Congregation Agudas Achim (Austin, Texas)

Congregation Agudas Achim is a Conservative synagogue in Austin, Texas. It is noted for its handsome modern building designed by David Lake.
==History==
Agudas Achim (Community of Brothers) was founded in 1914 by a group of Orthodox Jews who met for prayer in private homes. It was chartered in 1924 and occupied leased space before erecting a brick synagogue at 909 San Jacinto. The Agudas Achim Cemetery in Austin Memorial Park on Hancock Road was purchased in 1933. The congregation joined the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism in 1948.
The congregation moved to a new building on Bull Creek Road, dedicated on December 30, 1963. U.S. Vice President Lyndon Baines Johnson was scheduled to the dedication, which was postponed while the congregation joined the nation in mourning the death of U.S. President John F. Kennedy. This is thought to have made the congregation the second American synagogue dedicated by a President. The first was the Washington Hebrew Congregation which has had cornerstones laid or buildings dedicated by Presidents McKinley, Truman and Eisenhower.History, Synagogue website. Accessed March 27, 2009.
The undistinguished mid-century modern brick and glass building was renovated and upgraded in 1989.
==Architecture==
In 2001, the congregation dedicated a modern building designed by David Lake. The wood and stone sanctuary is bathed in natural light that enters via a skylight. The rusticated limestone walls resemble Jerusalem stone (both visually and geologically) but the stone, like the members of the congregation, are "proudly Texan."Henry and Daniel Stoltzman, Synagogue Architecture in America, Images Publishing, Mulgrave, Victoria, Australia, pp. 236–9.
==References==
Category:Buildings and structures in Austin, Texas
Category:Post-World War II synagogue architecture
Category:Religious organizations established in 1914
Category:Synagogues in Texas
Category:Conservative synagogues in the United States