Baruch Papiermeister

Rishon LeZion museum family album:

http://www.gen-mus.co.il/person/?id=457

Beside being a farmer, Baruch designed several buildings in Palestie - such as the Saraya (=Turkish Government) house in Jaffa, and probably also Jaffa clock tower.

Baruch left Palestine,

his arrival to the USA is listed in Ellis Island records on July 17, 1920.

http://www.ellisisland.org/

Baruch Papiermeister was born in Latvia. In addition to his studies in the "Heder" and "Yeshiva" he engaged in general studies and later went to Berlin where he graduated as a qualified engineer- architect.

As a member of the Lovers of Zion movement he came to the country in 1885 and settled in Rishon Le Zion. From here he wrote to his brother, Aharon Papiermeister whom he had left in the diasporah, and suggested that he buy land in the village and indeed, with Aharon's funding, they bought 1000 dunams of land for the two of them. Asher Levin, who was just starting out in the village, planted and worked the land for them.

On the basis of his knowledge in chemistry, Baruh Papiermeister carried out experiments to produce various products from grapes but in this he did not succeed.

He also set up a chicken farm which was the first modern chicken run in the country and the chickens were the first thoroughbred chickens which they brought from Germany. At the same time he1901 in order to bring about improvement in the independent status of the Jewish villages in Eretz Israel.

As one of those who did not give in to the requirements of the Baron's officials in the village, he was discriminated against and was deprived of his rights in the winery and his grapes were designated as "tareff". For 2-3 years he sent his grapes in waggons for sale to the German village. In the end he gave in. However, at the same time he helped the settlers in Gedera whose grapes the officials also refused to accept in the Rishon Le Zion winery and voluntarily taught them how to produce liqueur and cognac .

In 1896, he initiated the setting up in the village of the literary society "Erev Kriya" for reading and discussion of cultural and political subjects and he was a member of its management.

The society met in secret as such gatherings were prohibited by the Baron's officials. To this end he volunteered his own kitchen as the meeting place of its members and they stored the books of the first library in his home.In 1897 he is a signatory to the new book of regulations in the village. Later Baruh Papiermeister was a member of the village committee from 1902-1909 and was twice chosen as chairman of the committee. During the time he headed the committee many new vineyards were planted, a third well was dug, the main street from the synagogue down to the officials house was paved and homes were built on JNF land for the Yemenites who had arrived in 1909.

He spent his last years in Chicago, USA with his sons and died and was buried there.