Building in the United States of america. It has a wonderful 600 year story. First of all, it is most important for you to understand that above all, the synagogue is a house of worship. We have services here all year round, a fulltime rabbi, a congregation of about 120 members, and it is orthodox in its service. That is what we are doing today. The story starts in 1492 in spain, when eating of ferdinand and clean isabella issued and Queen Isabella issued a decree. It was they wanted a purely gavelic country, so they the jewish people two choices. Convert to catholicism or leave. Those who converted were called conversos. Others chose to remain jews in a secret. Objects. Their ritual if they have been found out, they would have been tortured and put to death. To get a sense of how spaniards of jews at the time, their nickname was morano, ort swine. They had four months to get there affairs in order, which meant you of everything away to the spanish government, such as their land or any riches they may have had. The king of portugal did something similar. To those jewish people, jews from spain and portugal, we they to as sephardic jews, fled to wherever they could be safe, where they could worship, where they could work in places like jamaica, potatoes, st. Thomas, curis out, and was curacao, and brazil. Barbados, but instead of going to new york or philadelphia, they wanted to come right here to newport, rhode island. What attracted them here . The attraction was the story of how rhode island came about. In 1636, a gentleman by the name of Roger Williams sounded rhode island. He had founded rhode island. He had come from england seeking religious freedom. 20 years after the founding of rhode island, those people in barbados said this is where they wanted to come. Quakers,jews, but people who had been persecuted or would be because of their religious beliefs. Here77, the jews that were needed a place to bury their loved ones, so they bought a and if land of the hill, you see that small little cemetery, you will see that it has the names on the gravestone of rodriguez, rivero. These are all portuguese names, those early jews here in newport, rhode island. The cemetery was important because it documented that jewish people could own property, which wasnt the case in all of the colonies. By 1758, things were changing dramatically for newport because it had been transformed from a sleepy little town to one of the top seaports in colonial there with newup york, philadelphia, boston, and charleston. Our waterfront was filled with 150 sailing ships that traded in ports all over the world. Inthere was wealth coming to newport. Also gotsh merchants some of the wealth the cause of what was happening. Got some of the wealth because of what was happening. , to the jewish people prayed in their homes with leaders. They said, we have been in this town for 100 years. Lets find someone who can lead the congregation. A young man of about 25 years old who grew up in amsterdam, holland came here to newport and his name was isaac touro, the first religious leader here for the Jewish Community. The congregation also did not have a synagogue. It took a few generations of wealth to be able to have the money to start a venture such as building a house of worship. Hadhink that touro something to say about that and theen and convinced merchants to build a plot of land here in the center of old colonial newport at the top of a hill. The cornerstone for the building was laid in 1759, and the congregants found the most procedures architect in colonial america, peter harrison, to design the building. It took four years to build the building. The building was consecrated in 1763, coinciding with the jewish holiday of hanukkah. The congregation filed in the building, about 20 or 30 or so jewish families. They invited the entire Jewish Community to come inside and worship with them, jew and nonjew alike. We know what the building looked like. I want to point out some of the features they saw that we see today. The building has this remarkable brass chandelier, still original to the building. They were donated by wealthy jewish merchants whose names and dates of donation are engraved upon them. The chandeliers and candelabra were filled with candles made from whales. One of the wealthiest jewish merchants, Jacob Rodriguez ramiro, had one of the candle merchants was one of the candle merchants in town. The 12 columns denote the 12 tribes of israel. They not only provide architectural support and structural support, but also they have a biblical reference as well. End of our beautiful congregation is a clock, a clock that matches wooden charity boxes. These were gifts from a synagogue in london, which was sephardic, and still exists as a jewish synagogue. One of the interesting things about the clock is it has to be hand woundnnd and still works. Our most important object is the taurus coral the torah scrol l. They are the first five books of the old testament. Jewish people around the world read a portion of the torah three times a week. This scroll is over 500 years old. It was a gift from the amsterdam Sephardic Community to this one in the 1750s. We believe those are good we believe those early congregants worshiped from this scroll. It is unique because it is written on your skin on dear skin and is in almost perfect condition. Looksemarkable building very much like it did on the night of december 2, 1763. It has had several renovations, but not a reconstructed space, so we still get the feeling of what those early congregants felt when they came into the building. Things went well here for 13 years, which takes us up to 1776. This was an english colony, and when the declaration of independence was red, the english called in their navy, the navy blockaded the harbor, thereby shutting down all of the trade. People started fleeing to newport from newport because without trade, they could not make a living. This building was closed as a synagogue