The first recorded Jew in Augusta was Isaac Henricks (1768-1848) who left Charleston and settled in Augusta in 1802 as a fur trader with the Native Americans in the area. In geneaological records, Isaac’s name is spelled various ways, typical of immigrants coming to America. An organized Jewish community didn’t develop in Augusta until the 1840s, when German immigrants began to arrive. In 1845, the original Congregation Children of Israel was formed. Its founding charter stated that the congregation was made up of “the scattered Israelites” of Augusta, Georgia, and Hamburg, South Carolina, which was located just across the river from Augusta. Isaac Henricks died in 1848 and is buried in Magnolia Cemetery next to his wife Esther.
Author Presentation & Kugel Cookoff
January 17, 2026
