Burgsinn

General information: First Jewish presence: 18th century; peak Jewish population: 87 in 1867; Jewish population in 1933: 49
Summary: In 1780, the Jewish community of Burgsinn inaugurated a synagogue at 14 Fellener Strasse. Although the Jews of Burgsinn were able to maintain their own mikveh and school, they buried their dead in Altengronau (in Hesse). In 1933, the Jewish teacher instructed six schoolchildren; a charitable society was also active in Burgsinn that year. After 1936, the community’s children attended the Jewish school in Mittelsinn. In March 1938, windows in Jewish homes and in the synagogue were smashed. Later that year, on Pogrom Night, the synagogue’s interior was destroyed: five Torah scrolls were torn up and ritual objects were set on fire, but the fire brigade chief stopped the mob from burning down the building. Vandals attacked Jewish homes, Jewish families were arrested, SA men abused Jewish women and seven Jewish men were sent to Lohr, from where five were deported to Dachau. The synagogue was sold to a local resident after the pogrom. Eighteen Burgsinn Jews emigrated and 23 relocated within Germany. The last three were deported to the East (via Wuerzburg) in November 1941. At least 20 Burgsinn Jews perished in the Shoah. The synagogue was converted into a residential building during the 1990s. A memorial plaque has been unveiled at the city hall.
Author / Sources: Heike Zaun Goshen
Sources: AJ, EJL, PK BAV, SG-B
Located in: bavaria