Joseph Rosenberger
Encyclopedia
Joseph Rosenberger (died November 2/3, 1996) was an Austria
n Jewish garment worker who, by founding the first shatnes laboratory in America
, single-handedly introduced shatnes-checking in the United States. The lab he founded still exists at 203 Lee Avenue in Williamsburg
, Brooklyn
.
in 1940 after having spent 5 months in the Dachau concentration camp. From the time he arrived in America until 1944, he lived in a refugee home sponsored by the Zeirei Agudah at 616 Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg
, Brooklyn
.
Rosenberger's father had a clothing store in Austria and he was interested in fabrics from a very early age.
Rosenberger was approached by Moshe Neuman to find out how to best check garments for shatnes, a biblically forbidden mixture of wool
and linen
according to Jewish law. Rosenberger sought out garment dealers in both Williamsburg and the Lower East Side
of Manhattan
but found that there was both little knowledge and little interest in this area of Jewish law.
Armed with a passion, Rosenberger enrolled in Manhattan's Textile High School
in order to learn all he could about linen. He coupled this with taking menial jobs in the garment industry in order to find the many uses that linen had in clothing manufacturing. He also searched the New York Public Library
for information on testing for the presence of linen, but found that all current tests were either too slow or too expensive for him to employ with any hopes of encouraging others to accept his recommendations.
In under a year, Rosenberger developed a quick and inexpensive test for the presence of linen in a garment, but he still had to overcome the hurdle of convincing the Orthodox Jewish community of the importance of checking for shatnes. Rosenberger was often booted out of synagogue
s and assembly halls with derision by the public who did not believe him to be genuine.
Things changed when Rosenberger met Mike Tress
, who was in charge of Orthodox Youth Magazine. Tress was impressed with Rosenberger's willingness and offered him free advertising space in the magazine, along with free use of the office phones and copy machine. Rosenberger taught himself to type
so as to be able to produce posters and other forms of reading material about the importance of checking for shatnes.
Tress also introduced Rosenberger to Rabbi Herbert S. Goldstein
, spiritual leader of the West Side Institutional Synagogue, who had many congregants involved in the garment industry, including Alex Levy, owner of Crawford Clothes. Goldstein convinced Levy to lend Rosenberger $250 for advertising space in The Jewish Morning Journal. The advertisements states that free shatnes checking would be available at Crawford Clothes. Although only five customers came to have their garments checked that first week, Crawford Clothes' competitors feared that customers would see them as not providing the same level of service at Crawford. They sought out Rosenberger and arranged for him to check their customers' merchandise as well, and when people saw that the clothiers could no longer guarantee their clothes were free of shatnes, Rosenberger's dream was realized; people became very interested in making sure that their clothing should not contain shatnes.
Goldstein used his connections to network Rosenberger with the most influential Orthodox Jewish organizations of the time, such as the Agudas Israel and the National Council of Young Israel. Goldstein also penned a letter of endorsement in 1941 under the auspices of the Orthodox Union
addressed to hundreds of congregational rabbis stressing the importance of informing their congregants of the need to have their garments checked for shatnes.
Rosenberger . died on the 7th day of the Jewish lunar month of Cheshvan
.
in the Williamsburg
section of Brooklyn.
The official website of the "Shatnes Laboratory of Mitvot" can be reached at ShatnesLab.com
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Jewish garment worker who, by founding the first shatnes laboratory in America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, single-handedly introduced shatnes-checking in the United States. The lab he founded still exists at 203 Lee Avenue in Williamsburg
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordering Greenpoint to the north, Bedford-Stuyvesant to the south, Bushwick to the east and the East River to the west. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 1. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 90th ...
, Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
.
Biography
Rosenberger arrived in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1940 after having spent 5 months in the Dachau concentration camp. From the time he arrived in America until 1944, he lived in a refugee home sponsored by the Zeirei Agudah at 616 Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordering Greenpoint to the north, Bedford-Stuyvesant to the south, Bushwick to the east and the East River to the west. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 1. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 90th ...
, Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
.
Rosenberger's father had a clothing store in Austria and he was interested in fabrics from a very early age.
