Appingedam
The Jewish community of Appingedam is one of the oldest in the
province of Groningen. In 1563 a Jew from Prague obtained
permission to lease and operate the local lending bank. Documents
dated 1595 and 1605 indicate that Jews from Appingedam engaged in
trade with the nearby German town of Emden.
Throughout the seventeenth century, the Jewish community of
Appingedam remained quite small. During the eighteenth century
numerous Jews migrated to the town. Most of the new arrivals were
traded porcelain, gold, cattle, or hides. Others were butchers.
Over the course of the eighteenth century the municipal pawnshop
was operated by Jewish lease holders.
During the first half of the
eighteenth century, a number Jews - including a teacher and the
community's ritual slaughterer - gained full rights as citizens of
Appingedam. However, the economic circumstances of the Jews of
Appingedam were somewhat difficult. In 1780, out of fear of
excessive competition in the porcelain trade, local Jews petitioned
the municipal council to prevent additional Jews from settling in
the Appingedam.
In 1667, the Appingedam community opened a synagogue on the
Bolwerk. Two years later, however, the synagogue was closed under
pressure from the Reformed Church. From the middle of the
eighteenth century on, synagogue services were held in a private
house on the Dijkstraat. Due to the growth of the
community throughout the eighteenth century, this solution did not
remain viable. In 1801, a new synagogue was dedicated in the
Broerstraat. With the establishment of a Netherlands-wide Jewish
community structure in 1821, the Appingedam synagogue was
designated as a regional synagogue.
Early in its history, the Jewish community of Appingedam made use
of a section of the Jewish cemetery of nearby Farmsum. In 1762 or
1763, the community purchased its own burial ground on the
Heidensgang in Appingedam.
The Jewish community of Appingedam maintained a number of
charitable organizations. In addition, two women's societies cared
for the synagogue and its appurtenances. A cultural society was
founded in 1870. A separate organization for the care of the Jewish
poor was subsidized by the municipality until 1928.
During the German occupation the Jews of Appingedam
were subjected to the same measures and mistreatment as Jews
elsewhere. In September 1941, Jewish pupils were expelled from the
local public schools. A separate school established for them that
remained open only until the summer of 1942. In August, 1942, the
Jews of Appingedam, together with all the Jews of the province of
Groningen, were deported. Only a half a dozen Appingedam Jews
survived the war.
In 1948, what was left of the Jewish community of Appingedam was
merged into the Jewish community of the city of Groningen. The
Appingedam synagogue, damaged by a bomb during the last days of the
war, was eventually sold. It was later restored and is now used for
worship by the Free Reformed Church. In 1985, a memorial bearing
the names of the murdered Jews of Appingedam was unveiled in the
building. In 1968, the cemetery on the Heidensegang was
declared a protected monument. Since then, it has been cared for by
the national and local governmental agencies.
The Jews of nearby Uithuizen were never awarded the status of an
independent community, even though had their own cemetery and,
during the second half of the nineteenth century, held their own
religious services. The deportations of the Second World War put an
end to the Jewish presence in Uithuizen. The cemetery, located on
the Hoofdstraat West, is now maintained by the municipality of
Eemsmond.
The Jewish population of Appingedam:
| 1565 | 10 |
| 1710 | ca. 30 |
| 1760 | ca. 60 |
| 1780 | ca. 100 |
| 1809 | 130 |
| 1840 | 129 |
| 1869 | 237 |
| 1899 | 285 |
| 1930 | 153 |
Collectie en mediatheek
Circulaire
1898-06
Circulaire mbt indeling Ned.Isr. Gemeenten, 1898.
Collectie > Documenten > 00005393
meer treffers in Collectie > Documenten
Gevelsteen
1887 (ca.)
Gevelsteen met Hebreeuwse en Nederlandse tekst. De hoger
liggende letters en de rand zijn zwart geverfd.
Collectie > Museumstukken > B1837
Overzichtsfoto
1984
Interieur van voormalige synagoge te Appingedam, 1984.
Collectie > Fotos > 40002719
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
Klein en groot zijn daar gelijk : de Joodse begraafplaatsen in de provincie Groningen
2009
Klein en groot zijn daar gelijk : de Joodse begraafplaatsen in de provincie Groningen.
Collectie > Literatuur > 12015341
