Dear Julie, I have researched the last surviving synagogue in Boston, built
in 1919 on Beacon Hill. the foundation is L shaped because the synagogue
copied a famous one in Europe, with the women's balcony in the side L on the
same floor as the main sanctuary with the men's seating. My book chapter in
The Archaeology and Preservation of Gendered Landscapes is mostly available
on google books. Let me know if you want me to snailmail you a copy. Jews
often reused Protestant churches as synagogues, converting their balconies
for slaves to balconies for women. I am very interested in the shape of the
foundations you found of the synagogue and mikveh, as well as the creamery.
regards,
suzanne

On Tue, Jun 7, 2011 at 9:07 AM, Julie Abell Horn <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Dear Fellow Histarchers,
>
> My colleagues and I are working on an rural site in Connecticut that
> contains foundation remains of a ca. 1890s synagogue, ca. 1910s mikvah, and
> ca. 1890s creamery building.  We are looking for any comparative
> archaeological data on these three types of features in the U.S.  So far we
> know about the two mikvah sites in lower Manhattan and the one in Baltimore,
> but are unaware of any others.  We also are having trouble finding
> archaeological data for synagogues: most sites seem to deal with the
> superstructure, not the archaeological remains.  Creamery data are also
> tricky to find; most of the references I've seen are for the Midwest.  I
> have done the usual internet searches and searches of a number of SHPO and
> NRHP databases.  We have much historical data for Jewish occupation in
> Connecticut already and so are mostly looking for archaeological data at
> this point.  We would greatly appreciate any information you could share.
>
> Feel free to contact me off-list.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Julie Abell Horn, M.A., R.P.A.
> Historical Perspectives, Inc.
>