On August 18, Touro Synagogue Foundation will partner with Congregation Jeshuat Israel to host the George Washington Letter Reading, an event honoring our nation’s heritage of religious freedom. This year marks the 77th anniversary of the reading of the famous letter. George Washington’s 1790 letter to “To the Hebrew Congregation in Newport” was written after his […]
Touro Synagogue
Posted inArts & Culture
Touro Synagogue opens for the 2023 Tour Season on March 5
Touro Synagogue, a National Historic Site, opens for the 2023 Season on Sunday, March 5. Visit the oldest synagogue in the United States and learn why Touro Synagogue is an architectural masterpiece of the colonial era and why it stands as a symbol of religious freedom for all Americans. photo by Lew Keen During March […]
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Opinion: Why Rhode Island should be rooting for Morocco in the World Cup
It’s obvious, just look at a map, we’re both the little guys on big continents. Sure, Morocco might be the size of California, but when surrounded by Algeria, Mauritania, Mali, Libya, and Egypt, you’re the little guy. Aside from that, Morocco owns the title of the first nation to recognize the United States as a […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Touro Synagogue Foundation talk to address Jews and Slavery in early Newport
Touro Synagogue Foundation announces the first program of its Winter 2022 Judah Touro Program Series, which will delve into the difficult topic of Jews and slavery in the Atlantic World of the American colonial era. Guest speaker and distinguished scholar, Dr. Paul Finkelman, will present a talk titled “Jews, Slavery, and the Meaning of Freedom,” on […]
Posted inHistory
On This Day In Newport History: Touro Synagogue dedicated on December 2, 1763
Touro Synagogue, the oldest synagogue building still standing in the United States, was dedicated during the Chanukah festival celebrations on December 2nd of 1763. According to the Touro Synagogue’s website, the dedication ceremony was a regional celebration attended not only by the congregation but also by clergy and other dignitaries from around the colony including […]
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Prof. Carla Pestana to open 2022 Judah Touro Series with a talk on religious freedom in colonial Newport
Touro Synagogue Foundation has announced the first program of its 2022 Judah Touro Program Series, to be presented virtually, via Zoom, on Thursday, May 5 at 7:30 p.m. Professor Carla Pestana will present a lecture titled “Religious Freedom in early America: Newport’s colonial Jewish community in context.” While Newport’s historic tradition of religious liberty is well known, many […]
Posted inThings To Do
Touro Synagogue closes for the season on October 18
The Touro Synagogue National Historic Site will close for the 2021 Season on Monday, October 18, and will reopen in mid-April 2022. During the final week of tours, October 11 through October 18, the site will be open Thursday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.On a tour, Touro Synagogue says on […]
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Touro Synagogue Foundation talk on historic preservation to feature author of ‘Why Old Places Matter’
Thompson M. Mayes of the National Trust for Historic Preservation will discuss his book, Why Old Places Matter: How Historic Places Affect Our Identity and Well-Being, on Thursday, May 13 at 7:00 p.m., via Zoom. The talk, with a panel discussion to follow,is the second presentation of the Touro Synagogue Foundation 2021 Judah Touro Program Series. Touro […]
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Touro Synagogue to reopen its grounds for public tours on May 2
Touro Synagogue Foundation today announced the reopening of the grounds of Touro Synagogue, a National Historic Site, following its closure for the season last October. The May 2021 tour schedule includes public access to the grounds and outdoor history presentations by Touro Synagogue guides. The synagogue building itself will remain closed at this time.Beginning May […]
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WUN videocast profiles Touro Synagogue Foundation’s upcoming lecture on anti-Semitism
Dan Snydacker, a board member and education chair of the Touro Synagogue Foundation, joins WhatsUpNewp for a videocast on Tuesday at noon to discuss the Foundation’s upcoming lecture series, particularly its opening event on April 1, which explores the rise in anti-Semitism today. In what is arguably among the most racially charged periods in the […]