Georgensgmuend
General information: First Jewish presence: 1564; peak Jewish population: 120 in 1880; Jewish population in 1933: 35
Summary: Records tell us that a synagogue burned down in
Georgensgmuend in 1631. The regional Jewish cemetery
there, established in the late 16th century, was enlarged on
several occasions. Georgensgmuend’s Jewish community
established another synagogue (it housed a mikveh) in
1735; and in 1836/37, that synagogue was enlarged to
accommodate a community center with a school, a mikveh,
and teacher’s lodgings.
In 1933, a chevra kadisha and a women’s association were
active in Georgensgmuend. A teacher from nearby Ellingen
instructed one child in religion.
As most Jews had left Georgensgmuend by October
1938, the synagogue’s ritual objects were moved to
Munich. Although the synagogue was not burned down
on Pogrom Night (it had been purchased by a local baker),
the interior was partly destroyed, as were the ritual objects
in Munich. Windows in Jewish homes were shattered and
several Jews were imprisoned. Two days after the pogrom,
Georgensgmuend’s remaining 12 Jewish inhabitants were
expelled. At least 37 local Jews perished in the Shoah.
In 1988, the synagogue and school were purchased and
restored by the municipality. Original murals were discovered
there during the restoration process, as was a genizah. The
buildings were opened to visitors in 1997.
A memorial pillar was erected near the synagogue in 2000.
Author / Sources: Dorothea Shefer-Vanson
Sources: AJ, EJL, PK BAV www.georgensgmuend.de
Sources: AJ, EJL, PK BAV www.georgensgmuend.de
Located in: bavaria