History of Beth Sholom Temple

Jews have been active in Fredericksburg area life for over 300 years. Historical records indicate that Jewish tradesmen and explorers frequented the area during the 1600's. The earliest records from the Fredericksburg Masonic Lodge (which included George Washington among its members), 1752-1771, include a member named Hezekiah Levy. Beginning in 1860, the first German Jews, just a few families, found their way to Fredericksburg. Early in the twentieth century, a second group of Jewish immigrants came to the area, primarily from eastern Europe. Without a synagogue here, families had to travel to Richmond or Baltimore for High Holidays and religious education for their children.

By the 1930’s, there were a number of Jewish families who wished to establish a congregation in Fredericksburg. The first organizational meeting took place in 1934, and the congregation was founded May 26, 1936. Worship services were held in the Parish House of St. George's Episcopal Church until 1940, when groundbreaking for Beth Sholom Temple on the Charlotte Street land donated by G&H Manufacturing.

Members of the original Jewish community included both more traditional and Reform Jews, and there has always been a spirit of cooperation among the members of our community. However, when the decision was made to build the Temple, it was agreed that it would be a Reform congregation.

The original building at 515 Charlotte Street consisted of the sanctuary, the memorial hall, and the kitchen. In 1978, our growth necessitated the construction of the Jack M. Marlowe Education Center, which included classrooms, and also housed the Temple office and Rabbi's study.

From the early days, we have been committed to rabbinic leadership at Beth Sholom, and have enjoyed a number of wonderful Rabbis, including our first Rabbi, Ulrich Steuer, who arrived in 1938. Another long-serving Rabbi was Isadore Franzblau who served the congregation from 1954-1971. From 1991 until 1997, our Rabbi was Stephen Weisman. Starting in 1998, we were fortunate to have a series of student Rabbis serve our community on a part-time basis.

The members of Beth Sholom are committed to continuing the growth we have been experiencing in recent years, and to the financial requirements to provide a new home for our community. We celebrated our 60th Anniversary in the spring of 1996 and relocated to our new Temple home at 805 Lyons Boulevard in Stafford, Virginia in December 2001.  We service the cities of Fredericksburg, Culpeper, Manassas, Colonial Beach and Warrenton, as well as the counties of Stafford, Spotsylvania, King George, Orange and Caroline.  Once in our new home, Rabbi Linda Steigman served our community from July 2004 through June 2006.  Beginning in July 2006, we are excited to welcome Rabbi Devorah Lynn as our new rabbi, along with her family, to our congregation, to be our full-time spiritual leader.