NAHALAT SHIVA

A large Cholera outbreak, coupled with the arrival and crowding into the Old City of Arab residents from Jordan, accompanied by the rising rental fees may have paved the way for this next neighborhood's inception. Seven people from well established Jerusalem families joined forces to buy land outside the walls and establish a new neighborhood. Nahalat Shiva, the inheritance of the Seven, was established on the other side of the Mamilla pool from Machaneh Yisrael. It is bordered by Jaffa road to the North, the pool and Moslem graveyard to the South, and a tomb to the East. In August 1869, the first Jerusalemite took up residence. This was a cooperative building effort. The land was bought in a communal purchase, divided into seven North South parcels from Jaffa road to the Mamilla pool. Each of the members paid in a sum of 12 pounds, totaling 84 pounds. With this they built one house, awarded by lottery. The winner agreed to pay his comrades back over as seven year period. And so it was, paying for and building one another's homes, collectively. In time, the strips of land were parceled out and more residents began building their own houses. By 1875, there were 40 houses standing. The buildings adjoined courtyards containing water cisterns. With the paving of a modern road from Jaffa to Jerusalem, Nahalat Shiva's residents were able to develop a tourism trade and way station on the way to and from the Old City.

THE OLD CITY

Ancient Jerusalem
The Western Wall
The Herodian Quarter
The Cardo
The Citadel
Ophel Excavations
Broad Wall
Burnt House
Western Wall Tunnels

Synagogues
The Ramban Synagogue
The Hurva Synagogue
The 4 Sephardic Synagogues
The Tiferet Yisrael Synagogue