70
 

SOUVENIR,
 

HOriE  FOR   AGED  AND  INFIRfl
HEBREWS.
 

In 1850 the unfortunate condition of a poor
old gentleman who had become helpless,
owing to the infirmities of old age, attracted
the attention of a few of his Jewish co-relig¬
ionists, who at once took steps to alleviate his
wants and render his surroundings more cheer¬
ful. A number of similar cases were soon
after brought to light, and it then occurred to
one of the most active of these charitably dis¬
posed ladies and gentlemen that it might be
possible to provide an institution to shelter
the old and  helpless among  the  New York
 

two-story house. No, 215 West Seventeenth
street, was leased, transformed into a cosy and
inviting edifice, and formally declared open on
May 24,1870. In 1872 the need for a larger
building became so pressing that new quarters
had to be secured, which were afforded by the
brown-stone four-story house No. 328 West
Thirty-second street. Still more commodious
quarters were found next year in the house at
the northwest corner of Sixty-third street and
Lexington avenue, and two years later the In¬
stitution was to be found at the northeast cor¬
ner of Eighty-seventh street and Avenue A,
and then accommodated fifty-seven inmates.
In 1879 the by-laws were changed by provid-
 

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Home for Aged assh Infirm Hfi^fesRtws.
 

Israelites. A number of young men organ¬
ized a Benevolent Dramatic and Musical Asso¬
ciation a few years later to give entertainments,
the proceeds of which were to be devoted to
this noble purpose, and in consequence of their
efforts quite a large sum of money was accumu¬
lated. The interest of the members of an already
existent society, " The Bnai Jeshurun Ladies'
Benevolent Society for the Relief of Indigent
Females," was enlisted in the work, so that in
1869, Mrs. Henry Leo, the prime mover in this
enterprise, proposed to rent a small house and
fit it up at her own expense for this purpose,
trusting to the liberality of her co-religionists,
and particularly to those already interested, to
provide for its maintenance.    In 1870 a modest
 

ing for the election of gentlemen as officers,
prior thereto the Institution having been man¬
aged solely by ladies. In 1881 Mr. Charles
L. Bernheim became President, and he con¬
tinued for fourteen years to devote some of his
best energies to the Institution. In 1883 the
present large and excellently adapted Institu¬
tion, erected for the institution's purposes, at
West One Hundred and Fifth street and ex¬
tending to One Hundred and Sixth street, was
opened, and accommodations were now pro¬
vided for one hundred and twenty-five inmates,
as against eighty-five in the former building.
Two additional wings, to serve as hospital
wards, were constructed shortly after, but even
these did not serve to meet the ever-increasing
 

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