Temple Freda, built in 1912 , is a 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...

 located on 205 Parker Street Bryan, Texas

Bryan, Texas

Bryan is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 76,201. It is the county seat of Brazos County and is located in the heart of the Brazos Valley . It shares its border with the city of College Station, which lies to its south...

.

History

Temple Freda, a part of Brazos County, Texas

Brazos County, Texas

Brazos County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas in the Central Texas region. In 2010, its population was 194,851. The county seat is Bryan and it is part of the Bryan-College Station metropolitan area. Brazos is named for the Brazos River, along with Brazoria...

 history, is one of the three oldest religious buildings still in use in Bryan, along with St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church and St. Anthony’s Catholic Church. Temple Freda is named for Ethel Freda Kaczer (1860-1912). Her husband, Benjamin Kaczer (1850-1938), was president of the community when the synagogue was built. The temple is unique for a Jewish place of worship

Place of worship

A place of worship or house of worship is an establishment or her location where a group of people comes to perform acts of religious study, honor, or devotion. The form and function of religious architecture has evolved over thousands of years for both changing beliefs and architectural style...

 in that it is named after a woman.

Relationship with Texas A&M Hillel

In 1958, Texas A&M Hillel

Texas A&M Hillel

Texas A&M Hillel is the oldest Hillel Foundation organization in the United States. The organization was founded in 1920, three years before the national Hillel Foundation was organized at University of Illinois. Texas A&M Hillel began as the "TAMC Menorah Club" and was organized in 1916 by Dr...

 opened up a building in College Station, Texas

College Station, Texas

College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley. The city is located within the most populated region of Texas, near three of the 10 largest cities in the United States - Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio...

. During this period, some members of Temple Freda in Bryan, Texas

Bryan, Texas

Bryan is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 76,201. It is the county seat of Brazos County and is located in the heart of the Brazos Valley . It shares its border with the city of College Station, which lies to its south...

 left to attend services at the Hillel Foundation building in College Station. Presently, Temple Freda's Torah

Torah

Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...

 is under the care of Texas A&M Hillel.

Texas A&M University College of Architecture project

Since 1982, Texas A&M University

Texas A&M University

Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...

's "Center of Heritage Conservation" has focused on the history of Temple Freda as one of its historical projects. The temple structure is built in Greek Revival style and also exhibits Classical Revival style with Beaux-Arts architecture elements. Temple Freda is associated with the Jewish cemetery

Jewish cemetery

A Jewish cemetery is a cemetery where members of the Jewish faith are buried in keeping with Jewish tradition....

 "Temple Freda Cemetery" and is also a part of the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 of Texas.

Further reading

• Toubin, Rosa Levin, Bryan-College Station: Temple Freda. Texas Jewish Historical Society
  Texas Jewish Historical Society
  The Texas Jewish Historical Society, , which began in 1980, is a society dedicated to the preservation of Jewish history in Texas.-History:...
  
  .
• Page, Bill. Before Temple Freda: Jewish residents of Brazos County, Texas, 1865-1913. 1998.

See also

• History of the Jews in Brazos County, Texas
  History of the Jews in Brazos County, Texas
  The history of the Jews in Brazos County, Texas covers a period of over 140 years of Jewish history in Brazos County, Texas. Many notable individuals and communities have contributed to this history beginning with early Jewish settlement in 1865...
  
  
• History of the Jews in the United States
  History of the Jews in the United States
  The history of the Jews in the United States , has been part of the American national fabric since colonial times.Until the 1830s the Jewish community of Charleston, South Carolina was the most numerous in North America. With the large scale immigration of Jews from Germany in the 19th century,...