Rosenberger was approached by Moshe Neuman to find out how to best check garments for shatnes, a biblically forbidden mixture of wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
and linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
according to Jewish law. Rosenberger sought out garment dealers in both Williamsburg and the Lower East Side
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
but found that there was both little knowledge and little interest in this area of Jewish law.
Armed with a passion, Rosenberger enrolled in Manhattan's Textile High School
Bayard Rustin High School for the Humanities
The Bayard Rustin Educational Complex at 351 West 18th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, is a "vertical campus" of the New York City Department of Education which contains a number of small public schools, most of them high schools...
in order to learn all he could about linen. He coupled this with taking menial jobs in the garment industry in order to find the many uses that linen had in clothing manufacturing. He also searched the New York Public Library
New York Public Library
The New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
for information on testing for the presence of linen, but found that all current tests were either too slow or too expensive for him to employ with any hopes of encouraging others to accept his recommendations.
In under a year, Rosenberger developed a quick and inexpensive test for the presence of linen in a garment, but he still had to overcome the hurdle of convincing the Orthodox Jewish community of the importance of checking for shatnes. Rosenberger was often booted out of synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
s and assembly halls with derision by the public who did not believe him to be genuine.
Things changed when Rosenberger met Mike Tress
Mike Tress
Elimelech Gavriel "Mike" Tress was the leader of Agudath Israel of America for many years during the 1900s. He changed it from a small group to a major organization almost singlehandedly. He even sold his business to help pay for the needs of the organization. He saved thousands of Jews during the...
, who was in charge of Orthodox Youth Magazine. Tress was impressed with Rosenberger's willingness and offered him free advertising space in the magazine, along with free use of the office phones and copy machine. Rosenberger taught himself to type
Typing
Typing is the process of inputting text into a device, such as a typewriter, cell phone, computer, or a calculator, by pressing keys on a keyboard. It can be distinguished from other means of input, such as the use of pointing devices like the computer mouse, and text input via speech...
so as to be able to produce posters and other forms of reading material about the importance of checking for shatnes.
Tress also introduced Rosenberger to Rabbi Herbert S. Goldstein
Herbert S. Goldstein
Herbert S. Goldstein, , was a prominent American rabbi and Jewish leader.He was the only person in history to have been elected president of the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, the Rabbinical Council of America , and the Synagogue Council of America.Globally, he fought for the...
, spiritual leader of the West Side Institutional Synagogue, who had many congregants involved in the garment industry, including Alex Levy, owner of Crawford Clothes. Goldstein convinced Levy to lend Rosenberger $250 for advertising space in The Jewish Morning Journal. The advertisements states that free shatnes checking would be available at Crawford Clothes. Although only five customers came to have their garments checked that first week, Crawford Clothes' competitors feared that customers would see them as not providing the same level of service at Crawford. They sought out Rosenberger and arranged for him to check their customers' merchandise as well, and when people saw that the clothiers could no longer guarantee their clothes were free of shatnes, Rosenberger's dream was realized; people became very interested in making sure that their clothing should not contain shatnes.
Goldstein used his connections to network Rosenberger with the most influential Orthodox Jewish organizations of the time, such as the Agudas Israel and the National Council of Young Israel. Goldstein also penned a letter of endorsement in 1941 under the auspices of the Orthodox Union
Orthodox Union
The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America , more popularly known as the Orthodox Union , is one of the oldest Orthodox Jewish organizations in the United States. It is best known for its kosher food preparation supervision service...
addressed to hundreds of congregational rabbis stressing the importance of informing their congregants of the need to have their garments checked for shatnes.
Rosenberger . died on the 7th day of the Jewish lunar month of Cheshvan
Cheshvan
Marcheshvan , sometimes shortened to Cheshvan , is the second month of the civil year and the eighth month of the ecclesiastical year on the Hebrew...
.
Williamsburg shatnes laboratory
In 1941, Rosenberger opened the first shatnes laboratory in North AmericaNorth America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
in the Williamsburg
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, bordering Greenpoint to the north, Bedford-Stuyvesant to the south, Bushwick to the east and the East River to the west. The neighborhood is part of Brooklyn Community Board 1. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 90th ...
section of Brooklyn.
The official website of the "Shatnes Laboratory of Mitvot" can be reached at ShatnesLab.com