The First Jews in North America: The Extraordinary Story of the Hart Family (1760-1860)
360
The First Jews in North America: The Extraordinary Story of the Hart Family (1760-1860)
360Paperback
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Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781926824093 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Baraka Books |
| Publication date: | 06/01/2012 |
| Pages: | 360 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.70(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.80(d) |
About the Author
Table of Contents
Chronology ix
Preface Herbert Marx xi
Foreword to the English Edition: North America: A Wonderful Land of the Future xv
Acknowledgements xviii
Introduction 3
Jewish Archives in a Catholic Seminary 4
The Ultimate Conservation: Microfilm 6
The Merits of Father Tessier 9
The Jewish Identity 11
An Archival Treasure Trove 13
Father Tessier under the Influence of Valdombre 15
Raymond Douville's "Historical Account" 18
A Spark 20
My Interest in the Hart Collection, then in Jewish History in General 22
Chapter 1 The Arrival of Aaron Hart: A Dynast Is Born 27
Jeffery Amherst, Commander in Chief 28
Aaron Hart: The First Jew in Canada? 31
Aaron Hart in the Wake of Amherst 32
Levy Andrew Levy, partner of William Trent 38
Jewish Merchants Following the Troops 41
Aaron's Choice 44
Chapter 2 "The Little Jew of Trois-Rivieres": Secrets to Success 47
Aaron Hart's Arrival in Trois-Rivières 48
Paper Money 51
The Fur Trade 58
First and Last Real-estate Acquisitions 60
More Paper Money: This Time From the American Congress 63
One Person's Misfortune... 65
Chapter 3 The Hart Clan: Introductions 71
The Promised Land 73
The First Generation 75
The Absence of Registers 77
The Second Generation: Born in Quebec 78
Moses Tries His Luck in Nicolet, and then in William Henry (Sorel) 81
Ezekiel, the Second Son 85
Ben and Alex 90
Chapter 4 Aaron Hart's Estate 97
The Property Inventory 101
Disputes and Agreements 107
The Four Brothers 111
The Remainder of the Estate 113
Chapter 5 Ezekiel Hart, House of Assembly Member from Trois-Rivieres 119
Ezekiel Hart, the First Jewish Elected Representative 119
The First Attempt in 1804 120
The Next Attempt in 1807 124
Legend versus Fact 127
On How to Take an Oath 128
Whatever it Takes to Protect a Fragile Majority 130
The Expulsion of Ezekiel Hart 131
The "Scholarly" Discourse of Pierre Bédard 133
The Reply 134
Ezekiel Hart: Expelled Again 135
Climate of Crisis with Threat of War 137
Chapter 6 Jews Win a Victory Thanks to the Patriotes: The Laws of 1831-32 141
David Rome Points the Way 144
Creation of the Shearith Israel Congregation in 1768 146
Benjamin Hart's Crusade Leads to the 1831 Statute 148
Equal Rights and Privileges for Jews under the 1832 Statute 154
Louis-Joseph Papineau Supports Samuel Bécancour Hart 155
Father and Son 157
Chapter 7 Moses Hart: Morality and Religion 165
A First Marriage Fails 165
Affairs and Affairs 167
Casting His Seed to the Wind 171
Furthermore... 172
Attacks against the Catholic Church 174
The Ten Commandments According to Moses Hart 174
The Jews Accused of Christ's Murder 175
Various Drafts and Research Notes 176
A New Religion: A Master Stroke or a Waste of Time? 177
Chapter 8 Moses Hart in Business 185
Shipping 185
Brewing Beer 189
Banking, The Hart's Bank 193
Chapter 9 Moses Hart: Reformist or Agitator? 199
Hooked on the Justice System 199
A False Lead... Leads to a Brothel 200
Levitt Pilloried 203
Moses Hart: A Reformer Inhabited by the Demon of Politics 205
A Bellicose Nephew... At the Right School 210
Beginning and End of a Dynasty 213
Moses Hart's Estate 213
Chapter 10 The Pleasure of an Inquiry: An Open Church 221
Quebec: A Land of Turbulence and Accommodation 222
An Invaluable Holograph Will 226
The Influence of Mary McCarthy, Widow of Peter Brown 227
Summary of a Tumultuous Life: A Last Will 230
A Mysterious Death Announcement 232
A Church Basement Filled with Cadavers 234
Mary McCarthy's Death Notice is Clear 235
Looking for an Explanation 236
Acquisition of the Land on which the Cathedral Was Built 238
Did the Final Word Belong to Those Conquered in 1760? 239
Chapter 11 The Evanescence of a Great Family and a Founding Community: Sephardim vs. Ashkenazim 243
Discomfort in Trois-Rivières 244
Benjamin Takes On a New Cause 246
Hart, Valentine, and Hays Plan The New Synagogue 249
The Acquisition of Land 253
A Subscription Campaign 253
New Jewish Immigrants 256
A Schism on the Horizon 259
Going Broke 265
Conclusion 271
"Citizens of No Country" 276
Pierre Bédard Facing Reality 277
The Absence of Prejudices against Jews 278
Choosing a Title for This Book 279
Survival 279
What Became of the Harts? 281
Posterity 281
Notes 285
Appendix 1 Real Estate Heritage (1760-1860) 305
Appendix 2 Ezekiel Hart's Intellectual and Social Heritage 307
Appendix 3 Tug-of-war! 311
Superior Court and Court of Bang's Bench 311
(District of Quebec, 1809-1900) 311
Bibliography 321
List of Abbreviations 321
Archives 321
Sources of Illustrations 327
Index 329
What People are Saying About This
"The saga of the Hart family . . . marks a milestone in the worldwide struggle for Jewish emancipation. . . . Vaugeois's fascinating account, amply illustrated by archival documents, is a valuable contribution to the history of Quebec, Canada and minority-majority relations." —www.MontrealGazette.com
"We can feel Vaugeois's pleasure as he links history to private memoir. . . . It is charming, but Vaugeois is also politically motivated." —Victor Rabinovitch, former president and CEO of Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation