Agudas Achim North Shore Congregation synagogue - Chicago, IL
Posted by: 
adgorn
N 41° 58.445 W 087° 39.379
16T E 445622 N 4647106
Last classical Cathedral Synagogue extant as a Jewish house of worship in Greater Chicago, now apparently abandoned.
Waymark Code: WMDCAV
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 12/23/2011
Views: 1
From the website listed below posted in August 2009:
"AANSC is an Orthodox Synagogue serving the Jewish community in the Edgewater/Uptown area of Chicago.
In its almost 130 year history, Agudas Achim has touched the lives of thousands upon thousands of individuals. Hebrew School, Bar and Bat Mitvahs, Confirmations and Weddings of countless individuals are an integral part of the 12 decades of our Synagogue's existence. Hundreds upon hundreds of individuals spent many hours of their lives working tirelessly for the welfare of the Congregation. Socials, educational programs and cultural events as well as religious services are a significant part of Agudas Achim North Shore Congregation's history.
Agudas Achim North Shore Congregation was founded nearly 130 years ago on Jewish Chicago's famed Maxwell Street. Our present building, built more than three quarters of a century ago, is our third home. In the late 1940's we constructed a large religious school building adjacent to the Synagogue, creating a complex that was able to serve a significant Jewish population. In the 1950's, Agudas Achim had a High Holy Day attendance approaching three thousand with a youth service held at a local movie theatre!
It's builders, in the main, were successful in business and the professions and were committed to constructing a functional as well as aesthetically pleasing building. Their affluence allowed them to build one of the most beautiful Synagogues ever constructed in Chicago. Costing nearly $400,000 to construct (in the millions of dollars if built today), the Synagogue houses a Sanctuary which can accommodate nearly 2,000 individuals on permanent pews, as well as a social hall, office space, a Chapel and classrooms. Today, Agudas Achim is the last example of the classical Cathedral Synagogue extant as a Jewish house of worship in Greater Chicago.
Tragically, as the community changed and the Jewish population dissipated (1960-1980), poverty and diminished membership plagued Agudas Achim. The growing crime and destruction in Uptown translated into numerous anti-Semitic attacks on the structure. Exquisite stained glass windows were smashed and the building was broken into on many occasions, the perpetrators leaving further decimation in their wake. The handful of elderly supporting the Congregation was no match for the double edged sword of poverty and vandalism. The result - this once magnificent structure suffered severe damage. A roof in terrible disrepair and a broken heating system further contributed to the destruction of this once magnificent Synagogue."
Closed for several years now and unfortunately becoming an eyesore and danger, as posted by neighbors on community bulletin boards. See the article entitled "Agudas Achim: Saving the last grand Chicago synagogue" at (
visit link) for several interior photos plus information on restoration attempts.