Grossostheim

Summary: Grossostheim’s Jewish community was formed probably in the mid-18th century, around the time a synagogue was established at 300, Breite Strasse. We also know that the community had a mikveh (demolished in 1911) and employed a teacher who performed the duties of chazzan and shochet. Burials were conducted in Schweinheim. In 1933, four schoolchildren studied religion with a teacher from Aschaffenburg. On Pogrom Night, the synagogue’s interior was destroyed; the Torah scrolls and ritual objects, however, were saved, having been hidden the morning before the pogrom. Three Jewish homes were attacked, several Jews were assaulted and one, a Jewish man originally from Pflaumheim, was beaten so badly that he died shortly afterwards. Most of the village’s Jewish men were arrested. During the Nazi period, seven Grossostheim Jews emigrated and 12 relocated within Germany. One Jew was deported to Izbica (via Wuerzburg) in April 1942. In August 1942, the village’s remaining five Jews were moved to Aschaffenburg, from which they were deported to Theresienstadt in September. At least 22 Grossostheim Jews perished in the Shoah. The synagogue building was later converted into a residential property. A commemorative plaque was affixed to the old town hall in 1991; and a memorial stone was also unveiled in Grossostheim.

Author / Sources: Nurit Borut
Sources: AJ, EJL, PK BAV