Jewish community of Böchingen
The Böchingen Jewish community in Böchingen existed until 1940. It fell under the jurisdiction of the Landau district rabbinate .
history
As early as the 16th century, three Jewish families lived in the area of Böchingen. From the beginning of the 19th century, the number of members of the Jewish community, which also included the Jewish residents of Burrweiler , rose sharply. In 1852 it reached its peak. At that time, the members of the Jewish community made up 25 percent of the population of Böchingen. The community belonged to the district rabbinate Landau. From the middle of the 19th century, there was a wave of emigration, mainly to the United States, as well as emigration to the cities as a result of increasing industrialization. As a result, the number of members in the Jewish community fell sharply. In 1933 only about 45 residents of Jewish faith lived in the community. From 1933, after the seizure of power of Adolf Hitler , the Jewish inhabitants were increasingly disenfranchised. In addition, there were repeated anti-Jewish actions. As a result, other members of the Jewish community left Böchingen. After the November pogroms in 1938 , all Jewish residents left Böchingen by early 1940. Thus the church was extinguished.
Development of the Jewish population
| year | Jews | Jewish families | comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1548 | 3 | ||
| 1759 | 22nd | ||
| 1773 | 62 | 13 | |
| 1777 | 87 | 18th | |
| 1808 | 80 | ||
| 1815 | 122 | ||
| 1823 | 176 | ||
| 1835 | 212 | ||
| 1852 | 240 | 25 percent of the population of Böchingen | |
| 1861 | 187 | ||
| 1871 | 160 | ||
| 1875 | 154 | ||
| 1895 | 119 | ||
| 1900 | 115 | ||
| 1910 | 90 | ||
| 1924 | 70 | ||
| 1933 | 42 or 45 | Different information in the sources | |
| 1936 | 40 | ||
| 1937 | 36 | ||
| 1938 | 33 |
Source: alemannia-judaica.de; jewische-gemeinden.de
Facilities
synagogue
The 140 square meter synagogue was built in 1828 at Hauptstrasse 29. During the November pogroms in 1938, the synagogue was devastated and became the property of the Böchingen community. After the synagogue was returned to the Rhenish Palatinate Jewish Community in 1950, it was demolished in 1951. A memorial plaque has been on the site of the former synagogue since 1997.
Mikveh
The first mikvah was located in a private home in the Eckgasse. In 1830 a new mikveh was built at 9 Eckgasse. The mikveh bathhouse is still preserved today.
graveyard
The community did not have its own cemetery. The deceased were buried in the Jewish cemetery in Essingen .
school
The community had had its own school since at least 1813. In 1837 it was housed in the teacher's house. In 1856 the Jewish community built its own school building with an apartment for the teacher right next to the synagogue at Hauptstrasse 29. The 240 square meter building served as a school building until around 1932. It was sold in 1954 and converted into a residential building that is still in use today. At times a separate teacher was employed who also took on the duties of prayer and shochet .
Holocaust victim
The memorial book - Victims of the Persecution of Jews under National Socialist Tyranny 1933–1945 and the Central Database of the Names of the Holocaust Victims of Yad Vashem list 39 members of the Böchingen Jewish community (who were born there or lived there for a while) who were during the time of National Socialism were murdered.
literature
- Bernhard Kukatzki: Jews in Böchingen: Traces of their History, 1548-1940. Society for Christian-Jewish Cooperation Palatinate, Landau 1996.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Böchingen . alemannia-judaica.de. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- ↑ a b Böchingen / Weinstrasse (Rhineland-Palatinate) . jewische-gemeinden.de. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- ↑ Commemorative Book Victims of the Persecution of Jews under the National Socialist Tyranny in Germany 1933–1945 . Federal Archives. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- ^ Central database of the names of Holocaust victims . Yad Vashem - International Holocaust Memorial. Retrieved April 28, 2020.