online] Available at: www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org [Accessed 6 September 2010]

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2011, March 16). The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011289

South African History Online (2011) 'The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town', South African History Online, 16 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011289 (Accessed: 1 September 2026).

South African History Online, The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011289, (accessed 1 September 2026).

"The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town." South African History Online, 16 Mar. 2011, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011289. Accessed 1 Sept. 2026.

South African History Online. "The mayor of Cape Town, Hyman Lieberman, opens the Great Synagogue in the Gardens, Cape Town." South African History Online. March 16, 2011. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0011289.

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