Page 50 - Kol Bogrei Habonim - Winter 20
P. 50
AS PART OF THE IDEAS THAT WE
ENCOURAGED YOU ALL TO WRITE
ABOUT WAS TO SPOTLIGHT YOUR
KEN – THE STORY OF THE KEN. THIS
IS THE FIRST COLLECTION OF
PAPERS ABOUT GLASGOW KEN.
THE STORY OF GLASGOW The Scottish Jewish Archives Centre
HABONIM – AN houses a display on the history of Jews in
INTRODUCTION Scotland and aims to document and illustrate
the Jewish experience there. It provides a
STEPHEN KLINER research facility and educational resource
placing the Jewish story against the
background of Scottish history and society. It
is housed in the basement of Garnethill
Synagogue, located just off Sauchiehall
Street in Glasgow’s fashionable city centre. It
was the first purpose-built synagogue in
Scotland, opened in 1879, and said to be one
of the finest examples of high Victorian
synagogue architecture in the UK.
I I had previously used the Archives Centre
t was one dreich (cold and wet) Sunday
afternoon of which there are more than a
extensively to research a book I had co-
few in Glasgow, several years ago, that I
decided to mooch around the Scottish Jewish authored – "Jewish Glasgow: An Illustrated
Archives Centre. I noticed a shelf of folders History", and it seemed the obvious place to
with labels sporting the names of different start my research. However, despite the
organisations within the Jewish Community. dominant role Habonim played within the
Pulling out a couple at random, I could see Glasgow Jewish Community, since its
they each had a history of the organisation. I establishment in 1929, there was a surprising
asked the curator for the folder for Habonim, dearth of material held by them.
only to be told that there was none. In my I was consequently disappointed with my
inimitable style I remonstrated that Glasgow first port of call and realised I had to widen
Habonim had a story to be told… and that’s the net. I wrote a letter to the local Jewish
how I ended up being tasked with writing the newspaper, the Jewish Telegraph, and posted
story of Glasgow Habonim. on ‘Auld Acquaintances’, a new Facebook
page for ex-pat Jewish Glaswegians,
The Scottish Jewish Archives Centre was
established to preserve and display the requesting material from Bogrei Glasgow
records of the Jewish experience in Scotland Habonim. The response, while not minimal,
over the past 200 years. The Archives Centre was far from extensive.
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