Far Rockaway is a suburban New York City community in Queens, bordering on Nassau County. It forms the eastern corner of the Rockaway Peninsula, a thin sliver of land jetting out from the south shore of Long Island and into the Atlantic Ocean. Originally an Irish resort town, Jews began to settle in Far Rockaway in the second half of the nineteenth century.  By 1910, some 200 Jewish families lived all year around in Far Rockaway, with an additional 2000 Jewish families spending their summer vacation in rented rooms and hotels in the Far Rockaway area. The original Jewish settlers were mostly Reform Jews, but a steady influx  of Orthodox Jews would ultimately transform Far Rockaway into a “Torah Suburb by the Sea,” famous for its rabbis, scholars, Jewish communal leaders, Jewish institutions – and its philanthropy. The impact of the Far Rockaway Jewish community on the development of Orthodox Jewry in the nearby Five Towns (Inwood, Lawrence, Cedarhurst, Woodmere, and Hewlett) has been salutary.

Sadly, a history of the Jewish community of Far Rockaway – still thriving today – remains a scholarly desideratum.  Until such a history is written, it is important that all documents relating to the general history – and specifically to the Jewish history – of Far Rockaway, be preserved.  The postcards that follow are divided into two sections: a) general postcards that capture the physicality of Far Rockaway, and its neighboring communities, during much of the twentieth century, and b) postcards that depict the Jewish institutions of Far Rockaway in the twentieth century. Click on any postcard in order to enlarge its image.

For detailed identifications and descriptions of the general postcards, see Marty Nislick’s Far Rockaway Postcard site at rockawaymemories.com and click on “Postcards,” then on “Leiman Collection.” Click on “About” and “Introduction” for a general orientation, then click on the four sections of postcards for the identifications and descriptions. They were done by an anonymous Far Rockaway enthusiast, whose invaluable postcard collection entitled “…and Summer Fades into Yesterday…,” appears on Marty’s site as well. I am indebted to Marty and to his anonymous friend, now my friend as well, for their encouragement and aid in getting the Far Rockaway portion of this site up in a manner that, hopefully, will be pleasant for the viewer.The identifications and descriptions of the postcards of Jewish interest
(on p. 13) are my own.

General (pp. 1-12); Jewish (p. 13)

Histories of Far Rockaway exist, but they are mostly either outdated or much too abridged. The history materials presented here are divided into
two sections: a)  basic works on the history of Far Rockaway (and related materials), and b) materials relating to the history of the Jewish community of Far Rockaway

The Hebrew Institute of Long Island, popularly known by its initials HILI (pronounced: high-lie), was the first Jewish day school in Queens and in Long Island. It was founded in 1937 by Mr. Joseph Yurkowitz (and others) under the name “the Yeshiva of the Rockaways.” HILI’s first home was in the women’s section (i.e., the balcony) of Congregation Anshei Sfard, 208 B. 75th Street, in Arverne. The founding Hebrew principal of HILI was Rabbi Mordechai Shuchatowitz, who also served as rabbi of Congregation Shaarey Zedek in Edgemere.  The first principal of the secular studies department was Lawrence Shapiro. Rabbi Shuchatowitz was succeeded by Dr. Irving Agus (1946-7), who was succeeded by Rabbi Harold I. Leiman, who served as Principal and Dean from 1948-1960 and 1971-73.

In 1939, the school moved to Far Rockaway, where it acquired the building of a former care center for children of ill mothers called “the Children’s Haven” on 264 B. 19th Street, across from the Genadeen Hotel. The name of the school was changed to the “Hebrew Institute of Long Island.” The first academic year in the new building under the new name was 1939-40. In 1952-3, HILI acquired the neighboring Roche estate, and in September 1953 classes convened for the first time in the C, D, and E buildings (B being reserved for the administration building) on Seagirt Boulevard. HILI high school was founded in 1951-2 (its first academic year) and was housed on the top floor of the old Congregation Shaarey Tefilla building (later: Jewish Center) on Central Avenue in Far Rockaway. It would later move into the E building on the new campus.

From its founding in 1937 until its merger with the Hillel School in Lawrence in 1978, several thousand students graduated from HILI elementary school and HILI high school. Many became prominent as rabbis, educators, academics, scientists, lawyers, doctors, business executives, film producers, novelists, and in many other fields of expertise. Sadly, there is no complete list of HILI graduates and alumni. In 1978, due largely to demographic changes in Far Rockaway, HILI merged with the Hillel School in Lawrence to form a new school called the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway (popularly known by its initials as HAFTR). HAFTR has played and continues to play an important role in the Jewish education of thousands of students in the Far Rockaway and Five Towns area.

a. General
b. Jewish

a. General
b. Jewish

A chronological listing of published studies by Shnayer Leiman appears under this rubric.

The full texts of select publications by Shnayer Leiman are made available to the interested reader under this rubric.
The publications are arranged by title, in the order of their appearance in print.

Click on the title in order to retrieve the text.

A list of tapes of public lectures by Shnayer Leiman appears under this rubric. All the tapes listed are available from Rabbi Milton Nordlicht at nominal cost. To order tapes, call Rabbi Nordlicht at 718 261-7770 or visit his website at TorahShiurim.com. The list was prepared by Rabbi Nordlicht.

Some 16 tapes are available for listening at YU Torah Online yutorah.org. 

One who learns Torah or examines scholarly literature often stumbles, as it were, on insights that may provide a solution to a problem or lead others to provide such a solution. Often, these insights take the form of an obvious correction of a printer’s error; or the provision of a source overlooked by a particular scholar; or a suggested interpretation of an enigmatic text; or a query that begs for an answer. These insights, or nuggets of wisdom, being minuscule by nature, cannot and should not be turned into essays – and therefore, for the most part, rightfully do not appear in print. A website affords one the opportunity to record such insights, however insignificant. Each will be provided with an appropriate title. The judicious reader can examine the title and decide whether or not the brief note is worth reading.

Tribute to Professor Moshe Greenberg
זכרונו לברכה

The sad news of the passing of Professor Moshe Greenberg on Shabbat, May 15 (2 Sivan), 2010, in Jerusalem, has just reached us. This tribute, by the least of his students, was written some ten years ago, when he was awarded the Jewish Cultural Achievement Award in Scholarship by the National Foundation for Jewish Culture. Professor Greenberg, already ill and in no condition to attend the ceremonies at the Harmonie Club in New York, asked that I accept the award on his behalf. Similarly, the National Foundation for Jewish Culture asked that I present the award to Professor Greenberg (in absentia) – with appropriate remarks – at the ceremony. Click on the topic heading (above) for a copy of the remarks made at the presentation and the acceptance of the award.

תהי נפשו צרורה בצרור החיים ויהי זכרו ברוך