During the Spanish Occupation of Jamaica from 1494 - 1655, an intermittent stream of Jewish settlers, mainly from Spain and Portugal, began to settle in Jamaica, and were known as ‘Marranos’, as they had to practice their religion in secret, meeting in one another's homes for worship.
 
After the capture of Jamaica by the British in 1655 these ‘Marranos’ were able to practice their religion without fear, and for nearly 400 years Jews have lived in almost all parts of Jamaica, and have played and are playing an important part in all aspects of life, contributing greatly to the economic and social progress of the island.  
 
During the first years, Synagogues were built in Port Royal, Spanish Town, Montego Bay and Kingston, and 24 cemeteries were established across the island. With the arrival of Jews from various parts of the world, they naturally brought with them their forms of worship and so Jamaica experienced the various branches of Judaism, and the formation of separate Congregations, all acknowledging the Unity of God but differing in their ritual. From the early 1700's Kingston had two Congregations, the Portuguese Synagogue at Princess Street and the Ashkenazi at Orange Street, until 11th December 1882, when they were both destroyed by fire. Efforts were then made to amalgamate and have one Congregation and Synagogue, but instead, due to disagreement as to the ritual to be followed, a large portion of the estimated 2,000 Jews named themselves “The Amalgamated Congregation of Israelites” and built a Synagogue at our present site at Duke and Charles Streets in 1888, the remaining handful of Sephardim built a Synagogue at 58 East Street in 1884, and the Ashkenazim built their Orange Street Synagogue in 1894. So Kingston entered the 20th Century with three separate Congregations. But by the end of 1900, the two Sephardic Congregations amalgamated, and in April 1921, together with the Ashkenazim, all finally united to form ‘The United Congregation of Israelites'. 
 
The merger brought with it certain concessions on both sides and after 60 years, one may still recognise in our services some of the established Sephardic and Ashkenazi rituals which were combined, giving to our Congregation something unique.