Perhaps I can fill in a few blanks for the @NJHerald. In the 1960's, the Satmar community tried unsuccessfully to relocate to Mt Olive, NJ, Congers, NY & elsewhere, always meeting staunch opposition to their culture, and their desire for communal living.
njherald.com/lifestyle/2020…
njherald.com/lifestyle/2020…
The #Satmar leadership in Brooklyn realized that the only way to settle in a new community would be to purchase land without using the name of the religious corporation as the purchaser. This kept the sales price reasonable & didn't signal any municipal opposition before closing.
After closing on large tracts in the Town of Monroe in Orange County NY in 1974, the first dozen families moved in from Brooklyn, but were soon met with opposition at Zoning Board meetings, as the community grew through in-migration and high birth rates. Litigation commenced.
By 1977 there were more than 500 residents in the area, allowing for a petition to form it's own Village, which was called the Village of Kiryas Joel, named for the first Satmar Grand Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum. The Rabbi passed away in 1979 & is buried in the KJ Cemetery.
The Village continues to grow in land size (thru annexations) & population, now with over 25,000 residents. In 2019, Kiryas Joel separated from Monroe, creating America's first Hasidic Town, the Town of Palm Tree.
Fun fact: the name Teitelbaum in Yiddish is a date palm tree.
Fun fact: the name Teitelbaum in Yiddish is a date palm tree.
Thank you Jennie Sweetman for uncovering the records of the planned expansion of the Satmar community to Sussex County, NJ, over 50 years ago.
ICYMI @HQSatmar @KJVoice10950 @thekjvoice @KiryasJoel
ICYMI @HQSatmar @KJVoice10950 @thekjvoice @KiryasJoel
Special thanks to former KJ Village Historian, the late Dovid Leib Greenfield, of blessed memory, who maintained a vast archive of historical documents, as well as Herman *the Hammer* Leimzeider, who was an integral figure in the history of the birth of the Kiryas Joel community.
