The article below forms part of Mike Alfred's series on Joburg personalities from the first decade of the 21st century. Click here to view Kathy Munro's fantastic introduction and here to view the series index. The stories were written in 2005/6.
Jewish Heritage
In the article below, journalist Lucille Davie unpacks some of the history of the landmark Wolmarans Street Synagogue. The article was first published on the City of Joburg's website on 17 March 2003. Click here to view more of Davie's writing.
In the article below, journalist Lucille Davie reveals some of the history of the Jewish Community in Johannesburg. The article was originally published on the City of Johannesburg's website on 2 February 2007. Click here to view more of Davie's work.
If you walk down 11th Street in Parkmore, a short distance from the Sandton CBD, you may see some bright orange signage announcing 'Saks's Corner 1949'. Considering Sandton City was only built in the early 1970s there is certainly a story to be told. The following piece was written by Juliet Marais Louw in 1982 and reveals the history behind one of Sandton's oldest shops. Unfortunately the original structure has been demolished but the memory of the famous landmark lives on.
In the article below, Frank R Barlow looks at the architectural and historical significance of the Old Synagogue in Cape Town. The piece first appeared in the 1980 edition of Restorica, the journal of the Simon van der Stel Foundation (today the Heritage Association of South Africa). Thank you to the University of Pretoria for giving us permission to publish.
The captivating story below appeared in the 1982 issue of Restorica. It was compiled by Hymie Amoils and traces the origins, history and significance of the Poswohl Synagogue in Mooi Street Johannesburg. We visited this Provincial Heritage Site, now the Promise Land Pub and Restaurant, yesterday and noticed internal alterations taking place. It would be interesting to see if the necessary approvals from the Provincial Heritage Resources Authority Gauteng (PHRAG) have been secured.
