Isaac Jacob Guggenheim

By 1800 Isaac had become the wealthiest Jew in Lengnau. Isaac, a lifelong ruthless moneylender known as "Old Ice Cube", was a patriarchal figure in the Lengnau ghetto. On his death in 1807, at the age of 84, he left an estate valued at 25,000 guilders. The estate, one of the largest left by a Jew in Lengnau, consisted of a huge chest of coins and goods that Old Icicle had accepted as collateral for loans. Among these were 830 gold and silver coins, 72 plates, a mortar, a frying pan, 2 kneading pans, a Sabbath lamp, a brass coffeepot, 19 leaves, 15 bath towels, 8 nightgowns and a potty.

From 1776 until 1866, Endingen and Lengnau were the only places Jews were permitted to live in Switzerland. Jews were not allowed to own property and Jews and Christians were not allowed to live under the same roof. Many buildings in Endingen and Lengnau were built with two entrances, one for Jews and one for Christians. Many of these two-doored buildings still stand in both villages. In the 19th century, half of the population of Endingen and one-third of the population of Lengnau was Jewish. Starting in 1866, Jews were permitted to settle anywhere in the country. Many left Endingen and Lengnau and moved to the large cities. Today, there is only one Jewish family, the Bloch family, still residing in Endingen.