Sulzburg

Summary: The Jewish community of Sulzburg was home to a district rabbinate during the years 1727 to 1887. Religious services were conducted in private residences until 1822, when a synagogue was dedicated on Muehlbachstrasse; the structure was renovated in 1877 to include a mikveh. The community’s Talmud Torah school, founded in 1795, eventually became an elementary school. After the school was shut down in 1876, the community hired a teacher of religion who also served as a shochet and chazzan. The 16th-century cemetery was used by Christians after Jews were expelled from Sulzburg in 1615, but it was returned to the Jewish community in 1717. In 1933, eight Jewish schoolchildren studied religion in Sulzburg. Several Jewish associations and branches of nation-wide Jewish organizations were active there. On Pogrom Night, the synagogue, cemetery and Jewish - owned establishments were damaged and plundered; Jewish men were sent to Dachau. Sold in 1939, the synagogue was subsequently used as a library. Forty-seven local Jews emigrated, 10 relocated within Germany, eight died in Sulzburg and 27 were deported to Gurs (October 22, 1940). At least 22 Sulzburg Jews perished in the Shoah. The synagogue, which was restored during the years 1979 to 1984, is now a cultural center. A plaque was unveiled at the site in 1970, and a memorial has also been erected at the cemetery.

Author / Sources: Heike Zaun Goshen
Sources: AH, AJ, EJL, HU, PK-BW