The Scribe

The Food Issue

The Food Issue of The Scribe is now available. Featuring recollections from more than 30 food industry professionals, covering close to 100 years of history.

Contact the JMABC office to order your copy today.

Jewish Cemeteries of British Columbia

Cemeteries are often among the first community amenities established. They are sacred places of reflection and vital stores of community history. This issue of The Scribe takes us into both aspects of the importance of Jewish cemeteries throughout the province. What are the rituals performed before burial, and why? How does a community respond when a burial site is vandalized? Who are some of the intriguing persons buried in our local cemeteries? These and more questions answered within.

Focus on the Clothing Industry

From bargain basement to formal wear, factory to retail store, employees to owners, this issue of The Scribe looks at close to a century of Jewish involvement in the clothing industry in Greater Vancouver.

Focus on the Scrap Metal Industry

Arriving in Canada with minimal language skills or savings, many Jewish families took to junk peddling. Some transitioned from horse-and-buggy operations to very successful companies.

Focus on the Furniture Industry

Building upon success in the peddling industry, some local Jewish families transitioned to furniture sales. At the industry’s peak in 1945, there were seventeen Jewish-owned furniture stores along Granville between Smithe and Davie.

Focus on Congregation Emanu-El

Congregation Emanu-El opened its doors in 1863, just five years after the first Jews arrived in Victoria. Over the next 150 years, the congregation saw ups and downs, dwindling to 15 families in the 1940s, and embarking on major restorations in 1982 and 2012. It is now a thriving congregation and the oldest continuously operating synagogue in Canada, celebrating 150 years in 2013.