Borculo
Borculo was one of the first locations in the east of the
Netherlands where Jews settled. Although exact details as to the
founding of the community are lacking, reports indicate that Jews
resided in Borculo and nearby Neede as early as the middle of the
seventeenth century. The former Jewish cemetery on the Lange
Wal dates from this period.
In 1820, the community inaugurated a new cemetery was on
Deugenweerd near the Van Coevordenstraat. In 1842, the community
built its first synagogue, located on the Weverstraat. Prior to
then, religious services had been held in a private home.
The Jewish population of Borculo grew
throughout the second half of the nineteenth century. At the same
time, Borculo became known as a center of Jewish learning. During
its heyday, the community also maintained a women's society, a
society offering aid to the sick and dying, a burial society, a
youth organization for the promotion of Jewish identity, and a
theater society.
A number of Borculo's Jewish families played important roles in
the town's industrialization. During the first decades of the
twentieth century, several members of the Jewish community served
on Borculo's town council.
In 1925, Borculo was struck by a hurricane. The Jewish school was
destroyed but the synagogue was miraculously spared.
During the wartime occupation of the Netherlands the Jews of
Borculo, like other European Jews, suffered under German
anti-Jewish measures. In July of 1941, the synagogue was set ablaze
by a Dutch Nazi sympathizer. The torah scrolls and other
appurtenances were rescued from the flames but the building itself
was badly damaged. An unusually high percentage - almost fifty
percent - of the Jews of Borculo managed to survive the war in
hiding. The other half was murdered in Nazi death camps.
From the end of the Second World War until 1980, when the Borculo
community was absorbed into that of Winterswijk, the Jews of
Borculo used a former school building as their synagogue. Borculo's
Jewish cemetery was restored in 1989 and today is maintained by the
municipality. In 1997 a plaque in memory of Borculo Jews murdered
during the war was unveiled in the ritual washing house of the
cemetery. Presently, there are plans for a second plaque at the
former synagogue. The former synagogue was purchased in 1999 by the
Borculo Historical Society and in 2000 was donated to the Borculo
Synagogue Foundation. In 2002, the Foundation also gained title to
the former ritual bath located behind the synagogue. Plans for the
restoration of both synagogue and mikvah are now under
development.
Neede
As mentioned above, a Jewish community existed in Neede from the
mid-eighteenth century. In 1813, the Neede community was officially
merged with that of the town of Eibergen. By the twentieth century, only a
number of Jewish families remained in Neede. During the early years
of the Second World War, a dozen Jews from Neede succeeded in
hiding in a nearby forest but were finally captured by the Germans
in 1943.
Ruurlo
From the mid-eighteenth century on, a number of Jews resided in
the village of Ruurlo but attended synagogue in Borculo.
Jewish population of Borculo en surroundings:
| 1809 | 77 |
| 1840 | 110 |
| 1869 | 146 |
| 1899 | 163 |
| 1930 | 139 |
| 1951 | 48 |
| 1971 | 54 |
Collectie en mediatheek
[Vereeniging Talmoed Thora]
1865 (ca.)
Cirkel met in het midden een davidster waarin de datering.
Collectie > Museumstukken > 07841
meer treffers in Collectie > Museumstukken
Dossier
Dossiers (158) van de Commissie voor Oorlogsschade mbt 155 joodse
gemeentes (Amsterdam en mediene), 1945-1950.
Collectie > Documenten > 00005954
meer treffers in Collectie > Documenten
Overzichtsfoto
1984
Voormalige synagoge te Borculo, 1984.
Collectie > Fotos > 40002756
meer treffers in Collectie > Fotos
[Binnenland] : Amsterdam
Vermelding van benoemingen met betrekking tot de Ned. Isr. schoolbesturen.
Collectie > Joodse pers > 20031385
meer treffers in Collectie > Joodse pers
Joodse oorlogsmonumenten in de provincie Gelderland : alsmede algemene...
2005
Joodse oorlogsmonumenten in de provincie Gelderland : alsmede algemene
oorlogsmonumenten waarop joodse namen voorkomen.
Collectie > Literatuur > 12013463
