OLD NI-JS, Lijfblad voor de Heemkundekring Bergh
De Joodse gemeenschap in 's-Heerenberg: viertal artikelen door zes eeuwen Joods leven in s'-Heerenberg, van de 13de eeuw tot de Tweede Wereldoorlog
[English (*): The Jewish community in 's-Heerenberg: Four articles through six centuries Jews life in 's-Heerenberg, from the 13th century until WW2]

The Jewish community in 's-Heerenberg is the title of a series that Jan Hoogakker wrote in Old Ni-js nos. 26,27,28 and 29. These articles have been republished in a revised and supplemented version in Old Ni-js nos. 75.
In the first half of the fourteenth century, Jews have already lived in 's-Heerenberg; a commemorative book lists 's-Heerenberg Jews among the victims of the persecution of 1349-1350, an international pogrom in which the Jews were blamed for the plague epidemic that ravaged Europe from 1348. In the second half of the sixteenth century, when few Jews still lived in the Netherlands, a Jewish resident was mentioned in its place.
In the early eighteenth century there was a Jewish criminal gang active around 's-Heerenberg. In the second half of the eighteenth century, the number of Jewish inhabitants of the town increased. The Jewish cemetery along the road to Zeddam must have existed before 1752 and a house synagogue dates from about 1793. The first permanent synagogue was probably built in 1801 at Het Kattenburg.
At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the Jewish community of 's-Heerenberg was so poor that the religious teacher had to be fired. Some time later, another teacher could be appointed.
The Jewish congregation reached its highest membership in the sixties of the nineteenth century. In 1871 a new synagogue was built at Het Kattenburg. The church board consisted of two people and was also responsible for education.
From the end of the nineteenth century until the German invasion, the number of Jews in 's-Heerenberg remained constant. The majority took part in the general club life in the locality. They were employed in trade, slaughter and banking. During the occupation the vast majority of them were deported and murdered. Some survived by going into hiding.
In 1947 the Jewish Congregation was dissolved and added to that of Doetinchem. The synagogue, which had been looted during the war, was sold in 1949 and rebuilt as part of Hotel Heitkamp.
The Jewish cemetery on Zeddamseweg was renovated in 2021 and has been maintained by Rotary Bergh ever since. [source: www.berghapedia.nl]

(*) English translation by Ronnie Gundelfinger

Jaargang 11 nr 26 – Oktober 1993 [Dutch]

The Synagogue of Bergh (English summary) The first synagogue was built in a house in 1793. It had 28 seats; the community were 48 people. A couple of years later (before 1801) a permanent synagogue was built. The community was poor and had problems to pay depths for the building. Hiring a teacher was also difficult because of lack of money. Als for the upkeep of the synagogue the money was lacking.
1865 the community decided to break down the old synagogue and to build a new one. Again, money was a big problem and a committee of Non-Jews decided to support the project, among them the mayor. The community at that point consisted of 17 families. After a long and complicated process, the government also gave a loan.
1868 the architect A. te Wiel made detailed plans. The new synagogue should include a Cheder and a Mikweh. In 1870 the building started, and on 2 June 1871 the synagogue was officially opened with a special service. A famous Chazan came from Zutphen. Between 1870-1941 a Jewish teacher was teaching the children.
After 1945 the synagogue was not reopened. There were only three survivors in the village. In 1947 they asked the main synagogue in Arnhem for the permission to sell the synagogue. This happened in 1949, the building was turned into a hotel.
Two crowns of wrought iron and the gravestones in the Jewish cemetery are the only remnants of Jewish life in Bergh.

Jaargang 11 nr 27 – December 1993 [Dutch]

The Jewish cemetery in Bergh (English summary) In 1752 a cemetery was placed at the Zeddamseweg. There are no tombstones from that period. The oldest tombs are for Nathan Abraham Frank, who died in 1832. Jacob Simon ben Chajim 1839 and Rachel bat Asher, who died in 1846.
From about 1880 on the cemetery was too small but there was a lack of money for an extension. The duke of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen owned land next to the cemetery and was willing to give it to the Jewish community for free. 1894 the bigger cemetery was opened.
1909 the community was in financial problems and sold a part of the cemetery.
The list shows the names of the graves. After the Shoah it was unclear who would take care of the 250 Jewish cemeteries in the Netherlands.
In 1954 Huis Bergh signed a contract that guaranteed the upkeep of the cemetery. It was found that several Germans were buried in the Jewish cemetery. They were moved to a war cemetery in de Peel.
In 1952 and 1957 were incidents of vandalism. Huis Bergh made it public and restored the graves.

