the former

Porthcawl Hebrew Congregation

Porthcawl, Bridgend, Mid Glamorgan, Wales

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Town of Porthcawl

The town and holiday resort of Porthcawl in South Wales, with a population of about 16,000, lies on the northern shore of the Bristol Channel, about 25 miles west of Cardiff, 19 miles southeast of Swansea and some 7 miles west of Bridgend.

Until 1974, Porthcawl formed an urban district in the then county of Glamorganshire. In 1974, it merged with a number of other local authorities (including the urban district of Bridgend) to form the district of Ogwr in the county of Mid Glamorgan. In 1996, most of the former district of Ogwr (including Porthcawl and Bridgend) was formed into the county borough of Bridgend, a unitary authority (in the ceremonial, or preserved, county of Mid Glamorgan).

The Jewish Community

From at least the 1920s, there were Jewish residents of Porthcawl, and from the mid-1930s there were advertisements in The Jewish Chronicle for a small number of kosher hotels and guesthouses in Porthcawl, including the Coylton Hotel, Locks Common, an Orthodox hotel open all year round.

Congregation Data
Name:	Porthcawl Hebrew Congregation⁽ⁱⁱ⁾
Formation:	High holy day services were first held in Porthcawl in 1937 at the "Coylton" Orthodox Hotel, Lock's Common.⁽ⁱⁱⁱ⁾ However, the congregation dates from high holy day services held in October 1941.^(iv)
Address:	In 1941 the services were held at the Spiritualist Church, Porthcawl.^(v) By 1944, the services were being held at the W.V.S. Hall, at the W.V.S. Headquarters, Porthcawl.^(vi)
Closure:	Although it was reported that membership numbers were increasing in 1949,^(vii) the congregation appears to have become defunct by the early 1960s.^(viii)
Ritual:	Ashkenazi Orthodox
Affiliation:	The congregation was an unaffiliated congregation, presumably under the aegis of the Chief Rabbi.
Ministers or Readers:	Although it would appear that no minister or reader was formally appointed, Mr. Dan Fine, of Cardiff, acted as minister to the congregation for a number of years.^(x)
Lay Officers:	Appointed 1941 - I.D. Rivlin. President; Louis Levey, Treasurer; A.M. Bass, Hon. Secretary.^(xi) Percy W. Landy - President from at least 1949 until about 1956.^(xii) David Garb - Treasurer and Hon. Secretary from at least 1952 until about 1958.^(xiii) E.K. Bloom - Treasurer and Hon. Secretary from about 1958 until about 1959.^(xvii) R. Harris - Treasurer and Hon. Secretary from about 1959 until mid-1960s.^(xviii)
Registration District:	Bridgend, since 1 April 1996^(xix) - Link to Register Office website
Cemetery Information:	There was no Jewish cemetery in Porthcawl, the nearest being in Swansea or Cardiff.

Other Porthcawl Jewish Institutions & Organisations

Hebrew and Religious Classes, founded on the formation of the congregation.^(xx) In the 1960s, there was an attempt to set up combined Hebrew Classes covering Bridgend, Porthcawl and Ogmore Vale, which failed.^(xxi)

Online Articles and Other Material
relating to the Porthcawl Jewish Community

on JCR-UK

Press Reports relating to the Porthcawl Jewish Community, 1923-1963.

Porthcawl Jewish Population Data
Year	Number	Source
1949	25 families	The Jewish Chronicle 25 November 1949
1953	25 families	The Jewish Year Book 1954
1957	35 families	The Jewish Year Book 1958
1958	40 families	The Jewish Year Book 1959
1959	25 families	The Jewish Year Book 1960
1961	30	The Jewish Year Book 1962
1962	20	The Jewish Year Book 1963
1964	13	The Jewish Year Book 1965
1965	18	The Jewish Year Book 1966
Click HERE to view Jewish population figures for the County Borough of Bridgend (including Porthcawl) from UK Censuses since 2001.

Notes & Sources
(↵ returns to text above)

(i) Reserved.
(ii) This name first appears in The Jewish Chronicle of 15 November 1946. ↵
(iii) This name first appears in The Jewish Chronicle of 17 September 1937. ↵
(iv) The Jewish Chronicle of 10 October 1941. ↵
(v) The Jewish Chronicle of 10 October 1941. ↵
(vi) The Jewish Chronicle of 28 July 1944. ↵
(vii) The Jewish Chronicle of 25 November 1949. ↵
(viii) There were press reports on the congregation into the eraly 1950s (The Jewish Chronicle of 19 December 1952). and the congregation was listed in Jewish Year Books from 1954 through 1966. ↵
(viii) and (ix) Reserved
(x) The Jewish Chronicle of 19 December 1952). ↵
(xi) The Jewish Chronicle of 10 October 1941. ↵
(xii) The Jewish Chronicle reports of 25 November 1949 and 19 December 1952 and he was listed (as W. Landy) as president in Jewish Year Books 1954 through 1956. ↵
(xiii) The Jewish Chronicle of 19 December 1952 and he was listed as hon. secretary and treasurer in Jewish Year Books 1954 through 1958. ↵
(xiv) to (xvi) Reserved
(xvii) Listed as hon. secretary and treasurer in the Jewish Year Book 1959. ↵
(xviii) Listed as hon. secretary and treasurer in Jewish Year Books 1960 through 1966. ↵
(xix) Previous Registration Districts: Bridgend from 1 July 1837 to 1 October 1970; Mid Glamorgan from 1 October 1970 to 1 April 1974; and Ogwr from 1 April 1974 to 1 April 1996. All records would now be held by the current office. ↵
(xx) The Jewish Chronicle of 10 October 1941. ↵
(xxi) The Jewish Chronicle of 26 July 1963. ↵

Jewish Congregations in the former county of Glamorganshire

Jewish Congregations in the former administrative county of Mid Glamorgan

Jewish Congregations in Wales, listed according to current unitary authorities

Jewish Communities & Congregations in Wales home page

Page created: 23 August 2006
Page recreated and notes added: 17 February 2025
Page most recently amended: 30 October 2025

Research by David Shulman and Steven Jaffe
Formatting by David Shulman

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