Gershom Mendes Seixas and His Impact on the American Revolution

The first synagogue in North America was located on Mill Street in lower Manhattan. Built in 1730 to serve Congregation Shearith Israel, the Spanish & Portuguese Synagogue’s rabbi, Gershom Mendes Seixas, preached persuasively on behalf of the principles of liberty and supported the Patriots’ cause in the American Revolution.

On April 8, 2019, 289 years to the day the synagogue was built, the Lower Manhattan Historical Association, the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York, the American Sephardi Federation, the Temple of Universal Judaism, and the Jewish Learning Experience came together with New York City Council Member Margaret S. Chin and the current rabbi of Shearith Israel Meir Soloveivchik to inaugurate the co-naming of South William Street as the Mill Street Synagogue/Seixas Way.