Mechernich

Summary: The Jewish community of Mechernich consecrated a cemetery on Im Steinrausch in or around the year 1873 (it was twice desecrated). Local Jews built a synagogue on Rathergasse in 1883; in 1913, a mikveh was installed there. On Pogrom Night, SA men and local residents tried to level the synagogue with a tractor. The synagogue’s furniture and prayer books were set on fire, more than ten Jewish homes were destroyed and 12 Jewish men were sent to Sachsenhausen. We also know that of those sent to Sachsenhausen, at least one fled to Belgium after his release. The synagogue ruins were torn down in 1939. Several Mechernich Jews emigrated from or relocated within Germany. Approximately 27 Jews were deported in June and July 1942, and at least 55 perished in the Shoah. A memorial stone was erected on Rathergasse in 1988. In 2008, five small, brass memorial stones were affixed to the sidewalk in front of a former Jewish house at 12 Bahnstrasse.

Author / Sources: Heidemarie Wawrzyn Sources: SG-NRW, SIA, YV www.hans-dieter-arntz.de www.mechernich.de/seiten/aktuelles/2008/09/StolpersteinAktion_ Mechernich.php