I recently had a discussion about how wonderful the Newmarket demographic mosaic is and how it contributes to making Newmarket such an intriguing place to live.
The conversation turned to the historical presence of various ethnic groups in Canada and particularly in my hometown. It was this basic curiosity concerning how we all got here and the background behind our ‘Canada’ stories that has prompted this column on the history of Jewish presence in Canada. This will be the first in a series of articles on the history of our diverse community.
Let us begin with a look nationally at our Jewish population. I was surprised to learn Canada has the fourth largest Jewish community in the world. In 2021, it was estimated that Canada’s Jewish diaspora was 335,295 strong, which constitutes approximately 1.4 per cent of the Canadian population.
The Jewish presence in Canada dates to the late 18th century, with the first Jewish settlers arriving after the British conquest of New France in 1760. The first Jewish community was established in Montreal in 1768, with the founding of Shearith Israel synagogue. This followed the British conquest of New France in 1760, after which Jews were allowed to settle in the territory, having been previously barred by the French colonial authorities. The grounds for this ban stemmed from a decree issued by Cardinal Richelieu in 1627 that prohibited the settlement of non-Catholics in any new French territory.
Early Jewish communities were quite small, mainly concentrated in the Montreal area but would gradually spread to other cities like Toronto, Hamilton and Quebec City. The Jewish population grew steadily throughout the 19th century, with immigrants arriving primarily from Western and Central Europe.
There was a significant wave of Jewish immigration between 1880 and 1914, as Jews fled pogroms and persecution in Eastern Europe, particularly from the Russian and Austro-Hungarian empires. This period would see the establishment of Jewish communities across Canada, with Montreal and Toronto becoming major centres.
In the early days, they faced antisemitism and discrimination. In 1807, Ezekiel Hart was removed from the Lower Canada legislature for taking his oath of office on a Hebrew Bible. Jews would gradually gain their legal rights. In 1832, they were granted their full rights as British subjects, including the ability to hold public office.
The Jewish population continued to grow into the 20th century, with immigrants arriving from Eastern Europe before and after the Second World War. Our history books sadly detail the restrictive immigration policies in place during the war years.
By the 1990s, Canada had become the home to the fourth-largest Jewish diaspora community in the world, with significant populations in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Winnipeg, and many other cities.
Throughout their history in Canada, the Jewish diaspora has established various organizations and institutions that reflect their religious, cultural and national identities, including synagogues, schools, libraries and social service organizations.
The early Jewish settlers in Montreal included businessmen like Samuel Jacobs and Aaron Hart, who had arrived as commissaries with the British army during the conquest. Hart’s sons, Moses, Benjamin, Ezekiel, and Alexander, established the Jewish community in Montreal and the first synagogue in 1768.
While there had been a few individual Jewish settlers earlier in areas like Quebec City, the Montreal community is considered the first organized Jewish settlement in Canada. It grew steadily through the 19th century, with immigrants arriving from Western and Central Europe, and later from Eastern Europe fleeing persecution.
By 1911, there were around 100,000 Jews in Canada, with about 75 per cent living in Montreal and Toronto. As I indicated above, Jews gained full legal rights as British subjects in 1832, including the ability to hold public office. Henry Nathan Jr. became the first Jewish member of Parliament in 1874.
The Jewish community grew rapidly after the Second World War with many Holocaust survivors arriving after 1945.
The Jewish community has made significant contributions to this country's development on various fronts.
Economically, Jewish Canadians played an essential role in establishing our clothing and textile industries, with many working as labourers in sweatshops or owning manufacturing facilities. Prominent Jewish business leaders like the Bronfman, Reichmann and Steinberg families built successful enterprises that employed thousands.
Politically, Jews would gradually gain their rights and representation despite facing discrimination initially. Ezekiel Hart was the first Jewish Canadian elected to public office in 1807, while others like David Croll, Herb Gray, David Lewis and Bora Laskin went on to become senators, cabinet ministers, party leaders and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
Culturally, Jewish Canadians have enriched the arts through the works of writers like Leonard Cohen, Mordecai Richler, and A.M. Klein, musicians like Oscar Morawetz and John Weinzweig, and performers like Lorne Greene and Wayne and Shuster. Jewish Canadian artists like Ghitta Caiserman-Roth, Judy Lemarquand, and Yehouda Chaki have made important contributions to painting, sculpture and other visual arts.
