House of Israel

On June 25, 2021 the Heritage Calgary board approved the following site to be updated to the Inventory of Evaluated Historic Resources.

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House of Israel – 102 18 Avenue SE (Mission)
Year Built: 1930 (original part); 1948-1949 (façade alterations and east extension)

Evaluated as a City-Wide Historic Resource

The House of Israel is the oldest surviving institutional building associated with Calgary’s Jewish community, which it served for five decades. (Institution Value, City Wide Significance)

The House of Israel is a rare example of the Moderne Style in Calgary. Two well-known Calgary architects were involved in its creation, Ernest Thomas Brown (1876-1950) and David Suttie (DS) McIlroy, (1872-1952). (Style Value, City-wide Significance)

The House of Israel is also symbolic of Calgary’s Jewish community, including the local Jewish residents of Mission and Cliff Bungalow where the centre is located. During the depression many unemployed Jewish men were hired for its construction crew. (Symbolic Value, City Wide Significance)

With its distinctive Moderne style and soaring pale stucco façade fronting 18th Avenue the House of Israel is a well-known landmark in the community. (Landmark Value, Community Significance)

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