Traces of Jewish life in Salzwedel, Germany

A colourful little town close to Hamburg, Salzwedel also used to have a small Jewish community. The first traces of such a life were remembered by a note on the wall of the building on Marktplatz no.27: Here it used to function a synagogue to be from 1867 until the infamous Kristallnacht. Nowadys it is a private residence.

Situated on the German Timber-Frame road, Salzwedel succeeded to have a continuous Jewish presence only in the 19th century. The highest number of residents was achieved in 1840: 103 Jews. The number decreased to 64 in 1933. If ones keeps an open eye, can spot possible Jewish traces in the buildings around the central area.

Curious to find out more official historical testimonies, we addressed the Tourist Information Center, from where we were guided to one of the two Jewish cemeteries. Luckily, the door was opened and I could snatch inside to have a look and take some pictures.

The cemetery is situated in a green area, quiet, close to the Christian cemetery. The stones - around 50 according to my counting - were dated until 1945. 

Covered by green bushes, the stones are silent testimonies of a life that it is no more. Attracted by the salt business opportunities, Jews settled around here in the 14th century, but never achieved a flourishing life.

The stones are written both in Hebrew and old German scripts, many of the persons buried here with local German names.

Although empty and apparently abandoned, the cemetery doesn't have signs of vandalism.

The history of Jews in Salzwedel is not too much discussed and as far as I know, there are not noteworthy religious or community personalities associated with this place. Most probably, many came and go, this place being just a stop on the way to other attractive places around, such as Hamburg or Lüneburg.

My camera is wandering over and over again near the quiet stones.

The place is empty, then streets are empty, only the rays of light and the mild wind is wrapping everything in a quiet bubble.

I would be curious to find out more about the lives and stories of the people buried here, but the current knowledge is relatively limited. Only some local archives could be helpful perhaps.

Most frequent mentions about Salzwedel are connected with the WWII tragedies. Nearby, in 1943, it was created the Neuengamme women concentration camp, with a capacity of 1,000 persons that hosted around 3,000 inmates.

The inmates were Jewish and non-Jewish both, mostly from Hungary, but also Greece or Poland.

The memory of the Salzwedel Jews is remembered by Stolpersteine placed in the front of the buildings were the Jewish residents lived once.

Nowadays, Jewish life in Salzwedel means a lot of silence and many memories, many of them waiting to be written.

Part of the traveller's task was to keep the current memory and share is further. Sometimes, this is all we can do and, as for now, it might be the beginning of a new story.