, 1860 The congregation was founded in 1828 by a group of
German,
Dutch, and
Polish Jews who split off from Congregation
B'nai Jeshurun. Before 1850, the congregation met at various locations, including 32 and 38 Henry Street. By 1850, when the congregation erected the building on Norfolk Street, on Manhattan's
Lower East Side, that is now the
Angel Orensanz Center, there had been further secessions, and the congregation was composed of immigrants from Germany. It was also the largest in the United States. In 1874, the congregation merged with Congregation Adas Jeshurun of 221 West 39th Street to form Congregation Beth-El. This group met at a newly constructed synagogue in
Yorkville, on the corner of
Lexington Avenue and 63rd Street, but by the more traditional German Jews of the congregation reconstituted Ansche Chesed near Lexington Avenue and
113th Street. They were joined by newer immigrants. In 1908, the congregation was part of the movement of
upper-middle-class New Yorkers to the newly fashionable neighborhood of
Harlem. They moved from the 112th Street location to a handsome
Greek Revival Temple at
Seventh Avenue and
114th Street. It cost the congregation $200,000 to erect the building in 1908 and 1909. Edward Shire designed the building using limestone and brick. and the cost was $1.3 million. The previous location was sold to the Catholic Archdiocese of New York, who opened the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Milagrosa church to serve Harlem's Hispanic demographic. In 1980, the Archdiocese sold it to Mt. Neboh Baptist Church, which still occupies it . The cornerstone showing the Hebrew year 5668, and the carved
luchos at the top of the building, show its Ansche Chesed heritage. The West End building was designed to seat 1,600, have social events for 500, and like its predecessor, has a rooftop garden. == Contemporary overview ==