Jaargang 12 nr 28 – april 1994 [Dutch]

The Jewish community in ‘s-Heerenberg 1900-1940 (English summary) Around 1900 the area was mainly agricultural, farms, forests. ‘s-Heerenberg was a small town with weekly markets and bigger fairs during the year. In 1899 it counted 1993 inhabitants, of which 38 were Jewish (2%). How was the relationship between the Jews and the catholic majority? The Jews spoke the local dialect Achterhooks like everybody else. For big market events the local council considered the Jewish holidays.
Earlier restrictions around professional options for Jews still influenced the structure of their daily life. Fear of competition also played a role. Jews had a smokehouse or a factory where skins of cows were preserved after the slaughter. In 1925 a modern factory for artificial horn was built (Kunsthoornfabriek de Struisvogel). The factory was doing well and in 1929 an extension was built. It functioned until the early 1950s, when new materials were developed.
In an area with a lot of forests some Jews were involved in wood processing jobs. In 1910 the family Bloemendaal opened a turnery. Another family member had a shop for radios and bicycles. Sally Jacob, an ex-banker opened a textile shop. There was a strong competition from other salesmen, so Sally Jacob renewed his shop with elegant interior. Sally Jacob died in 1938. His wife and their daughter emigrated to Chile in 1939.
One of the most popular clubs in ‘s-Heerenberg was the sportsclub Tabor, founded in 1925. Benjamin Straus was on the board of the club and a successful sportsman. Trainings were on Tuesdays and Thursdays and during the training alcohol was forbidden. The club flourished and was able to build a clubhouse (de Societeit). It was destroyed by a fire in 1945. In the football club “Berg Op Waarts” Jewish and non-Jewish members played together. The musical club “Sint-Antonius Gilde” had at least one Jewish member (Roidi Bloemendaal).
All the Jewish children went to the regular schools, but didn’t go on Shabbat. On Sunday afternoon they had Jewish class at the synagogue. The teacher came by tram from Doetinchem. Jewish kids got piano lessons by the catholic nuns.
There was no specific Jewish neighborhood, but on several streets (Klinkerstraat, Kellerstraat) several Jewish families lived close to each other.

Jaargang 12 nr 29 – September 1994 [Dutch]

The period 1933-1945 (English summary)

The period 1933-1940

When Hitler came to power in 1933, he immediately ordered laws against the Jewish population. This led immediately to a high number of Jewish refugees trying to get into the Netherlands.
In 1933-34 the attitude of the Dutch government was unclear, but soon a clearly antisemitic attitude influenced the policies. After the “Anschluss” of Austria the number of refugees increased and in May 1938 an order was given to the border police not to let any German refugee into the Netherlands. After the “Crystal Night” 7000 entry visas were issued but thousands of others were sent back to Germany.
Several Jewish families in ‘s-Heerenberg took in relatives from Germany. B. Straus was known to support refugees. There was a national committee for Jewish refugees (Comité van Joodse Vluchtelingen CJV), that raised money.
The mayor of Dinxperlo Mr. Verbeek secretly housed and supported Jewish families. When the number of supported families increased, Mr. Verbeek was forced to step down as mayor. Only long after the war there was some kind of rehabilitation for him.
The government had the concept of separating the Jewish refugees from the rest of the population and decided to build the camp “Westerbork”. The CJV was supposed to pay one million guilders over the period of six years. The board members Ascher and Cohen accepted the demand, because they were afraid that otherwise refugees would be sent back to Germany.
At the outbreak of the war there were 750 refugees in Westerbork. After 10 May 1940 they fled from the camp and tried to get to Amsterdam and from there by ship out of the country. But they didn’t get far and some even returned to the camp.

