Ahavath Garem Synagogue (Ohavi Zadek Synagogue)

The synagogues of the Old North End speak of the neighborhood's dynamic immigrant mix. In 1875 a small group of German Jews organized Ohavi Zadek (Lovers of Justice), Burlington's first Jewish congregation. A decade later, they built this synagogue. Except for the Star of David window above the entrance, the simple gabled building with pointed arches for door and windows has the character of a Gothic Revival church. The timber-framed structure, however, was originally entered through a door centered on its Hyde Street side. During a 1902 enlargement, it was reoriented with a new gable entrance, its exterior was veneered with brick, and its interior was fitted with a women's gallery and a central bimah and reading table. In 1952 the original congregation moved to new quarters on N. Prospect Street, and the Ahavath Garem congregation took over the building.

Two former synagogues are located nearby: the Chi Adam at 105 Hyde Street (now apartments) and the remodeled house at 142 Archibald Street. A group of Russian Jews who were uncomfortable in the German-dominated Ohavi Zadek established the latter in 1906 (the congregations merged in 1935). Their former temple served from about 1946 to 1960 as the quarters of the Church of God in Christ, Burlington's first African American congregation.