Synagogue Steinheim (Westphalia)
The synagogue in Steinheim (Westphalia) was a house of worship that was destroyed during the November pogroms in 1938 .
history
Evidence for Jewish residents in Steinheim already exist from the 17th century; however, during this time it was only a question of individual families. For example, a single Jewish family appears in a tax list from 1646, after which temporarily none at all. In 1704, however, there were 40 people of Jewish faith from six families in Steinheim, in 1788 there were already 54. From 1847 the establishment of synagogue districts in the Prussian state was required by law; Steinheim formed one in connection with seven villages in the vicinity. On December 1, 1855, the statute of the religious community was passed. The livestock and grain trade, on which a large part of the area's Jews lived, took off in the second half of the 19th century. This led to an increasing number of members of the Jewish community in Steinheim; in 1880 there were 137.
For the church service, the parishioners first met in a prayer room, which was housed in a private house. Later, a half-timbered house in today's Rochusstrasse, which was built around 1784, was used as the first synagogue. After the construction of the new, larger synagogue, the house in Rochusstraße was still used by the community as a school and residence for the Chasan until 1930 .
The new synagogue became necessary as the congregation grew. It was inaugurated on August 1 and 2, 1884. The building was erected on the corner of Marktstrasse and Schulstrasse from yellow clinker bricks on a square floor plan. It had neo-Romanesque elements such as round arches, but had a Gothic tracery rosette in the central projectile of the west facade above the main portal . The octagonal dome of the building was crowned with the Star of David . The construction costs of 20,000 gold marks burdened the community until 1934.
The synagogue was equipped with a harmonium when it was inaugurated . At this point in time there was also a synagogue choir. In 1891 the apparently more liberal community also bought an organ.
In 1933 59 Jews were still living in Steinheim. Until 1936 there was still a teacher and chasan of the Jewish community in Steinheim. After this last Chasan was driven out by the National Socialists, no more services were celebrated in the Steinheim synagogue. Even before the November pogroms, the synagogue was victim of multiple attacks. On November 10, 1938, the interior was desecrated and destroyed. The organ was dragged to the church in a neighboring town. In the end, an attempt was made to blow up the synagogue, but it was not entirely successful. The city then bought the property. At the beginning of December 1938, pioneers from Höxter blew up the dome, and the remains of the wall were removed in the following weeks. Of the last 59 Jewish residents of Steinheim, 22 were able to emigrate in time, the rest were deported . Five people survived the Holocaust .
In 1953, a commercial building was built over the place where the synagogue had once been. In 1988 a memorial stone was erected in memory of the synagogue.
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Johannes Waldhoff: Citizens - Neighbors - Friends. Jewish life in Steinheim . Ed .: Heimatverein Steinheim. Steinheim 2016, p. 15 .
- ^ Johannes Waldhoff: Citizens - Neighbors - Friends. Jewish life in Steinheim . Ed .: Heimatverein Steinheim. Steinheim 2016, p. 38-39 .
- ↑ Steinheim Synagogue at lwl.org
Coordinates: 51 ° 52 ′ 3.1 ″ N , 9 ° 5 ′ 29.9 ″ E