- Ben Zion Hyman
Infobox Person
name = Ben Zion Hyman
caption = Ben Zion and Fannie Hyman, circa 1932
birth_date =October 22 ,1891
birth_place =Mazyr ,Belarus
education =Odessa Polytechnical Institute ,University of Toronto
occupation = Engineer, Teacher, Bookseller
spouse = Fannie (nee Konstantynowski)
parents = Rev. Mendel and Bella Hyman
children =Gurion Hyman (1925)Ben Zion Hyman (1891 - 1984) was a Canadian Jewish bookseller. Originally from
Mazyr ,Belarus /Russia , Hyman graduated from theOdessa Polytechnical Institute . After coming toCanada (Settling first inGuelph, Ontario ), he graduated in electrical engineering from theUniversity of Toronto . Hyman and his wife, Fannie (nee Konstantynowski), (in Polish, Fela; in Yiddish, Faigel), opened JewishToronto 's most prominent book store,Hyman's Book and Art Shoppe (later known as Hyman's Booksellers, and still later known as Hyman & Son) at 412Spadina Avenue in 1926.During his life, Hyman was active as a member, founder and/or president of a number of organizations. These included: Hadassah, JIAS, Toronto Zionist Council, Toronto JNF, Keren Hatarbut, Poale Zion, and Farband. Hyman was an elected delegate to the first Canadian Jewish Congress in 1919.
Hyman would close the store in the early 1970's after the death of his wife.
Hyman also founded the Toronto Jewish Public Library in 1941.
In 1953, Hyman's son
Gurion Hyman would open a branch at 1032 Eglinton Avenue West in the Cedarvale/Forest Hill area of Toronto.References
Gasner, Cynthia. "Hyman's provided sforim for every occasion." The Canadian Jewish News, August 26, 1999, p. B5.
Goldstein, Bonnie and Shulman, Jaclyn, eds. "Voices from the Heart: A Community Celebrates 50 Years of Israel." Toronto: McClelland & Stewart Inc., 1998. (See section "412 Spadina: From a Conversation with Gurion Hyman." p. 90-91).
Abella, Irving. "A Coat of Many Colours: Two Centuries of Jewish Life in Canada." Toronto: Lester & Orpen Dennys Ltd., 1990, p. 125.
Metro Page. "Little Jewish library moves its 30,000 books." The Toronto Star, October 28, 1983, p. A6.
Speisman, Stephen. The Jews of Toronto. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1979. [Speisman, Stephen. The Jews of Toronto. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1979]
Gottesman, Eli. Who's Who in Canadian Jewry, 1967. Page 275. Montreal: Central Rabbinical Seminary of Canada. Compiled by The Canadian Jewish Literary Fourdation.
Canadian Jewish Review, January 28, 1927http://www.multiculturalcanada.ca/cdm_item/mcc_cjr/5899/100/20
Canadian Jewish Congress (Organizational Records 1919-). CJC0001,SA Administrative Records. CJC,SB Minutes.http://www.cjccc.ca/national_archives/archives/arcguideCJC.htm
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