Oldest Building in Ohio Originally Built as a Synagogue

The oldest surviving building in Ohio that was originally constructed as a synagogue is the former Sherith Israel Temple in Cincinnati. Built in 1860 by Congregation Sherith Israel, the structure is located on what was then Lodge Street. The congregation occupied the synagogue from its completion until 1883. After the congregation moved, the building later served commercial purposes before its eventual conversion into residential condominiums. While it no longer functions as a place of Jewish worship, the original 1860 structure remains standing.

Research confirms the building's status as the state's earliest surviving purpose-built synagogue. Historical chronologies show that while other, earlier congregations existed in Ohio, their original buildings have since been demolished or replaced. For example, Cincinnati's notable Plum Street Temple was dedicated later, in 1866. A national inventory of nineteenth-century Jewish structures also includes the former Sherith Israel Temple among surviving synagogue buildings. The record is based on the physical survival of the original building, irrespective of its current use.