Beth Sholom Synagogue National Register of Historic Places Listing

In 1953, Rabbi Mortimer J. Cohen wrote a bold letter to Frank Lloyd Wright. He wanted something completely new. Wright, then in his eighties, jumped at the chance to design his first and only synagogue. The two men clashed and collaborated. They wanted to build a "traveling Mt. Sinai" made of light and modern materials. Actually, they pulled it off. Wright designed a massive hexagonal tripod of steel, sandblasted glass, and corrugated plastic that shoots 110 feet into the suburban Philadelphia sky.

Natural light floods the main sanctuary during the day, filtering through a double-walled roof made of wire glass and corrugated fiberglass. It feels weightless. The room holds over one thousand people, yet feels incredibly intimate. Wright died before the November 1959 dedication. He missed seeing the sunlight hit his creation. In 2007, the site secured National Historic Landmark status, marking it as one of the most significant pieces of mid-century modern architecture in the country. Today, the congregation still uses the space for regular services, keeping the architect's vision alive.

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