Angel Orensanz Center

The story

When it opened in 1849, this Gothic Revival synagogue was the largest in the United States. After more than a century of congregations, the building was vandalized, passed through city ownership, and sold three times before Spanish sculptor and painter Angel Orensanz bought it in 1986 — roughly twelve years after its last synagogue owners had walked away. He restored it and made it a gallery and performance space. It remains the oldest surviving synagogue building in New York City, and still functions occasionally as The Shul of New York.