Finding aid for the Willett Street Cemetery Photographs

History of Willett Street Cemetery

The Willett Street Cemetery, located on the near west side of Cleveland, Ohio, is the oldest Jewish cemetery in the city. The Israelitic Society of Cleveland, the community's first congregation, purchased the land for the cemetery in1840. In Apr. 1840 the Israelitic Society requested the city council's permission to purchase a portion of the Erie Street Cemetery, but the request was denied. Three months later, an acre of land at the junction of Willett St. (now Fulton Rd.) and Monroe St. in Ohio City was purchased for $100 from Josiah Barber. The first interment, of a man named Kanweiler, occurred within a month of the purchase. The Israelitic Society and Anshe Chesed merged in 1845, and administration of the cemetery fell to the newly organized congregation. In 2003, the burial ground was jointly administered by Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple and The Temple-Tifereth Israel.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the Willett Street Cemetery

Scope and Content

The Willett Street Cemetery Photographs, ca. 1970s, consist of twenty-two black and white snapshots of graves at the cemetery, and their corresponding negatives.

This collection will be of value to researchers seeking illustrative materials on German-Jewish immigration to the United States generally, and the pioneer German Jews who came to Cleveland, specifically.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

None.

The researcher should also consult MS 4621 Cleveland Jewish History Sources; MS 3941 Anshe Chesed Congregation; MS 4709 Anshe Chesed Congregation, Series II; and PG 280 Anshe Chesed Congregation Photographs.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] PG 526 Willett Street Cemetery Photographs, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Provenance unknown.

Processing Information

Processed by Jane A. Avner in 2004.

Detailed Description of The Collection