Survey lists areas with Jewish ties

The Columbus Dispatch – July 26, 1989

BEXLEY – Bexley, Berwick and Eastmoor have the highest proportion of Jewish residents in Columbus, according to preliminary figures from a Columbus Jewish Federation demographic study.

Meryl Weissmann, director of operations and development for the federation, said about 21 percent of the houses contacted in those areas had at least one adult who was Jewish. The overall figure for Franklin County was 2.3 percent.

Weissmann, however, stressed that the figures were preliminary and no conclusions could be reached from them yet.

The study is being conducted by Frank and Susan Mott, who both hold doctorates in sociology. Columbus-based Saperstein Associates Inc. is doing the surveying.

The first part of the demographics study, begun about one year ago, involved calling more than 12,500 households in Columbus using randomly selected numbers.

The second leg of the study will be to send questionnaires to the 200 households that contained Jewish persons. Another 600 households registered with the federation also will be sent the questionnaires, Weissmann said.

The questionnaires will contain questions about income, education and involvement in the Jewish community.

The federation is doing the survey because the U.S. census, conducted every 10 years, does not include questions regarding religion.

The last Jewish demographic study conducted in Columbus was in 1969, Weissmann said.

The study gives the federation an indication of how many Jewish people reside in Columbus, their geographic distribution, household size and congregational and organizational affiliation.

Weissmann said the study will ”identify the Jewish community’s needs.”

”It’s to understand who they are and what they are like – their age, their education,” Weissmann said.

The report’s early findings indicate that the Jewish population of Franklin County is widely dispersed.

Many Jewish families are located in the area surrounding The Ohio State University, Clintonville, the Henderson Road area, the Northland area and in German Village.

Weissman expects the study to be completed by June 1990.