A traveling museum exhibit from The Alexander Levi Heritage Project

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Much has changed since those days in the early 1830s when Alexander Levi set foot in what is now Dubuque.

Our small, but comprehensive exhibit, highlights the connection between the growth of the region and the continuous Jewish presence in the region that began with Levi and several of his co-religionists from the Alsace region in France.

However, as a project focusing on economic, intellectual, political and religious history it is, in many ways, emblematic of the shaping of the entire region in its infancy and today.

In a way, too, this tale of fierce determination, entrepreneurial spirit and the desire to build relationships and  community is  a story of many immigrants then and now...

Credit: Perspective map of the city of Dubuque, Ia. 1889. H. Wellge, Published  Milwaukee, American Publishing Co. [1889] Courtesy of The Captain William Bowell Sr. Library, Dubuque

Dubuque: A Model of Tolerance And Diversity Since The Early Days

As home of 3 universities with religious   charters (2 Catholic and 1 Presbyterian) and Lutheran and Baptist seminaries, Dubuque, while small, has a powerful religious presence.

It is also unique in that a Jewish community has enjoyed a continuous and robust role in Dubuque’s civic and economic life since the city’s founding (according to church records, Alexander Levi loaned and/or donated funds to Father Mazzuchelli for the building of the city’s first Catholic church.Additional research mentions his having donated money to a Presbyterian congregation as well). Today, too, the Jewish community, though small, is actively involved  both in formal and informal interfaith organizations. 

The Alexander Levi Heritage Project's exhibit, "From Distant Places to Dubuque's Shores: 175 Years of Jewish Life," is intended for communities of all ages and religions who reside in the city of Dubuque and the Tri-State region; tourists, educators and scholars; former Jewish residents of Dubuque representing all Jewish denominations and Levi descendants regardless of current faith affiliation.