Salzhemmendorf
General information: First Jewish presence: late 17th century; peak Jewish population: 30 in 1885; Jewish population in 1933: 6
Summary: The Jewish community of Salzhemmendorf, established in
1843, included Jews from several neighboring communities.
In 1885, when this tiny community recorded its peak
population figure, most local Jews were cattle dealers, horse
dealers or peddlers. Salzhemmendorf ’s Jewish cemetery
was consecrated on Limberger Strasse in 1810. (Most of
the neighboring communities maintained their own prayer
rooms and cemeteries.)
In 1848, the Salzhemmendorf Jewish community replaced
an older prayer room (located in a private residence) with a
synagogue on the upper floor of a residence on Kampstrasse;
the building also housed a mikveh, a school and an apartment
for a teacher. We also know that in 1868, the community’s
chevra kadisha was dissolved.
In 1933, six Jews still lived in Salzhemmendorf (there
were similar numbers in the associated communities). As a
result of intensifying persecution and boycotts, many of Jews
left during the following years.
On Pogrom Night, Jewish properties were vandalized
and looted. Although the mayor prevented the synagogue
being set on fire, the building’s interior and windows were
destroyed by members of the SA and SS. In 1938/39, the
building was sold to a farmer who used it as a pigsty.
The remaining Jews were deported to camps in the early
1940s. At least eight Jews from Salzhemmendorf and from
the surrounding communities died in the Shoah.
The Salzhemmendorf cemetery was restored after the war,
but was vandalized in 1955.
Author / Sources: Heike Zaun Goshen
Sources: AH, JGNB1
www.gelderblom-hameln.de/juden/gemeinden/gemsalzhemmendorf. html
Sources: AH, JGNB1
www.gelderblom-hameln.de/juden/gemeinden/gemsalzhemmendorf. html
Located in: lower-saxony