Jewish History Among The Palmetto Palms

The historic Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim synagogue, top, and Hyman’s Seafood, above, two of Jewish Charleston’s top spots. Photos by George Medovoy

The historic Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim synagogue, top, and Hyman’s Seafood, above, two of Jewish Charleston’s top spots. Photos by George Medovoy

by George Medovoy
Special To The Jewish Week

Charleston, S.C. — The roots of Charleston, South Carolina’s tightly knit Jewish community go back to the 17th century.

Later generations of Jews arrived here from Europe in the 19th century, many of them from Poland.
Today’s Charleston, home to about 6,000 Jews, offers a fascinating look at the history of Southern Jewry.
Among the descendants of Jewish immigrants are the proprietors of today’s Hyman’s Seafood, a popular restaurant at 215 Meeting St., in the heart of the historic district. This is where owner Eli Hyman typically makes the rounds of every table in the large, busy restaurant to make sure everyone is happy and the food is just right.

“What’s special about Hyman’s is being sincere, passionate and honest with your customers,” he said.
You can’t miss Hyman’s from the big sign and the long line on the sidewalk. The snapper fish dinner my wife and I ordered was really good, but the boiled peanuts appetizer was really unexpected.
Boiled peanuts?

That’s right, and it’s a very popular tradition down here — Eli referred to it jokingly as “redneck caviar.”
My wife and I were first introduced to Jewish Charleston by tour guide Janice Kahn, who arranges customized tours through her company, Chai Y’All Tours.

Kahn met us in front of the Francis Marion Hotel across the street from Marion Square, the city’s main square named for the father of guerilla warfare in the American Revolution. Today, the square is also the site of Charleston’s Holocaust memorial, a large iron screen with a 12-foot bronzed tallit inside it.
Visitors can walk inside the screened area to observe the tallit and pause for thought.

From the square, you can go down King Street — an intimate shopping district lined with lovely palmetto palms — to the Battery area, where colorful antebellum mansions overlook Fort Sumter, the legendary Civil War coastal fortification in Charleston Harbor associated with the outbreak of hostilities.

Along the way, you can see the College of Charleston, home of the Yaschik/Arnold Jewish Studies program, whose Sunday morning brunches draw people from the broader South Carolina community, too.

“For over 300 years,” Kahn said, “Charleston has been a magnet for people. With its rich land and harbor, those that have come have left their historical footprints.

“I see the influence in our buildings, cobblestone streets, flowers, different cultures, ethnic groups and religions,” Kahn continues. “There is no city that can compare, because no place else do people share themselves, their history and homes the way we do.”

In 1749 the Jews of Charleston organized Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim (Holy Congregation House of God), thought to be the oldest synagogue in continuous use in the United States and America’s founding Reform Jewish congregation.

The synagogue’s current home is a lovely 19th-century Greek Revival structure graced with white colonnades at 90 Hasell St.

Another good way to gauge Charleston’s Jewish history is at the Coming Street Cemetery, the oldest and largest colonial Jewish cemetery in the South, where Kahn unlocked the gate and guided us past faded markers under a canopy of magnolia trees.

Historic Charleston was also the setting for DuBose Heyward’s novel, “Porgy,” which he wrote in 1925 after reading about Samuel Smalls in The Charleston News and Courier.

Back at Hyman’s, before we left, Eli led us to photographs on the wall of the restaurant — where he was pictured in uniform in the Nahal, an Israeli army infantry brigade.

“My father and mother were very Zionistic,” Hyman said, “and they sent all their children over there.”
Next time you’re in Charleston, put Hyman’s on your list for Southern hospitality, and remember that you can have some boiled peanuts and speak Hebrew with Eli.

While down this way, a nice change of pace is The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, about 30 minutes from Charleston.

Its 255 spacious rooms and suites, all within a stone’s throw from the wonderful beach, are beautifully appointed and very comfortable.

The big “living room” in the main building also has comfortable chairs for reading and enjoying a drink.
One of the best things here is the beach, of course, with its hard-packed sand perfect for walks and even bike riding.

The resort has a wide range of dining options, including the Atlantic Room at the Ocean Course for seafood with a picture postcard view of the water.

The Sanctuary will offer a variety of travel packages in the coming months, including the Annual Women’s Escape Weekend, Jan. 15-17, 2010; Women’s Tennis Weekend, Jan. 22-24, Jan. 29-31, and Feb. 5-7; Third Annual Friendship Cup, Feb. 25-28; Eleventh Annual National Pro Am, March 1-5; and Fifth Annual Women’s Golf Getaway, March 4-7.

Resources:

Chai Y’All Tours: (843) 556-0664.

Other details: Charleston Area
Convention & Visitors Bureau,
www.charlestoncvb.com

The Francis Marion Hotel:
www.francismarionhotel.com

The Sanctuary: (800) 654-2924 or
www.kiawahresort.com.

Westchester Jewish Conference

Westchester’s Jewish Community Relations Organization