The period 1940-1945

After the German invasion many Jewish citizens tried to flee to IJmuiden and from there to England. Some committed suicide.
After the first chaotic days a certain calm set in. The German governor Seyss-Inquart had said that the Germans wouldn’t want to force their ideology on the Netherlanders. But at the same time the first rules against Jews were installed (May 1940). Jews were not allowed to work in air defense and Jews that lived on the coast had to move. Therefore a group of 120 German and Polish orphans came to Beek near Bergh. There they were allowed to stay from June to September 1940, then the “Luftwaffe” demanded the building. Harry Straus, together with Jopie and Max Straus brought the children to a school in Lengel. From there they were moved to Doetinchem or to Amsterdam.
On 16 July 1940 ritual slaughtering was forbidden but in ‘s-Heerenberg continued with the help of neighbors until 1942. From 12 August all Jewish shops needed to have a sign outside. In October personal documents had to prove the “Arier” status and in November the first Jewish civil servant were dismissed.
In spite of all these regulations the Jews in ‘s-Heerenberg lived quite undisturbed until the middle of 1942. A Jewish council (Judenrat) had to be formed and B.Straus was nominated as its head. From 2 May 1942 Jews had to wear the yellow star. In 3 days 560,000 stars were distributed all over the Netherlands. Every Jew got 4 stars.
To prevent non-Jews from wearing the star (like in Denmark) the sale was only allowed to people with a “J” in their papers.
On 17 July 1942 the first transport left Westerbork for Auschwitz. A protest note of all the Christian churches was publicly read only in the Catholic churches and Catholic priest were punished.
The Germans demanded that Jews volunteered for work camps. The first appeals in June and July 1942 showed no result but the pressure increased. Jopie Straus, the nephew of Harry Straus came to such a camp. On 2 October 1942 all Jewish work camps were shut down and the workers, together with their families were brought to Westerbork. I.B.A. Rauter, chief of police and security wrote to Himmler that 12,296 men and women could be sent “to the East”. Jopie Straus wrote in a letter that the head of his work camp distributed all the food left to the inmates and even had additional bread baked. They were also allowed to keep their work boots. He also mentioned that two brothers (Meyer from Hengelo) had escaped.
The commander of the camp wished everybody farewell with a handshake. The atmosphere was quite relaxed. His wife was seen crying.
By foot and train the group arrived in Westerbork. There they met a group of women and children from Amsterdam who hadn’t got any food or drink for two days.
Jopie Straus wrote to his parents, asking for photos but also for food and cigarettes. It was said that people were sent to Sibiria. Several Jews from ‘s-Heerenberg were among the 12,296 mentioned.
Who remained in Bergh in the summer of 1942?
– Mozes Bloemendaal and his wife Helena Kamp (both 61 years old), his brother David Bloemendaal and his wife Johanna Ruhr (71 and 65)
– Mozes’ son Siegfried Bloemendaal (34) with his wife Rosa Schosser (36) and their daughter Regina (8) and Erich (1)
– Rudi of Roidi Bloemendaal and his wife Mietje Goudketting (30 and 28), their wedding photo is picture 4.
– Benjamin Straus and his wife Hedwig Levita (61 and 60) and their adult children Sarah, Bernardine and Harry. Son Joseph was in the Dutch army and in a prisoners camp in Poland.
– Leopold Straus and his wife Lea Jacob (59 and 54). Their son Jopie had written the letter from the work camp Ruinen. Their son Max lived in Vught. Their daughter Sara (she survived Auschwitz) and the sons Sallie and Benno still lived at home.
– Abraham Kamp and his wife Rosalie Cahn (65 and 63) with their handicapped daughter Herta.
– Barend Meijer Schwaab and his wife Hinda Moskowitch (94 and 54) with a daughter of Hinda’s first marriage Johanna Spielmann
– The widow Roosje Cohen, geboren de Leeuw, with her children Geertruida, Jenny and Isaak Julius. Simon Cohen had passed away on 21 March 1942.
– Joseph Jacobs and his wife Hermina Rosenberg (37 and 34) with their daughter Sara (2).
Going to school or traveling were impossible. Property was sold to survive and non-Jewish spouses were divorced to protect them. Harry Straus became the representative of the “Judenrat” (Joodse Raad) in Amsterdam. There was a department that was supposed to help emigrating Jews (Hulp aan Vertrekkenden), but in fact even the Jews that were deported to Germany were expected to cover their costs.
The Germans were convinced that with the personal documents and the food stamps they had complete control over the population. The landscape in Holland makes it difficult to hide but with the help of the resistance Jews, escaped prisoners of war or downed pilots were hidden.
Joep and Agnes Azewijn, out of a deep religious belief, took in the three children of the family Straus. They lived there for almost two years. Siegfried Bloemendaal, who was divorced from his wife, hid together with his parents in Beek. Meyer Zwaab had moved with his wife and died at his daughter Johanna’s place.
Hiding was a complicated matter and often needed falsified papers, food stamps, money …
By 1943 most of the Jews of the Netherlands were deported.
Hermina Jacobs had given her two-year-old daughter Sara to a Mrs. Berendsen. She had promised to treat Sara well and to return her to her mother after the war. But the mother couldn’t live without her daughter and after four days went to pick her up, not knowing that on the same day all the Jews of that street (kellenstraat) were to be deported.
Herta Kamp had lived in an institution for the handicapped (Apeldoornsche Bosch). On the specific order of Eichmann all 1100 inhabitants were deported in the night of 20 January 1943.
Most of the Jews of ‘s-Heerenberg were brought to Westerbork. Their apartments were given to other families, a company “INVERMA” took over Jewish property.
In the summer of 1942, a small vessel was brought to the castle in ‘s-Heerenberg. The owner and the significance of the object is unknown, but most probably it came from a Jewish household and survived the war.
Most of the Jewish inhabitants of ‘s-Heerenberg died between 26 and 28 of February in Auschwitz or between 14 May and 23 July 1943 in Sobibor, altogether 31 people.
After the war the wife and daughter of Meijer Schwaab lived for a short time in ‘s-Heerenberg, then they moved away. Johanna Berlijn-Spielmann died 1994 while visiting her daughter in Israel.
The children of Benjamin and Hedwig Straus survided in hiding, also the daughter of Leopold and Lea Straus, who survived Auschwitz.
Siegfried Bloemendaal and his parents returned to ‘s-Heerenberg where he remarried his wife (the divorce had been to protect her).
In a letter in 1947 in which Mozes Bloemendaal suggested the sale of the synagogue he mentioned three remaining Jews in ‘s-Heerenberg, the widow Zwaab (or Schwaab), his wife and himself.

Onderduiken in Azewijn in de Tweede Wereldoorlog [Dutch]

Links

Joodse gemeenschap in 's-Heerenberg [Dutch]
Jewish Communities 'S-HEERENBERG
War Memorial 's-Heerenberg
The Encyclopedia of JEWISH LIFE Before and During the Holocaust