and used as a hospital for british soldiers. One of the few jews who stayed behind was isaac tauro. He made sure that the building was in tact, no harm done during that time. This building came out of the war unscathed. Unfortunately, after the revolutionary war, people did not come back here to newport, rhode island. They had already established businesses, their homes somewhere else. For the jewish people, it was a very difficult time. By the 1820s, not one jewish person lived in newport, rhode island anymore. The building was shut. The keys were given to a quaker family who took care of it for 60 years. Ashkenazie 1880s, jews or Eastern European jews started coming to america to a small group of them came to newport, rhode island, saw the shuttered building, and said we want to use it for worship. An agreement was made that they could, as long as the service remained orthodox in nature. And this building has been in continuous use as an orthodox synagogue since 1894. George washington came to newport, we believe, three times, the last in 1790. He came accompanied by thomas jefferson. On a Campaign Trip to all of the 13 new states of the United States of america, urging ratification of the bill of rights. Our constitution had several important omissions. To the jewish people here in the new United States, the most important omission was that there was nothing in the constitution speaking to freedom of religion. They were wondering what was going to happen to the jews in this new United States. Was it going to be like several other governments that had treated jewish people harshly or expelled them . In that vein, the warden or the president of the combination wrote a letter to George Washington on august 17, 1790, asking what was going to happen to the jews. Washington read that letter, wrote right on august 21, 1790, using most of moses seixas own words. To paraphrase, it is now no more that toleration is spoken of as if it were the indulgence of one class of people over the exercise of anothers inherent natural rights. For, happily, the government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance. Those words which have some relevance to them then and to us now were really the first words on paper in this new United States of america by a federal official that spoke to freedom of religion and the governments responsibility in guaranteeing that freedom of religion. And thats what we celebrate here every day in our Touro Synagogue story. One of the things i have learned, growing up in newport, and before becoming involved in history and interpretation, is my newport grandmother would remind me as a child, slavery is how we got here, but it doesnt tell you the story of the people. My interest is telling the story of the people. Clearly, people of african and chris ancestry, alive in the americas, be it british north america or the west indies of south america, arrived under the most perilous and difficult circumstances of human slavery. On the other hand, we persevered. The fact that so many of African Heritage still exist today in either Northport Newport or boston or new york or barbados or anywhere in the western hemisphere is a testament to our perseverance. Settled in 1639, over the course of the next 100 years, newport and the colony, rhode island, would grow to become one of the only the most active ports in north america, but also the most active slave port. Between 1705 and 1805, newport merchants, along with bristol merchants within rhode island, were responsible for nearly 1000 slaving voyages from rhode island to the west african coast to the west indies and back to island. Rhode they transported about 100,000 africans back to the new world during that 100year period. The africans that arrived via rhode island ships had several pathways. For the most part, rhode island being an english colony, was trading in english colonies in west africa and the west indies. In the case of west africa, its the golden guinea coast, what we recognize as nigeria to ghana to guinea. From there, africans would be taken to the west indies, what we recognize today as the bahamas, jamaica, and barbados. From there, africans, along with other products and goods from the west indies, would be transported back to newport in rhode island, what we call the tranquil tried triangle trade. In the case of newport, this trade was almost similarly tied to run and molasses rum and molasses. From the beginning of the 18th newport washe end, involved in about 80 of what is called the guinea rum trade. Newport ships would literally take rum that was distilled and produced in newport and would trade it for enslaved africans off the african coast. Most africans would be transported to english colonies or the west indies, mostly jamaica, barbados. There, they would become the labor force that would work on the sugar plantations that would produce the sugar and molasses. Newport ships would take the Raw Materials of sugar and molasses and transported back to newport, where it would be distilled into more rum and that rum was used for consumption and currency. The slave trade went on for nearly four centuries. In the case of colonial north america and colonial british north america, the system was different than what many people might have a sense of today. Many people, when they think in terms of african enslavement, the slave trade, they tend to think of the west indian system or an antebellum, southern america 19th century system. Con fields, rice, sugar, coffee plantations cotton fields, rice, sugar, coffee plantations, which all existed. In new england, we dont have great soil, so we werent producing the cash crops. For the most part, the africans who came to new england, generally, but particularly to newport, were more involved in any of the urban trade skills that were required during that time. In the case of newport, we have primary and secondary records and ship logs and work records that show africans being apprenticed and