Orangeburg Historical Marker Dedication
Russell Street
Orangeburg, SC
November 8, 2015
Orangeburg Historical Marker Wording
Jewish Merchants
Russell St., historic hub of Orangeburg’s commercial life, was home to Jewish merchants for over 100 years. German Jews began settling in Orangeburg in the 1850’s followed in the next century by Eastern European Jews. Deopold Louis was likely the first Jewish merchant in town. Theodore Kohn, known as the father of Orangeburg’s graded schools, co-founded Ezekial & Kohn in 1868. By the mid-1900s as many as 15 stores downtown were Jewish owned. In 1996 Barshay & Marcus was the last to close.
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Sponsored by the Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina 2015
Jewish Life
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Temple Sinai, built in 1955 on Ellis Ave., became the center of religious life for Jews who lived in Orangeburg and surrounding towns. As in many small towns in S.C., in the second half of the 20th century descendants of Jewish merchants moved to larger cities in the state and beyond. Noted past residents of Jewish descent include Robert F. Furchgott, a Nobel Prize-winning biochemist, and Evelyn Marcus, the first woman from Orangeburg County admitted to the S. C BAR.
Sponsored by the Jewish Historical Society of South Carolina 2015
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