Hohebach

General information: First Jewish presence: 14th century; peak Jewish population: 181 in 1858; Jewish population in 1933: 32
Summary: Jews were banished from this village during the Black Death pogroms of 1348/1349. Although they were permitted to resettle there in 1637, they belonged to the Ailringe community until 1817, when the independent Jewish community of Hohebach was founded. The synagogue on Rathausstrasse, a simple prayer room, was established in the 17th century. The first proper synagogue was built in 1817; in 1840, it was replaced by a new building with a classroom and a teacher’s apartment. The community established a mikveh in 1828, a cemetery in 1852 and a school in 1828 (the school shut down in 1925). Thirty-two Jews lived in Hohebach in 1933. They maintained a chevra kadisha, a women’s association and several charities. A teacher from Kuenzelsau instructed four children. The synagogue was damaged heavily on Pogrom Night: the interior was destroyed, and the ritual objects, holy books, eight Torah scrolls, carpets and curtains were taken away and set on fire. In total, 17 Hohebach Jews emigrated, three relocated within Germany, five died in Hohebach and eight were deported in 1941/42: three to Riga, three to Izbica and two to Theresienstadt. At least 24 Hohebach Jews perished in the Shoah. In 1945, the synagogue building housed German refugees. A plaque was placed outside the building in 1986.
Photo: View of the Mittlere Gasse, where the synagogue of Hohebach was located (the synagogue is on the left hand side), probably before 1900. Courtesy of: Unknown.
Author / Sources: Heike Zaun Goshen
Sources: AJ, IAJGS, PK-BW, SG-BW
Located in: baden-wuerttemberg