Memory Lane: Morris Kulok

An iconic edifice--hearkening back to the glory days of Boro Park's great temples stands on 48th street at 15th avenue. It is the domed building that has housed Congregation Beth El for one century. On the cornerstone is inscribed Morris and Bertha Kulok, 1920.  

Who was Morris Kulok, and why does his name appear etched on the cornerstone through one century of Boro Park history? 

Boro Park

Morris Kulok hailed from Slutzk, and made a fortune in the shmatte business from his shop on Eldridge Street on the Lower East Side. 

As they settled into their first home on 51st Street, a palatial home was being built for the Kulok’s at the corner of 55th Street and 15th Avenue (until recently this beautiful, colonial-style home was inhabited, and it is currently slated for redevelopment). 

Kulok soon began to make his mark as one of Boro Park’s preeminent philanthropists, and the newspapers of those times—especially for Boro Park institutions Israel Zion Hospital, Machzikei Talmud Torah, Yeshiva Eitz Chaim, and of course, Cong. Beth El—are filled with examples of his largesse. He was involved in Ezras Torah, and in the aftermath of WWI, was very active in relief to the Jews of Slutzk.  

At the $100 dinner given by the Borough Park section of the campaign at the Hotel Commodore, Isaac Ipp, Chairman of the committee, who presided, announced that $53,000 had been raised toward the section’s $90,000 quota. The largest contributors were Morris Bergman and Morris Kulok, each giving $5,000. This is today the equivalent of around $90,000. 

Morris served as the longtime president of Beth El, and during that first motzei Shabbos slichos, one Yid came up to the president who was proudly walking the aisles and gushed about the breathtaking beauty of this grand edifice. He had but one concern, he said, “with such glamor right here in America, would we forget Jerusalem?” At this president Kulok raised his right hand, and said, “Im eshkocheich Yerushalayim tishkach yemini.” 

Supporting the Rabbonim of Beth El 

Rav Yosef Peimer was the grandson of the original Rav Yossele Peimer of Slutzk. As we have chronicled in this column a number of years ago, he came to America around 1925. Naturally, he was taken under the wing of his landsman, Reb Moshe Kulok, and he became the Rov of the shul, until his untimely passing in 1928. 

A testament to his exceptional leadership of the congregation is exhibited in the following story: 

It was in the period preceding the decades'-long tenure of Rabbi Israel Schorr at the helm of Beth El. There had been another rov prior to him, and the question was how to transition to Rabbi Schorr's leadership without hurting the previous rabbi. Rabbi Schorr insisted that if it meant taking away someone else's livelihood, he would not accept. 

This is where Mr. Kulok's true leadership came to the fore. He assured rabbi Schorr, "your salary, as the duly appointed Rav of the Shul, will be paid from our coffers—because this is what is good for our community. The stipend for this retired Rabbi will be paid from my pocket--because I want to minimize his pain!

In 1934, the famed Mendel Beilis passed away, and his funeral saw an enormous crowd on the Lower East Side. An article descrbing the event concluded, “The services over, the crowd moved slowly into the streets where 2,000 waited patiently. Morris Kulok, who befriended Beilis upon his arrival here six years ago, was in charge of the funeral. He paid all expenses.

On July 1, 1954, Morris Kulok passed away in Miami Beach, where he had made his home for a number of years prior to this. The Miami News announced, “Mr. Kulok, a retired clothier, died yesterday after six years of permanent residence. He had been a winter visitor since 1926.” He was brought to New York for the funeral, and was laid to rest in a family plot on Mount Carmel Cemetery. When one visits the Kulok family plot, they will find the two graves of Rav Yosef Peimer of Slutzk and Beth El, and of Mendel Beilis, lying at the edge of the plot—having graciously been given a place by Mr. Kulok. 

It is an enduring testament that in death, as in life, Morris Kulok shared his wealth with others, and lifted up his struggling brethren in Boro Park of yore.  

(The photos in this article are of landmarks and personalities who were close to Mr. Kulok). 

Photo credit: Kevarim.com