Neckarzimmern

Summary: This community conducted services in a rented prayer hall in Schmidsbrunnen during the 18th century. In 1824, a building on Hauptstrasse was inaugurated as the community’s first synagogue; and in 1873 the dilapidated synagogue was pulled down and replaced with a new, one-story house of worship which housed a mikveh and a schoolroom. Burials were conducted in Heinsheim. Twenty-nine Jews lived in Neckarzimmern in 1933; a teacher from Heinsheim instructed one child in religion. The community had sold the synagogue to a local family before Pogrom Night, but the building was nevertheless broken into and ransacked that night: ritual objects were thrown onto the street, and Jews were forced to load them onto wagons, after which the items were set on fire. The synagogue building burned down almost completely. Eleven Jews emigrated, one relocated within Germany, two died in Neckarzimmern and 14 were deported to Gurs on October 22, 1940. A Jewish woman who was married to a Christian survived the war in Neckarzimmern. At least twelve Neckarzimmern Jews perished in the Shoah. After World War II, the synagogue was converted into a residential building. As of this writing, the town has not erected a memorial plaque; therefore a passerby would never know that the building was once a synagogue.

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