trained as silvers, shipwrights, making, carpentry, fine furniture, snuff making, rum making, seamstress. Any of the work that was required in urban new england, colonial seaport community, these africans were involved in doing. So, its not a better or worse circumstance. Its a different circumstance. The economy of clone your new england, the climate of colonial new england, the climate, the opportunities were different from what enslaved africans would see in the American South and certainly the west indies. By the very fact that newport was at the very center of the african slave trade and a significant number of africans would come to newport, by the middle part of the 18th century, of the population of newport are enslaved africans. One out of every three families in colonial newport owned at least one slave. There was a significant number of africans here, very much a part of the population, very much a part of the workforce. Rhode island is also settled by whites who are looking for the expression of religious freedom and are escaping the tyranny of old world and new world. Religious freedom and your ability to worship freely was very important within this community. You find many africans that are enslaved in certain religious households take on the religious identity of master and mistress. Quaker communities, slaves took on a quaker identity. The anglican episcopal church, they became anglican. These africans have access to work skills, training skills to perform those work skills. They are actively worshiping in the same place of worship as master and mistress. Third and most important, there is no separation of living environments. Most africans are living in the same quarters as the master and mistress. They are living in an attic or a pantry. Theyre living together, working together, worshiping together, this interdependent life, which would have been largely unheard of an unnecessary if africans were enslaved in the American South or west indies. This very night tightknit community of interactivity would haveallowed africans to access to link which skills, or allowed them to reclaim there their african identity much earlier, in a much more comprehensive way than africans who were enslaved elsewhere. We find a number of africans now purchasing their freedom or being emancipated. They buy homes, set up businesses and shops. By 1780, the first time in world history, a group of africans come together in newport and form the free african union. It does three important things. It raises money and saves money to educate africans. It would establish the first free african operated school here in newport. It would also raise money for proper burials. The oldest and largest existing slave Burial Ground is here in newport. Many of the markers are paid for by fellow africans. Third, they wanted to reclaim their african identities. Many africans, through this society, through their school, through the church, would reclaim their african names and customs. That would be very much in place in newport throughout the 18th and into the early 19th century. This is important because of the fact that, today, there are at least 30 buildings or Historic Structures from the colonial era that are directly related to not only where africans were enslaved, but more importantly where africans plied a trade, worship, or taught their children. On a personal level, history is more than a vocation of study of learning. For me, its a way of life, a definition of who you are. My own family on my mothers side, we date back over 10 generations of newport. Many of our newport ancestors did not look like george and martha washington, did not worship like george and martha washington. Their backgrounds were African Heritage, native heritage, and jewish heritage. For me, this provides me an opportunity to talk about all of American History in the most inclusive manner. Every generation of a family has maintained heirlooms and passed it on to the next, so we have 18 century and 19thcentury collections of furniture, clothing, books, documents, all the things a family might have an cherish and cherish has been passed on to our family. It gives us a strong sense of not only being rural new porters, but most importantly rural americans. Are story is an untold story of so many other americans in this is any today our story untold story of so many other americans in this country today. America was founded on the ideals that anyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, religious persuasion, has a right to settle and prosper here. The story of newport very much represents that story. [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2018] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] ofhere at the Center American maritime history in newport, rhode island, it is one of the deepest natural enclosed ports in the world. For that reason, the United States navy chose it as one of its key anchorages during the seapowerAmerican Naval in the early 20th century. Of they, the origins Naval War College begin in germany. The germans were ahead of the game, literally, in techniques. F wargaming during the wars of german unification, the germans came up with in a day with an idea called the general staff, and organization which enabled all the different principalities to fall in line with their regiments under this centralized Organization Called the general staff. There was a guy who was a , lookier general and said at what the germans did with that general staff. He went over to germany and studied the german he made the argument that what we needed to do was create a federally regulated army. That idea sort of ran against some of the traditional thoughts of how the American Military should be operated. It didnt go all that well for emory upton. Emory counted among his friends a kind guy who was a naval officer in the civil war. Upton told him about this neat idea called the general staff that the germans had come up with. One of the w