New Book Reveals Jewish History of Paterson

PRLog (Press Release) - Oct. 25, 2012 - The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s popular Images of America series is Jews of Paterson from local author David Wilson. The book boasts more than 200 vintage images and memories of days gone by.

Something unique happened when Jews immigrated to Paterson in the early 20th century. Instead of sewing shirtwaists and schmattahs in sweatshops, they came as skilled weavers from the Russian Polish textile centers of Lodz and Bialystok.

They brought strong notions of social justice and living righteously; ideas that came alive during the 1913 Industrial Workers of the World silk strike then animated the social life in their Jewish neighborhoods. They raised families, became Americans, and reluctantly moved when the economic base collapsed.

Despite this, Paterson Jews defend the aging, gritty city as a wonderful place, and they never left it spiritually or emotionally. Former and current residents recall the Hamilton Avenue bagel bakery, Purity Cooperative rye bread, candy stores, delicatessens, the YMHA, bar mitzvah coaches, rabbis, the baby doctor, pediatricians, schoolteachers, and even the synagogue shammes.

They remember and honor the past as a bridge between the present and the future. Jews of Paterson is more than just nostalgia; it is the remarkable story of how a particular group built a community and made it into a special place.

Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at www.arcadiapublishing.com or
(888)-313-2665.  

Arcadia Publishing is the leading publisher of local and regional history in the United States.  Our mission is to make history accessible and meaningful through the publication of books on the heritage of America’s people and places.  Have we done a book on your town?  Visit www.arcadiapublishing.com.