
Image

Rebecca Gratz, by Thomas Sully, 1831.
Credit: Courtesy of Rosenbach Museum and Library, Philadelphia
One of the most prominent Jewish American women of her era, Philadelphia's Rebecca Gratz (1781- 1869) devoted her life to philanthropic works and was a founder of the Philadelphia Orphan Society and the Hebrew Sunday School Society. To provide Jewish children a solid understanding of their faith, Gratz had the Sunday School Society use Isaac Leeser’s easy to read “Catechism For Jewish Children” rather than have students repeat translations of Hebrew text. Thomas Sully painted this portrait of Gratz in 1831 when she was 50 years old.