In 1890 Blackstone hosted a large conference, “On the Past, Present, and Future of Israel,” in Chicago attended by hundreds of delegates, including a large presence of American rabbis. This produced the famous “Blackstone Petition,” submitted to US President Benjamin Harrison in March 1891. The petition carried the signatures of more than 400 of the US’s most prominent citizens: industrialists, politicians, clergymen, judges, press magnates. Its aim was to persuade President Harrison to use his influence with European nations, the Ottoman Empire, and Russia to facilitate the release of Russian Jews so that they might settle again in the Land of Israel.