Grombach

General information: First Jewish presence: 1657; peak Jewish population: 70 in 1877; Jewish population in 1933: 20
Summary: The Jews of Grombach conducted services in a prayer room during the 18th century. Construction of a synagogue (housing a classroom and an apartment) commenced in 1840, but was not completed until 1850. The community employed a teacher of religion who also functioned as a chazzan and shochet until the early 1900s. There was a mikveh in town, and the Jewish dead were buried in Heinsheim. A charitable society was active in 1933, and five schoolchildren received religious instruction that year. By 1937, eight Grombach Jews had relocated within Germany and four had died. In October 1937, when only eight Jews remained, the community was disbanded. On Pogrom Night, a troop of SA men raided the synagogue, demolishing the interior and destroying the roof truss and apartment. A Jewish store was damaged and looted. Seven Grombach Jews were deported to the concentration camp in Gurs, France, on October 22, 1940. One Jewish woman remained in Grombach after the deportation, but she, too, moved away in March 1941. At least 24 Grombach Jews perished in the Shoah. The synagogue ruins were demolished in 1963. The town hall (at present-day 63 Ortsstrasse) built in its place includes an original stone from the synagogue, engraved with an inscription from the Book of Isaiah.
Author / Sources: Daniel Weiss
Sources: AJ, PK-BW, SHEJGS, SIA
Located in: baden-wuerttemberg