Who Was Albert?

Largely due to the railroad, there was a well-established Jewish mercantile community in Albuquerque by the 1880's. Congregation Albert's origins began in 1883 with the formation of Lodge No. 336 of the Independent Order of B'nai Brith (Sons of the Covenant), a secular Jewish fraternal organization. In 1889 the Lodge organized a Jewish Cemetery Association and the Jewish women in town founded the Ladies Benevolent Aid Society, a forerunner of the Congregation Albert Sisterhood. There was, however, no permanent place of worship or a rabbi in Albuquerque.

For some time worship was held in an upstairs room at Second Street and Gold Avenue with members of the community conducting the services. Discussions regarding a more formal structure were held and out of this came a Jewish town meeting on September 26, 1897. At that meeting a new congregation was established by unanimous vote. Following the election of officers, it was decided that the privilege of naming the new congregation should be auctioned off. After some exciting bidding it was sold to the Grunsfeld Family for $250 (a significant sum at that time). They selected the name Albert, in honor of Alfred Grunsfeld's late father. The following year the membership accepted the name "Congregation Albert" honoring the memory of Albert Grunsfeld.

Congregation Albert then began the process of finding a rabbi. In early 1898 they hired Dr. William H. Greenburg of London, England. On March 17, 1898 the Alfred Grunsfelds gave a reception to honor the new rabbi and on the following evening he conducted his first service at the Jolly Ten Hall on West Gold Avenue to what was reported as a large and appreciative audience." In October 1898, the trustees were authorized to buy a lot for a temple site at the corner of Seventh and Gold for $300. On September 3, 1899, a grand ceremony was held to celebrate the laying of the cornerstone of Congregation Albert which was attended by "the best people of Albuquerque," including the governor, the Masonic Grand Lodge of New Mexico and the First Regimental Band of the New Mexico Territorial Militia. By April 1900 the new synagogue was completed.

Albert Grunsfeld and his family immigrated to Santa Fe from Germany in the early 1870's. He began working at the Spiegelberg Brothers' merchandising firm in Santa Fe in 1873. His wife was probably a sister of his employers, who were one of the leading Jewish families in New Mexico. In 1876 he bought out the Spiegelberg Brothers' Albuquerque store, and renamed it Grunsfeld and Sons. Albert, and his sons Alfred and Ivan, greatly expanded the business and became some of Albuquerque's most successful merchants.

Albert was a founding member of the B'nai Brith Lodge. Before Congregation Albert was established, services were often held at his home above the store, where he alternated conducting services with Henry Jaffa (Albuquerque's first mayor) and Berthold Spitz. Albert died in 1893 and his wife lived until 1915. Their children Alfred, Helen, Sallie, James, and Ivan, became their enduring contribution to our community.

Alfred Grunsfeld (Albert's eldest son) was born December 28, 1862 in Germany. He came to New Mexico with his parents and attended Christian Brothers College in Santa Fe. In 1876 he celebrated his Bar Mitzvah - the first in New Mexico. Our congregation has his prayer book in its archives. When Alfred left school at age fourteen he first went to work at the Spiegelberg store in Albee and then moved to Albuquerque as co-owner of Grunsfeld and Sons. Called the most public-spirited citizen of New Mexico of the older generation, Alfred was prominent in business, religious and political life of the community.

Early in his career Alfred was a member of the Board of Aldermen of Albee, and in 1895 to 1896 served as Alderman of the Fourth Ward in Albuquerque. He served on the State Bureau of Immigration and chaired the Board of County Commissioners from 1904 to 1919. During World War I Alfred held the rank of Colonel. He was appointed to the staff of Governor Lindsey in 1917 and then to the staff of Governor Meechem in 1921. He was also prominent in the Liberty Loans effort, was county chair of the Council of Defense and was founder of the Albuquerque Commercial Club. Most importantly, he was among those who founded Congregation Albert, as were his brothers Ernest and Ivan, and he served as its first treasurer. It was Alfred who made the bid and donation to name the congregation after his father and was among those electing Rabbi Greenburg as our first Rabbi.

In 1889 Alfred married Miriam Nussbaum who came from another well-known New Mexican Jewish family. She was the daughter of Jacob Nussbaum, the United States Postmaster. In 1898, Miriam Nussbaum Grunsfeld served as the first president of the Ladies Hebrew Benevolent Society. After her husband's death in 1921, Mrs. Grunsfeld endowed the Albert Grunsfeld Memorial Scholarship at UNM, an annual award still given to one female and one male student who are history majors and can demonstrate financial need. She remained a member of our Congregation until her death in 1945.

Alfred and Miriam had two daughters, Reina and Hilda who were very active in the social life in Albuquerque. In 1911 Reina married Judge Ira C. Rothgerber who was from a prominent Denver family. The Rothgerbers maintained a connection with our Congregation. Hilda married Dr. Alfred A. Strauss in 1917 and moved to Boulder, Colorado. In 1908 she was the first vice-president, of the Congregation Albert Aid Society, a forerunner of TASTY.

The rest of the Grunsfeld family were also active in the social scene in Albuquerque. When Alfred's sister, Helen, married Albert Eisemann in 1885, the newspaper ran in-depth coverage. The ceremony, performed by Rabbi Glueck of Las Vegas New Mexico's Temple Montefiore, was described as most impressive and was followed by an elegant supper. There followed a report of some of the gifts received by the couple: a new residence, a Steinway piano and $250 from her parents, $500 from A. Eisemann, an elegant silver tea set from Levi Spiegelberg, a set of silver spoons from Mr. & Mrs. Dave Lesser, a plush dressing gown from Mr. Louis, and a handsome fruit dish from Fred Lowenthal.

We know very little about Alfred's other siblings, Sallie and James Grunsfeld, but the youngest brother, Ivan, reappears in our history. Ivan Grunsfeld and his wife Marion had a daughter, Helen, who married a Dr. Straus. Helen's son, Ivan Straus, married Robbie Friedman, the first cousin of a member of our Congregation, Herb Friedman.

The last Grunsfeld in our files is a Herbert Grunsfeld, living in Los Angeles in 1975. We don't know how he is related to Albert. But we might consider ourselves as part of Albert Grunsfeld's family, carrying on their legacy of taking on responsibilities in their religious as well as secular communities.

Description of Grunsfeld Photo:
From left: James, Mrs. Hildegarde Grunsfeld, Sally, Helen, Alfred (who, in adulthood, purchased the name Albert in memory of his father), Ivan and Mr. Albert Grunsfeld, in whose memory the Temple was named.

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