{"nrhp_refnum":"79002162","name":"Rodef Shalom Temple","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"4905 5th Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Pittsburgh","county":"Allegheny County","state":"PA","lat":40.448000284000045,"lon":-79.94343527099994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-11-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Rodef Shalom Temple is a masonry synagogue at the corner of Fifth and Morewood Avenues in Pittsburgh's Shadyside district, just east of the Civic Center. It was designed in 1906 by Henry Hornbostel.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the temple is one of the two or three first products of the Beaux-Arts movement in Pittsburgh, noted for its rich materials and subtle spatial articulation. It also cites the congregation's history, including the 1906 move to the Civic Center and the broadcast sermons of Rabbi Solomon B. Freehof in the 1930s.","narrative":"Rodef Shalom Temple stands on a broad block at Fifth and Morewood Avenues in Pittsburgh's Shadyside district, designed in 1906 by Henry Hornbostel. The masonry building combines a square sanctuary, 92 feet on each side, with a rectangular vestibule projecting toward Fifth Avenue. Its terra cotta banding, a grand arch of three door sets, and a Syrian-arched window give the entrance a public character. Inside, the sanctuary is capped by a squared dome of green tiles by Raphael Gustavino, ending in a skylight of stained glass about 50 feet above the floor. The congregation had been chartered in 1856 and moved to this site from downtown in 1906. The building is valued for its richness of materials and subtle spatial articulation, and the nomination counts it among the first Beaux-Arts works in Pittsburgh. It also draws on the congregation's prominence, including the broadcast sermons of Rabbi Solomon B. Freehof in the 1930s.","period_of_significance":"1906","architect_builder":"Henry Hornbostel (architect)","architectural_style":"Beaux-Arts","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Two additions were made, in 1938 and 1956, which the document describes as tasteful and not affecting the building's integrity.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:30.066022-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/79002162.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002162/687f498799-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002162/687f498799-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Shizzy9989 (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RodefShalomPittsburgh.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Shizzy9989 (talk)</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RodefShalomPittsburgh.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71997764","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodef_Shalom_Congregation","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3508004"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/allegheny-county/rodef-shalom-temple-79002162/"}