Cleveland Jews and the Making of a Midwestern Community

Cleveland Jews and the Making of a Midwestern Community
Author: Sean Martin
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
Total Pages: 255
Release: 2020-02-28
Genre: History
ISBN: 1978809948

"The robust Jewish community of Cleveland, Ohio is the largest Midwestern Jewish community with about 80,000 Jewish residents. Historically, it has been one of the largest hubs of American Jewish life outside of the East Coast. Yet there is a critical gap in the literature relating to Jewish Cleveland, its suburbs, and the Midwestern Jewish experience. Cleveland's Jews in the Urban Midwest remedies this gap, and adds to an emerging subfield in American Jewish history that moves away from the East Coast to explore Jewish life across the United States, in cities including Chicago and Detroit, and across regions like the West Coast. Cleveland's Jews in the Urban Midwest features ten diverse studies from prominent international scholars, addressing a wide range of subjects and ultimately enhancing our understanding of regional, urban, and Jewish American history. Focusing on the twentieth century specifically, the historians included in this collection address critical questions about Jewish Cleveland in the history of the United States. Essays investigate Jewish philanthropy, comics, gender, religious identity and education from the perspectives of both Reform and Orthodox Jewish communities, participation in social service organizations, and the Soviet Jewish movement, among other subjects, and reveal the different roles these subjects play in shaping Jewish communities over time. Uniquely, this is a work of regional history that engages fully in parallel conversations in Jewish history and urban history, making the volume a key addition to these three dynamic fields"--Provided by publisher.

Merging Traditions

Merging Traditions
Author: Judah Rubinstein
Publisher: Kent State University Press
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2004
Genre: Cleveland (Ohio)
ISBN: 9780873387767

Published in cooperation with the Western Reserve Historical Society Out of a small group of Jewish settlers that came to Cleveland in 1839 sprang the large, vibrant, and diverse Jewish community, numbering in excess of 81,500, that has contributed significantly to Cleveland's life. At the turn of the century, many immigrants found work in Cleveland's thriving garment industry, then second only to New York's. Others entered the building trades, and those with entrepreneural inclinations opened retail stores dedicated to serving their Jewish neighborhoods. The entry of Jews into the business mainstream facilitated inclusion into nearly every area of community endeavor--civic life, education, and culture. During World War II the community began to move to the suburbs, with Cleveland Heights emerging as the largest Jewish neighborhood outside of Cleveland. The exodus to the suburbs continued unabated until the mid-1950s, practically emptying the central city of its Jewish population. Many moved still farther east in the 1960s. As families left the traditional Jewish enclaves for more affluent areas and purchased larger properties in the suburbs, the synagogues and Jewish institutions and facilities also migrated. At the time of his death in February 2003 Judah Rubinstein was working on this second edition of Merging Traditions: Jewish Life in Cleveland, which he initially co-wrote with the late Sidney Z. Vincent in 1978. This revised and updated pictorial review of the nearly two-century history of the Jewish community tells the story of Jewish settlement and achievement in Northeast Ohio and continues in the spirit of the original, illuminating the struggles and the successes of one particular immigrant group and providing a valuable perspective on Cleveland's Jewish community, past and present.

Food Americana

Food Americana
Author: David Page
Publisher: Mango Media Inc.
Total Pages: 214
Release: 2021-05-04
Genre: Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN: 1642505870

Whet Your Appetites for A Fascinating History of American Food "Terrific food journalism. Page uncovers the untold backstories of American food. A great read." —George Stephanopoulos, Good Morning America, This Week and ABC News’ Chief Anchor #1 New Release in History Humor David Page changed the world of food television by creating, developing, and executive-producing the groundbreaking show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Now from the two-time Emmy winner David Page comes the book Food Americana, an entertaining mix of food culture, pop culture, nostalgia, and everything new on the American plate. The remarkable history of American food. What is American cuisine? What national menu do we share? What dishes have we chosen, how did they become “American,” and how are they likely to evolve from here? David Page answers all these questions and more. Food Americana is engaging, insightful, and often humorous. The inside story of how Americans have formed a national cuisine from a world of flavors. Sushi, pizza, tacos, bagels, barbecue, dim sum―even fried chicken, burgers, ice cream, and many more―were born elsewhere and transformed into a unique American cuisine. Food Americana is a riveting ride into every aspect of what we eat and why. From a lobster boat off the coast of Maine to the Memphis in May barbecue competition. From the century-old Russ & Daughters lox and bagels shop in lower Manhattan to the Buffalo Chicken Wing Festival. From a thousand-dollar Chinese meal in San Francisco to birria tacos from a food truck in South Philly. Meet incredibly engaging characters and legends including: • The owner of a great sushi bar in an Oklahoma gas station • The New Englander introducing Utah to lobster rolls • Alice Waters • Daniel Boulud • Jerry Greenfield of Ben & Jerry’s • Mel Brooks If you enjoyed captivating food history books like A History of the World in 6 Glasses, On Food and Cooking, or the classic Salt by Mark Kurlansky, you’ll love Food Americana.

Surrogate Suburbs

Surrogate Suburbs
Author: Todd M. Michney
Publisher: UNC Press Books
Total Pages: 351
Release: 2017-02-08
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1469631954

The story of white flight and the neglect of Black urban neighborhoods has been well told by urban historians in recent decades. Yet much of this scholarship has downplayed Black agency and tended to portray African Americans as victims of structural forces beyond their control. In this history of Cleveland's Black middle class, Todd Michney uncovers the creative ways that members of this nascent community established footholds in areas outside the overcrowded, inner-city neighborhoods to which most African Americans were consigned. In asserting their right to these outer-city spaces, African Americans appealed to city officials, allied with politically progressive whites (notably Jewish activists), and relied upon both Black and white developers and real estate agents to expand these "surrogate suburbs" and maintain their livability until the bona fide suburbs became more accessible. By tracking the trajectories of those who, in spite of racism, were able to succeed, Michney offers a valuable counterweight to histories that have focused on racial conflict and Black poverty and tells the neglected story of the Black middle class in America's cities prior to the 1960s.