jewish people in south carolina: charleston s.c. , general area

many were jewish in origin, I believe !!

there was a jewish man abraham knoff, who was living in barnwell,south carolina, he moved to new york and became one of the biggest publishers, I would information if anyone has some, thanks, Theo Ray

From Wikipedia,
"The history of Jews in Charleston, South Carolina, was related to the 1669 charter of the Carolina Colony (the Fundamental Constitutions of Carolina), drawn up by the 1st Earl of Shaftesbury and his secretary John Locke, which granted liberty of conscience to all settlers, and expressly noted "Jews, heathens, and dissenters." Sephardic Jews from London were among the early settlers in the city and colony, and comprised most of its Jewish community into the early 1800s. In 1800 South Carolina had the largest Jewish population of any of the United States."

They also report that the 1st reference to a Jew in Charleston dates to 1695.

The first synagogue established at Charleston was that of the Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim, founded in 1749. It is still in operation TODAY and I believe it is the OLDEST congregation in continuous use in the US.

Thanks for the info Rick, sounds like you are well read on this subject, somewhere through all of my poking around into history, I have read just what you have said., I have read an article on the founding of Orangeburg, and including Bamberg, Ehrhardt , and Barnwell Counties. My family history in South Carolina goes back to not long after the the Revolutionary War, I had several great grandfathers in that conflict, many people came here because of persecution, and a new start. A lot of french huguenots settled in the Santee River, including the family of Gen. Francis Marion, also known as "the Swamp Fox", he was a hero in the southern campaign. One of my great grandfathers was part of his men, he was a third grandfather of mine on my maternal side. Just thought that I would share a little of S.C. history, thanks again.

Maybe someone can help fill out this project.

http://www.geni.com/projects/Jews-of-South-Carolina/16893

Thanks Randy, my 42 cousin !

Theodore - you should get in touch with one of my family members - Gary Marsh KovenPrivate User who lives in SC. and is very active in our GENI world. I think he could be a very good resource in your area of interest.

Good hunting, RGS

Thanks Rick, for the suggestion, I will see if I can locate him !! I appreciate the input ! Theo Ray