Boechingen

Summary: Few Jews were permitted to settle in Boechingen before the French conquest of 1797, and only on the condition that they pay “protection money.” It was during the early part of the 19th century that this community of small traders and cattle dealers managed to form a congregation, a Jewish school (1813), a mikveh and a prayer hall. In 1850, when the prayer hall premises were deemed unsafe, a synagogue—the site also accommodated a school building and an apartment for the teacher—was built in Boechingen (70 seats for men, 50 for women). The Jewish teacher also performed the duties of chazzan and shochet; in 1917, Jacob Possenheime was appointed teacher. Many Jews left Boechingen after the anti-Jewish boycott of 1933, so that few Jews were left to witness the destruction of Pogrom Night, when the synagogue and adjoining communal buildings were set on fire. Later, on October 22, 1940, the remaining Jews were deported to the concentration camp in Gurs, France. A memorial tablet was unveiled at the former synagogue site in 1997.

Author / Sources: Harold Slutzkin
Sources: EJL, SG-RPS