The first people of the Jewish faith began arriving in Belleville during the 1870's. They were small in number and worshipped in private homes for many years. In 1924 Belleville's Jews bought land and erected their first synagogue on Washington Avenue near Holmes Street. Nathan Schwartz, a member of the congregation, acted as its president, cantor, and rabbi before the first regular rabbi came in 1936. Schwartz was part owner of the amusement park on Washington Avenue. Congregation Ahavath Achim built a new synagogue on Academy Street in 1956.

Source: Belleville: 150th-Anniversary Historical Highlights 1839-1989 by Robert B. Burnett and the Belleville 150th-Anniversary Committee Belleville, New Jersey. 1991.