Mordecai Manuel Noah

Mordecai Manuel Noah was born in Philadelphia to parents of mixed Sephardic and Ashkenazic heritage. He lived for some years in Charleston, where he studied law, before settling in New York. His father had served in the Revolutionary War and, as a young man, Noah also wished to serve his country. However, he became disillusioned with the prospects for Jews in the United States when, acting as the U.S. consul in Tunis, he was recalled for the given reason that his religion had proven an obstacle to his consular duties. Thereafter, Noah became a proponent of Zionism, even purchasing land on Grand Island, in upstate New York, to serve as a temporary refuge for persecuted Jews until they could go to the Land of Israel. He named this proposed refuge Ararat. In addition to these activities, Noah was a dramatist, writer, and speaker.