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This project seeks to collect all of the Jewish families from the town of Berkach (Thüringen), Germany.
Jews first settled in Berkach in the 18th century and by 1833 the community grew to 152 (33 % of the total). The community had a synagogue (1854), its own cemetery (1846), and a school. The Jewish population was 98 in 1895 and 38 in 1920. The 20 to 30 Jews who still lived in Berkach at the time of the Nazi takeover in 1933 were persecuted and harassed. In spring 1938, the Jewish community was forced to hand over the synagogue for domilition to the local authorities. The demolition was never carried out and the synagogue, now owned by the municipality, was spared on Kristallnacht (9-10 November 1938). In the night of the pogrom, nine Jews were arrested and deported to the Buchenwald concentration camp, where one died. Ten community members made ot to safe havens (U.S., Australia, Palestine) before the outbreak of the war. At least 14 Jews from Berkach perished in concentration camps to which they were deported in 1942. After 1989 the old synagogue was restored.
Article from "The Encyclopedia of Jewish life Before and During the Holocaust". First published in 2001 by NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS; Copyright © 2001 by Yad Vashem Jerusalem, Israel.