Cemeteries
In 1897, the pioneers of Kingston's Jewish community created the "Hebrew Cemetery Company" so as to be able to buy plots in the Cataraqui cemetery. This cemetery is located northwest of Kingston's old downtown and City Hall, on the east side of Sydenham Road where it meets Princess Street. Created in 1850, it is the final resting place of many prominent Canadians, including Canada's first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald.
In addition to having its own cemetery plots, Kingston's Jewish community is one of the few in Ontario to have its own burial society or chevra kadisha. From early in the community's history, the knowledge of how to prepare a body for Jewish burial has been passed down from generation to generation. Knowing how to perform taharah or washing of the body and tachrichim or dressing of the body in shrouds is part of the sacred duty of Jews towards their bretheren, as is ensuring a shomer or watcher so that the body is never left alone. With quiet dignity and respect, members of the Beth Israel congregation have been carrying out this commandment consistently through the years.
