New Book: The Montefiore Estate at Ramsgate

We are always pleased to foreground the foundational work done by local historians, and this new publication about the Montefiore Estate at Ramsgate makes great lockdown reading.

As Rabbi Dr. Andrew Goldstein reports: 

The Montefiore Estate and the Village of Hereson by Benedict Kelly and Gerald Tripp

(Privately printed and published available from http://www.eastcliff.co.uk/Books.htm, and for more information contact the author:  g.e.w.tripp@harbourh.co.uk.)

A much needed investigation into the history of Sir Moses Montefiore’s house, East Cliff Lodge, and the estate surrounding it, and the sad fate of the house after Sir Moses’ death and its eventual demolition. The surviving stables and glass house are covered and there are chapters on the synagogue, mausoleum and Lady Judith Montefiore College.  A number of recent photographs and historic drawings illustrate the text and copious notes from census returns, deeds of sale and obituaries give some detail of the buildings and their inhabitants. 

This worthy publication highlights the need for more thorough investigation into the interior of and life in East Cliff Lodge, the curriculum, teachers and students at the rabbinic college and the ministers at the synagogue.

The second half of the book that details the history of many buildings in the Hereson area of the town and provides a useful guidebook for a walk around the area.  Several buildings were dedicated to Sir Moses or built by Sir Joseph Sebag-Montefiore and named after members of his family.  Others were the dwellings of a number of ministers to Montefiore’s synagogue.

Rabbi Dr Andrew Goldstein