In academia and sciences, Jewish Canadians made pioneering contributions, with scholars and researchers excelling in various fields. Sidney Altman, a molecular biologist from Montreal, won the 1989 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his discovery of the catalytic properties of RNA. Rudolph Marcus, born in Montreal, received the 1992 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his theory of electron transfer reactions in chemical systems. John Polanyi, a chemist from Toronto, was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research in chemical kinetics and Louis Slotin, a physicist from Winnipeg, was part of the Manhattan Project.
Jewish Canadians like Altman, Marcus, Polanyi, Slotin, and so many more have achieved global recognition for their pioneering work across various scientific disciplines.
Jewish immigrants also contributed to developing rural Canada, establishing farm colonies in the Prairies building synagogues, schools, and community centres locally.
If we quickly examine the demographic distribution of Jewish population across Canada, we will find that the Jewish population is primarily concentrated in a few major urban centres: the largest concentrations being: Toronto metropolitan aream 188,710 Jews, 48.2 per cent of the Canadian Jewish population; Montreal 90,780 Jews, 23.2 per cent; Vancouver 26,255 Jews, 6.7 per cent.
At the provincial level, the province of Ontario has the largest Jewish population at 196,100 (58.5%), followed by Quebec with 84,530 (25.2%), and British Columbia with 26,845 (8%). The Atlantic provinces and the territories have very small Jewish communities with under 1,000 each. The Jewish population is highly urbanized, with 92.4 per cent residing in Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba as of 1971.
The 2021 census records 335,295 Jews by religion in Canada, up 1.8 per cent from 329,500 in 2011, with the fastest growth in the Western provinces like British Columbia (16 per cent increase).
The story of Canadian Jews reflects the story of many ethnic groups to Canada. Efforts to escape persecution elsewhere or a wish to make a better life for their children. Between 1980-2021, around 1,500 Jewish immigrants arrived annually on average, with the top source countries being Israel, United States, Ukraine, Russia, Morocco and South Africa.
In Newmarket and area, records indicate a small but active Jewish community. According to the data from Elections Canada, the federal electoral district of Newmarket–Aurora has an estimated Jewish population of 1.3 per cent, with two synagogues serving the Jewish community, Or Hadash Synagogue, an egalitarian Reform congregation, and Chabad Newmarket.
Our local Jewish community has evolved over the years from a few passionate families in the early 1990s to an active congregation today.
It may have started as a small number Jewish families gathering informally to celebrate their Jewish identity and establishing a small Hebrew school for their children, but their numbers have grown over the years.
On Nov. 7, 1993, these families formally founded the Or Hadash Synagogue, dedicated to the Jewish community in Newmarket and northern York Region. It initially held services on Leslie Street but in 2010, it moved to a new location on Botsford Street, and eventually moved to the current premises at 130 Davis Dr.
I want to conclude with a breakdown of the Jewish diaspora in Canada. We tend to lump entire ethic groups into one large group while in reality, they are made up of smaller affiliations.
According to a 2018 survey by the Environics Institute, 17 per cent of Canadian Jews identify as being Orthodox or Modern Orthodox. The largest denomination in Canada is Conservative Judaism at 26 per cent, followed by Reform Judaism at 16 per cente, Reconstructionist Judaism at 4 per cente, and 28 per cent have no denominational affiliation or identify as "just Jewish."
The next article in this series will focus on our Asian Canadian diaspora, another vital ingredient in this incredible soup that we call Canada.
Sources: Article - 2018 Survey of Jews in Canada - Toronto - Environics Institute; New survey looks at Jewish life in Canada | Ottawa ...; Article - Canadian Jewish Population, 2019; Focus on Jewish origins, 2016 Census integrated with 2011 ...; Jewish Canadians | The Canadian Encyclopedia; What the 2021 census reveals about Canada's Jewish community ...; Article - The Size and Geographic Distribution of Canada's Jewish Population; Quick look at Canadian Jews; Article - Canadian Jewish Population, 2019; Jewish Canadian scientists - FamousFix.com list; The many Jewish contributions to Canada; Senators reflect on the contributions of Canada's Jewish population; Birth of the Canadian Jewish community – Canadian Museum of History; Canada Virtual Jewish History Tour
Canada, antisemitism and the Holocaust | Canadian Museum of Human Rights (CMHR); Estimation of the Jewish Population – Elections Canada; Or Hadash Synagogue, Newmarket: Home.
Newmarket resident Richard MacLeod, the History Hound, has been a local historian for more than 40 years. He writes a weekly feature about our town’s history in partnership with NewmarketToday, conducts heritage lectures and walking tours of local interest, and leads local oral history interviews.
